**Conferences**
TEDxMIT: What Defines a Mind?
Sunday, December 4
—————
**Lecture Series**
Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The Politics of Building a Post-Oil Economy
Thursday, December 1
Beyond Data: Reclaiming Human Rights at the Dawn of the Metaverse
Thursday, December 1
Susan Chomba: Will Ongoing Grand Restoration Schemes Reverse or Accelerate Biodiversity Loss?
Thursday, December 1
Bradford Seminar: “Critical Data Gaps in Climate Change Adaptation Modeling”
Monday, December 5
Inside Putin's Head: The Threat of Nuclear Strike in Ukraine
Monday, December 5
HMEI Faculty Seminar: “The Urbasphere: How Humans, Infrastructure and Nature Shape the Emerging Environment of Cities”
Tuesday, December 6
Jewish Climate Action Network Webinars:
Decarbonizing
Wednesday, December 7
&
Calculating Your Energy Benchmark
Tuesday, December 13
Climate Change and Health Equity
Thursday, December 8
Transforming Policy, Procurement & Data to Achieve Carbon-Free Electricity in New England
Friday, December 9
MIT Starr Forum: Energy as a Weapon of War: Russia, Ukraine, and Europe in Challenging Times
Friday, December 9
Earthquakes and the End Times: Global Disasters and Apocalyptic Predictions in the Early Modern English Atlantic
Tuesday, December 13
A Changing Planet Seminar: Going Circular: Addressing Climate Change through Circular Development
Wednesday, December 14
An Introduction to Nuclear Weapons
Fridays, January 6 through January 27, 2023
—————
**Events**
Keeping the (Decarbonized) Lights On: US Housing, Equity, and the Energy Transition
Friday, December 2
Hurricanes and Breezes: Visualizing Climate Change
Friday, December 2
Peter Zeihan: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization
Friday, December 2
The Appallingly Bad (Neoclassical) Economics of Climate Change
Sunday, December 4
Rocky Mountain Institute Discussion — How Can We Accelerate Our Clean Energy Future?
Tuesday, December 6
Are Industry Regulators Ready for the Climate Transition?
Tuesday, December 6
The 2022 Climate Risk Scorecard: Assessing U.S Financial Regulator Action
Tuesday, December 6
Farmers-Scientists panel on Climate-Smart Agriculture
Wednesday, December 7
And on His Farm He Had..A Photovoltaic System? Where Solar and Farming Meet
Wednesday, December 7
Cyber Negotiations: The Case of Ransomware
Wednesday, December 7
Farming + Fresh Water - "Solving Complex Problems" (12.000) Final Presentation
Wednesday, December 7
After Biden-Xi Handshake: Is U.S.-China Climate Collab About to Heat Up?
Wednesday, December 7
Greta Thunberg in conversation with Naomi Klein
Thursday, December 8
Stefan Rahmstorf: 2022 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication
Friday, December 9
Nature-Based Adaptation: Getting to Scale
Friday, December 9
Zaporizhzhia: Facing the Dangers of Nuclear Plants in War and Peace
Sunday, December 11
Environmental Destruction: The Effects of War, Pollution & Capital
Wednesday, December 14
Great Decisions with Rachel Kyte | Climate Change
December 14
—————
These kinds of events below are happening all over the world every day and most of them, now, are webcast and archived, sometimes even with accurate transcripts. Would be good to have a place that helped people access them.
This is a more global version of the local listings I did for about a decade (what I did and why I did it at http://hubeventsnotes.blogspot.com/2013/11/what-i-do-and-why-i-do-it.html) until September 2020 and earlier for a few years in the 1990s (https://theworld.com/~gmoke/AList.index.html).
A more comprehensive global listing service could be developed if there were enough people interested in doing it, if it hasn’t already been done.
If anyone knows of such a global listing of open energy, climate, and other events is available, please put me in contact.
Thanks for reading,
Solar IS Civil Defense,
George Mokray
gmoke@world.std.com
http://hubeventsnotes.blogspot.com - notes on lectures and books
http://solarray.blogspot.com - renewable energy and efficiency - zero net energy links list
http://cityag.blogspot.com - city agriculture links list
http://geometrylinks.blogspot.com - geometry links list
http://hubevents.blogspot.com - Energy (and Other) Events
http://www.dailykos.com/user/gmoke/history - articles, ideas, and screeds
**Conferences**
TEDxMIT: What Defines a Mind?
Sunday, December 4
2:45 pm till 6:45 pm
MIT, Stata Center
RSVP at https://tedx.mit.edu/resgister-dec4
More information at https://tedx.mit.edu
This is a more global version of the local listings I did for about a decade (what I did and why I did it at http://hubeventsnotes.blogspot.com/2013/11/what-i-do-and-why-i-do-it.html) until September 2020 and earlier for a few years in the 1990s (https://theworld.com/~gmoke/AList.index.html).
A more comprehensive global listing service could be developed if there were enough people interested in doing it, if it hasn’t already been done.
If anyone knows of such a global listing of open energy, climate, and other events is available, please put me in contact.
Thanks for reading,
Solar IS Civil Defense,
George Mokray
gmoke@world.std.com
http://hubeventsnotes.blogspot.com - notes on lectures and books
http://solarray.blogspot.com - renewable energy and efficiency - zero net energy links list
http://cityag.blogspot.com - city agriculture links list
http://geometrylinks.blogspot.com - geometry links list
http://hubevents.blogspot.com - Energy (and Other) Events
http://www.dailykos.com/user/gmoke/history - articles, ideas, and screeds
**Conferences**
TEDxMIT: What Defines a Mind?
Sunday, December 4
2:45 pm till 6:45 pm
MIT, Stata Center
RSVP at https://tedx.mit.edu/resgister-dec4
More information at https://tedx.mit.edu
—————
**Lecture Series**
Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The Politics of Building a Post-Oil Economy
Thursday, December 1
10:00 am to 11:00 am
Online
RSVP at https://bostonu.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_66HYAcxuSziTQxckqlv96g
Nigeria has for long been regarded as the poster child for the ‘curse’ of oil wealth. Yet, despite this, Nigeria achieved strong economic growth for over a decade in the 21st century, driven largely by policy reforms in non-oil sectors. In “Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The Politics of Building a Post-Oil Economy,” Zainab Usman argues that Nigeria’s major development challenge is not the ‘oil curse’, but rather one of achieving economic diversification beyond oil, subsistence agriculture, informal activities, and across its subnational entities. Through analysis drawing on economic data, policy documents, and interviews, Usman poses that Nigeria’s challenge of economic diversification is situated within the political setting of an unstable distribution of power among the individual, group, and institutional actors.</p> <p>Since the turn of the century, policymaking by successive Nigerian governments has, despite superficial partisan differences, been oriented towards short-term crisis management of macroeconomic stabilization, restoring growth, and selective public sector reforms. To diversify Nigeria’s economy, this book argues that successive governments must reorient towards a consistent focus on pro-productivity and pro-poor policies, alongside comprehensive civil service and security sector overhaul. These policy priorities, Nigeria’s ruling elites are belatedly acknowledging, are crucial to achieving economic transformation; a policy shift that requires a confrontation with the roots of perpetual political crisis, and an attempt to stabilize the balance of power towards equity and inclusion.</p> <p>Join the Global Development Policy Center (GDP Center) for a discussion with Zainab Usman, Senior Fellow and Director of the Africa Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, on her new book. This webinar is part of the Fall 2022 Global Economic Governance Book Talk Series.
Nigeria has for long been regarded as the poster child for the ‘curse’ of oil wealth. Yet, despite this, Nigeria achieved strong economic growth for over a decade in the 21st century, driven largely by policy reforms in non-oil sectors. In “Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The Politics of Building a Post-Oil Economy,” Zainab Usman argues that Nigeria’s major development challenge is not the ‘oil curse’, but rather one of achieving economic diversification beyond oil, subsistence agriculture, informal activities, and across its subnational entities. Through analysis drawing on economic data, policy documents, and interviews, Usman poses that Nigeria’s challenge of economic diversification is situated within the political setting of an unstable distribution of power among the individual, group, and institutional actors.</p> <p>Since the turn of the century, policymaking by successive Nigerian governments has, despite superficial partisan differences, been oriented towards short-term crisis management of macroeconomic stabilization, restoring growth, and selective public sector reforms. To diversify Nigeria’s economy, this book argues that successive governments must reorient towards a consistent focus on pro-productivity and pro-poor policies, alongside comprehensive civil service and security sector overhaul. These policy priorities, Nigeria’s ruling elites are belatedly acknowledging, are crucial to achieving economic transformation; a policy shift that requires a confrontation with the roots of perpetual political crisis, and an attempt to stabilize the balance of power towards equity and inclusion.</p> <p>Join the Global Development Policy Center (GDP Center) for a discussion with Zainab Usman, Senior Fellow and Director of the Africa Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, on her new book. This webinar is part of the Fall 2022 Global Economic Governance Book Talk Series.
—————
Beyond Data: Reclaiming Human Rights at the Dawn of the Metaverse
Thursday, December 1
Thursday, December 1
11:00am to 12:00pm
Online
Online
Towards Life 3.0: Ethics and Technology in the 21st Century is a talk series organized and facilitated by Dr. Mathias Risse, Director of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, and Berthold Beitz Professor in Human Rights, Global Affairs, and Philosophy and Sushma Raman, Executive Director of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy. Drawing inspiration from the title of Max Tegmark’s book, Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence, the series draws upon a range of scholars, technology leaders, and public interest technologists to address the ethical aspects of the long-term impact of artificial intelligence on society and human life. Please find the registration link below.
