The secret to success at Climate Week NYC? Just showing up

It’s confusing and confounding, exhausting and exhilarating.

And I keep going back every year.

Climate Week NYC, which begins Sunday, is a 1,000-ring circus. That may sound like hyperbole, but it’s close to the truth. The event, which takes place across New York’s five boroughs, is host to 540 events, according to my meticulous count of events on the official website. But there are also hundreds more events — some public, others less so.

Aside from an opening ceremony, the event has no geographic “center of gravity,” which can be a challenge. (“I’ll see you at Climate Week” is about as predictive as saying, “I’ll see you in New York City.”) For newcomers, and even for grizzled veterans like me, who have attended nearly every year since its debut in 2009, it can feel scattered and overwhelming.

Partly as a result, each year about this time I receive queries from friends, veritable strangers and even my Trellis Group colleagues asking a series of largely unanswerable questions: What are the key events I should attend? What will the themes be this year? Where can I find a comprehensive directory to what is taking place?

The short answer to all three: It’s hard to say.

For the uninitiated, Climate Week NYC coincides each year with the opening of the United Nations General Assembly, which brings together the U.N.’s 193 member countries to discuss a wide range of global concerns. The presence of those national leaders and diplomats in turn draws countless corporate chieftains, nonprofit leaders, academics, politicos, activists, artists, camera crews and others wanting to access or influence this audience.

It’s that elite global assemblage that catalyzed Climate Week, which started as a relatively small event that lured some big names away from the U.N. meetings for a few hours. But it’s mushroomed: Tens of thousands now attend, plus thousands more watching sessions online. The event also has spawned other “climate weeks” in the United States and beyond, including Chicago (this week), Los Angeles (last week), San Francisco (April), London (June) and the Pacific Northwest (July).

Lay of the land

As each of those events scales, it often becomes a magnet for allied events. At Climate Week NYC, for example, the Clinton Global Initiative has its annual gathering up in Harlem. There are events all over Midtown hosted by major media organizations: Bloomberg, Economist, Financial Times, Forbes, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, etc. There are dozens of events presented by consultancies: BCG, Capgemini, Deloitte, PwC and many others.

There’s also the Sustainable Investment Forum North America, World Biodiversity Summit, Future Economy Forum, Columbia University’s Climate School, World Business Council for Sustainable Development and a sizable list of other organizations hosting events in New York that week.

Did I mention the “climate runs,” walking tours, films, art exhibitions, product demonstrations, concerts, boat rides and other extracurriculars? Plus, hundreds of private receptions, dinners, happy hours and networking events, including some hosted in New Yorkers’ posh homes and offices.

If all this isn’t sufficiently mind-blowing, there’s also Psychedelics for Climate Action, “psychedelic-climate pioneers and catalysts,” which is hosting a series of Climate Week events.

Suffice to say, getting the lay of the land can be challenging. The official Climate Week website is helpful, but you’ll have to wade through those aforementioned 540 event listings, which are organized by 10 themes, from heavy industry to health. It’s also worth noting that several of these events take place the week before or after Climate Week’s official dates (including this battery-powered concert in Times Square, on Saturday).

I typically stay away from most marquee events in favor of smaller, more intimate gatherings. I’ll be speaking at or moderating several of those (including this one, on climate and nature) and spending time or participating at events in some of the branded “houses,” such as Solutions House (“a space for solutionists to gather”), organized by the “change agency” Futerra; the Goals House, focusing on the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals; and kyu House (“to catalyze and deliver solutions around climate”), organized by the design firm IDEO. I’ll also be speaking at the Nest Climate Campus over at the Javits Center, where dozens of groups will put on scores of events over three days.

Scratching the surface

What will the overarching themes be? “There will be some news,” predicts my colleague, intrepid journalist Heather Clancy, another Climate Week vet. She mentioned events focusing on green steel, nature and biodiversity, CSRD and “what people are prioritizing ahead of the election.” But even those themes, diverse as they are, barely scratch the surface.

It all may seem intimidating, especially for newbies, so my counsel is simple: Just show up. Book a spot at several events but be prepared to be adaptive and spontaneous. Several things you’ll end up doing will likely materialize once you’re there. (Nearly everything is free, although many events require pre-registration.) Keep in mind that nearly everyone else will be as bewildered as you.

You also may be asking whether it’s all worth the time (and the pricier-than-normal New York hotels that week). The answer, as is true with all events, is that it depends on what you’re looking for — to learn, to sell, to advance your career, to network, be inspired, bring back tangible insights, or any combination thereof — and to organize your time with that North Star. Which is all to say, Climate Week is what you make of it.

If you can’t make it in person, you can enjoy some of this largess from your screen. I counted 54 virtual and 77 hybrid events on the Climate Week events page. To find them, use the search bar at the top of the page, click on “Format” and make your preference.

And if all of this is too last-minute, there’s always next year. That’s one thing you can count on.

[Keep the momentum going after Climate Week by joining us at VERGE 24 — the premier annual climate tech event — October 29-31 in San Jose, CA.]