What Climate New Year’s Resolutions Actually Work - and Who Should Be Making Them?

For years, we’ve been told to turn off the lights, recycle, and drive less—yet global emissions keep climbing. Why? Because while we've been calculating our "carbon footprints," the systems that shape which choices are easy and accessible have gone mostly unchallenged.

As 2026 approaches and New Year’s resolution season begins, it’s time to pair personal pledges with the systemic shifts that unlock impact at scale. Which individual actions matter most for the climate? What commitments must businesses and governments make next year to drive real change? And how can we, as citizens, consumers, and voters, push them to act?

Join us for a provocative conversation that will challenge the myth of purely personal responsibility and explore how, when met with bold policy and business leadership, human behavior can become a powerful climate solution.

Featuring government, community and business leaders who have successfully introduced shifts to enable and encourage behavior change around the globe, you’ll learn about the role systems play in making personal resolutions stick and how behavior change at scale could help shift the trajectory of the climate crisis.

Speakers:

• Michael Coren, "Climate Coach", The Washington Post (moderator)
• Ani Dasgupta, President and CEO, World Resources Institute
• Rune-Christoffer Dragsdahl, Executive Director, Vegetarian Society of Denmark and President, International Vegetarian Union
• Kailash Gahlot, former Transport Minister in the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi and current MLA for Bijwasan, Delhi
• Michael Stoddard, Executive Director, Efficiency Maine Trust
• Anthony Wei, Sustainability Director, North East Asia Production Zone, Decathlon China
• Mindy Hernandez, Director, Living Lab for Equitable Climate Action, World Resources Institute

• Gordon Kraft-Todd, Senior Research Strategist, Blink UX

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  Cover photo: By WRI