The Covid-19 pandemic has substantially shifted the ways in which we experience urban spaces. In an instant, high-density city centers have seen mass exodus to the suburbs as people have sought greener and larger spaces.
If the pandemic is any indication of the challenges to come from a changing climate, what lessons can we apply to help us create healthier and greener communities?
On July 1, join Mark Landler, the Times’s London bureau chief, and experts for the latest episode of Netting Zero, “How Do We Build Our Homes and Cities For a Sustainable Future,” as we discuss how this shift can present new opportunities for sustainable buildings and urban spaces (R.S.V.P. above to join the conversation).
Speakers joining Mark Landler in conversation on July 1 include:
Henrietta Elizabeth Thompson, Ambassador of Barbados for Climate Change, Small Island Developing States and Law of the Sea

Pierre-André de Chalendar, Chairman, Saint-Gobain

Nigel Topping, High Level Climate Champion for COP 26

Toni Griffin, Professor in Practice, Harvard University Graduate School of Design

Margaret Chinwe Anadu, Global Head of Sustainability and Impact, Goldman Sachs

Cristina Gamboa, C.E.O., World Green Building Council

Gillian Charlesworth, C.E.O., BRE

Sheela Patel, Founding Director, Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centres
The session will also include a conversation on designing for our future:

Thomas Heatherwick, Founder and Design Director, Heatherwick Studio

Bill Wasik, Deputy Editor of The New York Times Magazine

Whitney Richardson, International Events Manager at The Times




What is Netting Zero?
It is difficult right now to imagine a world after the Covid-19 crisis. As social distancing is lifted and the economy resumes, we will still be forced to face the great existential challenge of our time: the climate emergency. How can we rebuild our economies and societies in a way that recognizes the urgency of climate action? How can we face the climate emergency head-on, seeking transformative solutions for the sectors and industries that drive the bulk of our carbon emissions?
These questions underlie Netting Zero, a series of virtual events on climate, hosted by The New York Times. Many of these themes will also inform our programming at The New York Times Climate Hub, our first hybrid festival that will we will host alongside COP 26 this November in Glasgow.


Want to get caught up on past episodes of Netting Zero? You can now watch them all below.


Episode 8: Supporting Net Zero Through a Circular Economy


Net zero is an ambitious target that cannot be achieved under our current economic model. To build a truly sustainable world, we need to fundamentally redesign the economy to replace our linear approach of “take, make, waste,” and create a circular economy promoting sustainability by design.
In this episode, Andrew Ross Sorkin, The Times’s editor-at-large of DealBook, was in conversation with Dame Ellen MacArthur, along with experts, decision makers and cultural icons to draw out circular solutions for resilient communities and economies.
Episode 7: Technology, Climate Solutions and Public Health


There are many links between climate change and public health, but what can technology do to address new solutions?
Moderated on Earth Day by Rebecca Blumenstein, deputy managing editor at The Times, this session looked at how the climate crisis affects our health and how technology can help us accelerate solutions for a greener and healthier future.


Episode 6: Water and Oceans, the Lifeblood of Our Planet


Oceans are a crucial part of the biosphere, soaking up carbon dioxide, absorbing more than 90 percent of the excess heat trapped on Earth from carbon emissions and producing half of global oxygen. But as we continue to pump greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, the strain is taking its toll.
This episode, moderated by Henry Fountain, a Times climate reporter, analyzed how communities and governments can unlock and accelerate ocean-oriented solutions without repeating the mistakes of the past.
Episode 5: Breaking our Fossil Fuel Addiction


The Covid-19 crisis collapsed demand for energy, with oil prices falling to an astonishing -$37.63 per barrel in late April. But as the world looks toward recovery, can this shock be seized to break the global addiction to fossil fuels, or will the “new normal” end up looking much like the old one?
In this episode, Ivan Penn, Energy Correspondent at the Times, spoke with experts as they explored how we can accelerate the rise in renewables to meet urgent global demand throughout the recovery.


Episode 4: Transforming the Financial System for a Zero-Carbon Future


Traditionally, investors have had one duty: to make the greatest possible return on capital for their shareholders. It’s a model that’s brought us to the brink of climate disaster, and we need a new way of understanding value and returns that looks beyond the short-term and drives resources toward scalable solutions.
Moderated by Chris Flavelle, a Times climate correspondent, in this episode we asked how we can fundamentally redesign financial markets to make responsible, climate-focused investing the rule rather than the exception.
Episode 3: Driving Solutions for Climate-Ready Food Systems


The food we cultivate and consume has a huge effect on climate change, with agricultural production contributing 20 percent to 30 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions. If we are to achieve the international goal of net zero emissions by 2050, we must implement radical but attainable solutions, fast. How can we significantly reduce emissions across key sectors within the food system while maintaining nutritional balance and food security?


Led by Somini Sengupta, international climate reporter at The Times, this episode explored how we can significantly reduce emissions across key sectors within the food system.
Episode 2: The New Zero-Carbon Normal for Cities


With the clock ticking on climate change action, our speakers explored how urban climate initiatives can be taken from the experimental to the everyday.
What are the winning innovations in building materials, energy and mobility that can be deployed to make cities more sustainable and accessible? Moderated by Brad Plumer, a climate reporter at The Times, this episode explored what mind-sets, models and approaches could take city “labs” beyond pilot programs to the next level of systemic change.
Episode 1: Applying Covid-19’s Hard-Earned Lessons to Climate Change


This year, to combat the coronavirus, companies adapted their production, governments poured money into technology, central banks permitted exceptional stimulus packages, and societies mobilized to shield the most vulnerable.
In our first episode of Netting Zero, Hannah Fairfield, The Times’s climate editor, asked experts if this global shift created the blueprint for combating climate change.
Subscribers. Want exclusive content from The Times? Join us for our subscriber only events.
You can also learn more about The New York Times Climate Hub, our first hybrid climate festival, scheduled to run alongside COP26 in Glasgow this November.
Netting Zero is made by Hannah Fairfield, Whitney Richardson, Sophie Lambin, Paul Samuels, Rona Perry, Joanne Perry, Mark Potter, Tess Korten, Eleanor Ripoll, Natalie Aidoo-Davies, and Troy Hyde. Special thanks to Stephen Dunbar-Johnson, John Scully, Nicole Taylor, Elizabeth Weinstein, Douglas Alteen, Nia Decaille, Kate Carrington, Holly Adams, Ela Stopford Sackville, Elaine Chen, Pascale Dauptain, and Maria Cortes-Monroy.

Source: New York Times

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