Decarbonization – reducing or removing carbon dioxide emissions – is essential to mitigate the increasingly devastating effects of climate change. At the same time, promising technological developments and societal decarbonization efforts are increasingly challenged, for instance, by the rise of climate sceptical or denialist political counter movements.

This is why there is a great need for scholarship on how to incorporate social and behavioural science in all levels of decision making to overcome the psychological, behavioural, organizational, and institutional barriers to leaving fossil fuels underground. With this in mind, and to offer social and behavioural scientists working on this topic to share insights and create or strengthen connections, we invite a range of contributions to our upcoming conference.

Preliminary programme overview 

Day 1 (November 24): Action and Narrative Shifts 

• Morning (English): High-level policy discussion with policymakers and university rectors on their role in LFFU 
• Afternoon (Dutch): Municipal session with mayors on local-level LFFU strategies 

Day 2 (November 25): Financial and Justice Perspectives

• Session 1: Justice and equity in fossil fuel phase-out (9:30-11:00) 
• Session 2: Stranded assets index and financial risks (11:30-13:00) 
• Session 3: Aligning financial flows with LFFU (14:00-17:00) 

Day 3 (November 26): Behavioural and Social Sciences Perspectives on Decarbonizing Societies

Key notes (9:15 - 10:45)

• “Innovation Isn’t Enough: Decarbonisation Needs Behaviour Change”  by Professor Frenk van Harreveld
• How can social movements mobilize change? Round Table organised by Maien Sachistal

Theme: How can we change people's behaviour? (11:00 - 12:00)

• The State of Behaviour Change in the Netherlands, Fabian Dablander
• Commoning Heat: Embodied Labour and Community Initiatives in Neighbourhood Decarbonisation, Mirte Jepma
• What makes us act? A systematic review on the psychological underpinnings of collective climate action, Anna Sach, Anna Castiglione, Benjamin Abera, Disa Sauter,  Nils Jostmann, Cameron Brick
• A Convenient Truth? Unravelling the Effects of Complexity Framing on Climate Change Inaction, Saara Taavila
• Degrowth for who: exploring alternative frames for promoting degrowth amongst the working class, Dallas O'Dell

Roundtable (12:00 - 13:00)

• Legal Certainty and Climate Action: How EU Regulatory Volatility Undermines Fossil Fuel Phase-Out, organized by Sarah Boucho

Theme: Decarbonisation: Challenges and opportunities (14:00 - 15:15)

• Investigating Fossil Fuel Lobbyists at COP & UNFCCC Accountability, Adrien Tofighi-Niaki
• Monetary design as lever for climate-consistent finance, Anne Kervers
• Beyond Symbolism: Measuring the Effectiveness of Fossil Fuel Divestment Movement, Ana Xambre Pereira
• Transformative Governance for Coastal Socio-Ecological Systems: Reframing Practices to Enable Decarbonization, Gabriela Bawarshi Abarzúa
• Fossil Fuel Extraction and Human Rights: Exploring Justice Dimensions in the Energy Transition, Guillem Rius Taberner
• Socio-economic Transformation Between Decarbonization and Security in the region of North-East Estonia, Margit Keller

Roundtable (15:15 - 16:30)

• Decarbonization and Alternatives for Extractivism, organised by Nikki Wiegink

Closing (16:30 - 17:00)

• Lessons learnt, by Anke Wonneberger