Panelist:
Elizabeth M. Renieris | Founder & CEO, HACKYLAWYER; Technology & Human Rights Fellow, Carr Center for Human Rights Policy
Mathias Risse (Moderator) | Faculty Director, Carr Center for Human Rights Policy
Elizabeth M. Renieris is a law and policy expert focused on data governance and the human rights implications of new and emerging technologies. Elizabeth is the founder & CEO of HACKYLAWYER, a consultancy focused on law and policy engineering, and a Technology & Human Rights Fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School, where she is designing a recalibrated human rights framework for data governance.A leading authority on digital identity, cross-border data protection and privacy laws (CIPP/E, CIPP/US), and emerging technologies such as blockchain and AI, Elizabeth has advised the World Bank, the U.K. Parliament, and the European Commission, as well as a variety of international organizations and NGOs, on these subjects. She has worked on three continents as a government attorney, outside counsel with two prominent international law firms, and in-house counsel at two digital identity startups, and serves as an advisor to the MIT Computational Law Report.
Virtual Event Details
This event will be livestreamed on YouTube Live. Attendees registered for this event (link below) will receive a link for the livestream 1 hour before the event where you can participate in the live chat and ask questions during the event.
—————
Susan Chomba: Will Ongoing Grand Restoration Schemes Reverse or Accelerate Biodiversity Loss?
Thursday, December 1
1:30pm
Boston College
Online
RSVP at https://bccte.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_bxTZLOKPT7WXahg49wN5jw
Dr. Susan Chomba is the Director of Vital Landscapes at the World Resources Institute (WRI). She leads WRI Africa’s work on forest protection and landscape restoration, food systems transformation, water and governance. She is a scientist with extensive research and development experience in more than 20 countries on the continent. Susan is a global ambassador for the Race to zero and Resilience under the UN High-Level Champions for Climate Action. She serves on advisory boards of several organizations and has received several global recognitions for her work, including being named as one of Global Landscapes Forum’s ‘16 Women Restoring the Earth’ in 2021 and one of the top 25 women shaping climate action globally by Greenbiz.
Dr. Susan Chomba is the Director of Vital Landscapes at the World Resources Institute (WRI). She leads WRI Africa’s work on forest protection and landscape restoration, food systems transformation, water and governance. She is a scientist with extensive research and development experience in more than 20 countries on the continent. Susan is a global ambassador for the Race to zero and Resilience under the UN High-Level Champions for Climate Action. She serves on advisory boards of several organizations and has received several global recognitions for her work, including being named as one of Global Landscapes Forum’s ‘16 Women Restoring the Earth’ in 2021 and one of the top 25 women shaping climate action globally by Greenbiz.
—————
Bradford Seminar: “Critical Data Gaps in Climate Change Adaptation Modeling”
Monday, December 5
Monday, December 5
12:15 PM - 1:15 PM
Princeton, 300 Wallace Hall, Princeton, NJ
Princeton, 300 Wallace Hall, Princeton, NJ
Online at https://mediacentrallive.princeton.edu
More information at https://environment.princeton.edu/event/bradford-seminar-critical-data-gaps-in-climate-change-adaptation-modeling/
Andrew Reid Bell, assistant professor of Earth and environment at Boston University, will present “Critical Data Gaps in Climate Change Adaptation Modeling.” This seminar will be held in-person (PUID holders only) and available via livestream (open to all).
Bell will discuss his approach to agent-based modeling — in which system-level outcomes emerge from interactions among individuals and their environment — that captures environmental forcings on migration. He will focus on data gaps in modeling people’s adaptation to climate hazards and shocks such as sea-level rise and the frontier of opportunities for resolving parts of them.
This event is part of the David Bradford Energy and Environmental Policy Seminar Series organized by the Center for Policy Research on Energy and the Environment (C-PREE) in the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and co-sponsored by the High Meadows Environmental Institute (HMEI).
Bell will discuss his approach to agent-based modeling — in which system-level outcomes emerge from interactions among individuals and their environment — that captures environmental forcings on migration. He will focus on data gaps in modeling people’s adaptation to climate hazards and shocks such as sea-level rise and the frontier of opportunities for resolving parts of them.
This event is part of the David Bradford Energy and Environmental Policy Seminar Series organized by the Center for Policy Research on Energy and the Environment (C-PREE) in the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs and co-sponsored by the High Meadows Environmental Institute (HMEI).
—————
Inside Putin's Head: The Threat of Nuclear Strike in Ukraine
Monday, December 5
5:00-6:30 PM
Online
RSVP at https://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg?oeidk=a07ejgysmgcd1dd9330&oseq=&c=&ch=
——————
Inside Putin's Head: The Threat of Nuclear Strike in Ukraine
Monday, December 5
5:00-6:30 PM
Online
RSVP at https://events.r20.constantcontact.com/register/eventReg?oeidk=a07ejgysmgcd1dd9330&oseq=&c=&ch=
——————
HMEI Faculty Seminar: “The Urbasphere: How Humans, Infrastructure and Nature Shape the Emerging Environment of Cities”
Tuesday, December 6
Tuesday, December 6
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Princeton, 10 Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ
Princeton, 10 Guyot Hall, Princeton, NJ
Online
Elie Bou-Zeid, professor of civil and environmental engineering and associated faculty in HMEI, will present “The Urbasphere: How Humans, Infrastructure and Nature Shape the Emerging Environment of Cities” in Guyot Hall, Room 10, and online via Zoom. Bou-Zeid is the final speaker in the fall 2022 HMEI Faculty Seminar Series.
In the past 50 years, the global population living in cities increased from 35% to 55%, and may be nearly 70% by 2050. Urban population density and its associated infrastructure and resource needs create an environment unlike any other on Earth. Understanding and managing the “urbasphere” has never been more urgent as cities emerge as the central stage for confronting global challenges related to climate, population, resources and equity, among others.
In the past 50 years, the global population living in cities increased from 35% to 55%, and may be nearly 70% by 2050. Urban population density and its associated infrastructure and resource needs create an environment unlike any other on Earth. Understanding and managing the “urbasphere” has never been more urgent as cities emerge as the central stage for confronting global challenges related to climate, population, resources and equity, among others.
——————
Jewish Climate Action Network Webinars:
Decarbonizing
Wednesday, December 7
7:00 - 8:30 PM (Eastern time)
RSVP at https://www.flipcause.com/secure/event_step2/MTYwNjEz/179930
In this fun webinar, you'll learn how to run a "Decarbonizers" program this year. It's a super-powerful, super-easy, peer-to-peer program, designed to motivate members of YOUR local synagogue/community to substantially reduce carbon in their households. You'll work on the steps, how it fits into climate activism, also the obstacles. Taught by Fred Davis, President of JCAN-MA. He has been a leader, a professional and an advocate in the arena of clean energy since 1978.
This was postponed from November 16th due to unforeseen circumstances.
And
Calculating Your Energy Benchmark
Tuesday, December 13
12:00 - 1:30 PM (Eastern time)
https://www.flipcause.com/secure/event_step2/MTYwNTk1/179888
Calculating your synagogue's "benchmark" -- its carbon footprint -- provides a baseline for ongoing reduction efforts. The methodology is straightforward, all it takes is this webinar and 2-3 hours of concentration. Led by Andrew Webster. Learn how to use the overhauled Bentshmarking spreadsheet MIPL-JCAN Carbon Calculator for Houses of Worship. For years, JCAN has trained green-teams in how to use this tool to calculate the carbon footprint of their synagogue facility.
——————
Jewish Climate Action Network Webinars:
Decarbonizing
Wednesday, December 7
7:00 - 8:30 PM (Eastern time)
RSVP at https://www.flipcause.com/secure/event_step2/MTYwNjEz/179930
In this fun webinar, you'll learn how to run a "Decarbonizers" program this year. It's a super-powerful, super-easy, peer-to-peer program, designed to motivate members of YOUR local synagogue/community to substantially reduce carbon in their households. You'll work on the steps, how it fits into climate activism, also the obstacles. Taught by Fred Davis, President of JCAN-MA. He has been a leader, a professional and an advocate in the arena of clean energy since 1978.
This was postponed from November 16th due to unforeseen circumstances.
And
Calculating Your Energy Benchmark
Tuesday, December 13
12:00 - 1:30 PM (Eastern time)
https://www.flipcause.com/secure/event_step2/MTYwNTk1/179888
Calculating your synagogue's "benchmark" -- its carbon footprint -- provides a baseline for ongoing reduction efforts. The methodology is straightforward, all it takes is this webinar and 2-3 hours of concentration. Led by Andrew Webster. Learn how to use the overhauled Bentshmarking spreadsheet MIPL-JCAN Carbon Calculator for Houses of Worship. For years, JCAN has trained green-teams in how to use this tool to calculate the carbon footprint of their synagogue facility.
——————
Climate Change and Health Equity
Thursday, December 8
12 – 1 p.m.
