About the Book
The Enigma of Climate Inaction explores humanity’s perplexing passivity in the face of the looming climate crisis—despite our having known about it for decades, the fact that we brought it into existence, and the existential threat it poses to our species.
Drawing on cutting-edge insights from cognitive science, anthropology, history, economy, finance, and philosophy, Samama argues that our success in accessing resources has bred an overconfidence in the systems that enable it. By uncovering the roots of our inaction, he moves beyond merely identifying the problem and offers a framework for action. He invites readers to experience a jolt in perspective—one that prompts a re-evaluation of our relationship with nature and our sense of responsibility.
This powerful and innovative examination of the cognitive and societal blind spots that obstruct urgent climate action and solutions provided will be especially valuable for professionals in environmental policy, the social sciences and humanities, and finance.
Table of Contents:
1. Climate change: Dangerous inaction; 2. How our brains model the world; 3. Modern cooperative structures that mimic the way our brains work; 4. Cooperating to access resources: A human story; 5. Limits to our mechanisms for representing the world; 6. Formation of societal bubbles: Rereading human history; 7. Solving the riddle of our collective inaction; 8. Taking action in the here and now; Conclusion
About the Author :
Frédéric Samama, PhD in Economics and MPhil in Philosophy, is a pioneer of green finance. He created the first mainstream low-carbon equity indices and launched what was at that time the world’s largest green bond fund to finance green infrastructure in emerging markets. He co-initiated the first coalition of investors committed to climate action, representing the entire financial sector at COP21. He also co-edited Sovereign Wealth Funds and Long-Term Investing with Patrick Bolton and Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz, and has testified before the US Senate on climate finance. He is an adjunct professor at Columbia University and Sciences Po.
Review :
“Drawing on the all-too-familiar reality of our inaction on climate change, Frédéric Samama offers a deeply innovative, interdisciplinary perspective that leads to a powerful idea: our past successes have created societal ‘bubbles’ that now hold us back from the exploration and adaptation we urgently need. This book is a timely and creative call to rethink how societies learn, evolve, and build resilience. A brilliant and essential contribution from someone who deeply understands both the financial and institutional landscapes.”
Philippe Aghion, Professor at Collège de France, 2025 Nobel Laureate in Economics
“What our failure owes to our past successes. Questioning a collective sleep walk to an assured disaster of our own making, Frederic Samama does not tell the over rehearsed tale of conflicting interest. Addressing the issue at a more fundamental level, he blends together insights spanning from anthropology to cognitive science and economics to describe a society shaped by and trapped in past successes. Something we can escape by re-discovering that what we have in common and what we share is more important than what we compete for.”
Jean Boissinot, Former Secretary General of the Network for Greening the Financial System
“Claude Lévi-Strauss observed that "the world began without man and it will complete itself without him." In The Enigma of Climate Inaction, Frédéric Samama shows us how to postpone that ending—if our species can grasp the opportunity in time. Drawing on neuroscience and evolutionary biology, he reveals why our greatest survival mechanisms have become obstacles to addressing existential threats. "Societal bubbles" of overconfidence—from agriculture to neoliberalism to our faith in modeling the world—now paralyze us in pure exploitation mode when exploration is desperately needed. But Samama offers hope! His vision of humans acting within nature, not above it, provides both diagnosis and cure for breaking free from our bubbles and rediscovering the exploratory mindset essential for survival.”
François Candelon, Partner at private equity firm Seven2 and the former global director of the BCG Henderson Institute
“Why is humanity not taking action in the face of the impending disaster that is climate change? For anyone like me who is committed to the fight against climate change, this is the key question. Going beyond the usual explanations about geopolitical conflicts or economic interests, Frédéric Samama draws on neuroscience and applies it to collective action. A fascinating and thought-provoking book to read and reread.”
Pascal Canfin, Member of the EU Parliament, Former Chair of the European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee
“I’m betting that you, like many of the rest of us, have wondered why we human beings have done so little to stop the onrushing catastrophe of climate disaster that threatens us. I urge you to take a spin with Fred Samama, an experienced veteran in the worlds of both climate change and finance, and read his new book entitled The Enigma of Climate Inaction. It will take you back through the history of big challenges that humans have had difficulty confronting, and apply some of that analysis to the most enormous global challenge of all that confronts us today. And this will, hopefully, generate understanding that will help us do better.”
