Chair’s introduction
The big picture of the climate and nature crisis is that humanity is currently on a deeply dangerous trajectory, with growing risks of severe societal and economic disruption. The interconnected threats to food systems, health, national security and global stability are no longer distant concerns, but increasingly part of our lived reality. Yet public understanding of these challenges remains low, and political systems often struggle to respond at the scale and speed required.
The National Emergency Briefing (“NEB”) was commissioned in response to a simple but profound democratic principle: people should be trusted with the truth about major risks that affect their lives.
History suggests that societies are more resilient when people are trusted with the truth.
Human beings are capable of extraordinary wisdom, creativity and cooperation - but usually only when we engage honestly with reality, and with one another. Societies function best when difficult issues can be discussed openly, evidence is taken seriously, and long-term wellbeing matters more than short-term advantage.
At a time when public trust is under strain, we believe some values matter deeply and deserve renewed emphasis in public life: a non-negotiable commitment to truth, respect for the dignity and equal worth of every person, and recognition that human prosperity ultimately depends upon the health and stability of our living world, of which we are part.
The role of the NEB is not to tell people what political views they should hold, nor to promote a particular ideology or party-political programme. It is to help create the conditions in which citizens, communities and decision-makers can engage honestly and constructively with the realities we face.
The vision outlined below is ambitious. There is no guarantee it will succeed. But strong public understanding, democratic engagement and collective agency will give us a fighting chance.
None of us fully understands how societies successfully navigate periods of profound transition. But history suggests that honest communication, public trust and collective agency matter enormously.
Ultimately, the deeper hope behind the NEB is simple: that better-informed societies, and global society as a whole, may yet be capable of the wiser, more compassionate and far-sighted choices required for humanity to thrive in the decades and centuries ahead. And that we may collectively find a way to make these choices whilst there is still time.'
This is not a challenge that can be sidelined by other priorities. Some risks are now approaching points beyond which they become far harder, more costly, or even impossible to reverse. The decisions we make in the coming few years could have consequences that echo for generations. If there is a moment for greater honesty, public engagement and collective ambition, it is now.
Professor Mike Berners-Lee
A pathway to meaningful change
This document attempts to describe one possible pathway through which the National Emergency Briefing could contribute to the wider societal changes now needed:
Following the 2025 National Emergency Briefing, thousands of screenings of the People’s Emergency Briefing film take place across the UK.
Community groups, faith organisations, universities, businesses, libraries, councils, schools and other civic groups organise screenings and discussions in villages, towns and cities across the UK.
For months, each screening event inspires further screenings, allowing the movement to grow organically through trusted personal and community networks. The approach evolves to reach and connect with ever wider sections of society.
Inspired by the screenings, people come together to discuss and deliver practical responses. New connections form between people who might not otherwise have worked together. Existing organisations strengthen. Communities become more informed, more resilient and more engaged.
As public engagement deepens, pressure grows for stronger political leadership and greater honesty about climate and nature risks.
Large numbers of MPs sign the Parliamentary Call for a televised emergency briefing from independent experts. As businesses, public figures and civic institutions also begin speaking out in support, a government-led briefing comes to be seen as the responsible and obvious next step.
The National Emergency Briefing evolves over time into an ongoing public resource: a trusted source of accessible evidence, explanation and dialogue around the major long-term challenges facing society. In a confused world, the NEB becomes uniquely trusted for its detachment from vested financial or political interest, for the quality of its experts and for the clarity of its communications. The briefings are expanded to include other key information required to navigate both the systemic and everyday challenges we face, starting, for example with briefings on, toxic pollution, disinformation, and the psychology of societal change.
A series of topical NEB Special Reports is launched, starting with an NEB Special Report on El Niño towards mid-2026.
Because the NEB’s communications are grounded in evidence, they help create space for more mature national conversations - conversations that can be difficult within the short-term pressures of day-to-day politics and media cycles.
Over time, this contributes to a broader cultural shift.
Climate and nature risks begin to receive attention more proportionate to their significance. Public understanding deepens. Serious long-term thinking becomes more politically possible. Institutions face growing pressure to act coherently and transparently in the public interest.
This does not produce one single political outcome or ideology. But it does help create conditions in which societies are better able to:
respond to long-term risks;
resist misinformation and manipulation;
strengthen democratic engagement;
improve the quality and transparency of decision-making;
support joined-up thinking across government, business and civil society;
and build healthier, fairer and more resilient communities.
At the same time, the model begins to spread internationally.
Organisations and partners in other countries follow Germany in adapting the NEB approach to their own cultures and political systems. Each develops independently, but all share a common commitment to public understanding, evidence-based communication and constructive democratic engagement around major societal risks.
Over time, this creates stronger international networks of citizens, experts, institutions and communities capable of learning from one another and responding more effectively to shared global challenges. This creates conditions in which greater inter-governmental co-operation is possible.
The movement building around the National Emergency Briefing cannot solve the climate and nature crisis alone.
But history shows that societies are capable of profound change when people understand the challenges they face, have access to trusted information, and are able to act together around a shared sense of purpose. In a world increasingly shaped by confusion, polarisation and short-termism, helping to create those conditions may be one of the most important contributions we can make.
There is no guarantee of success. But history suggests that when societies engage honestly with reality, trust their citizens with the truth, and mobilise around shared challenges, they are capable of far more than often seems possible. Creating the conditions for such a response is the contribution that the National Emergency Briefing seeks to make.
