Developing a climate contracting learning platform

Inspired by our recent research into the legal sector’s role in climate and nature action, we’re developing a climate contracting learning platform. In this blog, we share details of a new education and training course that we’ve built over the last five months in partnership with the Shoosmiths Foundation.

Addressing a knowledge gap in legal education

Our research highlighted a significant gap in climate-related legal risk across the legal profession and business community, particularly among private practice lawyers. In response, we’ve developed a course that equips legal and business professionals to address climate risks and enable decarbonisation. 

This includes practical skills on how to integrate climate considerations into everyday legal work, irrespective of the sector or practice area you work in. The initiative aims to build understanding of how the climate crisis impacts legal practice and can be addressed effectively through advisory services, commercial decision-making, and climate-aligned contracting.

Our learning platform

The education and training programme includes a number of key features: 

• Six comprehensive modules. Our syllabus covers essential principles of climate contracting across six modules, covering the role of law in climate action, mitigating climate risks, and how to evaluate and improve quality and ambition.
• User-centred and expert-led design. With help from experts and user research contributions from our community, we’ve identified a range of professional development needs and prioritised creating an engaging and effective learning experience. 
• Interactive learning. The course includes simulations and assessments, providing hands-on experience in applying climate-aligned clauses to real-life scenarios.
• Bite-sized learning. The content is also available in easily digestible formats, like 6-minute overviews, catering to the time constraints of busy professionals.

Launching the pilot 

The platform is currently being tested in a pilot, which started in January 2025, with organisations from the UK, Mexico and the United States participating. The pilot will help us to refine the content and test how our users engage with it, ensuring it’s relevant and useful once it is publicly available.

Scaling for global impact

Following our pilot programme, we plan to continue developing and expanding our course offering. Our goal is to make the content accessible to legal and business professionals worldwide, creating a global network of climate-conscious and climate-competent practitioners. 

This initiative has the potential to transform legal practice on a global scale, making climate considerations a standard part of contracting practices and legal advice across mainstream markets.

Looking ahead

We’re optimistic about the potential impact of the learning platform. By equipping legal professionals with the knowledge and skills to incorporate climate considerations into contracts, we’re taking a significant step towards leveraging the power of law to address climate challenges. 

Stay tuned for updates on our pilot and future plans. If you’re interested in using the platform or would like to learn more about how you can contribute to its development, please contact us at [email protected].