Turning interest into institutional change: teaching advocacy for sustainable research

In the modern world, scientific discovery relies heavily on digital tools, from massive supercomputers that model climate change to the servers that store the world's data. While these tools are invisible to the naked eye, they consume vast amounts of electricity and generate significant heat, contributing to the global environmental crisis. For years, the solution seemed straightforward: if researchers simply understood the scale of this problem, they would change their habits. Many institutions have responded by creating policies, setting targets for carbon reduction, and encouraging staff to be more mindful. However, a persistent gap has emerged. Despite high levels of concern and the existence of official green strategies, the daily practices within research labs and computing centers often remain unchanged. The barrier is rarely a lack of interest or a lack of rules; instead, it is a lack of know-how. Individuals who want to drive change often find themselves stuck, unsure of how to turn their personal motivation into lasting institutional action.

This is the specific challenge addressed by a new training course developed by a team of researchers and consultants from the United Kingdom and Canada. They observed that while many scientists and technical staff are eager to reduce the environmental footprint of their work, they lack the specific skills required to navigate the complex politics of an organization. The authors argue that raising awareness is not enough; to achieve real results, motivated individuals need to learn how to advocate effectively. To fill this gap, they designed an open-access course that teaches the fundamentals of organizational change. Rather than focusing on the technical details of how to make a computer more efficient, the course focuses on the human element: how to persuade decision-makers, build alliances, and use existing policies as leverage to create systemic change.

The course is built on a simple but powerful premise: change does not happen by accident, and it rarely happens through a single request. It requires a structured approach. The curriculum is organized around a five-step cycle originally developed by UNICEF for advocacy work. The first step involves understanding the issue and the specific policy landscape, such as national strategies that already commit institutions to sustainability. The second step teaches participants to map out who holds the power to make decisions and who might support or block their ideas. The third step is about planning, where participants learn to frame their arguments in a way that resonates with different audiences. The fourth step covers the actual implementation, including how to build coalitions and navigate the inevitable resistance that comes with trying to change established routines. The final step focuses on evaluation, ensuring that the changes made are measured and refined over time.

To make these abstract concepts concrete, the course uses a fictional case study set at a university called Greendale. In this scenario, participants step into the shoes of a sustainability advocate working within a high-performance computing center. They are given a cast of characters with competing priorities, mirroring the real-world tensions found in research organizations. Through this simulation, learners practice identifying the right people to talk to, crafting the right message for each person, and building a plan that moves from a simple idea to a implemented policy. The course also places a heavy emphasis on storytelling. The authors explain that facts and figures alone often fail to move people, but a well-told story can connect the daily reality of a researcher's job to the bigger picture of environmental impact. They teach four specific types of stories, such as narratives that explain why the current situation is unsustainable or visions of a better future, showing how these can be used to influence leaders and colleagues alike.

The material is designed to be flexible, serving as both a guide for a one-day workshop and a resource for self-study. It is structured as a "dual-layer" resource, meaning the same underlying text generates both the slides for a live presentation and the extended notes for independent reading. This approach allows the content to be adapted to different needs while ensuring consistency. The course is explicitly aimed at early-career researchers, software engineers, and technical staff who act as informal ambassadors for sustainability, rather than dedicated environmental professionals. It assumes that these individuals already care about the environment but need the tools to make their concerns count.

The authors tested a short version of this course with a group of about twenty-five doctoral students at a summer school in June 2026. The feedback was encouraging. Before the session, very few of the students were familiar with the specific national policies that could support their work. Afterward, they reported that the broad applicability of the tools was a key takeaway, noting that the techniques could be used for various types of interventions, not just environmental ones. The team used this initial pilot to refine the course, adding more interactive elements earlier in the session to balance out the theoretical content. A more comprehensive pilot is planned for a group of experienced research fellows later in the year, who will provide deeper feedback on how the course handles the complexities of institutional change.

The paper concludes by emphasizing that this course is not a magic bullet that will instantly solve the environmental crisis in research. Instead, it is a practical toolkit designed to bridge the gap between intention and action. The authors suggest that while many existing training programs focus on measuring emissions or understanding technical solutions, few address the human skills needed to implement those solutions. By teaching researchers how to advocate, build coalitions, and tell compelling stories, the course aims to empower a new generation of change agents. The material is freely available to anyone who wishes to use it, with the hope that it will help turn the widespread concern for the environment into the tangible, lasting changes that institutions need to survive and thrive in a warming world.