Accelerating solutions to the climate crisis: The talks of TEDCountdown @BloombergGreenFestival

We’re midway into the decisive decade for climate change — the decisions and actions taken today will determine the way we live tomorrow. In a special evening of TED Talks, performances and conversations, TED’s global climate initiative, TED Countdown, partnered with Bloomberg Green at the Bloomberg Green Festival in Seattle to dive into the current state of climate, big-picture thinking about the economy, the interplay of climate and democracy and more.

The event: TEDCountdown@BloombergGreenFestival, a session of TED Talks presented by TED Countdown, TED’s global climate initiative, and Bloomberg Green. Hosted by Logan McClure Davda, TED’s Head of Impact, and Manoush Zomorodi, host of NPR’s TED Radio Hour.

When and where: McCaw Hall, Seattle, WA, on July 11, 2024

Speakers: Johan Rockström, Akshat Rathi, Gaya Herrington, Nathaniel Stinnett, Deb Chachra, Aline Sousa and Hrund Gunnsteinsdóttir

Music: Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter and musician Courtney Marie Andrews performs “May Your Kindness Remain” and “If I Told,” music based on a personal journey of self-discovery and introspection.

The talks in brief:

We’re halfway through the 2020s, dubbed the most decisive decade for action on climate change. Where exactly do things stand? Climate scientist Johan Rockström offers a frank status report on the state of our planet — the more we learn, the more risk we uncover — and explains what must be done to maintain a safe operating space for humanity on Earth.

Historically, capitalist economies have pursued profits by extracting from the environment. Can we flip that script? Author and climate reporter Akshat Rathi shows how the climate crisis is forcing governments and businesses to change how capitalism works, harnessing its forces to create solutions instead of making problems worse.

It’s time to change the goal of our economic system from the relentless pursuit of growth to human and ecological well-being, says sustainability researcher and economist Gaya Herrington. She calls for a “well-being economy” that shifts the global mindset from “never enough” to “enough for each” and prioritizes solving poverty, caring for nature and fostering shared prosperity for all.

The biggest barrier to addressing the climate crisis is a lack of political will, says environmental voting advocate Nathaniel Stinnett. He explains why increasing voter participation among citizens is crucial to enacting climate solutions — and breaks down how his nonprofit organization is using behavioral science to transform climate concern into environmental action.

Infrastructure needs to be localized, flexible and reversible if we’re to empower the world with long-term, sustainable green energy, says engineering professor Deb Chachra. She explores how being plugged into the grid provides individual agency — a luxury not shared by everyone — and explains why these shared networks need to change with the environment if we’re to move the needle on climate change.

What do the people doing the daily work of implementing solutions to climate change on the ground really think? TED Countdown visited Aline Sousa, president of CENTCOOP, a network of over 1,000 waste pickers in Brasília, to hear about the importance of these often-overlooked individuals putting climate solutions into practice. She calls for better recognition — and payment — for these key players working to reduce and neutralize emissions.

Filmmaker and sustainability leader Hrund Gunnsteinsdóttir shares her journey diving into the Icelandic principle InnSæi, or intuition. She suggests tuning into your unconscious mind offers new paths to success, outlining three ways InnSæi can help humanity address our biggest existential threats.