Online
CONTACT INFO vcp_hpsp@hms.harvard.edu
Questions? Email: vcp_hpsp@hms.harvard.edu
Panelists
Gaurab Basu, MD, MPH
Co-Director, Center for Health Equity Education & Advocacy, Cambridge Health Alliance;
Health Equity Fellow, Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health;
Faculty Affiliate, Department of Global Health & Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Caleb Dresser, MD
Assistant Director, Climate & Human Health Fellowship; Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center;
Instructor, Emergency Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Tracey L. Henry, MD, MPH, MS
Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine; Climate and Equity Fellow, Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health
Thread Director, Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Racial Advocacy, Emory University School of Medicine
Alden Landry, MD, MPH
Assistant Dean, Office for Diversity Inclusion and Community Partnership, Harvard Medical School;
Assistant Professor, Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Equity and Social Justice Webinar Series
—————
Transforming Policy, Procurement & Data to Achieve Carbon-Free Electricity in New England
Friday, December 9
9:00 am-12:30 pm
Foley Hoag LLP 155 Seaport Blvd 17th Floor Boston
and Livestreaming
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/12922-transforming-policy-procurement-data-to-achieve-cfe-in-ne-tickets-436614785577
Cost: $0 - $100
Recent Studies on 24/7 and Emissionality: Time & Location Matching
Convener/Moderator: Dr. Jonathan Raab, Raab Associates, Ltd.
Dr. Jesse Jenkins, Associate Professor Princeton University
Dr. Kathleen Spees, Principal, Brattle Group
Mark Dyson (invited), Managing Director, CFE Program, RMI
At this Roundtable, we will examine what it will take for New England’s states and other important entities, such as municipalities, universities, customers, utilities, and the federal government, to achieve their carbon-free electricity (CFE) commitments. These commitments come in the form of mandatory federal and state requirements, Renewable Portfolio and Clean Energy Standards, and voluntary purchases by corporations and nonprofits of Renewable and Clean Energy Certificates that match their buyers’ annual electricity consumption.
While these strategies have resulted in significant carbon emission reductions, they will not be sufficient to achieve a carbon-free electricity system. There is growing recognition that “not all kWhs are created equal.” Electricity-related carbon emissions vary hour by hour (even minute by minute) depending on the power plants that are operating at the time. They also vary by location, based on the mix of generation in the grid or utility system (even down to the circuit) where the customer is located. Carbon free resources that reduce the use of power plants with high levels of emissions, such as coal plants, reduce more carbon than carbon free sources that reduce the use of plants with lower emissions, e.g., natural gas or even renewable generation. Similarly, actions that reduce consumption in “dirtier” systems or grids, reduce more carbon emissions than actions in a “cleaner” system
As a result, customers, producers, policymakers and researchers are looking more closely at matching consumption with CFE by time and location. The two strategies currently receiving the most attention are, 1) procuring CFE on a 24/7 hourly matching basis; and 2) procuring electricity based on its “emissionality,” a practice that targets emissions where and when they are highest.
This panel will present three ground-breaking studies on what it will take to achieve CFE and whether 24/7 hourly matching or emissionality will be a more effective strategy (theoretically) or equally effective (practically).
Changing Policies, Procurements, and Data to Achieve Time & Location Matching
Guest Moderator: Janet Gail Besser
Tanuj Deora (invited), Director, Clean Energy, White House CEQ
Dr. Caroline Golin, Global Head, Energy Market, Development & Policy, Google
Misti Groves, VP Market & Policy Innovation, CEBA & CEBI
Mason Emnett, Senior VP Policy Constellation
Neil Fisher, Partner, Northbridge
Whether focusing on 24/7 hourly matching or emissionality, changes in policies, procurement practices and data access will be needed to achieve CFE.
On December 8, 2021, the Biden-Harris Administration issued an Executive Order requiring 100 percent CFE by 2030 for all federal buildings and facilities--at least half of which must be locally supplied clean energy to match 24/7 hourly demand. In August 2022, the White House Council on Environmental Quality provided initial implementing instructions, with additional guidance forthcoming.
Large corporate electricity buyers, such as Google and the Clean Energy Buyers Alliance, have been pursuing CFE procurement, using 24/7 and emissionality strategies. Meanwhile, suppliers have been working to provide these buyers with the CFE products they need to apply these strategies. Speakers will share how their collective experience in other states and regions could be applied in New England.
Finally, experts have been focusing on the policies and procurement practices that will need to be modified to enable and support CFE procurement, as well as the underlying data and data access that will be required to execute these strategies. These include next generation procurement strategies that can be implemented by customers, government agencies, and even by utilities procuring electricity supplies for default service. These strategies could also necessitate a reframing of overall mandates and goals, and major revisions to supporting policies.
—————
Join Steve Keen to find out how economists made their own inaccurate predictions about the damage climate change causes.
Forecasts by economists of the economic damage from climate change have been notably sanguine, compared to warnings by scientists about damage to the biosphere. This is because economists made their own predictions of damages, using three spurious methods: assuming that about 90% of GDP will be unaffected by climate change, because it happens indoors; using the relationship between temperature and GDP today as a proxy for the impact of global warming over time; and using surveys that diluted extreme warnings from scientists with optimistic expectations from economists.
Nordhaus has misrepresented the scientific literature to justify using a smooth function to describe the damage to GDP from climate change. Correcting for these errors makes it feasible that the economic damages from climate change are at least an order of magnitude worse than forecast by economists, and may be so great as to threaten the survival of human civilization.
Professor Steve Keen is a Distinguished Research Fellow at University College London's Institute for Strategy, Resilience & Security, the author of The New Economics: A Manifesto (2021) Debunking Economics (2011) and Can We Avoid Another Financial Crisis? (2017), and one of the few economists to anticipate the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, for which he received the Revere Award from the Real World Economics Review.
Governments and companies are acknowledging and acting on climate change like never before, offering hope that major economies have set their sights on a clean energy future. With this shift, what’s possible? The conceptual phase of the clean energy transition is over, and we can make this the decade we turn the tide on climate change. RMI must inspire the world to act faster, and our innovative experts are all in. Join our new CEO, Jon Creyts, and three emerging RMI leaders to hear how we can accelerate our clean energy future by acting on one of our core convictions: Hope, Applied.
The 2022 Climate Risk Scorecard, published in June 2022, benchmarked U.S. federal financial regulator progress on climate-related financial risk and communicated progress to various stakeholders, including state and federal regulators, Congress, the public, investors, NGOs, the media, the market, and regulated entities. The Scorecard demonstrates the rapidly changing risk management landscape, highlighting regulatory actions in the United States. This webinar will review and highlight regulator actions addressing climate-related financial risk, explore progress made in the six months since the 2022 Scorecard’s publication, and discuss important next steps.
In this webinar, attendees will:
Review the 2022 Scorecard results for nine federal financial regulators.
Hear from federal financial regulators on why their agencies are addressing climate risk, and the major steps they have taken so far.
Discover the current progress in the climate risk landscape, and the next steps necessary to effectively manage these risks.
Demonstrate an understanding of the regulatory and market shift that is already happening, and the importance of continued action (including finalizing OCC/FDIC’s Climate Principles, and SEC’s climate disclosure rule).
Explore the scorecard at https://www.ceres.org/accelerator/regulation/scorecard
While some see solar power and farmland as incompatible, others see it as the new normal. These polarized views can often create confusion. Additionally, solar power on farmland raises a number of critical issues like food security, climate change, and farm vitality. Fortunately, with proper planning, a happy medium can be found.
This webinar will focus on the growing field of agrivoltaics (sometimes referred to as agrisolar, dual-use solar, or low-impact solar) in Pennsylvania. The term ‘agrivoltaics’ refers to the co-location of agriculture and photovoltaic energy generation systems. An understanding of agrivoltaics is necessary as the search for land parcels that can accommodate the United States’ growing solar power sector continues.
Agriculture occupies about 43% of the lower forty-eight states’ surface area, while another 5% is taken up by roads and urban areas, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To accommodate the demand for additional solar panels in order to meet the nation’s climate goals, at least some farmland will inevitably needed. Thus, we need to identify ways to allow agriculture and solar power to complement one another.
Michael Roth is the Director of Conservation and Innovation at the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. In this role, he researches, analyzes, and presents new and emerging issues to farmers and policymakers in the Commonwealth. Previously, Roth served as the Policy Director and Executive Policy Specialist at PA DOA. Roth earned his master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Pittsburgh and his bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies from Washington & Jefferson College.
Come see this year's Terrascope students present proposals to increase agricultural productivity while protecting access to fresh water in Navajo Nation. Questions welcome from the audience as well as the expert panel.
Free and open to the public. Reception to follow.
Can’t make it? Watch our livestream: https://terrascope.mit.edu/portfolio_page/class-of-2026-farming-fresh-water/
Yet, climate change waits for no one. Climate, perhaps more than any other field in the bilateral relationship, demands the highest level of collaboration between the U.S. and China. What are the biggest opportunities and challenges for U.S.-China climate cooperation going forward? Does the handshake seen around the world between Presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden — as well as the resumption of informal talks between U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry and his Chinese counterpart, and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s planned visit to China in 2023 — portend that U.S.-China climate partnership will soon warm up again?
Join China Institute-Serica U.S.-China Next-Gen Leaders Circle online on Wednesday, December 7, 2022 at 7:30PM Eastern Time/Thursday, December 8, 2022 at 8:30AM Beijing Time with a panel of top experts across sectors — from investors, policymakers, philanthropists, academics, and nonprofits — to discuss the road ahead for U.S.-China climate collaboration in the age of decoupling.