Peter Goldmark, Former Budget Director, New York State; former President, Rockefeller Foundation; Former Executive Director, Port Authority of NY & NJ; former Publisher and CEO of the International Herald Tribune; former Director, Climate + Air Program, Environmental Defense Fund
“This book addresses one of the most vexed questions of our time—what underwrites our nihilistic response to climate change? The answer on offer rests upon an enlightened move: the same (Bayesian) principles that dictate our individual sense-making and decision-making apply to societal self-organisation. On this view, the inertia, rigidity and inaction—in the face of self-destruction—evinces exactly the pathology of disorders like Parkinson's disease. So, is there a cure? Is there a ‘societal dopamine’? If this book's thesis is right, then the answer is yes: we need to reinstall a childlike wonderment and curiosity about our lived—and living—world. Crucially, just reading this book is a step in the right direction.”
Karl J. Friston, Professor at the Queen Square Institute of Neurology at University College London, Honorary Consultant at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, and Chief Scientist at VERSES in California
“A fascinating and enlightening book that calls us to confront the defining problem of climate inaction. Samama blends cognitive insight and financial expertise to reveal how adaptive social coordination shapes our responses—and why rethinking our systems is vital to our survival.”
Martin Guzman, Professor, Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, Member of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, Vatican, Former Minister of Economy of Argentina
“In this powerful book by one of the world’s experts in climate finance, Frédéric Samama draws on psychology, anthropology and history to unpack our “normal” ways of thinking and behaving, showing us why change at the deepest level is not only vitally important and but also eminently possible. A passionate and important read.”
Rebecca Henderson, John and Natty McArthur University Professor at Harvard University
“Ernest Hemmingway once noted that people go bankrupt ‘gradually, then suddenly.’ Fred Samama similarly looks at the causes and consequences of human inattention, here in the vital arena of climate change. This book is both fascinating and important.”
Josh Lerner, Jacob H. Schiff Professor, Harvard Business School
“A decade ago, Nicholas Stern published an urgent call to climate action entitled Why Are We Waiting? We are still waiting as the climate crisis accelerates. In this ground-breaking work, Frederic Samama builds on cognitive science to trace the roots of successful survival strategies at the individual, organizational, and societal levels, as well as the roots of failure. In Samama's telling, the coordination mechanisms humanity has used to solve other problems of resource scarcity have promoted mental habits ill-suited for organizing effective climate action. The antidote is a shared realization of our planet's fragility and beauty -- and of our shared responsibility for avoiding its destruction.”
Maurice Obstfeld, C. Fred Bergsten Senior Fellow, Peterson Institute for International Economics, Former Chief Economist at the IMF
“In this book, Frédéric Samana, explores the "urgent, difficult action” of fighting climate change, one of the most important threats that humanity faces today. Drawing from several disciplines, he asks the question of when society succeeds or fails when facing catastrophe, as this is a threat that has so far failed to inspire widespread mobilization. The three imperatives for action that emerge from his analysis are urgency, complexity, and ethics. They require, as he correctly argues, actions by the state, business and society in general –that is, collective social responsibility. It is a significant contribution to the analysis of one of the critical problems that humanity faces today.”
José Antonio Ocampo, José Antonio Ocampo, Professor of Professional Practice at Columbia University, former United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs, and former Minister of Finance of Colombia
“Frederic brings together economics, cognitive science, and culture to explain why humanity is collectively lax at confronting the existential threat of climate change. Understanding the ‘why' is critical to resolution. This book is critical. Coming from New Zealand, I am intensely proud that the legal rights recently allocated to natural resource are referenced as part solution: "Manaaki whenua, Manaaki tangata, Haere whakamua. Care for the land, care for the people, go forward."”
Adrian Orr, ex Governor of the Reserve Bank of NZ, CEO of the New Zealand Superannuation Fund, and Chair of the International Forum of Sovereign Wealth Funds
“Why are we not acting to save our world from climate change? Sometimes, the magnitude of a problem demands that we think in radically new ways. This brilliant and original book weaves insights from cognitive science, philosophy and economics to illuminate the roots of our inaction and to push us to respond. Samama’s analysis is powerful, surprising and convincing—I daresay his book is a vital read.”
