Climate emergency in the context of planetary boundaries
The acceleration of climate change we are seeing is triggering one of the deepest and most threatening global crises to ensure a fair and livable planet for the more than 8 billion inhabitants and for the biosphere. The climate crisis is so significant and severe that climate emergency is already being discussed. We are in a global context in which the trespassing of planetary boundaries, particularly those related to climate emergency, has clear effects on our daily lives, especially in an uneven and unfair manner. Organizations, across their diversity, cannot circumvent the necessary debate on how they must adapt to the new climate emergency context and how they can contribute effectively to mitigation and adaptation, without falling into greenwashing. New metrics, beyond current green certifications, that can capture and incentivize the decarbonization and ecological transition of organizations will need to be found. Obviously, this requires a profound change in the continuous economic growth logic that transcends the individual wills of organizations and requires profound social, cultural and political-economic change in the priorities we have as a society.
Professor in the Economic and Business Studies at Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC). He is part of the Global Change and Urban Transformation Laboratory (TURBA) at the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute (IN3). He teaches sustainability-related subjects in different degrees and masters. His research revolves around political ecology, from water management to broader sustainability issues, with a special focus on the urban and metropolitan dimension in a climate emergency context.