Speaker:
Mr. Siddharth Chatterjee is the UN Resident Coordinator in China, the highest-ranking representative of the UN Development System in China. He has more than 25 years of experience in international cooperation, sustainable development, humanitarian coordination and peace and security. Most recently, he served as the UN Resident Coordinator in Kenya after holding other leadership positions across the Organization, including as Resident Representative of the UNDP and Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Kenya; Regional Director for the Middle East and Europe for the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in Denmark; and Chief of Staff in the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). He also held leadership positions with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Indonesia, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan, and in UN Peacekeeping Operations with the UN Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH). Mr. Chatterjee has also served in the Red Cross Movement (IFRC) as the Chief Diplomat and Head of Resource Mobilization in Switzerland. Mr. Chatterjee holds a master’s degree in public policy from Princeton University in the United States of America and a bachelor’s degree from the National Defence Academy in India.
Professor Xuhui Lee is Sara Shallenberger Brown Professor of Meteorology, Director of the Yale Center for Earth Observation, and Program Coordinator of the Yale-Tsinghua dual degree program. His research areas include boundary-layer meteorology, micrometeorological instrumentation, remote sensing, and carbon cycle science. One focus of his research activity is on biophysical effects of land use on the climate system. Other ongoing projects investigate greenhouse gas fluxes in the terrestrial environment (forests, cropland and lakes), isotopic tracers in the cycling of carbon dioxide and water vapor, and urban climate mitigation. He is recipient of the 2015 Award for Outstanding Achievement in Biometeorology from the American Meteorological Society. His recent textbook Fundamentals of Boundary-Layer Meteorology offers the accumulation of insights gained during his academic career as a researcher and teacher in the field of boundary-layer meteorology.
Moderator:
Jeremy Goldkorn is co-host of the Sinica podcast and editor-in-chief of SupChina.com. He moved to China in 1995 and became managing editor of Beijing's first independent English-language entertainment magazine. In 2003, he founded the website and research firm, Danwei, which tracked Chinese media, markets, politics and business. It was acquired in 2013 by the Financial Times. Goldkorn is founder of Great Wall Fresh, a social enterprise to help Chinese peasant farmers run small tourism businesses catering to foreign outdoor enthusiasts. He has lived in a workers dormitory, produced a documentary film about African soccer players in Beijing, and rode a bicycle from Peshawar to Kathmandu via Kashgar and Lhasa. He moved to Nashville Tennessee in 2015 and is a board member of the Tennessee China Network.
Greta Thunberg will be joined by Naomi Klein and others to discuss the climate emergency – and how we can stop it.
Have we run out of time to change the world, or is there still hope? The Climate Book gathers the wisdom and experience of more than 100 experts – from geophysicists and meteorologists, to engineers, economists and indigenous leaders – to show how the ecological and sustainability crises are all connected, and to give us the tools and knowledge we need to find hope through action.
Thunberg became a prominent figure in the fight against greenwashing, denial and climate justice in 2018, when she inspired an international movement of school strikes against government inaction. She frequently addresses parliaments and world summits, and in 2019, a collection of her speeches, No One Is Too Small To Make a Difference, made her Waterstones author of the year.
Guardian environment editor Damian Carrington will host the evening, which will include a conversation between Greta Thunberg and Naomi Klein. They will also be joined by Saleemul Huq, Director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development based in Bangladesh, Pakistani climate justice advocate Ayisha Siddiqa and Kate Raworth, author of Doughnut Economics.
£1 from every ticket sold will be donated to Fridays For Future.
This event will be hosted on a third-party live streaming platform Zoom, please refer to their privacy policy and terms and conditions before purchasing a ticket to the event. After registering, please refer to your confirmation email for access to the event.
Closed captions will be available for this event.
Stefan Rahmstorf: 2022 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication
Friday, December 9
7am EST (10:00am PST)
RSVP at https://www.climateone.org/events/stefan-rahmstorf-2022-stephen-h-schneider-award-outstanding-climate-science-communication
Climate One is delighted to present the 2022 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication to climate scientist and ocean expert Dr. Stefan Rahmstorf.
In a year of unprecedented oceanic changes, Dr. Rahmstorf exemplifies the rare combination of superb scientist and powerful communicator in his work to convey the impact of climate on oceans, sea level rise, and increasing extreme weather events.
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Nature-Based Adaptation: Getting to Scale
Friday, December 9
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
CDM Smith, 75 State Street, Boston
and Online
RSVP at https://climateadaptationforum.org/event/nature-based-adaptation-getting-to-scale/
Cost: $15 - $45
Flooding risks, sea level rise, storm surges, and extreme heat are accelerating with a changing climate. Ecosystems are also at risk, along with the social, economic, and environmental benefits they provide. Nature-based climate adaptation approaches offer opportunities to bring people into greater harmony with ecology, secure and enhance ecosystem services for future generations, and cost-effectively reduce some flooding risks. Funders, regulators, adaptation professionals, and the public now view nature-based adaptation as no longer an aspiration, but a priority or requirement. Pilot projects are being scaled up to billions of oysters, miles of shoreline, and hectares of wetlands. But how feasible and effective are they? And how do we effectively regulate and build the capacity to plan and implement them at scales that match the urgency of risks, speed of climate changes, and our own expectations? Join us to learn about the opportunities and barriers to scaling up nature-based approaches to climate adaptation, from planning to permitting to implementation.
Forum Co-Chairs
Nasser Brahim, Senior Climate Resiliency Specialist, Woods Hole Group
Mark Costa, Water Resources and Civil Engineer, VHB
Melanie Gárate, Director of Climate Engagement, Stone Living Lab
Forum Speakers
Alison Bowden, Director of Science & Strategy, The Nature Conservancy
Pippa Brashear, Resilience Principal, SCAPE
Jason Burtner, South Shore Regional Coordinator, Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM)
Leah Feldman, Coastal Policy Analyst, Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (RI CRMC)
Heidi Nutters, Senior Program Manager, San Francisco Estuary Partnership
Steve Rochette, Chief of Public Affairs, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Philadelphia District
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Zaporizhzhia: Facing the Dangers of Nuclear Plants in War and Peace
Sunday, December 11
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm EST
Online
RSVP at https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYvdeGqqjsoEt2Q05E4H-A7_2doPCMPPeH7
As we learned from Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima, dangers are inherent to the generation of nuclear power. These dangers expand exponentially in wartime. With six reactors, Zaporizhzhia is the largest nuclear plant in Ukraine and all of Europe. It has been occupied by Russian military forces since early March but has continued to be operated by its Ukrainian staff. Near the frontline of the war, the plant has been damaged by shelling of disputed origins, and all six reactors have been shut down. Faced with the dangers of a possible incident that could transform the plant into a massive dirty bomb and fallout impacting much of Europe and possibly Russia, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been leading efforts to establish a safety and security zone at, and around, the plant.
In this webinar, Russian and U.S. experts will explain the present situation at the Zaporizhzhia plant, the dangers by the plant and others across Ukraine, and what the international community do to prevent a nuclear catastrophe.
Oleg V. Bodrov is an engineer-physicist, environmentalist, former member of the Council of IPB, chairman of the Public Council of the South Coast of the Gulf of Finland, St. Petersburg, Russia. He was elected a board member of the International Peace Bureau in October 2022.
A leader of the Russian peace, environmental protection and nuclear safety movements, Bodrov works in coalition with partners from the Baltic Sea countries is working to reduce the level of confrontation between NATO and Russia in the Baltic. He is one of the organizers of the campaign “The Baltic Sea – the sea of peace, peace among people and environmental protection!”
He has authored reports at international anti-war conferences in Helsinki, Paris, New York, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, produced documentaries on the consequences of nuclear weapons production and “peaceful nuclear energy, which are translated into English, German and Japanese, and promotes safe decommissioning of nuclear power plants based on world best practices and democratic participation of authorities, the nuclear industry and the public.
Linda Pentz Gunter founded Beyond Nuclear in 2007 and serves as its international specialist as well as its media and development director. She also writes for and curates Beyond Nuclear International. Prior to her work in anti-nuclear advocacy, she was a journalist for 20 years in print and broadcast, working for USA Network, Reuters, The Times (UK) and other US and international outlets.
The workshop invites holistic, intersectional approaches relating to war, oppression, pollution, neoliberalism, discrimination and climate change. For example, one could take the influence of capital and, by association, neoliberalism where the drive for profit can create unnecessary pollution across the world. Global organisations often seek the least expensive means of production often characterised by a low paid (poverty stricken) workforce. Allied to the weaker Health and Safety regulations in many countries, productivity targets are often enforced.
As a consequence, any shortcuts that result in greater productivity at the expense of the environment or working conditions are either ignored or encouraged which, in turn, can result in the ‘dumping’ of waste products as opposed to recycling or disposal processes that cost more money. Indeed, this ‘dumping’ tends to take place in the poorer neighbourhoods and, therefore, affects those more susceptible to poverty than more elite sections of society (see https://www.injustice-intl.org/environment).
War on the other hand can result in similarly devastating consequences. The use of heavy ammunition, the raising of buildings and power stations the war has exacerbated levels of pollution. In addition, war intensifies relations appertaining to forced migration (and subsequent discriminatory practices) alongside concerns over energy supplies with those countries that have agreed to zero emissions targets beginning to resort back to the burning of fossil fuels. All-in-all, there is an exacerbation of the causes of climate change and an increase in relative poverty if not absolute poverty.
And with climate change, the poorest are disproportionately affected.
These are but a few of the examples that can lead to both an intersectional and holistic account of the overwhelming havoc being caused by environmental destruction. From whatever the preferred approach of the speaker/researcher on the subject, (In)Justice International welcomes the submission of abstracts.
Agenda
12-12.10 (GMT) Brief Introduction.
12.10-13.10 Four fifteen-minute presentations.
