Climate of optimism: Why veteran environmentalist Sir Jonathon Porritt is so hopeful right now

Exclusive: The global response to coronavirus has shown us what action looks like — ‘We are capable of doing astonishing things’, says writer and broadcaster

'Prosperity needs to be generated in ways which protect the natural world rather than destroy it,' says Sir Jonathon Porritt (Getty)

From a news perspective, the climate crisis could hardly look worse. Every day, new scientific papers are produced detailing the various inventive means by which our species is attacking its one and only home.

Meanwhile, the worst pandemic in living memory is causing devastation around the world, with numerous environmental studies suggesting the erosion of ecosystems could be the very cause of the leap of the virus from animal to human.

With air pollution levels already soaring above what they were before the coronavirus crisis in some places, and airlines and car manufacturers lobbying for leniency in their environmental obligations, people could be forgiven for thinking our species had somewhat forgotten the existential threat we face.

So it is against this bleak backdrop Sir Jonathon Porritt, one of the UK’s pre-eminent environmentalists, has published his latest book Hope in Hell, a work his publishers say is “ultimately optimistic”, and described as “a powerful call to arms from one of Britain’s most eloquent and trusted campaigners”, by Green MP Caroline Lucas.

Speaking to The Independent following his appearance at the wonderfully-named Lockdown LitFest, Porritt, 69, explains his buoyancy, and why he believes the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic could provide an opportunity for individuals and authorities.

“It’s a right old mess we’re in right now,” he says, when I ask about the impact of coronavirus on the climate crisis. “In a way it’s going to be the critical test — whether we’ve got the ability to learn lessons from Covid-19 and actually incorporate them into some of our planning for addressing the climate emergency.”

He thinks some of the more apparent adjustments we have made to accommodate the lockdown will undoubtedly remain.

“I hate to pretend I’ve got any kind of crystal ball here, but I think it is inevitable we will lock-in some of these changes that we’ve seen in ways of working [during lockdown]. I think people have got used to working from home. I don’t subscribe to the view that we will never want to go back to an office again, as I do detect quite a lot of ‘Zoom frustration’, but the idea that we’ll go back to exactly the same pattern for our working lives is ridiculous.”

Porritt says one of the key revelations which has been “exciting” in terms of how we might address the climate crisis is how the pandemic showcased the sudden ability of governments and local authorities to act decisively.

Speaking about the rapid roll-out of new cycling lanes and changes to road routes to help reduce the spread of the virus, Porritt takes aim at the government’s vast financial commitment to motor vehicles.

“We’ve got a massive road-building project in this country, with experts now saying ‘we’re never going back to that level of dependence upon car-based transport’, so we really ought to take this moment to reduce the road-building programme, to make these massive investments now in cycling and walking, which clearly people are beginning to really find helpful and genuinely beneficial.”

He adds: “For me it really matters that London, Manchester, Bristol, these cities have said ‘we know how important it is and we’re starting now – we’re not waiting for later on’. They’re starting major roadworks now. It really is exciting.”

He concedes there remains just a short amount of time available to us to put into practice the necessary measures to combat the worst impacts of global warming — the subhead of his book is “a decade to confront the climate emergency”.

So where does the optimism come from?

“Firstly, there really is no technological impediment to ultra-low carbon, high-quality life in the near future,” he says. “Just genuinely none. All the technologies are available.

“Secondly, there’s no shortage of capital. We’ve seen that when the world wants to marshall its energy to make something happen we are capable of doing astonishing things, and there is a wall of capital available to invest in long-term prosperity for nations.”

He also points to the sea change in attitudes from big businesses — a group which over previous decades has hardly enjoyed the strongest alliance with the climate movement.

“There’s big acceptance in the business community that this has got to change. Almost the whole of the businesses community is saying ‘seize hold of this opportunity because it won’t come back again’. And that is brilliant.

He adds: “Pretty much all the companies you’d see as reasonably responsible partners to wealth creation in this country have absolutely got the message that we need to do it and the sooner we do it the better — because then we can plan for it and do it cost effectively. What they’re worried about is government leaving it until it’s too late and then, guess what, it costs an arm and a leg. So I’m very heartened by that.”

He is also glowing about the impact over 2019 of young people taking to the streets to demand action over the climate emergency.

Though the lockdowns in countries around the world have seen movements such as the school strikes for climate paused and direct action by groups such as Extinction Rebellion has likewise been scaled back, Porritt says that will not stop people “resonating with is the incredible contribution from young people in terms of changing the dynamics about climate politics”.

“A lot of that momentum has inevitably been lost under the lockdown. They couldn’t get out on the streets, so they couldn’t do what they’ve once done, but they’re still there.

“They’re going to be a big part of the story when life comes back to something resembling normality. So I draw huge heart from all of that.”

But he also suggests that on an individual level there is a fresh eagerness to connect to nature and the environment in a meaningful way — particularly given the coronavirus crisis.

“I think people have begun to rethink our relationship with the natural world, and the degree to which we have recognised our dependence on the natural world.”

He says this is “something we’d lost sight of over the last few years, but now it’s right back there in the fray — for obvious reasons”.

“For me it’s a very timely reminder that prosperity needs to be generated in ways which protect the natural world rather than destroy it.”

So what should those in power do to take advantage of Porritt’s brand of optimism? I ask him what he’d say to Boris Johnson if he had two minutes with him, and his reply is a distillation of diplomacy and assertiveness:

“You’d obviously have to use an elevator moment of this kind tactfully,” he says. “So I’d say ‘You haven’t had the best of Covid crises Prime Minister, and there’s going to be quite a lot you need to do to restore your reputation as the can-do guy. Here’s the opportunity. Save us from the economic disaster to follow on the health disaster by putting everything into unambiguous leadership around low-carbon prosperity. Bend your mind to that. Bring your fellow cabinet ministers with you, use the enthusiasm and energy of civil society and emerge from this still a winner.’ I’d probably stop there!”

Hope in Hell: A Decade to Confront the Climate Emergency is published by Simon & Schuster on 25 June at £16.99.

Sir Jonathan Porritt is also in conversation with Lockdown LitFest’s Paul Blezard, available on www.lockdownlitfest.com at 3pm on Friday 5th June.