Six Solutions against Climate Change: Researchers Launch Call-Action for Rapid Response to Mobilize Solutions

In an unprecedented call to action published concurrently across 24 scientific journals, a global team of microbiologists is calling on policymakers, governments and industry to deploy microbe-based solutions against climate change. The call-to-action is being released to intersect with the United Nations climate change conference known COP29, opening today in Baku, Azerbaijan. 

Jack Gilbert, the senior corresponding author who led the report and microbiologist at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography and Department of Pediatrics, says that given severe impacts of climate change on the environment, public health and global economy demand a similar, if not more urgent, mobilization of technologies and global deployment enacted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The time for isolated efforts has passed,” said Gilbert. “We need a coordinated, global approach to unlock the potential of microbes as allies in the fight against climate change. Our call to action aims to mobilize all sectors—from policymakers to industry—toward this urgent goal.”

Microbes have a pivotal but often overlooked role in the climate system. They drive the biogeochemical cycles of our planet, are responsible for the emission, capture and transformation of greenhouse gases, and control the fate of carbon in terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. From humans to corals, most organisms rely on a microbiome of microbes and bacteria that assists with nutrient acquisition, defense against pathogens and other essential functions.

“We’re outlining six simple ‘vaccine’-type examples that could be fast-tracked now,” said Raquel Peixoto, associate professor of marine science at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology and co-lead author of the study. “Much like the early days of COVID-19 vaccines, some of these solutions are still being developed in the lab. We need urgent support from governments to scale, fund, and deploy these as solutions against climate change.”

The list of microbial-based solutions the group are calling for include:

• Carbon Sequestration Boosters: Using microbes to help lock carbon into soils and oceans, cutting down CO₂ in the atmosphere and enriching soil for better crop growth.
• Methane Busters: Incorporating bacteria into landfill sites to reduce the methane that litter emits. This can also be applied to livestock farms and wetlands.
• Microbial Bioenergy: Using algae, yeast, sugarcane, vegetable oils and animal fats to make biofuels - replacing the need for fossil fuel.
• Pollution Fighters: Using microbes to break down the pollutants in industrial waste from construction sites, cleaning up contaminated land and water.
• Microbiome Therapy: Changing the diet of cows to reduce the methane they produce.
• Fertilizer Revolution: Replacing synthetic nitrogen in fertilizers with natural bacteria to improve air and water quality.

“Microbial solutions like these offer a powerful yet underutilized tool in addressing climate change,” added Gilbert. “By deploying these innovations at scale, we can help mitigate the climate crisis while enhancing ecosystem resilience.”

The report also recommends the formation of a global science-based climate task force to facilitate the deployment of these microbiome technologies and give global governments access to rigorous, evidence-based solutions. The group would also apply for dedicated funding and facilitate cross-sector collaboration while ensuring rigorous safety and risk assessments.

Concurrent publication in 24 microbiology and Nature journals is a rare occurrence meant to serve as an emergency bulletin across multiple academic and scientific outlets to call for immediate and tangible steps towards microbiology-based solutions. A selection of the journals running the bulletin include mSystems, ISME Journal, Sustainable Microbiology, Nature Microbiology, Nature Reviews Microbiology, Nature Communications, Communications Biology, Biodiversity, Climate Action and Sustainable Agriculture.

Peixoto will be attending COP29 in Baku and speaking at several events to highlight these solutions including a Nov. 18 talk in the Ocean Pavilion in the Blue Zone on Ocean Optimism in Action: Success Stories and Strategies for Marine Conservation; and a United Nations side event on Nov. 20 titled Ticking Clock- Climate Change Accelerating- Diverse, inclusive, universal cooperating together.