13.10-13.30 Breakout sessions
13.30-13.50 Q&A
13-50-14.00 Break
14.00-15.00 Four fifteen-minute presentations.
15.00-15.20 Breakout session
15.20-15.40 Q&A
15.40-15.50 Closing remarks
Presentations in this event could lead to publication in either our journals (please click on https://www.injustice-intl.org/cfp1-call-for-journal-abstracts) or books (https://anthempress.com/crime-criminality-and-injustice-hb). It could also secure a place at our World Convention in Finland 2023 (see CfPs on https://www.injustice-intl.org/copy-of-call-for-abstracts-papers-2).
Thursday, December 8
12 – 1 p.m.
Online
CONTACT INFO vcp_hpsp@hms.harvard.edu
Questions? Email: vcp_hpsp@hms.harvard.edu
Panelists
Gaurab Basu, MD, MPH
Co-Director, Center for Health Equity Education & Advocacy, Cambridge Health Alliance;
Health Equity Fellow, Center for Climate, Health, and the Global Environment, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health;
Faculty Affiliate, Department of Global Health & Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Caleb Dresser, MD
Assistant Director, Climate & Human Health Fellowship; Department of Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center;
Instructor, Emergency Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Tracey L. Henry, MD, MPH, MS
Associate Professor of Medicine, Division of General Medicine; Climate and Equity Fellow, Medical Society Consortium on Climate and Health
Thread Director, Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Racial Advocacy, Emory University School of Medicine
Alden Landry, MD, MPH
Assistant Dean, Office for Diversity Inclusion and Community Partnership, Harvard Medical School;
Assistant Professor, Emergency Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Equity and Social Justice Webinar Series
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Transforming Policy, Procurement & Data to Achieve Carbon-Free Electricity in New England
Friday, December 9
9:00 am-12:30 pm
Foley Hoag LLP 155 Seaport Blvd 17th Floor Boston
and Livestreaming
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/12922-transforming-policy-procurement-data-to-achieve-cfe-in-ne-tickets-436614785577
Cost: $0 - $100
Recent Studies on 24/7 and Emissionality: Time & Location Matching
Convener/Moderator: Dr. Jonathan Raab, Raab Associates, Ltd.
Dr. Jesse Jenkins, Associate Professor Princeton University
Dr. Kathleen Spees, Principal, Brattle Group
Mark Dyson (invited), Managing Director, CFE Program, RMI
At this Roundtable, we will examine what it will take for New England’s states and other important entities, such as municipalities, universities, customers, utilities, and the federal government, to achieve their carbon-free electricity (CFE) commitments. These commitments come in the form of mandatory federal and state requirements, Renewable Portfolio and Clean Energy Standards, and voluntary purchases by corporations and nonprofits of Renewable and Clean Energy Certificates that match their buyers’ annual electricity consumption.
While these strategies have resulted in significant carbon emission reductions, they will not be sufficient to achieve a carbon-free electricity system. There is growing recognition that “not all kWhs are created equal.” Electricity-related carbon emissions vary hour by hour (even minute by minute) depending on the power plants that are operating at the time. They also vary by location, based on the mix of generation in the grid or utility system (even down to the circuit) where the customer is located. Carbon free resources that reduce the use of power plants with high levels of emissions, such as coal plants, reduce more carbon than carbon free sources that reduce the use of plants with lower emissions, e.g., natural gas or even renewable generation. Similarly, actions that reduce consumption in “dirtier” systems or grids, reduce more carbon emissions than actions in a “cleaner” system
As a result, customers, producers, policymakers and researchers are looking more closely at matching consumption with CFE by time and location. The two strategies currently receiving the most attention are, 1) procuring CFE on a 24/7 hourly matching basis; and 2) procuring electricity based on its “emissionality,” a practice that targets emissions where and when they are highest.
This panel will present three ground-breaking studies on what it will take to achieve CFE and whether 24/7 hourly matching or emissionality will be a more effective strategy (theoretically) or equally effective (practically).
Changing Policies, Procurements, and Data to Achieve Time & Location Matching
Guest Moderator: Janet Gail Besser
Tanuj Deora (invited), Director, Clean Energy, White House CEQ
Dr. Caroline Golin, Global Head, Energy Market, Development & Policy, Google
Misti Groves, VP Market & Policy Innovation, CEBA & CEBI
Mason Emnett, Senior VP Policy Constellation
Neil Fisher, Partner, Northbridge
Whether focusing on 24/7 hourly matching or emissionality, changes in policies, procurement practices and data access will be needed to achieve CFE.
On December 8, 2021, the Biden-Harris Administration issued an Executive Order requiring 100 percent CFE by 2030 for all federal buildings and facilities--at least half of which must be locally supplied clean energy to match 24/7 hourly demand. In August 2022, the White House Council on Environmental Quality provided initial implementing instructions, with additional guidance forthcoming.
Large corporate electricity buyers, such as Google and the Clean Energy Buyers Alliance, have been pursuing CFE procurement, using 24/7 and emissionality strategies. Meanwhile, suppliers have been working to provide these buyers with the CFE products they need to apply these strategies. Speakers will share how their collective experience in other states and regions could be applied in New England.
Finally, experts have been focusing on the policies and procurement practices that will need to be modified to enable and support CFE procurement, as well as the underlying data and data access that will be required to execute these strategies. These include next generation procurement strategies that can be implemented by customers, government agencies, and even by utilities procuring electricity supplies for default service. These strategies could also necessitate a reframing of overall mandates and goals, and major revisions to supporting policies.
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MIT Starr Forum: Energy as a Weapon of War: Russia, Ukraine, and Europe in Challenging Times
Friday, December 9
Friday, December 9
12:00 PM - 1:15 AM
Online
RSVP at https://mit.zoom.us/webinar/register/8716637662420/WN_Yd1_bF0DS3mKt30f_7gxdg
Speakers:
Margarita Balmaceda is the Professor of Diplomacy and International Relations School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University; and an Associate of the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute. Her most recent book is "Russian Energy Chains: the Remaking of Technopolitics from Siberia to Ukraine to the European Union."
Constanze Stelzenmüller is the Director and Fritz Stern Chair of the Center on the United States and Europe at the Brookings Institution. She is an expert on German, European, and trans-Atlantic foreign and security policy and strategy.
Co-Chairs:
Carol Saivetz is a Senior Advisor in the MIT Security Studies Program. She is the author and contributing co-editor of books and articles on Soviet and now Russian foreign policy issues.
Elizabeth Wood is a Professor of History at MIT. She is the author most recently of Roots of Russia's War in Ukraine as well as articles on Vladimir Putin, the political cult of WWII, right-wing populism in Russia and Turkey, and US-Russian Partnerships in Science. She is Co-Director of the MISTI MIT-Eurasia Program.
Email
svanmell@mit.edu
Website https://calendar.mit.edu/event/starr_forum_energy_as_a_weapon_of_war_russia_ukraine_and_europe_in_challenging_times#
RSVP at https://mit.zoom.us/webinar/register/8716637662420/WN_Yd1_bF0DS3mKt30f_7gxdg
Speakers:
Margarita Balmaceda is the Professor of Diplomacy and International Relations School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University; and an Associate of the Harvard Ukrainian Research Institute. Her most recent book is "Russian Energy Chains: the Remaking of Technopolitics from Siberia to Ukraine to the European Union."
Constanze Stelzenmüller is the Director and Fritz Stern Chair of the Center on the United States and Europe at the Brookings Institution. She is an expert on German, European, and trans-Atlantic foreign and security policy and strategy.
Co-Chairs:
Carol Saivetz is a Senior Advisor in the MIT Security Studies Program. She is the author and contributing co-editor of books and articles on Soviet and now Russian foreign policy issues.
Elizabeth Wood is a Professor of History at MIT. She is the author most recently of Roots of Russia's War in Ukraine as well as articles on Vladimir Putin, the political cult of WWII, right-wing populism in Russia and Turkey, and US-Russian Partnerships in Science. She is Co-Director of the MISTI MIT-Eurasia Program.
svanmell@mit.edu
Website https://calendar.mit.edu/event/starr_forum_energy_as_a_weapon_of_war_russia_ukraine_and_europe_in_challenging_times#
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Earthquakes and the End Times: Global Disasters and Apocalyptic Predictions in the Early Modern English Atlantic
Tuesday, December 13
5:00PM - 6:15PM
This is an online event.
RSVP at https://18308a.blackbaudhosting.com/18308a/Environmental-History-Seminar-Prof-Jennifer-Egloff-Virtual-Event
Author: Jennifer Egloff, NYU Shanghai
Comment: Conevery Bolton Valencius, Boston College
Throughout early modern Europe and the Atlantic World, individuals recorded details of earthquakes in diaries and letters, contemplated meanings in sermons, and learned about distant disasters via broadsides and pamphlets. Highlighting the contemporary providential worldview, this paper argues that numbers contained in earthquake reports were particularly significant. By recording precisely when earthquakes occurred—and making correlations with distant earthquakes—individuals interpreted God’s messages apocalyptically, arguing that particular earthquakes correlated with those described in Revelation. Some people combined this with additional chronological information to predict when Judgment Day would occur. This paper explores the extent to which New Englanders were unique in their providential and apocalyptical interpretations of global disasters, compared to their Atlantic counterparts.
The Environmental History Seminar invites you to join the conversation. Seminars bring together a diverse group of scholars and interested members of the public to workshop a pre-circulated paper. Learn more.
