Climate Action Starts With Doing

"When you are working on a big problem like climate change, moments of disappointment are inevitable. But what's even more difficult is when those occasional disappointments turn into a constant feeling of being stuck. You start to think, 'No matter what I do, it doesn't seem to make enough of a difference.'"

Kris De Meyer, a renowned neuroscientist, shared his experience of attending climate summits over the years. He described a recurring frustration — walking into these gatherings with hope, only to witness the same cyclical debates play out. The conventional wisdom on climate action follows a familiar pattern: start with facts and information, because people just need to be educated. That's not enough — they need to be climate literate. Facts alone don't work — people need an emotional response. Fear might be the answer; it will force people into action. No, fear makes people shut down. Hope is better. Actually, we need the right balance of fear and hope. Above all, we must tell the truth. And we're back to facts and information. The cycle repeats itself.

But according to Kris, none of these approaches consistently drive action across society. People react differently — what motivates one person might discourage another. Fear can spur action for some but create paralysis in others. Hope can inspire but also lead to passivity. Even facts and truth fall victim to what he calls the "Ginger the Dog" effect, where people hear only the bits they want to, much like a dog hearing its name but tuning out the rest.

Yet Kris believes the missing piece isn't more facts or better messaging, but action-driven belief. People don't become engaged with an issue because they believe in it first. More often, they take action first, and that action reshapes what they believe. The brain makes a decision — even a small one — and then justifies it afterward. In other words, it's the things you do that change the things you believe, not the other way around.

For climate action, this means focusing less on persuasion and more on simply doing. Rather than trying to convince others, share your own story of action — not as an argument, but as an example. The act of doing something meaningful, however small, can be contagious in ways that words alone never are.

As someone who loves nature, I care deeply about climate change. But the idea of action-driven belief resonates with me far beyond climate change. Lately, I've felt distracted, lost, and disappointed. No matter how much I try to shift my mindset, that feeling of being stuck lingers. I start to think: no matter what I do, it doesn't seem to make enough of a difference.

So I've started to approach it differently. If I don't know the answer, I focus on the next action I can take. Not necessarily the perfect action, not even one that's guaranteed to help. There are two kinds of actions I turn to. Sometimes, I take an improving action — a small step toward solving a problem. But more often, I choose an exploratory action — something new, uncertain, maybe even unrelated, just to see where it leads. And more often than not, it leads somewhere.

I've always been an overthinker. But maybe thinking isn't what gets me unstuck. Maybe the way forward is in the doing. And maybe, just like with climate action, the answer isn't in convincing myself to feel a certain way first — but in taking action anyway and letting the belief follow.