January 19-23, 2027
In person
A five-day winter school bringing together early-career researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to turn behavioral science into practical interventions for climate action.
Learn from leading researchers, work across disciplines and sectors, and develop an intervention addressing a real climate challenge.
From understanding behavior to changing it
Behavioral science offers powerful insights into why people act on climate change—and why they don’t. Applying those insights requires understanding the communities, organizations, and institutions in which change needs to happen.
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The Princeton Winter School in Behavioral Science for Climate Action combines expert teaching with collaborative intervention design. Across five days, participants will examine the individual, social, and institutional processes that shape climate action, then apply what they learn to challenges drawn from participants’ own work.
TWO CONNECTED TRACKS
Learn the science
Expert-led lectures and guided discussions explore cognition, emotion, values, identity, social influence, and institutional signals. Each session considers how these processes can inform efforts to motivate climate action.
Put it into practice
In small Behavioral Challenge Lab groups, participants work on a real climate-action challenge throughout the week. With support from facilitators, teams diagnose barriers, design interventions, and develop plans for implementation and evaluation.
WHO SHOULD ATTEND
Early-Career Researchers
Develop your research skills in behavioral science and climate action through expert-led training and hands-on challenges.
Policymakers
Translate behavioral insights into actionable policy frameworks for effective climate interventions and public sector impact.
Organizational Leaders
Lead behavioral change within organizations by applying scientific principles to scale climate action and organizational growth.
We welcome early-career researchers and policy and practice professionals who want to use behavioral science to advance climate action.
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The cohort will bring together graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, advanced master’s students, policymakers, organizational leaders, and advocacy professionals. Participants will contribute different forms of expertise and learn through sustained collaboration.
Agenda
Five days of learning and collaboration
Day 1 · Individual processes
Explore how cognition, emotion, values, and motivation shape climate action.
Day 2 · Social processes
Examine identity, social influence, and the relationships that enable or constrain change.
Day 3 · Institutional processes
Consider how organizations, governments, and political contexts shape behavior.
Day 4 · Intervention design
Combine the week’s insights into an intervention with an implementation and evaluation plan.
Day 5 · Climate Action Forum
Present proposals, receive feedback, and reflect on what it takes to translate behavioral science into practice.
What you'll take away
A deeper understanding of the behavioral science of climate action.
Experience diagnosing a challenge across individual, social, and institutional levels.
A collaboratively developed intervention proposal.
Practical tools for planning implementation and evaluation.
Connections with researchers and practitioners working on related challenges.
Our Team
Organizers
Anandita Sabherwal
Teaching & Design Co-Lead
Danielle Goldwert
Teaching & Design Co-Lead
Elke Weber
Faculty Advisor