Purchasing the $25 seminar subscription gives you advanced access to the seminar papers of all seven seminar series for the current academic year. Subscribe at www.masshist.org/research/seminars. Subscribers for the current year may login to view currently available essays.
Earthquakes and the End Times: Global Disasters and Apocalyptic Predictions in the Early Modern English Atlantic
Tuesday, December 13
5:00PM - 6:15PM
This is an online event.
RSVP at https://18308a.blackbaudhosting.com/18308a/Environmental-History-Seminar-Prof-Jennifer-Egloff-Virtual-Event
Author: Jennifer Egloff, NYU Shanghai
Comment: Conevery Bolton Valencius, Boston College
Throughout early modern Europe and the Atlantic World, individuals recorded details of earthquakes in diaries and letters, contemplated meanings in sermons, and learned about distant disasters via broadsides and pamphlets. Highlighting the contemporary providential worldview, this paper argues that numbers contained in earthquake reports were particularly significant. By recording precisely when earthquakes occurred—and making correlations with distant earthquakes—individuals interpreted God’s messages apocalyptically, arguing that particular earthquakes correlated with those described in Revelation. Some people combined this with additional chronological information to predict when Judgment Day would occur. This paper explores the extent to which New Englanders were unique in their providential and apocalyptical interpretations of global disasters, compared to their Atlantic counterparts.
The Environmental History Seminar invites you to join the conversation. Seminars bring together a diverse group of scholars and interested members of the public to workshop a pre-circulated paper. Learn more.
Purchasing the $25 seminar subscription gives you advanced access to the seminar papers of all seven seminar series for the current academic year. Subscribe at www.masshist.org/research/seminars. Subscribers for the current year may login to view currently available essays.
——————
A Changing Planet Seminar: Going Circular: Addressing Climate Change through Circular Development
Wednesday, December 14
Circular development is a regenerative approach to the way in which we design, plan and manage urban ecosystems. It has the potential to help city-regions mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt for climate change. It will ecologically regenerate urban systems; turn cities into producers as well as consumers of resources; and enable them to adapt more easily to the tumultuous changes in the landscape. However, it does incur a whole range of challenges to implementation. Perhaps the greatest of these is the low value the economic system attributes to circular activities, which are needed to address climate change.
Join us in person at Grantham Institute Board room, or watch the online screening at Silwood PArk’s F&H rooms, or online for an intriguing discussion with Prof Jo. There will be time for questions after her presentation and a networking session will follow.
About our speaker
Jo Williams is a senior lecturer in Sustainable Urbanism at the Bartlett School of Planning. She co-developed the innovative MSC Sustainable Urbanism and was the director of the programme from 2010 – 2012. She is currently Director of the International Circular Cities Hub which she founded in collaboration with the Ellen Macarthur Foundation. She works closely with industry (e.g. ARUPs, Zed Architects, Happolds, WSP, CBRE, WS Atkins), government (municipalities, regional and national governments in Europe and Asia), interest groups (e.g. Asia- Pacific Zero Carbon Hub), International bodies (European Environment Agency and United Nations). She has acted as an advisor to a number of regional, national and international bodies including: the United Nations task force on the Marrakech process, the European Environment Agency; the World Congress on Smart Cities, the UK Peak Oil committee, the Horizon Scanning team and UK Department of Business, Innovation and Enterprise; and the GLA London Renewables. She is on the steering panel for several large research projects and conferences focussed on low carbon and smart urbanism. She reviews papers for several journals (including Energy Policy, Journal Cleaner production, Environment and Planning B) that are important in the field of sustainable urbanism and energy policy. She has published widely in peer-reviewed journals and written “Zero Carbon Homes – A Road Map” a book published by EarthScan-Routledge
Joining the event
This will be a hybrid event, with the opportunity for Imperial staff and students to attend at one of two campus locations (South Kensington and Silwood Park).
In Person
South Kensington Campus – The Grantham Institute Boardroom, followed by a networking reception.
Silwood Park Campus – Fisher and Haldane. There will be a live stream of the event here followed by a networking reception.
Online
Guests can join the seminar remotely on zoom. Details to be sent to those who register.
The Changing Planet seminar series is run by students and staff on the Science and Solutions for a Changing Planet (SSCP) Doctoral Training Program. It offers the chance to hear the latest in understanding, adapting to and mitigating environmental problems, complementing the diversity of environmental research at Imperial College London and beyond. Please be aware that our seminars are recorded. If you do not wish to appear on the recording please alert a member of staff. For any further enquiries regarding the Changing Planet seminar series, please contact us at grantham.events@imperial.ac.uk .
Wednesday, December 14
6am - 7:30am (11:00 - 12:30 GMT)
Grantham Institute Board Room, Sherfield Building, South Kensington Campus, London, UK
and Livestream
Circular development is a regenerative approach to the way in which we design, plan and manage urban ecosystems. It has the potential to help city-regions mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and adapt for climate change. It will ecologically regenerate urban systems; turn cities into producers as well as consumers of resources; and enable them to adapt more easily to the tumultuous changes in the landscape. However, it does incur a whole range of challenges to implementation. Perhaps the greatest of these is the low value the economic system attributes to circular activities, which are needed to address climate change.
Join us in person at Grantham Institute Board room, or watch the online screening at Silwood PArk’s F&H rooms, or online for an intriguing discussion with Prof Jo. There will be time for questions after her presentation and a networking session will follow.
About our speaker
Jo Williams is a senior lecturer in Sustainable Urbanism at the Bartlett School of Planning. She co-developed the innovative MSC Sustainable Urbanism and was the director of the programme from 2010 – 2012. She is currently Director of the International Circular Cities Hub which she founded in collaboration with the Ellen Macarthur Foundation. She works closely with industry (e.g. ARUPs, Zed Architects, Happolds, WSP, CBRE, WS Atkins), government (municipalities, regional and national governments in Europe and Asia), interest groups (e.g. Asia- Pacific Zero Carbon Hub), International bodies (European Environment Agency and United Nations). She has acted as an advisor to a number of regional, national and international bodies including: the United Nations task force on the Marrakech process, the European Environment Agency; the World Congress on Smart Cities, the UK Peak Oil committee, the Horizon Scanning team and UK Department of Business, Innovation and Enterprise; and the GLA London Renewables. She is on the steering panel for several large research projects and conferences focussed on low carbon and smart urbanism. She reviews papers for several journals (including Energy Policy, Journal Cleaner production, Environment and Planning B) that are important in the field of sustainable urbanism and energy policy. She has published widely in peer-reviewed journals and written “Zero Carbon Homes – A Road Map” a book published by EarthScan-Routledge
Joining the event
This will be a hybrid event, with the opportunity for Imperial staff and students to attend at one of two campus locations (South Kensington and Silwood Park).
In Person
South Kensington Campus – The Grantham Institute Boardroom, followed by a networking reception.
Silwood Park Campus – Fisher and Haldane. There will be a live stream of the event here followed by a networking reception.
Online
Guests can join the seminar remotely on zoom. Details to be sent to those who register.
The Changing Planet seminar series is run by students and staff on the Science and Solutions for a Changing Planet (SSCP) Doctoral Training Program. It offers the chance to hear the latest in understanding, adapting to and mitigating environmental problems, complementing the diversity of environmental research at Imperial College London and beyond. Please be aware that our seminars are recorded. If you do not wish to appear on the recording please alert a member of staff. For any further enquiries regarding the Changing Planet seminar series, please contact us at grantham.events@imperial.ac.uk .
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An Introduction to Nuclear Weapons
Fridays, January 6 through January 27, 2023
Fridays, January 6 through January 27, 2023
11:00am to 12:00pm
MIT, Building 32-155, 155 32 Vassar Street, Cambridge
MIT, Building 32-155, 155 32 Vassar Street, Cambridge
and Online
RSVP at https://calendar.mit.edu/event/introduction_to_nuclear_weapons#.Y4GEyS2ZOiI
Is nuclear war possible? How close have we come? What can be done to prevent it?
These talks are will provide a broad overview of the ways in which nuclear weapons have impacted our world, and the ways in which they may bring it to ruin.
Lecture 1 (1/6): Nuclear weapons design, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, potential biological and societal effects, nuclear winter
Lecture 2 (1/13): The nuclear arms race, nuclear crises, Ukraine and Taiwan, accidental nuclear war
Lecture 3 (1/20): Nuclear proliferation, nuclear coercion, North Korea and Iran
Lecture 4 (1/27): Arms control, risk reduction, prospects for the future
No prerequisites, no homework, not for credit.
Content warning: 1st talk will cover bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with some graphic detail.
Is nuclear war possible? How close have we come? What can be done to prevent it?
These talks are will provide a broad overview of the ways in which nuclear weapons have impacted our world, and the ways in which they may bring it to ruin.
Lecture 1 (1/6): Nuclear weapons design, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, potential biological and societal effects, nuclear winter
Lecture 2 (1/13): The nuclear arms race, nuclear crises, Ukraine and Taiwan, accidental nuclear war
Lecture 3 (1/20): Nuclear proliferation, nuclear coercion, North Korea and Iran
Lecture 4 (1/27): Arms control, risk reduction, prospects for the future
No prerequisites, no homework, not for credit.
Content warning: 1st talk will cover bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki with some graphic detail.
Editorial Comment: This is an MIT Independent Activities Period [IAP] program. IAP was started by students back in the 60s©™allrights reserved and allowed anyone from a janitor to a professor emeritus to teach a course. It’s what got me interested in events listing back in the 1970s.
