Article by Joseph Cox

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

In Paris, in 2015, almost 200 countries agreed to attempt to limit global temperature rises to 1.5C above ‘pre-industrial’ levels and to keep them below 2C. 10 years on from the Paris Agreement only a third of countries involved have submitted plans on how they will cut their emissions of planet- warming gases. At pre-COP meetings in October 2025, the Brazilian COP presidency emphasised a need for moving beyond agreements to forming coalitions of businesses to catalyse real-world climate action[1]. The Islamic philosopher Al-Ghazali famously stated “Knowledge without action is wastefulness and action without knowledge is foolishness”, currently, globally, we are seeing people acting on climate change without knowledge. For example, during his speech at the UN General Assembly in September 2025, the President of the United States, Donald Trump, labelled climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world”, criticising green policies and carbon footprint initiatives. He also described climate change as a “scam” and that scientific predictions were fabricated by “stupid people” and were economically damaging[2]. Climate change deniers are refusing to acknowledge the overwhelming scientific evidence of changes to the planet’s climate. This is compounded by people with knowledge who are not acting, for example, the UK Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, chose not to contribute to a new tropical rainforest protection initiative launched as part of COP30. People are unwilling to act for the longer-term benefit of the planet as it involves prioritising shorter-term political and economic goals.

Both responses mean that the world is unable to prevent climate change, or as John Urry states, we cannot put the “genie” back in the “bottle” as capitalism is no longer able to control the exceptional powers which it generates[3]. These ‘exceptional powers’, which John Urry describes, of excessive consumption and greed mean there is a third position to Al-Ghazali’s quote. This third position involves carrying on acting in a destructive manner to the planet with the knowledge of the damage being caused. Urry discusses this destructive power in his essay ‘Sociology and Climate Change’, where he describes society shifting from ‘disciplined’ consumption’ to ‘excess capitalism’, meaning we are consuming more of the world’s finite resources than is sustainable.

A wilful example of this is Urry’s systemic analysis of the transport system, where he states how modern societies are shaped by high carbon transport systems. He suggests how several different factors have contributed to these high carbon systems being ingrained in our lives. For example, infrastructure has been slanted in favour of prioritising cars in urban development and the only alternative, public transport, is underfunded and so less appealing to the average person. Furthermore, car manufacturing industries carry a lot of weight politically and economically. For example, in August 2025 Jaguar Land Rover received a £1.5 billion government loan to negate cyberattack disruption and help the company maintain cash flow, pay suppliers and support its work force, reinforcing car dependency[4]. This is the same UK government which refuses to contribute to rainforest protection. Urry also highlights how advertising and media reinforce car ownership as a desirable cultural norm, linked to status, freedom and convenience. This is manifested in the idea of passing your driving test as a rite of passage into adult society. The impact of a car culture is high greenhouse gas emissions which contribute to climate change and air pollution disproportionately affecting low-income communities.

There is a fourth position and a moral obligation in terms of climate change. Which is to have knowledge and to act. Urry’s criticism of Neo-liberal ideology and unfettered capitalism in deregulating markets which encourages consumer excess without regard for the impact on the planet. Urry argues for a removal of economic dominance in climate discourse and for sociology to take a more significant role through systemic analysis to highlight the destructive power of ‘carbon-military industrial forces.  We need to switch to low carbon societies which will reshape the everyday lives and national institutions to create a cycle of actions and outcomes which will benefit the environment and maintain ecological balance. We have the knowledge about the extent and impact of climate change; we just need to act collectively to address it. Einstein said that the world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything, it’s not entirely accurate as it underestimates the destructive power of both combined.

[1] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c04gqez4lkyo

What is the COP30 climate meeting, and where and when is it taking place? – BBC News

[2] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c179p4wvz29o

Trump UN speech: Seven years ago his audience laughed, this year they were silent – BBC News

[3] Sociology and Climate Change

https://journals-sagepub-com.manchester.idm.oclc.org/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1467-954X.2010.01887.x

[4] Government to guarantee £1.5bn Jaguar Land Rover loan after cyber shutdown – BBC News

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cgl15ykerlro

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