Materials Science, Circularity and Sustainability: The need for Fundamental Change in Materials Science Research.

The world is facing an unprecedented and worsening climate crisis. Global emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases have led to rising temperatures and more intense weather events. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s (IPCC) Sixth Assessment Report suggests that the agreed global temperature limit of warming to 1.5 ⁰C is more than 50% chance likely to be exceeded before 2040 [1]. A survey this year of IPCC scientists suggests that a global temperature increase is likely to be above 2.5 ⁰C. The need for urgent action is clear. However, progress towards a net-zero emissions target by the middle of the century is slow. The UN finds that there is insufficient progress across 168 nations towards meeting the agreed 2050 targets [2]. Materials science will play an important role in meeting climate change targets by providing sustainable and circular materials, new recycling and recovery methods and improving technologies that enable longer product use lives and products that support multiuse life cycles. A new focus for research is needed in these and other areas.