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**Events**
Keeping the (Decarbonized) Lights On: US Housing, Equity, and the Energy Transition
Friday, December 2
12:15 PM - 1:15 PM EST
Online
RSVP at https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_hJosld4uQd-zVVdPZSmwWQ
Because housing produces about one-fifth of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, decarbonizing housing is a major focus of the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act and several other initiatives. In this talk, Carlos Martín, project director of the Center’s Remodeling Futures Program, will discuss the multiple–and often overlapping–approaches to decarbonizing housing: energy efficiency, electrification, and renewable energy. He’ll also discuss efforts to help policymakers develop strategies that harness the skills of the tradespeople who will do much of the needed work as well as efforts to address inequities in our current residential energy system.
Contact james chaknis
617-495-7908
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Hurricanes and Breezes: Visualizing Climate Change
Friday, December 2
12 PM ET
Online on Zoom
RSVP at https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_rZ-Q2dV9RRmiVb4jAkqvBA
What role can visualization play in understanding and managing climate change? Data analytics experts Fernanda Viégas and Martin Wattenbergwill discuss a series of projects that visualize and portray climate and weather, and explore issues that these projects have raised.
Viégas and Wattenberg are long-time collaborators who led IBM’s Visual Communication Lab and co-founded Flowing Media, Inc., a visualization studio focused on media and consumer-oriented projects. Before joining the Harvard faculty, they also co-founded and led the “Big Picture” team at Google and Google Research’s PAIR (People + AI Research) initiative, which researches and designs AI systems that improve human-AI interactions. The systems Viégas, Wattenberg, and their teams have created are used daily by millions of people. With the goal of democratizing AI technology and visualization, their work engages with important societal questions, expectations, and values, including those related to climate change.
Harvard Radcliffe Institute gratefully acknowledges the Ethel and David Jackson Fund for the Future Climate, which is supporting this event.
Speakers
Fernanda Viégas, Sally Starling Seaver Professor, Harvard Radcliffe Institute, and Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Martin Wattenberg, Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Moderator
Edo Berger, codirector of the science program, Harvard Radcliffe Institute, and professor of astronomy, Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences
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**Events**
Keeping the (Decarbonized) Lights On: US Housing, Equity, and the Energy Transition
Friday, December 2
12:15 PM - 1:15 PM EST
Online
RSVP at https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_hJosld4uQd-zVVdPZSmwWQ
Because housing produces about one-fifth of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, decarbonizing housing is a major focus of the recently passed Inflation Reduction Act and several other initiatives. In this talk, Carlos Martín, project director of the Center’s Remodeling Futures Program, will discuss the multiple–and often overlapping–approaches to decarbonizing housing: energy efficiency, electrification, and renewable energy. He’ll also discuss efforts to help policymakers develop strategies that harness the skills of the tradespeople who will do much of the needed work as well as efforts to address inequities in our current residential energy system.
Contact james chaknis
617-495-7908
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Hurricanes and Breezes: Visualizing Climate Change
Friday, December 2
12 PM ET
Online on Zoom
RSVP at https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_rZ-Q2dV9RRmiVb4jAkqvBA
What role can visualization play in understanding and managing climate change? Data analytics experts Fernanda Viégas and Martin Wattenbergwill discuss a series of projects that visualize and portray climate and weather, and explore issues that these projects have raised.
Viégas and Wattenberg are long-time collaborators who led IBM’s Visual Communication Lab and co-founded Flowing Media, Inc., a visualization studio focused on media and consumer-oriented projects. Before joining the Harvard faculty, they also co-founded and led the “Big Picture” team at Google and Google Research’s PAIR (People + AI Research) initiative, which researches and designs AI systems that improve human-AI interactions. The systems Viégas, Wattenberg, and their teams have created are used daily by millions of people. With the goal of democratizing AI technology and visualization, their work engages with important societal questions, expectations, and values, including those related to climate change.
Harvard Radcliffe Institute gratefully acknowledges the Ethel and David Jackson Fund for the Future Climate, which is supporting this event.
Speakers
Fernanda Viégas, Sally Starling Seaver Professor, Harvard Radcliffe Institute, and Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Martin Wattenberg, Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science, Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Moderator
Edo Berger, codirector of the science program, Harvard Radcliffe Institute, and professor of astronomy, Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences
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Peter Zeihan: Mapping the Collapse of Globalization
Friday, December 2
Friday, December 2
3:30PM (12:30 PM PST)
Online
Cost; $10 -$15
Was 2019 the last great year for the world economy? For generations, everything has been getting faster, better and cheaper. Complex, innovative industries were created to satisfy consumers, but are we at the brink of not being able to sustain ongoing demand?
Geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan asserts it is only a matter of time before major changes will start to unfold that will affect how we manufacture goods, grow food and produce energy. Additionally, the list of countries able to sustain this model is much smaller than you might think.
Zeihan issues an urgent call to avoid what he sees as a catastrophic ending and maps out what the “next” world will look like.
Geopolitical strategist Peter Zeihan asserts it is only a matter of time before major changes will start to unfold that will affect how we manufacture goods, grow food and produce energy. Additionally, the list of countries able to sustain this model is much smaller than you might think.
Zeihan issues an urgent call to avoid what he sees as a catastrophic ending and maps out what the “next” world will look like.
Registered guests will receive a complimentary copy of The End of the World Is Just the Beginning, courtesy of the Ken and Jaclyn Broad Family Fund. Domestic shipping only.
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The Appallingly Bad (Neoclassical) Economics of Climate Change
Sunday, December 4
2:00 PM – 3:15 PM EST
Online
Join Steve Keen to find out how economists made their own inaccurate predictions about the damage climate change causes.
Forecasts by economists of the economic damage from climate change have been notably sanguine, compared to warnings by scientists about damage to the biosphere. This is because economists made their own predictions of damages, using three spurious methods: assuming that about 90% of GDP will be unaffected by climate change, because it happens indoors; using the relationship between temperature and GDP today as a proxy for the impact of global warming over time; and using surveys that diluted extreme warnings from scientists with optimistic expectations from economists.
Nordhaus has misrepresented the scientific literature to justify using a smooth function to describe the damage to GDP from climate change. Correcting for these errors makes it feasible that the economic damages from climate change are at least an order of magnitude worse than forecast by economists, and may be so great as to threaten the survival of human civilization.
Professor Steve Keen is a Distinguished Research Fellow at University College London's Institute for Strategy, Resilience & Security, the author of The New Economics: A Manifesto (2021) Debunking Economics (2011) and Can We Avoid Another Financial Crisis? (2017), and one of the few economists to anticipate the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, for which he received the Revere Award from the Real World Economics Review.
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Rocky Mountain Institute Discussion — How Can We Accelerate Our Clean Energy Future?
Tuesday, December 6
Tuesday, December 6
11:00 a.m. ET
Online
Online
RSVP at https://rmi.org/events/
Governments and companies are acknowledging and acting on climate change like never before, offering hope that major economies have set their sights on a clean energy future. With this shift, what’s possible? The conceptual phase of the clean energy transition is over, and we can make this the decade we turn the tide on climate change. RMI must inspire the world to act faster, and our innovative experts are all in. Join our new CEO, Jon Creyts, and three emerging RMI leaders to hear how we can accelerate our clean energy future by acting on one of our core convictions: Hope, Applied.
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Are Industry Regulators Ready for the Climate Transition?
Tuesday, December 6
Tuesday, December 6
12:00PM - 1:30PM
Kleinman Energy Forum, Fisher Fine Arts Library, 220 S 34th Street, Philadelphia, PA
and Online
and Online
MEREDITH FOWLIE, Class of 1935 Endowed Chair in Energy, UC Berkeley
Moderator
SUSANNA BERKOUWER, Assistant Professor of Business Economics & Public Policy, Wharton School
Moderator
SUSANNA BERKOUWER, Assistant Professor of Business Economics & Public Policy, Wharton School
Many of the industries on the front lines of the climate transition are subject to extensive economic regulation. Are these regulatory regimes up to the task of coordinating an efficient and equitable climate transition? UC Berkeley economist Meredith Fowlie will discuss how economic regulation in key industries (such as electricity, natural gas, and insurance) is being tested by climate-related pressures. She will also talk about opportunities for regulatory innovation and some design challenges ahead.
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The 2022 Climate Risk Scorecard: Assessing U.S Financial Regulator Action
Tuesday, December 6
1:00 PM in Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Online
Online
The 2022 Climate Risk Scorecard, published in June 2022, benchmarked U.S. federal financial regulator progress on climate-related financial risk and communicated progress to various stakeholders, including state and federal regulators, Congress, the public, investors, NGOs, the media, the market, and regulated entities. The Scorecard demonstrates the rapidly changing risk management landscape, highlighting regulatory actions in the United States. This webinar will review and highlight regulator actions addressing climate-related financial risk, explore progress made in the six months since the 2022 Scorecard’s publication, and discuss important next steps.
In this webinar, attendees will:
Review the 2022 Scorecard results for nine federal financial regulators.
Hear from federal financial regulators on why their agencies are addressing climate risk, and the major steps they have taken so far.
Discover the current progress in the climate risk landscape, and the next steps necessary to effectively manage these risks.
Demonstrate an understanding of the regulatory and market shift that is already happening, and the importance of continued action (including finalizing OCC/FDIC’s Climate Principles, and SEC’s climate disclosure rule).
Explore the scorecard at https://www.ceres.org/accelerator/regulation/scorecard
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Farmers-Scientists panel on Climate-Smart Agriculture
Wednesday, December 7
Wednesday, December 7
8am EST [2:00 PM – 3:30 PM CET]
Online
Online
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/farmers-scientists-panel-on-climate-smart-agriculture-tickets-466191901527
Organized jointly by The Global Plant Council and WIKIFARMER.
