Denialism is dying - what comes next? A discussion of the contradictions and challenges of green capitalism.

The talk will be followed by a QA session, moderated by Professor Niklas Olsen, SAXO-institute, University of Copenhagen

Claims of the demise of climate denialism - while perhaps slightly premature - are on the rise. In its place, corporations and financial firms are scrambling to proclaim their green credentials and to shape the transition to a decarbonised future in their image. But what exactly is capital’s vision for a ‘greener’ future and, perhaps more critically, how is it grappling with the climate politics of the present? 

In this lecture, Adrienne Buller explores answers to these questions by examining the ascent of a phenomenon she identifies in her newbook, The Value of a Whale, as ‘green capitalism’. Exploring a range of ‘solutions’ to climate and ecological crisis that embody the green capitalist worldview, from carbon pricing and offsets, to the explosion of ‘ESG’ and shifting role of the state as a ‘de-risker’ for capital, to the attempted commodification of nature, this lecture interrogates the project of green capitalism.

Ultimately, it asks whether the advance of this approach to governance is viable, desirable or, potentially, inescapable.

Adrienne Buller is director of research at the Common Wealth Think Tank, author of The Value of a Whale (Manchester UP, 2022) and co-author of Owning the Future (Verso, 2022).