The Challenge
The UK is at a watershed moment in tackling climate change. To meet its 2030 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emission targets, emissions must fall by nearly 5% per year – more than three times the rate achieved since 1990. While early progress came from decarbonising the power sector and offshoring heavy industry, these approaches can no longer deliver the scale of reductions required.
It is not enough to rely on electrification and low-carbon energy alone. Future progress depends on transforming how goods and services are produced and consumed, alongside reducing energy demand and improving material efficiency. This is particularly urgent in an economy where fossil fuels still account for the majority of energy use.
At the same time, this transition must be socially just. It requires supporting workers and skills in affected industries, while ensuring that the costs and benefits of change are distributed fairly across society.
Achieving this is a complex systems challenge, shaped by interconnected economic, social and political realities.
Addressing it requires new approaches that align production, consumption and climate goals in ways that are both effective and equitable.
Our Aims
Our long-term goals are to:
- Unlock emissions reductions across production and consumption
- Advance and apply systems thinking and approaches to net zero
- Deliver actionable, real-world impact
- Enable a fair and just transition
- Co-create solutions with partners
- Build capability and partnerships for change
Our Ambitions
PACT takes a whole-systems approach to understanding how emissions are generated and how they can be reduced.
We analyse:
- Production systems (such as infrastructure, industry and supply chains)
- The wider economic, social and political systems that shape how they operate.
This allows us to identify where meaningful change can happen, and how it can be delivered in practice.
We examine production and consumption together, recognising their interdependence. This includes:
- Improving resource and energy efficiency
- Understanding supply chains and trade-offs
- Exploring how demand, behaviours and social norms shape outcomes
A central part of our approach is ensuring that change is fair and inclusive – supporting workers, addressing inequalities, and ensuring access to essential goods and services while reducing overall demand.
Our Impact
We combine interdisciplinary research with real-world collaboration to turn insight into action.
Our work includes:
- Quantifying emissions and resource use across supply chains and the UK economy
- Identifying practical interventions to reduce energy and material demand
- Working directly with government to inform policy, including industrial strategy and net zero planning
- Supporting industry decision-making, including tools and approaches to understand and reduce emissions
- Challenging existing approaches where they do not align with net zero goals
- Developing future pathways that align production and consumption with climate and socio-economic objectives
- Testing solutions through case studies, including key sectors such as cars and homes
By combining data, policy insight and stakeholder engagement, we move beyond analysis to help deliver real-world change.