This decade is crucial for the protection of our natural environment, and to mitigate and adapt to the impacts of climate change. While significant steps have been taken through global initiatives, there are still huge gaps in knowledge across sectors to drive change at the speed required to meet the targets of the Paris agreement. Thanks to a generous philanthropic gift, Professor Gail Whiteman at the University of Exeter Business School is establishing the new Hoffmann Impact Team to translate cutting-edge science to help to accelerate nature and climate.

BELOW: Watch an interview with André Hoffmann, Gail Whiteman, inaugural Hoffmann Impact Professor for Nature & Climate, and Axel Threlfall, Editor at large, Reuters

Context

As a leading research institution for sustainable business, climate, and environmental sciences, the University of Exeter is at the cutting edge of scientific understanding and innovation. In 2023 we established the Green Futures Solutions initiative to bring together our executive education programme, green consultancy services and applied research activity to make it easy for businesses to engage directly with our leading scientists.

Hoffmann Impact Team Overview

To affect positive change, we know from experience that we need to speak to and engage the companies who are sitting at key leverage points in their sector and who will activate wider systems change. We want to systematically approach sectors with a team of experts and resources under the new organisational format of “The Hoffmann Impact Team – Accelerating Action on Nature & Climate”.

The Hoffmann Impact Team will be led by Professor Gail Whiteman as the inaugural Hoffmann Impact Professor. The goal of this Professorship is to turbocharge support for low carbon action by building science-informed impact pathways in key target industry sectors. An “Impact Professor” is a unique role which privileges the role of scholarly engagement with a primary focus on mobilising “action” as opposed to more traditional academic roles.

The Hoffmann Impact Team will focus on three industry sectors in the first two years and include a Research Impact Fellow and a Communications Impact Fellow for each sector, coordinated by a Senior Research Project Manager alongside Prof Whiteman. The Impact Fellows will each be complimented with a Communication Impact Fellow to help stakeholders understand the changes and adapt.

Our preliminary industry sectors are identified as follows:

• Food – building upon a pilot campaign developed by Climate Basecamp, we will assess, develop and leverage action pathways for low carbon and nature-positive action on staple foods (e.g. rice, wheat, soy) as well as iconic foods that consumers love (chocolate, coffee, ice cream, wine, etc.)
• Consumer Package Goods/Electronics – We will investigate, assess, develop, and leverage pathways for low carbon and nature-positive action on key consumer package goods and electronics, working with stakeholders and businesses through the supply chain.
• Digital Technologies – this work stream will investigate, assess, develop, and leverage pathways for low carbon and nature-positive action within the digital technologies sector including engagement with social media companies (Meta, TikTok, X, etc.) on disinformation and misinformation on climate and nature positive themes and build upon existing work from our environmental intelligence team.

Scope of Activities

By focusing on key industry sectors, we will be able to bridge the gap between the scientific understanding of systemic change and the practical methods of delivery. There are currently insufficient tools available for business leaders to understand their impacts on nature and our climate; to be able to commit to change at Board level; or to measure progress against their ambitions to be nature and climate net-positive.

Crucially, we will also share knowledge broadly to ensure there are opportunities for others to learn from best practice, applying learnings from one sector to another and at different scales.

Preliminary scope of activities include:

• Development of a Strategic Impact Plan to accelerate nature and climate recovery in key
• Develop a strong collaborative network to leverage engagement across the industry sectors through businesses and global convenors,
• Co-Identify concrete opportunities to accelerate actions and identify approaches to overcome blockers to positive action.
• Develop new concepts and ideas to extend intellectual understanding of climate and nature challenges pertinent to their sector and develop these ideas for application of research
• Design and creation of models and tools to translate the these to new
• Pump prime the delivery of cutting-edge research-led impact solutions for businesses and NGOs in each sector.
• Identify ways to engage with the sector across international and financial boundaries to ensure solutions are widely accessible.

Next Steps

Our aim is that this will be a rolling programme over the next five years where we will recruit specialists for three sectors at a time to maintain momentum, share best practice and work at scale.

A critical next step is to identify key collaborators to work closely with the Hoffmann Impact Team.