"One of the greatest challenges is for us to exploit climate change science not only as the basis for developing green products, but to sell them as well"
Cheltenham Science Festival
03 June 2009
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Good afternoon, everyone.
Can we address climate change in positive and practical ways, which maintain our quality of life? My answer – as an engineer with a PhD in robotics, as a science entrepreneur, as a government minister and as a father of five young children – is a definite "yes".
I'm fundamentally an optimist, and that derives from my own experience in science and engineering; a recognition of the barriers that scientists and engineers have overcome in the past – in medicine, communications, transport.
That doesn't mean I'm not extremely concerned about global warming. I am. But rather than quote depressing forecasts of rising temperatures and sea levels, let me describe the moment when the gravity of this issue really hit home personally.
Last year, I visited a NASA Research facility in California, where I saw supercomputer-generated models of the retreating polar ice caps projected onto a vast screen. With the changing seasons, the caps receded and expanded. But, over time, the images presented the earth as if it was quite literally struggling to breathe – and they left a permanent impression on me.
It is because we have invested in climate change research that we are getting a better handle on what is happening to the planet. This country is a world-leader in satellite-driven earth observation. A few months ago, I launched a new centre that will be monitoring the multiple processes affecting our planet – analysing the carbon cycle and atmospheric chemistry; improving the prediction of flooding, earthquakes & volcanic eruptions.
I can also report that we're investing heavily in next-generation technologies like electric vehicles and researching alternative energy sources, as we attempt to reduce dependence on fossil fuels and position ourselves in the vanguard of the green revolution – and, just as important, learn to adapt to environmental change.
But my concern today is more about public perceptions than scientific research or the specifics of government policy for achieving a green economy, important though they are.
I believe we need to change our approach to climate change. Less emphasis on telling people they have to stop doing many of the things they like – an almost puritanical argument that, for climate change to be addressed, growth has to stop and our quality of life has to decline.
I don’t accept that. More importantly, it won’t work.
People must want to change: they will only do that if they are offered attractive options that encourage them to.
People must want to tackle the climate change conundrum themselves – to alter their own behaviour. And that's going to require business and government coming together to show them how they can and convince them why they'd want to.
This is about making change desirable and accessible.
Let me give you an example. On display outside is an Aston Martin racing car like the one I'll be driving in the Le Mans 24-hour race next week. It runs on second-generation bio-ethanol fuel – meaning that it's made up of spent grains, peelings and other waste, rather than purpose-grown crops.
When my team first decided to go green back in 2006, other teams concluded that we'd gone soft. They joked that my pre-race preparations involved overloading on lentils; that I was driving in open-toed sandals.
Well, they changed their tune when the car grabbed pole position on its very first outing. Suddenly, everyone wanted to know about the science and engineering involved – and that included the fans. It did no harm, of course, that the car looked great – and that on starting when the engine was cold, it used to give off the intoxicating smell of Haribo sweets. My kids loved that.
My point here is that we need to accelerate new technologies that deliver performance with sustainability, and then put them within reach of people. Not just racing cars, clearly, but energy-efficient products for the home and access to the latest digital media.
More than that, we've got to get better at marketing them. That marketing has to make green science cool and exciting, rather than dull and worthy. Less sandals, more Jimmy Choos.
Remember those adverts where Jennifer Aniston promotes shampoo before warning viewers: "Now pay attention – here comes the science bit."
In fact, her message was quite the opposite: your hair will look great; who cares about the so-called chemistry behind it?
So, one of the greatest challenges – as I see it – is for us to exploit climate change science not only as the basis for developing green products, but to sell them as well. Where the thrilling technology isn't just the consumer interface which allows you to operate something with a touch screen or by voice control, but also what's going on inside.
Do that, and we'll have a public that supports innovation as much for the scientific and technical advances it represents as for the convenience it offers.
People who appreciate how scientists explore ways to make sure we live within our environmental means.
Children who decide they want a piece of the action: to be part of the truly epoch-changing discoveries we can expect in future – breakthroughs equivalent to nuclear fission, the World Wide Web or stem cells technologies – that will, I believe, protect our planet's biodiversity and preserve it for human habitation.
Behavioural change often occurs in a crisis – but, with global warming, we mustn't allow the situation to reach crisis point. The answer is to give ordinary people – whose motivations are properly understood – the opportunities and incentives to change for themselves.
When people have attractive options which allow them to do things better – to act out of optimism rather than defeatism – they usually take them.
Thank you.
