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years to ensure they offer their students an up-to- date understanding of the significance of business management in helping to tackle climate change. In response, 66% reported that their programmes had indeed changed, while 24% said they had not changed and 10% were not sure whether they had changed or not. Almost all Business School leaders (96%) believe that the environment will have some sort of impact on business in the coming decade. Encouragingly, 87% believe that business is capable of finding the solutions to tackle climate change effectively, and 40% strongly believe that this is the case. None of the respondents think that the climate is not changing, but 2% do believe that human activity is not responsible for this at all. However, a clear majority – 69% – believe that the climate is changing and that human activity is the main driver for this. Nearly three in 10 (28%) believe human activity is only partly responsible for climate change, while again being of the belief that the climate is changing. More than nine out of 10 (92%) of leaders agree with the statement that recent environmental disasters (for example, hurricanes, bush fires, and extreme hot and cold weather) are due to climate change. Only 1% of respondents disagree with the statement and 6% ‘neither agree nor disagree’ with it. A fifth of respondents (20%) believe the impact of climate change will have a ‘very negative impact’ on their own lives, while 51% say it will have ‘a fairly negative impact’ on their lives. Among those polled 13% are unsure if the impact will be positive or negative and 15% are of the belief that the impact of climate change on their own lives will in fact be either ‘very positive’ or ‘fairly positive’. It could be that this final proportion interpreted the question as an opportunity to
consider how they, as an individual, might make a positive contribution towards addressing climate change. Then again, it is also possible that they simply do not regard the effects of climate change (if they perceive any) as being detrimental to their own way of life. Conclusion To say that climate change is a ‘hot’ topic would be an understatement. As little as five years ago, the very existence of this issue was still being debated. Yet, a global movement to secure the future of our planet has pushed climate change firmly into the public arena; and now the damage climate change is causing is undeniable. The AMBA & BGA International Climate Change Report is a call to action for, but also from, the leaders at Business Schools to do more to tackle the rising pressures of climate change. The report also contains cautious optimism for the future potential of Business Schools – and the ability of business in general – to come up with the solutions that can help save the planet.
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To access the full report, please visit www.associationofmbas.com/research
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