Hélène Rey, Lord Raj Bagri Professor of Economics, London Business School and Vice President, Centre for Economic Policy Research
“When Bayesian inference meets anthropology, we uncover a compelling new perspective on the roots of our climate inaction. Frédéric Samama takes us on a fascinating journey to illuminate one of the most critical challenges of our time.”
Olivier Rousseau, Olivier Rousseau, former co-CEO of FRR, The French Pension Reserve Fund (Fonds de Réserve pour les Retraites)
“The lack of collective mobilization in the face of climate change is worrying and puzzling. In The Enigma of Climate Inaction, Frédéric Samama—a long-standing pioneer in aligning finance with climate action—draws on cognitive science, economics, history, and anthropology to introduce the powerful concept of 'societal bubbles': overconfidence born from past success. His innovative, interdisciplinary approach not only exposes the roots of our paralysis but also charts a path toward systemic transformation. A vital, urgent, and inspiring read.”
Nicolas Stern, IG Patel Professor of Economics and Government, Chair of the Global School of Sustainability, and Chair of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, LSE.
“The enigma of climate inaction is important and timely. Frederic has held prominent roles in Finance but his book goes much deeper than any finance analysis. He drills into the core question of why humanity is doing so little about the climate threat.”
Thomas Sterner, Professor of environmental economics, has been President of the European Association of Environmental and Resource Economics and has a lifelong career of research in climate economics.
“People often talk about the climate crisis as if it was just about science. It is not: as Samana depicts so well, social psychology and political science are critical, since we seem powerless today to act in the face of mounting evidence of the climate catastrophe that is looming. This is one of the first books that describes this issue of mass psychology so powerfully and it not only offers a lucid and potent analysis of the problem, but also a very valuable framework for tackling this in the future. A must-read for anyone who cares about the climate and is engaged in efforts to build popular support for the action we all so desperately need.”
Gillian Tett, Columnist and Editorial Board, FT, Provost, Kings College, Cambridge
“This compelling and original book addresses one of the most urgent questions in climate politics today: why our societies continue to fall short, even as the evidence of crisis becomes overwhelming. By drawing on cognitive science and history, Frédéric Samama offers a powerful framework for understanding the roots of collective inertia – and a hopeful path toward transformation. A must-read for anyone seeking to move beyond incrementalism.”
Laurence Tubiana, CEO of the European Climate Foundation, France’s Climate Change Ambassador and Special Representative for COP21
“The Enigma of Climate Inaction is a major contribution to the renewal of human and social sciences in the face of ecological and political impasses. This book does not limit itself to diagnosing paralysis. It offers a rich theoretical and interdisciplinary framework. The Enigma of Climate Inaction exemplifies the type of critical, ambitious scholarship that must inform both research and education today. It will resonate with scholars, students, and citizens alike who seek to reimagine agency in a world marked by uncertainty, urgency, and the need for transformation.”
Luis Vassy, President of Sciences Po
“I had, over the years, the pleasure of working with Frédéric Samama, and I was always impressed by his ability to reconcile the practical mindset of someone deeply involved in business with a strong determination to ground his actions in rigorous intellectual and scientific thinking. For many years, he has worked tirelessly to promote action against climate change and to develop the tools—both financial and conceptual—that are essential to addressing this major challenge of our generation. This book reflects that commitment and the result of years of intellectual investment.”
Xavier Musca, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Tikehau Capital; former Secretary-General to the President of France; former Director of the French Treasury
"Climate change presents the ultimate co-operation challenge for people around the world. Traversing psychology, anthropology, popular culture, economics and politics, Fred Samama’s book offers finance professionals – and everyone that cares about climate change – a reflective analysis of why we are failing to act. Avoiding sentimental cliches of optimism versus pessimism, the book is grounded in proof-points and invites readers to learn from our failings and adopt a framework for future action. An original piece of thinking and must-read for those determined not to give up."
Sagarika Chatterjee, Director, Climate Finance, Climate Champions
