As the climate and polycrisis intensify, organisations across all sectors face mounting pressure to address their environmental impact. From regulatory requirements and investor expectations to employee activism and customer demands, the business case for climate action has never been clearer [ref: watch The Business Case for Sustainability (& debunking top excuses)]. Yet many teams remain paralyzed by the complexity of the challenge, uncertain where to begin or how to contribute meaningfully to solutions.
In this context, Agile teams now find themselves uncertain on how to integrate climate considerations into their work. Whether it’s reducing the carbon footprint of digital products, supporting supply chain transformations, or building solutions for the green transition, the question emerges: are we ready as Agile Coaches to support our teams in what’s ahead of us?
As Agile teams, regardless of the role and framework at hand, we have been living by the mantra of welcoming change, customer value, self-managing teams, and continuous improvement for decades.
An Agile Coach / Scrum Master exists to enable the team and wider organisation with the right practices and mindset shifts so that these can become second nature (being Agile vs. doing Agile).
The question is, are we ready as Agile Coaches to support our teams in what’s ahead of us?
Even if we look at the most optimistic climate scenarios, the amount of information to understand on both system & micro level, and the work needed from both tech & non-tech sectors to make that happen (? ESG, green energy, CO2 footprint of tech stack, changes in supply chain, inclusiveness of disabled and neurodiverse population, AI use cases) is incomprehensible. [ref: see the Agile Sustainability Glossary provides a helpful dictionary of terms to get you up to speed.]
And in that case, the first reaction of most of us is overwhelm, which can lead to freezing into inaction. Something we can’t afford.
To our luck, there are a few people (including within our Agile community) who either completely missed the phase of “frozen inaction” or have passed through it already. And although our climate stories and possibilities may vary, it’s good to take note of what has been made available by all these wonderful, courageous people.
We wanted to make you aware of a few FREE workshops and activities that were designed to move individuals and teams from climate inaction to application and action: Climate Fresk, 2Tonnes, or The Week.
While none of this is required to turn you and your team into climate innovators, we may agree that learning about how we got here, understanding the current state, and hearing personal stories from individuals who left behind inaction in different forms is a good first step.
“The Week” was developed by Frédéric Laloux (author of “Reinventing Organisations”) and his wife Helene Gerin (author of “Dans ces moments-là”). They documented and shared their learning about climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss, and the social adversities caused by these factors, first with their close friends, who then invited other friends, until this circle quickly grew to over 5000 people.
What is “The Week”? It is a series of 3 documentaries that you watch within the course of one week (hence the name) together with friends or colleagues. And because each episode has its own purpose and deserves some time to process, it is recommended to have at least 24 hours in between the episodes. That’s all.]
One thing most people don’t realise is that they provide different experiences, yes, the default basic one, there is also themed in line with community-specific groups, and the tailored one at work. Take advantage of these! Allowing participants to explore climate action through the lens most relevant to their situation. Whether discussing how environmental challenges affect professional decision-making, community resilience, or personal lifestyle choices, the format remains flexible while maintaining its core structure.
In episode 1, it is all about facing the reality of what’s coming [global warming, pollution, biodiversity loss]. Episode 2 is all about understanding how we got into this mess and what’s needed for us to collectively get out of it. And episode 3 is about what each one of us can do, individually and with other people we know.
I, Ines, have run these since 2023 and found that it is a very good basic entry for bringing people together on this subject. It’s short, it’s concise, it’s down to earth, and wholeheartedly human.
Originally called “la Fresque du Climat,” it was founded by French engineer Cédric Ringenbach in 2015. Climate Fresk is a collaborative workshop that uses a card-based approach to help participants understand the causes and consequences of climate change. Based on the IPCC reports, this 3-hour workshop guides teams through the climate system’s complexity using a gamified format. Participants work together to map out the connections between different climate phenomena, from greenhouse gas emissions to rising sea levels and biodiversity loss. I, Ines, was the first part of Climate Fresh in early 2021.
The workshop can be particularly valuable for Agile teams because it mirrors the collaborative problem-solving approach we use in retrospectives and planning sessions. Teams emerge with a shared understanding of climate science and often discover unexpected connections to their own work and industry impacts. How it is facilitated can make a big difference!
The 2tonnes workshop has a clear aim of giving individuals and organisations the means to understand how to act and contribute to a realistic and inspiring transition. This immersive experience challenges participants to reduce their carbon footprint to 2 tonnes of CO2 equivalent per year by 2050 (the target needed to limit global warming to 1.5°C, and halve emissions by 2030, not long!)
The workshop uses role-playing and simulation to help participants understand the scale of change required, both individually and collectively. Teams work through scenarios involving transportation choices, housing decisions, dietary changes, and civic engagement, discovering which actions have the most significant impact on their carbon footprint.
It’s worth noting about accessibility, while the workshop methodology is freely available, facilitators are typically volunteers, though some events request donations to cover food costs. Many organisations also hire certified facilitators to run internal sessions, making it accessible through various models depending on your team’s needs and budget. Even if you are a well-seasoned facilitator (part of being an Agile Coach), take the opportunity to get on your first run as a 2Tonnes facilitator, so that you can be part of the process, learn from them, and ask them to tailor it for your organisation’s context.
The current state of affairs presents both an unprecedented challenge and an opportunity for Agile teams to apply their change management expertise to one of the most critical transformations of our time. By starting with education and awareness through tools like The Week, Climate Fresk, and 2Tonnes, we can move our teams from overwhelm and inaction toward informed engagement and innovation. Crafting it together.
As Agile Coaches, our role is not to become climate experts overnight, but to facilitate the conversations, create psychological safety for difficult discussions, and help our teams discover how their unique skills and perspectives can contribute to climate solutions. The frameworks we use for managing technical debt, prioritising features, and adapting to market changes are surprisingly relevant when applied to sustainability challenges.
The time for climate action is now, and Agile teams are uniquely positioned to lead this transformation. Start small, experiment, learn, and iterate (just as we do with any other complex challenge).
Choose one of these workshops, gather your team, and take the first step from awareness to action.
Commit to organising one climate awareness session for your team within the next month. Whether it’s Climate Fresk, 2Tonnes, or The Week, the important thing is to start the conversation and begin the journey from inaction to innovation.
And let us know how it goes. The time is now.
We are stronger together! Let’s increase the awareness of the challenges we face and also of the Agile community’s possibilities to make a difference. Learn more about the Agile Sustainability Initiative!
Unlock members-only access to online learning sessions, Agile resources, annual conference discounts, and more! And when you join, you’ll be supporting our member initiatives, regional events, and global community groups.
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