She’s the climate communicator even skeptics will listen to. Katharine Hayhoe doesn’t just talk science—she talks values, faith, family, and the future we all share. That approach has made her one of the most influential voices in the climate conversation today. She’s the Chief Scientist at The Nature Conservancy, a Distinguished Professor at Texas Tech, and the author of Saving Us. Her reach is real: 235,000 followers on LinkedIn, over 163,000+ newsletter subscribers, and a presence in pulpits and policy forums around the world.
Hayhoe will return to Techonomy Impact in 2025 in New York on September 24th, where her message—that climate action starts with empathy—feels more urgent than ever. In this Q&A, she explains why shared values matter more than shared politics, and why the most powerful thing you can do for the planet might be… talk.
Back in 2023, we spoke during a markedly different political and climate landscape—how would you assess the shifts in both arenas over the past two years, and what surprises you most about public discourse today?
Over a decade ago, indicators of political polarization already showed the U.S. to be more divided than at any time in recent history. Since then, those divisions have only deepened, and so too has the discourse around climate solutions, as, according to Pew polling, climate change remains the most polarized topic of discussion in the U.S.
Intellectually, I understand how partisanship can lead some to oppose clean energy advancements, such as solar, wind, storage, and electrification, even as countries like China race ahead. But on a human level, the determination to block progress and work against the majority’s best interests to position the U.S. as a follower rather than a leader in the global clean energy transition continues to surprise me. It’s a stark reminder of how deeply entrenched political identity can become, even when the stakes are so high.
Your 2018 TED Talk focused on ‘talking’ as the essential climate action—how has the art or science of climate conversation evolved as younger generations and global leaders change the narrative?
In many ways, my 2018 TED Talk was ahead of its time. Its central message—that we aren’t talking about climate change enough, and that if we don’t talk about it, why would we care? and if we don’t care, why would we act?—has since been validated by global research showing that, around the world, most people are worried about climate change. But many don’t understand how it affects them personally. Even worse, they don’t know what they can do, and they don’t believe others are doing much either; this makes us feel hopeless and helpless rather than empowered and activated.
That’s why I’m more convinced than ever that the first and most important step we’re missing in climate action are constructive conversations that connect the head (what we know), to the heart (why it matters to us), to the hands (what we can do). And the best people to have these conversations aren’t scientists—they’re you and me. Friends, family, neighbors, coworkers: people we already trust.
The bad news is that climate change is affecting our lives more every year. As I write this, the wildfire smoke outside my window turns the afternoon sky from blue to bronze. At the last outdoor concert I attended, paramedics were treating people for heat exhaustion. Every headline brings new reports of storms, floods, and other disasters made worse by climate change. Wherever we live, we’re all at risk.
But there’s good news too: the solutions are all around us; and when we find out what they look like, and the role each of us can play in making them happen, the impetus to act is obvious.
Given that political identity often outweighs scientific consensus in climate opinions, how do you advise faith and civic leaders to rise above partisan sorting when advocating for climate action?
As a scientist and a person of faith, I often engage with people from this perspective. Every year, I have the opportunity to speak with a wide range of faith-based audiences—from delivering a plenary lecture on faith and creation care at the Lausanne Congress, a once-a-decade gathering of 10,000 evangelical leaders from around the world, to spending an evening with a local group like Interfaith Partners of the Chesapeake, who have mobilized over 200 congregations for climate- and nature-focused community action.
Why do I do this? Because, as I say above, effective climate conversations connect the head (what we know) to the heart (why it matters): and for many people, their faith is at the very core of what they care about most. When we frame climate action as a matter of loving our neighbor, caring for creation, and acting on our values, people of faith are more likely to see that who they already are is the perfect person to care—and to act.
In the U.S., though, faith doesn’t always shape identity the way it once did. Many self-identified evangelicals don’t attend church anymore. For them—and even for many who do attend—political ideology has become the primary lens through which they view the world, with theology taking a distant second. When the two conflict, it’s ideology, not theology, that tends to win out.
That’s why I often advise faith and civic leaders to begin with whatever values the people they’re speaking with share. For some, it may genuinely be their faith: but for others, it may be financial stability; independence; family; or more. Starting with a shared value—not with a lecture or a list of facts, but with genuine curiosity and acceptance—can open the door to a far more productive and meaningful conversation. Whether in faith communities or beyond, the goal is the same: to meet people where they are, and help them see how climate action fully aligns with what they already hold dear.
What does ‘Worth beyond Wealth’ mean to you personally and professionally, especially as someone whose work blends academic rigor, spiritual calling, and societal urgency?
