Jeremy Oppenheim from Systemiq has released The Blue Whale Inquiry - Shock Therapy: A Strategic Reset for the Sustainability Movement (April 2025). The report outlines what a deep reset of the sustainability movement could look like and draws on insights gathered from interviews with over 50 leaders in business/finance, government, politics and civil society as part of the Blue Whale Inquiry launched last October.
Human Level’s Take:
- We’re currently facing three major, simultaneous shocks to the system. First, we have breached the 1.5°C threshold far sooner than expected, and large-scale physical and financial climate impacts are rapidly becoming the new norm. Second, we have seen a dramatic acceleration in climate technology, combined with the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI). Third, we have a new U.S. Administration that views climate action as an ideologically motivated agenda - undermining U.S. competitiveness and constraining global cooperation
- Taken together, these shocks represent both a wake-up call and a major opportunity. The sustainability movement must press the reset button, rethink its strategies, and respond decisively - turning disruption into momentum
- More than 50 leaders from business, finance, government, and civil society identified seven core priorities for this reset: 1) reframe the agenda around the promise of a better life - an abundant, thriving and safe home for all. Integrating climate and nature, focusing on flourishing neighbourhoods, affordable food grown in healthy soils, meaningful jobs that contribute to society, and clean air and water can help make sustainability emotionally resonant and politically relevant; 2) align with near-term political priorities like economic growth, cost of living, and security - key concerns for most citizens; 3) deliver place-based solutions that improve everyday life for families and communities; 4) harness digital and AI technologies as critical accelerators of the transition, while ensuring equitable access - especially for developing nations; 5) scale the new system - energy, food, materials - by removing key barriers such as permitting delays, a lack of access to critical minerals or prohibitive finance costs in the Global South; 6) integrate climate and nature into financial decision-making, especially for long-term investors; and 7) embrace a new model of international cooperation, focused on practical, performance-driven partnerships that mobilise resources and solve problems
- And what does this have to do with companies? These priorities offer a blueprint for how companies can shape their own sustainability strategies. For instance, reframing the sustainability agenda around the company’s purpose and role in the wider society and breaking down siloes by integrating climate and nature agendas and messaging. It could also mean investing in place-based climate and nature initiatives to deliver tangible benefits to local communities, and leveraging digital and AI technologies to drive innovation, efficiency and smarter decision-making
Some key takeaways:
- Three major shocks to the system: Systems change is typically a 30-50 year process, but major shocks can often accelerate the pace of underlying transformation. We are currently experiencing three shocks simultaneously: 1) breaches of the 1.5°C threshold much sooner than expected, with large-scale physical and financial climate impacts rapidly becoming the new norm; 2) a dramatic acceleration in climate technology, particularly in clean electrification, combined with the transformative potential of Artificial Intelligence (AI); and 3) a new US administration that views climate action as an ideologically motivated agenda. This stance undermines the U.S.’s competitive advantage in global energy markets, constrains the free market, and imposes an unfair multilateral straitjacket. Taken together, these shocks present a massive opportunity for the sustainability movement to press the reset button, review current strategies and adapt them fast to respond to, and capitalise on, these shocks.
- A need for a major reset: The sustainability movement must focus on seven priorities so that it better responds to shocks to the system. These priorities have received broad support from leaders across business and finance, government, politics, and civil society. First, the sustainability agenda must be reframed around the promise of a better life - an abundant, thriving, and safe home for all. The movement has often struggled to win the narrative; concepts like net zero and warnings of ecological catastrophe have failed to inspire hearts or sway voters. A new narrative rooted in abundance, resilience, and the idea of home can help build common ground in today’s polarised environment. Integrating climate and nature could also strengthen this story. People don’t dream in carbon budgets - they dream of flourishing neighbourhoods, affordable food grown in healthy soils, meaningful jobs that contribute to society, and clean air and water. Second, the sustainability movement must offer practical solutions to near-term political priorities - particularly healthy economic growth, the cost of living, and security—which are central concerns for most voters and citizens. Aligning with these concerns can counter perceptions that sustainability is out of touch, anti-growth, or anti-worker. Third, the sustainability movement must show tangible improvements in the lived experience of ordinary families in their local communities - from cleaner air and water to increased resilience and better job opportunities. This can be achieved through a focus on place-based solutions. A strong example is Cape Town, that is pioneering approaches that combine urban design, greening and digital tools to manage extreme urban heat.
- A need for a major reset (cont): Fourth, the sustainability movement must embrace digital and AI technologies as critical accelerators of the transition - provided they are paired with broader access, particularly for developing nations. From integrating renewables into power grids to predicting extreme weather events, AI is emerging as the second major lever for net zero - after renewables themselves. Analysis by Systemiq suggests that AI could help reduce global emissions by an additional 15–20% by the mid-2030s. It also holds the potential to enable an unprecedented transfer of skills, data, and technological capabilities to developing countries. Fifth, there must be a clear recognition that the pace of the transition depends primarily on how fast the new (energy/food/materials) system can outcompete the old system. The sustainability movement should focus its limited resources on vigorously scaling the new system by removing key barriers, including in permitting, market design, access to critical minerals or prohibitive finance costs in the Global South. When the new system becomes cheaper, faster and more appealing, change accelerates - and investors move in ahead of time, making the transformation self-fulfilling. Sixth, there must be a doubling down on the architecture for putting climate & nature (including physical risk) onto the spreadsheet for public and private investors, especially those (institutional owners, sovereign wealth funds, family-owned businesses, private equity) that can take a longer-term view. These can be tools available to financial regulators, institutions and companies to measure climate-and nature-related risks, provided that they are better integrated into financial reporting systems. Seventh, the sustainability agenda must embrace the multi-polarity in the international system, with increasing norm-shaping power in the hands of players from the Global South. While traditional multilateral cooperation has created essential frameworks, it is no longer sufficient. There is a need for a new kind of internationalism - one based on targeted, performance-oriented partnerships, focusing on solving problems and mobilising resources. For example, India’s International Solar Alliance, co-launched with France, is building shared infrastructure and technology transfer for solar deployment across tropical countries.
