‘Global heating: what will your city feel like in 2050?’

In July, Greenhouse PR launched the first global analysis of the world’s major cities and their shifts in climate conditions due to climate change. A ground-breaking research paper by the Crowther Lab, revealed that, by 2050, 22% of 520 major cities will experience unprecedented climate conditions that have not been experienced by any existing cities.

The research also found that 77% of the world’s cities will experience a striking change in their climate by 2050.

Across the northern hemisphere, cities will resemble places that are over 1,000km further south towards the equator. Globally, temperatures are likely to be 2.4C warmer on average – enough to kill nearly every coral reef and soar past targets set out in the Paris Agreement.

Launching the paper:

• Greenhouse translated the complex data driven paper into an easily accessible, attention grabbing story aimed at global media. 
• To accompany the story we created social assets, including maps, gifs and infographics to help tell the story visually. 
• We undertook extensive, targeted global media outreach to secure international coverage in over 70 countries. 
• Engaged in discussions among key audiences, including Inger Anderson, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme, and Greenpeace, helping cement Crowther Lab’s credibility in the environmental and policy spheres.

Results:

The team secured widespread global coverage, with 388 articles published, totalling a combined reach of over 20M and generating 263K social shares. 

The global launch encouraged discussions within the scientific community, which supported the findings and encouraged governments to take action.

 Mike Childs, head of science at Friends of the Earth was quoted in The Guardian:

“What’s great about this report is that it starkly shows what living in cities will be like if the inertia of governments on climate breakdown continues… this analysis demonstrates that anyone under 50 should be equally concerned that urban living could be intolerable by 2050. Governments have no excuse for further inaction.”

Integrating PR and social media helped drive impact. Assets and content that we developed were shared by Greenpeace, Mayors4Climateand received likes from Inger Anderson, Mayor of London Environment Team and the Chief Climate Policy Advisor to New York City’s Mayor. Influential accounts including Leonardo DiCaprio and World Economic Forum also shared the story. 

Media highlights included BBC, The Guardian, The Financial Times, Reuters, CNN, CNBC, Daily Telegraph & Daily Mail. The paper’s findings also featured on the front page of the Financial Times. 

Widespread engagement by influential accounts resulted in the #2050Cities hashtag achieving a global reach of 2.4 million and lead to 5.7K direct referrals to Crowther Lab website from social media alone. 

The launch furthered Crowther Lab’s aim of equipping decision-makers with the knowledge to take the necessary steps to prevent or address climate impacts, assisted by the learnings of other cities.

If you’re an organisation that’s providing the world with the science and data to help make more people aware of the impact and solutions for the climate crisis, we would love to support you with communications. Click here to get in contact.