Blue Notes are briefing notes prepared by Earth Civics, with input from partners and allies, focusing on principles for policy design, means of implementation, and strategies for mobilizing finance and solutions. They are intended as ad-hoc briefing materials, which include insights at the strategic level and for practical implementation, and may evolve over time.
The Blue Notes concept emerged from a practice of sharing with colleagues and allies a polished but unpublished draft, intended to elicit feedback and provide early insight into the thinking of a network of stakeholders. We would circulate such unpublished drafts with a light blue background to minimize printing and signal that the draft was not yet ready for release, though its contents included clear stakeholder concerns, which would not vary in the eventual published draft.
This practice helped us get good ideas to more people efficiently, as the blue notes suggested early insights were available, so readers could get ahead of the curve. We share finished formal submissions and policy briefs in our Blue Notes archive, in that spirit, to inform our collective climate crisis response.
Earth Civics
The Earth Civics team works toward climate-resilient development and a climate-safe future, through four core areas of work:
- 🌊 Climate Value Exchange – Cooperative climate-resilient development
- 🛰️ Earth Science Insights – Networking data platforms to inform decision-making
- 🌉 Empowered Engagement – Earth Diplomacy Leadership + local civic participation
- 🍏 Good Food Finance – Co-investments for sustainable food security
Blue Notes emerge from this work, but may also be crafted by allied organizations or independent experts across a range of areas. Explore our editorial vision for these briefing notes on needed innovations in policy, finance, practice, and participatory processes.
Editorial Vision
Policy can be binding law, standards and guidelines, or an approach to doing business that is not imposed but adopted voluntarily by practitioners. Policy shapes human experience, by creating conditions for decision-making, converting thought, evidence, and intention into action.
The climate crisis is a complicated policy challenge, because:
- We have never faced this level of global threat before;
- Our systems were designed for a more stable world;
- Our economy values destructive activities as productive;
- Nations need to work together in spite of reasonable doubt.
The climate crisis calls on us to consider evidence with minds that are both open and sober, and then to innovate and alter our circumstances at unprecedented speed. This needs to be done in ways that are just and inclusive, and make room for the human experience, need, and insights, of even the most vulnerable.
The vision behind our Blue Notes is informed by principle, by engagement with people as people, and by a recognition that the most no-nonsense approach is to aim for the best possible outcome. That best possible outcome should be pollution-free, inclusive and just, and support sustainable thriving, in harmony with nature.
There is no sound reasoning that would steer us away from that better, healthier, more secure and liberated future.
Reinventing Prosperity
When the COVID pandemic disrupted lives and livelihoods across the world, a core group of colleagues and allies held regular consultations with our network of stakeholder advocates around the world. The result was a common understanding that multiple converging crises were causing deep and possibly permanent changes in the local experience for many people.
Addressing fear, insecurity, and uncertainty, would require careful planning—not only on COVID safety and economic recovery, but also toward a future in which sustainable human development would be the everyday norm.
The search for a strategy for constructive, inclusive future-building led to six Principles for Reinventing Prosperity:
- We are all future-builders.
- Health is a fabric of wellbeing and value.
- Resilience is a baseline imperative.
- Leave no one behind.
- Design to transcend crisis.
- Maximize integrative value creation.
Getting to work
We believe everyone’s chances of success—including governments and industry—are enhanced when the design of our world is shaped by the needs and aspirations of all people.