Climate policy needs patience, not perfection, says Net Zero Commission Chair

Back in 1996, while working in the NSW Premier’s Office, Bob Carr walked in carrying a copy of Gail Christiansen’s ‘Greenhouse: The 200-Year Story of Global Warming’. He asked me to read it and brief him.

I did. And by the time I left the Premier’s Office eight years later, New South Wales had introduced the Greenhouse Gas Abatement Scheme — one of the world’s first carbon pricing mechanisms — led efforts to establish a state-based emissions trading scheme, and created the Building Sustainability Index, setting minimum sustainability standards for all new residential buildings. 

I am proud that some of these policies remain and have been built on. And I know that (whatever you might think of the former Premier of NSW), on this ‘wicked problem’ of climate change he was utterly committed to being guided by science, attuned to the risks of climate instability for the economy, environment and people of NSW, and determined to navigate the politics to deliver effective policy. 

I stand here a climate veteran, new to the role of Chair of the Net Zero Commission. 

Much has changed. But these three elements are still vital for any politician or decision maker wanting to make a difference on this most challenging and complex of shared problems. And they are not too different to the purpose of the Net Zero Commission set out in the Climate Change (Net Zero Future) Act 2023.  

Achieving our purpose might be hard, but it can be easily described. 

The Net Zero Commission monitors, reviews, and reports on the state’s progress toward emissions reduction targets and climate resilience objectives. It also provides expert advice and recommendations to the Minister and the wider government on how best to meet these goals. And, it educates the public -  enthusiastically -  to facilitate effective climate policy (granted, ‘enthusiasm’ isn’t in the wording of the legislation, but it is important). We have the wisdom of my fellow Commissioners and a crack staff with a mix of skills and experience drawn from inside and outside government to help deliver on this legislated role. 

If there is one thing I have learnt in my time working in NSW, for two years at Downing Street and teaching on the practice of effective climate policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science, it is that the ‘what’ questions,  are considerably easier than the ‘how’.  

To illustrate, consider Gout Gout, the Australian sprinter originally from South Sudan. His ambition of winning a medal at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics is to be applauded. But it is only the early morning training, the relentless psychological and physical drive, outstanding coaches and complete commitment that will get him there. 

Put simply: the “what” is the politics. The “how” is the policy.