Key facts
- 93% of surveyed viewers believe the public is not fully informed about the climate crisis and nature loss.
- 87% of viewers felt more motivated to act after watching the 'People's Emergency Briefing' film.
- 89% of viewers believe the government should respond to the crisis with emergency-level mobilization.
- An estimated 185,000 people have viewed the film at over 3,400 screenings.
- The film calls for a primetime, televised emergency briefing on the climate and nature crisis.
Researchers have urged the British government to be transparent about the scale of the climate and nature crisis, following an "emergency briefing" event and a subsequent film that have significantly increased public concern and motivation to act. The "first-of-its-kind national emergency briefing" held in Westminster Hall featured nine experts presenting stark assessments of the changes needed to adapt to a rapidly changing climate and ecological landscape.
The "People's Emergency Briefing" film, crowdfunded by the team behind the event, outlines the urgent threats to food security, the economy, and public health posed by climate and nature breakdown. The film has been viewed by an estimated 185,000 people across more than 3,400 screenings. A survey of 13,000 viewers indicated that 87% felt more motivated to act after watching the film, associating it with a "substantial shift" in environmental understanding and concern. Furthermore, 89% of respondents believe the government should respond to the crisis with emergency-level mobilization, comparable to the Covid-19 pandemic or World War II.
Prof Mike Berners-Lee, chair of the National Emergency Briefing, stated that the public understood the threat from Covid-19 when trusted with facts and called for a similar united emergency response delivered by independent experts and fronted by the prime minister. Prof Lorraine Whitmarsh, from the University of Bath, who led the research, noted that while general climate risks are known, "second-order risks" such as impacts on national security, food supplies, and the NHS are less obvious. She added that viewers feel everyone should be aware of these risks as they will affect daily life.
The National Emergency Briefing team has called on Andy Burnham to be honest about the scale of the threat. John Swinney, the first minister of Scotland, recently attended a screening of the film. The UK government stated it "welcomes any campaign that keeps our action against climate change and nature loss in the public discussion" but did not comment on whether it would screen the film.