Every generation must re-learn the same essential truth: that while money is useful, it can’t buy the things that matter most—happiness, purpose, connection, health, and hope. And today, climate change threatens so many of those very things. From the safety of our homes to the health and future of our children, it puts at risk what we hold most dear.
Understanding what’s at stake isn’t enough, though. We also need a vision of what we’re fighting for. What would it look like to live in a future with clean air to breathe and safe water to drink? Where streets are shaded by trees, filled with life, and safe from disaster? Where there is time for family and friends, and for the pursuits that bring us joy?
To me, Worth beyond Wealth means recognizing that the true value of our work—whether scientific, spiritual, or social—is measured not in dollars, but in the flourishing of people and planet alike. That’s what makes this fight worth it: it’s the only way to ensure we build a better world for the people and places we love.
What’s one climate solution or breakthrough—technological, social, or economic—that you think isn’t getting nearly enough attention in 2025?
One of my biggest pet peeves is when a headline on the latest climate breakthrough reads, “Is this the silver bullet for fixing climate change?” The reason this bothers me is because, when it comes to climate solutions, there is no silver bullet. That’s the bad news.
The good news, though, there is an entire arsenal of silver buckshot—solutions at every scale, from electrifying household appliances to decarbonizing ocean-going ships, from harnessing energy from the sun and wind to storing it using gravity or chemistry. We already have so many tools at our fingertips, more than enough to tackle this crisis at scale!
One category of solutions that still isn’t getting the attention it deserves is nature. Natural climate solutions—restoring ecosystems, rebuilding soil carbon, protecting forests and wetlands and greening urban areas—don’t just draw carbon out of the atmosphere. Even more importantly, they filter air and water, reduce heat and flood risks, support biodiversity, improve our physical and mental health, and even help us grow more food in better ways.
Another underappreciated category of solutions is efficiency. A recent analysis finds that approximately two-thirds of primary energy worldwide is used solely for production, processing, and transportation. In contrast, a stuhttps://www.aceee.org/press/2019/09/energy-efficiency-can-slashdy conducted more than five years ago estimated that the U.S. could meet its 2030 climate targets through efficiency alone. We’re astonishingly wasteful with our energy, and of course, the cheapest energy is the energy we don’t use! From electrifying homes to using smart technologies that optimize shipping and transportation, there’s enormous untapped potential to reduce our energy demand. Just as with natural solutions, many of these technologies and practices are already available today.
The problem isn’t a lack of solutions—it’s a lack of awareness and investment. That’s why I argue so strongly that we don’t need to wait for the next big breakthrough. We just need to recognize the powerful tools we already have and start using them!
Looking ahead 10 years, what will determine whether we succeed or fail in responding to climate change, and how do you stay grounded in hope while staring down those stakes every day?
I believe that whether we succeed or fail in responding to climate change over the next decade will depend on whether we can collectively connect our head, our heart, and our hands.
It’s not enough to know what’s happening to ocean circulation or ice sheets, or even to understand the science behind worsening heat waves, wildfires, and floods. We have to recognize how these changes affect us—from soaring home insurance rates and disrupted supply chains to the stability of the very systems our civilization depends on. As I often say, climate action isn’t about saving the planet; it will be orbiting the sun long after we’re gone. It’s about saving us.
This sounds compelling: but unfortunately, the status quo is heavily skewed against action. The short-term incentives that drive so much of our economy ignore the enormous costs of inaction and undervalue the benefits of prompt action to reduce emissions and build resilience to the risks we can no longer avoid.
Although odds are stacked against us, though, we can’t afford to give up. The stakes are too high. It’s our future, and our children’s future, on the line. So how do we keep going?
The answer, for me, is hope. I’m not referring to passive, false hope, the kind that sticks its head in the sand and waits for someone else to fix things. That kind of hope is useless. Real hope, as Rebecca Solnit says, is “an ax you break down doors with in an emergency.” It’s knowing there’s a better future, believing we can reach it, and doing everything in our power to help us get there.
Hope isn’t something that floats down from the sky—it’s something you have to practice as if your life depends on it. That’s why I started Talking Climate, a weekly newsletter I share on Substack, LinkedIn, and by email.
Each week, I highlight good news about solutions, not-so-good news about how climate change affects everything from reproductive health to our favorite foods, and something actionable we each can do. And every week, I hear back from people who actively practicing hope—from a retired school principal who starts conversations about his electric truck in parking lots, to a high school student launching a climate-focused social media channel.
We have the tools to reach others like never before; we just have to use them. And when it comes to climate action, talking is how we catalyze doing!
When I began, I worried I’d run out of good news to share. I’m delighted to say that I was very wrong, however! Now, I often have too many stories to choose from; because once you start looking for climate solutions and people who are making a difference, you realize they’re everywhere. And when we take action, we become part of this hope as well.
