volume 2024 issue 6 
Why joining Scientist Rebellion?
Scientists have spent decades writing papers, advising governments, briefing the press: all have failed – global green house gas emissions are still rising. What is the point in documenting in ever greater detail the catastrophe we face, if we are not willing to do anything about it?
Walk the Talk
Started by two physicists in the UK in 2020, Scientist Rebellion has grown into a global movement of more than 2000 scientists in over 30 countries. Our central dogma is “Walk the Talk”. How can we expect the public to grasp the escalation of the climate and ecological crisis, if those who know most about it and its consequences carry on as usual? All conventional ways of informing the public about the urgency of the crisis have failed to initiate the allencompassing political, economic and social transformation which is required to save us from global cataclysm. Marches, petitions, talks – all have their places. But business-as-usual is stubbornly defended by those profiting from it, that only civil resistance remains as an effective tool to push for real change in the short time left.
The science is clear, what went wrong?
Far too long we believed the common narrative that science triggers change. At first, we thought that politics would react to our warnings because we are paid from public money to create knowledge that helps politicians to navigate society safely through a changing world. Now we know that lobbyists of the fossil fuel industry are much tighter connected to those in power, and that short-term political goals are what drives political decisions. Then, we thought that if we inform the public, they will demand the necessary changes from politics. However, the fossil fuel industry invested millions in disinformation campaigns – planting doubts and climate denial in the minds of so many, see [OC10,OC11,C24]. While the crisis was unfolding, denial of the painful truth and anxiety of what will come made people feel powerless, most of us still thought that if we outline pathways out of the climate crisis and into a safer future, politics would follow suit. We have been terribly wrong.
The levers of power
We have to come to terms with the fact that power overrules knowledge. More knowledge, more facts, won’t save us. That’s a bitter pill to swallow for those who love to create knowledge and who have found their niches in researching our beloved world, be it in the Earth and natural sciences, sociology, psychology, medicine, economics etc. However, being tucked in our scientific comfort zones, we lose sight of the tools of power that lie in our hands: our reputation, our global connections, our ability to analyze and make complexity become digestible, and our longing to contribute to a better world. So let’s use these tools, even if it means that we have to step out of our cozy niches.
A call to action
We are scientists and academics. As those who hold the power around the world continue to lead us further into climate catastrophe, we need to rise from our desks. This is a call to action. We invite scientists from all disciplines, from students to professors, researchers and academics alike, to join us in our fight against climate failure.