Researchers have called on the British government to provide greater transparency regarding the threats posed by climate and nature breakdown, citing survey results from viewers of a documentary film addressing environmental challenges.
Last November, experts gathered for what organizers described as a first-of-its-kind national emergency briefing in Central Hall, Westminster, where nine specialists delivered assessments on the scale of changes required for the UK to adapt to climate and ecological shifts. The event organizers subsequently produced the People’s Emergency Briefing, a crowdfunded film that outlines urgent threats to food security, the economy, and public health stemming from climate and nature breakdown.
The film has reached approximately 185,000 viewers across more than 3,400 screenings. A survey of 13,000 people who watched the film found that 87% reported increased motivation to take action on climate issues. The research also indicated that viewing the film was associated with substantial shifts in environmental understanding and concern. Additionally, 89% of respondents stated that the government should respond to the crisis with emergency-level mobilization comparable to responses to the Covid-19 pandemic or World War II.
Researchers noted that 93% of surveyed individuals said the public was not being fully informed about climate change and nature loss. Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh from the University of Bath, who led the research, explained that while most people were aware of certain climate risks, secondary risks relating to national security, food supplies, and impacts on the National Health Service were less apparent to the general population. She suggested that once people understood these broader implications, they supported increased public education on the topic.
The National Emergency Briefing team is requesting that government leadership deliver an independent expert-led emergency response on climate and nature issues, similar to how public communication was handled during the Covid-19 crisis. The UK government did not provide comment on whether it would screen the film but stated it welcomes campaigns that sustain public discussion about climate action and nature preservation.
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