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The Mission Structure

The Climate Missions are MIT-wide problem-solving communities. Each mission addresses a broad domain where solutions are required for effective climate response and where a critical mass of excellent research capabilities exists at MIT. 

Decarbonizing Energy and Industry

Decarbonizing the world’s industries with affordable low-emissions electricity and fuels and climate-relieving industrial innovations. 

Preserving the Atmosphere, Land and Oceans

Removing, managing, and storing greenhouse gases. Protecting ocean and land ecosystems.

Empowering Frontline Community Action

Supporting the world’s most vulnerable populations with technologies, finance, and policies for climate relief and resilience. 

Designing Resilient and Prosperous Cities

Designing, building, and adapting habitable, resilient cities. 

Enabling New Policy Approaches

New institutions and incentives, policies/systems for rapid scaling, and decision support tools. 

Wild Cards

Unconventional solutions outside the scope of the other Missions. 

Learn about the MIT faculty who are serving as the Mission Directors.

The task of these mission-focused communities is to help MIT identify and advance new solutions to tough problems that stand in the way of an effective global climate response. These advances will include “big bets”: potentially transformative developments focused on problems whose solution would have game-changing consequences for the world. The projects will work within integrated systems - technological, regulatory, industrial, financial, social, and political – to deliver public benefits at scale.

Each Mission has three main roles:

  • Assessing national and global progress within its domain.
  • Identifying critical gaps and bottlenecks constraining progress, as well as promising new pathways for effective action.
  • Selecting, launching, and supporting projects to accelerate progress.

Get Involved

If you are part of an MIT department, lab, center, or institute and would like to learn more about how to get involved, please reach out to climate_hq@mit.edu.