This blog is based on the post Which Climate Change Generalist?

This post is the second in a series to do with the ‘Net Zero Professional’. In yesterday’s post — Who's the (Climate Change) Expert? — we discussed the critical distinction between the generalist and the specialist. We suggested that the first step in becoming a professional in this area is to become an educated generalist. We need to listen to the experts, but that we then need to place their work in a broader context, and only generalists can do that.

The above thoughts do, of course, beg the question as to which generalists we should listen to. After all, the internet is full of people who know very little about climate change but who nevertheless express their opinions at great length and volume, and with great assurance. How do we separate the ignorant, pontificating time-wasters from those whose opinions are worth our ? There can never be a conclusive answer to the above question, but the following thoughts may provide guidance.

They are grouped as follows:

• The Golden Mean;
• Homework;
• Objectivity;
• Systems Thinking;
• Tipping Points; and
• Avoiding Extremism.