Climate City Contracting for Humane Thriving

Cities, towns, and municipalities are aware of the large-scale transformations necessary to address climate emergencies. But we need to recognise that the climate crisis is not a nascent property of the environment. Alongside biodiversity loss, global inequality, financial injustices and other wicked problems — climate change is but one symptom of a deeper structural failure; our inability to construct meaningful relations through social and democratic processes enabling humane thriving. Our relationship-ability towards other humans, ourselves, things, nature and the future should be a fundamental concern when designing methods for the climate transition. Unless we are able to make this deep shift in our societies, we will neither be able to develop the social legitimacy for large scale change nor address the multitude of risks we face that undermine the capacity of human civilisations. We are in a position in which we have to choose whether we want to direct our efforts toward a thriving planet or keep a steady course at the edge of surviving.