Stanford GSB Dean Sarah Soule on Social Movements & Climate Action

In this fireside chat from the Global Sustainability Challenge Americas Finals held at Stanford University's Doerr School of Sustainability, Dave Weinstein sits down with Stanford GSB Dean Sarah Soule to discuss the intersection of social movements, climate action, and leadership.

Dean Soule, serving as the school's first female dean, draws on her background in sociology to explain how social movements impact organizations and drive change. Sarah argues that climate change cannot be solved by technology alone; durable progress requires fundamental shifts in behavior, organizations, and policy.

She also warns that pure techno-optimism can lead to moral licensing and reduce the urgency for necessary policy changes. Watch to learn about the critical factors behind successful movements—including resources, political opportunity structures, and effective framing—and discover how human-centered empathy can create lasting attitude shifts.