Pardee Center Hosts Webinar on Future of Global Climate Change
On February 22, 2021, The Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future, an affiliated center of the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, hosted the first of its “The Future of…” series webinars, which focused on the future of global climate change. The remaining two webinars in the series – taking place March 23 and April 22 – will focus on higher education and the digital economy.
The webinar was moderated by Adil Najam, Dean of the Pardee School, and featured Saleemul Huq, Director, International Centre for Climate Change and Development; Lucy Hutyra, Associate Professor, Earth & Environment, Boston University; Henrik Selin, Associate Professor, Pardee School of Global Studies, Boston University; and Youba Sokona, Vice-Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
The panel discussed the Paris Agreement – which the United States recently rejoined – and how realistic its goals are, local to global dichotomy of climate action, as well as solutions to address the climate crisis. Consistent among the remarks was the recognition that global solutions are all well and good, but real action must be taken at the local level down to cities, towns, and villages.
While countries have taken action to address climate change – Dean Najam pointed to China who has started to bend the curve on emissions reduction – there is still so much more that needs to be done. However, while the technology and finances exist, speakers noted that the political will to tackle climate change is still missing.
A recording of the webinar can be viewed below.
The Frederick S. Pardee Center for the Study of the Longer-Range Future is an interdisciplinary research center affiliated with the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University. Through programs of scholarship, outreach, and education, the Pardee Center works to improve public decision-making and policy to train future generations of interdisciplinary scholars. Read more about the Pardee Center on their website.