FST BLOG

How social sciences are essential in the UK's net zero transition

• 21 May 2025
• Environment, Technology
• Dr Karen Bickerstaff

Current net zero policy, as well as research and innovation funding, shows something of a skew towards supply-side technological innovations. Far less emphasis is placed on reducing our demand for energy – despite compelling reasons for this to have greater prominence. There are significant risks and uncertainties associated with over-reliance on supply-side and negative emission technologies, such as carbon capture and storage and direct air capture. Furthermore, waiting for some still-to-be-proven solution can be seen (particularly by the general public) as an excuse for not supporting - or for delaying the implementation of - emission reduction solutions that we already have and that we know work.    The current emphasis on supply fails to address the roots of energy demand.

From this perspective, the solution to the net zero challenge lies more in socio-technical interventions that enable adjustments to how we live and how we power our everyday lives, and less in purely technological interventions that sustain current patterns of demand and expectations around consumption.

Social science research is critical in supporting such systemic changes, aimed at redesigning how we live, travel and produce and consume goods and services. It has, for instance, consistently demonstrated that the vast majority of people are worried about climate change and are willing to make lifestyle changes if important enabling conditions are in place – such as a government that makes a strong and consistent argument for decarbonisation, better infrastructure, and addressing inequities in access to, and the cost of, lower carbon alternatives.

In the run-up to the 2024 UK general election, colleagues working on ACCESS conducted a survey of almost 3,000 UK citizens. We asked about these people’s willingness to make specific lifestyle changes (to home energy, diet and travel) for climate reasons. On average, 43% were already acting or firmly planning to do so. Another 28% said they might be prepared to make such changes in the future. At the same time, the majority (62%) had serious concerns about vested interests, under-resourced local authorities (59%), and a lack of government investment in infrastructure (59%).  Attempted changes will fail if these concerns and challenges are not addressed.

We know from past and ongoing societal transitions that change tends to involve particular ‘galvanising issues’ around which different stakeholders and publics can gather. In this sense, building connections with issues, places, organisations or co-benefits that different communities care about can transform the way a policy or intervention is viewed – recognising that not everyone will be persuaded (solely) by the clean energy and / or net zero goal. For instance, our taskforce case studies highlighted the importance of fuel poverty reduction in promoting housing retrofit, the importance of ocean plastic as an issue that galvanised action to reduce consumption of single use plastic and the idea of ‘clean and decent homes’ which was an important factor in the rapid switch from coal to gas central heating in the UK. Social science research has convincingly shown that one of the most important issues galvanising support for net zero action is delivering changes that address widespread concerns about fairness and equity. In this respect, interventions must address – head-on – barriers to participation such as the price of low-carbon options (e.g. electric vehicles or heat pumps), and the disproportionate contribution of the richest in society to carbon emissions.

Opportunities must also be created to promote and sustain meaningful civic dialogue around climate and low carbon policy, nationally and, crucially, locally. In our survey, three out of five people felt that they had no or very little opportunity to influence climate policies (59%). Dialogue processes are important for strengthening democratic engagement with net zero – they can reveal areas of contestation, anticipate unintended consequences and identify potential galvanising issues. Social science has much to offer here, with leading expertise on methods of public dialogue, including those that recognise and engage directly with conflict and the negative impacts that change can and does have. Dialogue-based methods do of course have challenges, and building a deeper understanding of issues is often more likely than delivering agreement or consensus. Examples like School Streets and housing retrofit projects, that work with communities, highlight the importance of dialogue to increase public and policymaker understanding, and co-devise solutions that are acceptable and fair. Social science evidence also shows that these forms of engagement can build trust in policy processes and increase the chances of success.

Research on the history of societal transitions shows that local and other public authorities and non-political institutions (e.g. education, third sector, businesses, health service) play a key role in delivering socio-technical transitions that are effective and fair. These groups and organisations occupy a critical ‘mid-level’ space between top-down policy and people’s everyday lives. They can work with communities to implement policies that are cognisant of local needs, can identify issues that best galvanise support and are well positioned to mitigate downsides. Properly resourced local climate commissions, city-wide groups that bring together local organisations and businesses, offer one example of how mid-level actors could be supported to help drive and monitor climate action.

In summary, social science research can not only assist the UK in meeting climate mitigation and net zero goals, it can also help us all imagine what future low carbon places and societies – in terms of societal needs and aspirations and technological possibilities - could and should look like. 

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