Welcome
A warm welcome to The Berenson Report, your trusted source of insight and critical thinking on the impact of our changing climate and what we can do about it. From the founder and editor-in-chief.
A very warm welcome to The Berenson Report. My name’s Simon Perks and I’m The Berenson Report’s founder and editor-in-chief.
The Berenson Report is your trusted source of insight, analysis and critical thinking on the impact of our changing climate on the way we live our lives, how we can adapt to the changes we’re experiencing and how we can enhance our resilience to the more significant changes that are yet to come.
Whether you’re a policymaker, a business leader, a researcher, an activist or simply someone who cares, The Berenson Report is for you. Read on to find out more about what I’m doing, why I’m doing it and how you can get involved.
The climate crisis
It’s a fact that the burning of fossil fuels and other human activities have increased substantially the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the Earth’s atmosphere. It’s also a fact that this increase in atmospheric greenhouse gases has led to significant changes in the climate systems and process of the planet that we call home.
Before we started burning fossil fuels in industrial quantities, the concentration of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere was about 280 parts per million (ppm). A ‘safe’ level of atmospheric carbon dioxide, which would allow us to maintain a reasonably stable climate, is regarded by climate scientists as about 350ppm.
We passed that threshold in 1990. We’re now at 430ppm. And despite repeated commitments from governments around the world to reduce carbon emissions, we’re collectively adding another couple of ppm every year. In fact, we’ve stopped talking about the 350ppm threshold now. Instead, we’re talk about 450ppm or 550ppm scenarios.
The impacts of this are severe. Global mean surface temperatures are hovering around 1.5 degrees Celsius above the pre-industrial average. And they’re set to rise further. Anywhere from 2 degrees to 5 degrees by the end of this century, depending on how much action you think we’ll take between now and then. And this is just by 2100. Rising temperatures won’t stop just because the calendar has hit a round number.
Changing climate, human impact
The increasing temperature is playing havoc with our climate systems. We’re seeing warmer air, warmer land masses and warmer oceans. Sea ice and glaciers are melting. Ocean levels are rising. The water in our oceans is becoming more acidic. Ocean currents are changing. Weather patterns, at both a global and a more local scale, are becoming more extreme. We’re seeing more – and more serious – heatwaves, wildfires, floods and more.
Our changing climate is also having a substantial impact on the way we live our lives. Water supplies to various parts of the world are at serious risk of drying up. Crops that once grew reliably in particular areas are struggling. Long-standing fisheries are failing. The habitable regions of pests and diseases are expanding. Heat stress, tempestuous weather and flooding are damaging our infrastructure. Millions face food insecurity. Millions more face conflict. Climate-driven migration is on the rise.
And this is just the start. As global temperatures increase and the effects become more severe, it’s possible that we’ll reach various natural ‘tipping points’ that make things even worse. We may also find that our ability to adapt to these climate changes in a gradual way becomes more difficult, if not impossible. Our energy networks, our supply chains, our financial systems and other essential elements of the infrastructure that we rely on for our day-to-day lives could – one day, and if we do nothing about it – quite simply cease to function.
More than mitigation
Our attention has, until now, focused primarily on mitigation. On reducing our emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, so as to limit global temperature rises to a manageable level. This is, of course, an important thing to do. Every barrel of oil that we don’t burn and every kilogram of carbon dioxide that we avoid putting into the atmosphere will make things easier for us – and for the other species that call Earth home – in the long run. It will, quite literally, save lives.
But it’s no longer enough. We’ve already done irreparable harm to our climate. The changes that we’re seeing around us are ‘baked in’. And we can’t (in all likelihood) undo them. Furthermore, the damage that we’ve already done is going to have further impacts that we’re probably not going to be able to avoid. Even if we were to stop burning all fossil fuels tomorrow, things would still get worse.
And so, in addition to thinking about ways to mitigate the impacts of climate change, we need also to think about how we can adapt to the changes that we’re facing and to make ourselves – together with our communities and societies – more resilient to those that are to come. Because our climate is changing. And we’re going to need to change, too.
This is where The Berenson Report comes in.
Introducing The Berenson Report
The Berenson Report explores the impact of our changing climate on the way we live our lives. On our families and communities, our jobs, our political and economic systems, our industrial and financial markets, our energy and travel infrastructure, our military readiness and national defence, our homes, our sport and leisure activities and much, much more.
It also, perhaps more importantly, considers what we need to do to adapt to the changes that we’re already experiencing. And on how we can enhance our resilience to the much more significant changes that are yet to come.
The Berenson Report is based in the United Kingdom, with a European focus and a global outlook.
Whether you’re a policymaker, a business leader, an academic researcher, a social entrepreneur, an investment manager, an advisor, a climate activist, a student or just someone who’d like to learn more, my aim is to bring you insight, analysis and critical thinking that will help you to make informed decisions about the future. Independent, objective and evidence-based. And presented in a thoughtful and (hopefully) engaging way.
Because we need better ideas
Why am I doing this? Quite simply, because I have as many questions as you do. And I’m determined to find answers.
The Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman wrote that:
“Only a crisis - actual or perceived - produces real change. When that crisis occurs, the actions that are taken depend on the ideas that are lying around. That, I believe, is our basic function: to develop alternatives to existing policies, to keep them alive and available until the politically impossible becomes the politically inevitable.”
