This paper argues that responses to climate change should not seek to emulate projects such as the Manhattan or Apollo programmes.

Key messages

• Creating a programme to tackle climate change that aims to be the equivalent of the Manhattan Project or Apollo Programme would be a mistake. The challenges are very different in nature
• The political environment in which the climate challenge stands differs hugely from those of the atomic bomb and lunar landing programmes
• However, much more than technology policies are needed to address this challenge
• Public policies to support technological solutions are urgently needed, but must differ in design from ‘big push’ programmes exemplified by the Manhattan or Apollo projects

The growing urgency of the global climate challenge has triggered a lively debate in Washington, London and other capitals around the world over policies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Many supporters of government action argue that the problem is so great, and the need for new environmentally-friendly technologies so immediate, that we now need the equivalent of a Manhattan Project or Apollo Programme to tackle climate change. 

This paper agrees that we need to take action, but shows why these programmes represent misleading models for policymakers faced with this challenge.  

The paper also reveals a range of more relevant historical examples of support for technology development from the US and the UK that policymakers can learn from.

Authors

David C. Mowery, Richard R. Nelson, Ben Martin