We’re in crisis. And it’s only going to get worse. But we’ve been so focused on combating the crisis itself – or, in some cases, on pretending that it’s not happening – that we’ve not really thought about how to respond to its impacts. And when we do, we’ll reach for whatever ideas might be lying around.
My aim with The Berenson Report is to help to ensure that those ideas are good ones.
A bit about me, the founder and editor-in-chief
I should probably take this opportunity to introduce myself. As I wrote earlier, my name’s Simon Perks and I’m The Berenson Report’s founder and editor-in-chief.
I have a background in political philosophy, public finance and the physical sciences. Academically, I have degrees in politics and physics. I’m two different sorts of chartered accountant. And I’m a graduate of the Oxford Climate Emergency Programme at the University of Oxford’s Saïd Business School.
Professionally, I’ve worked for twenty five years as an advisor to governments and other public sector organisations. Alongside this, I ply my trade as a science writer, exploring the scientific impact of developments in politics, economics and society. And, likewise, helping people to understand the practical implications of scientific developments and discoveries.
I live in Somerset, in the south west of the United Kingdom, with my wife and our Labrador dogs. When it comes to our own lives, we try to practice what we preach. In addition to our professional activities, my wife and I run what I call a ‘sort-of’ homestead, where we grow much of our own food, generate much of our own energy and try to live in an eco-friendly, climate-conscious way.
I’m keen to weave together these various strands of my life in a way that helps me and others to respond to the growing impacts of climate change. And The Berenson Report seems like the ideal way to do it.
What The Berenson Report does
At the heart of The Berenson Report is my free fortnightly email newsletter. In each issue, we’ll explore a particular theme relating to the impact of climate change, how we can adapt to it and how we can improve our climate resilience.
This’ll include ‘big picture’ themes like politics, economics and industrial strategy, as well as more personal ones like careers, community and psychological resilience.
By subscribing to the newsletter, you’ll get information, insight and analysis, direct to your email inbox. As well as ideas, opinions and critical thinking that will help you to get to grips with the topics we discuss, to assess their impact on the things that are important to you and to make informed decisions for the future.
The newsletter, together with access to back issues, is – and will remain – absolutely free to anyone who wants to read or subscribe to it. Because the things we’ll be discussing are far too important to put behind a paywall.
But I do need to generate at least a small amount of income, so that I can cover the costs associated with running The Berenson Report and so that I can devote sufficient time to it to bring you the depth, breadth and quality of insight and analysis that we all need.
Consequently, I’m offering a reader-supported model, with paid-for options that unlock additional value for you and that help me to keep things running.
Added value for paid subscribers
My paid subscriber tier (with monthly and annual payment options) allows you to engage more deeply with the themes, topics and issues that we cover in The Berenson Report.
In addition to the fortnightly newsletter, paid subscribers receive:
quarterly thematic deep-dive reports on critical issues relating to climate adaptation and resilience, such as energy, housing and migration;
my annual ‘climate outlook’ report, bringing together the latest scientific evidence about climate change, its impacts and what we can do about them; and
my summer reading list, with my recommendations for books, reports and other reading materials for you to take with you on your holidays.
You’ll also, of course, receive the satisfaction of knowing that you’re helping to support The Berenson Report and that you’re likewise helping to keep my fortnightly newsletter freely available to everyone who wishes to read it.
And even more value for patrons
I also offer a ‘patron’ level subscription, which allows you to get more involved in my mission here at The Berenson Report and to do more to support my work.
In addition to my fortnightly newsletter and the paid subscriber benefits, patron-level supporters also receive:
my exclusive monthly editorial newsletter for patrons, where I share insight into the inner workings of The Berenson Report and make sure you’re the first to hear about my editorial plans and other exciting projects;
exclusive quarterly ‘ask me anything’ patrons-only bulletins, where I’ll answer any specific questions you want to ask, whether they’re about The Berenson Report itself or about climate adaptation and mitigation more broadly; and
a one-to-one, sixty-minute phone or video call with me once a year (or an in-person meet-up, if we find ourselves in the same place at the same time) to talk about all things pertaining to climate change mitigation, adaptation and resilience.
The Berenson Report is editorially independent and is funded entirely through subscriptions from supportive readers like you. And, for the moment, from my income from my ‘day job’. The Berenson Report receives no funding from any other sources and doesn’t accept advertisements, sponsorships, affiliate relationships or any other form of paid content.
I also have a no-AI policy when it comes to writing my fortnightly newsletter and all of the other newsletters and publications associated with The Berenson Report. So every word you read in The Berenson Report has been written, edited, fact-checked, proof-read and agonised over by a human being. Usually me.
Be part of our community
I’m keen to build a community around The Berenson Report and I welcome feedback from readers. So please do feel free to engage in the comments section at the bottom of each post on the Substack website and app. And if you want to contact me directly, just hit reply to any of the emails you receive and your message will come straight to me.
And please do subscribe to The Berenson Report to receive updates direct to your inbox. It’s a great way to show your support for what I’m doing and to help me get the message out to a wider audience. My fortnightly newsletter is absolutely free and I give you my personal guarantee that it’ll stay that way.
And if you’d like to sign up for a paid or patron-level subscription, and unlock the extra value that comes with these, then that’s even better.
Climate change is the biggest challenge that we’ve ever faced. And while we need to continue to do everything we can to mitigate its impact, we need also to adapt to the changes that are already happening. And to make ourselves more resilient to those that are yet to come.
We have quite a task ahead of us.
So let’s get started.