Scientists, working on staple crops of huge economical and food safety importance, will present the latest climate-smart agriculture ideas to farmers. Each expert will focus on one particular staple crop: wheat, corn, potato, and rice.
Agenda and Confirmed Panellists:
Welcome by Isabel Mendoza (The Global Plant Council) and Stella Provelengiou (Wikifarmer)
Introduction by Bill Davies, Lancaster Environment Centre
Climate-Smart Agriculture solutions
Matthew Reynolds (Cimmyt) - Wheat
Christian Bachem (Wageningen University and Solynta) - Potato
Yu Wang (University of Illinois) - Maize/corn
Q&A
Scientists, working on staple crops of huge economical and food safety importance, will present the latest climate-smart agriculture ideas to farmers. Each expert will focus on one particular staple crop: wheat, corn, potato, and rice.
Agenda and Confirmed Panellists:
Welcome by Isabel Mendoza (The Global Plant Council) and Stella Provelengiou (Wikifarmer)
Introduction by Bill Davies, Lancaster Environment Centre
Climate-Smart Agriculture solutions
Matthew Reynolds (Cimmyt) - Wheat
Christian Bachem (Wageningen University and Solynta) - Potato
Yu Wang (University of Illinois) - Maize/corn
Q&A
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And on His Farm He Had..A Photovoltaic System? Where Solar and Farming Meet
Wednesday, December 7
Wednesday, December 7
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM EST
Online
Online
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/and-on-his-farm-he-hada-photovoltaic-system-where-solar-and-farming-meet-tickets-469142807767
The hour-long event, sponsored by PNC Bank, will feature Michael Roth, a Washington & Jefferson College alumnus who serves as the Director of Conservation and Innovation at the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
While some see solar power and farmland as incompatible, others see it as the new normal. These polarized views can often create confusion. Additionally, solar power on farmland raises a number of critical issues like food security, climate change, and farm vitality. Fortunately, with proper planning, a happy medium can be found.
This webinar will focus on the growing field of agrivoltaics (sometimes referred to as agrisolar, dual-use solar, or low-impact solar) in Pennsylvania. The term ‘agrivoltaics’ refers to the co-location of agriculture and photovoltaic energy generation systems. An understanding of agrivoltaics is necessary as the search for land parcels that can accommodate the United States’ growing solar power sector continues.
Agriculture occupies about 43% of the lower forty-eight states’ surface area, while another 5% is taken up by roads and urban areas, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To accommodate the demand for additional solar panels in order to meet the nation’s climate goals, at least some farmland will inevitably needed. Thus, we need to identify ways to allow agriculture and solar power to complement one another.
Michael Roth is the Director of Conservation and Innovation at the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. In this role, he researches, analyzes, and presents new and emerging issues to farmers and policymakers in the Commonwealth. Previously, Roth served as the Policy Director and Executive Policy Specialist at PA DOA. Roth earned his master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Pittsburgh and his bachelor’s degree in Environmental Studies from Washington & Jefferson College.
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Cyber Negotiations: The Case of Ransomware
Wednesday, December 7
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Zoom
RSVP at https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_rMSgqEfxRfC_HSj-ig8UlA
Professor Lawrence Susskind will present information on a new technique in the Defensive Social Engineering toolbox of Cyber Negotiation. This is a new class of non-technical strategies against cyberattacks being developed. Cyber defenders can use Defensive Social Engineering along with technical tools to defeat or compromise attackers.
Watch this video on Social Cyberdefense of Urban Critical Infrastructure: https://youtu.be/fMmfVJv8b-o
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Cyber Negotiations: The Case of Ransomware
Wednesday, December 7
12:00 pm - 1:00 pm
Zoom
RSVP at https://harvard.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_rMSgqEfxRfC_HSj-ig8UlA
Professor Lawrence Susskind will present information on a new technique in the Defensive Social Engineering toolbox of Cyber Negotiation. This is a new class of non-technical strategies against cyberattacks being developed. Cyber defenders can use Defensive Social Engineering along with technical tools to defeat or compromise attackers.
Watch this video on Social Cyberdefense of Urban Critical Infrastructure: https://youtu.be/fMmfVJv8b-o
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Farming + Fresh Water - "Solving Complex Problems" (12.000) Final Presentation
Wednesday, December 7
7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
MIT, Huntington Hall (10-250) 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge
Wednesday, December 7
7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
MIT, Huntington Hall (10-250) 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge
and Online
Come see this year's Terrascope students present proposals to increase agricultural productivity while protecting access to fresh water in Navajo Nation. Questions welcome from the audience as well as the expert panel.
Free and open to the public. Reception to follow.
Can’t make it? Watch our livestream: https://terrascope.mit.edu/portfolio_page/class-of-2026-farming-fresh-water/
For more information, contact:
Michelle Contos (617-253-4074) – terrascope-office@mit.edu
Michelle Contos (617-253-4074) – terrascope-office@mit.edu
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After Biden-Xi Handshake: Is U.S.-China Climate Collab About to Heat Up?
Wednesday, December 7
Wednesday, December 7
7:30 PM – 9:00 PM EST
Online
Online
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/after-biden-xi-handshake-is-us-china-climate-collab-about-to-heat-up-tickets-470606876837
The U.S. and China have hurtled toward decoupling in recent years. Relations between the world’s biggest superpowers reached an unprecedentedly low point this year, as most U.S.-China bilateral dialogues — including on climate — were frozen after Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan this August.
Yet, climate change waits for no one. Climate, perhaps more than any other field in the bilateral relationship, demands the highest level of collaboration between the U.S. and China. What are the biggest opportunities and challenges for U.S.-China climate cooperation going forward? Does the handshake seen around the world between Presidents Xi Jinping and Joe Biden — as well as the resumption of informal talks between U.S. Climate Envoy John Kerry and his Chinese counterpart, and Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s planned visit to China in 2023 — portend that U.S.-China climate partnership will soon warm up again?
Join China Institute-Serica U.S.-China Next-Gen Leaders Circle online on Wednesday, December 7, 2022 at 7:30PM Eastern Time/Thursday, December 8, 2022 at 8:30AM Beijing Time with a panel of top experts across sectors — from investors, policymakers, philanthropists, academics, and nonprofits — to discuss the road ahead for U.S.-China climate collaboration in the age of decoupling.
Speaker:
Mr. Siddharth Chatterjee is the UN Resident Coordinator in China, the highest-ranking representative of the UN Development System in China. He has more than 25 years of experience in international cooperation, sustainable development, humanitarian coordination and peace and security. Most recently, he served as the UN Resident Coordinator in Kenya after holding other leadership positions across the Organization, including as Resident Representative of the UNDP and Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Kenya; Regional Director for the Middle East and Europe for the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in Denmark; and Chief of Staff in the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI). He also held leadership positions with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Indonesia, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan, and in UN Peacekeeping Operations with the UN Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH). Mr. Chatterjee has also served in the Red Cross Movement (IFRC) as the Chief Diplomat and Head of Resource Mobilization in Switzerland. Mr. Chatterjee holds a master’s degree in public policy from Princeton University in the United States of America and a bachelor’s degree from the National Defence Academy in India.
Panelists:
Andrew Chung has been a tech investor and entrepreneur for over 20 years with deep experience investing in climate tech and healthtech as an early investor in breakthrough companies that created US$30 billion of market value. He founded 1955 Capital that focuses on sustainability (energy, food, agriculture), education, health, and other emerging technologies. Prior to launching 1955 Capital, Chung was a general partner at Khosla Ventures, a venture capital firm with over $6 billion under management and the world’s largest sustainable technology venture portfolio. As a thought leader in sustainable technology and U.S.-China collaboration, Chung served on a White House roundtable on advanced manufacturing during the Obama Administration and has advised global leaders on energy policy. He has given talks on the future of food and energy, moonshot entrepreneurship, ESG investing, and U.S.-China relations at numerous global conferences. Chung holds a BA in Applied Mathematics from Harvard University and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business. He currently serves on the Dean’s Advisory Cabinet at the Harvard John A. Paulson School for Engineering and Applied Sciences, where he sits on the Harvard Life Sciences & Innovation Task Force, and served on the Advisory Board for the Wharton Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership.
Andrew Chung has been a tech investor and entrepreneur for over 20 years with deep experience investing in climate tech and healthtech as an early investor in breakthrough companies that created US$30 billion of market value. He founded 1955 Capital that focuses on sustainability (energy, food, agriculture), education, health, and other emerging technologies. Prior to launching 1955 Capital, Chung was a general partner at Khosla Ventures, a venture capital firm with over $6 billion under management and the world’s largest sustainable technology venture portfolio. As a thought leader in sustainable technology and U.S.-China collaboration, Chung served on a White House roundtable on advanced manufacturing during the Obama Administration and has advised global leaders on energy policy. He has given talks on the future of food and energy, moonshot entrepreneurship, ESG investing, and U.S.-China relations at numerous global conferences. Chung holds a BA in Applied Mathematics from Harvard University and an MBA from the Wharton School of Business. He currently serves on the Dean’s Advisory Cabinet at the Harvard John A. Paulson School for Engineering and Applied Sciences, where he sits on the Harvard Life Sciences & Innovation Task Force, and served on the Advisory Board for the Wharton Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership.
Professor Xuhui Lee is Sara Shallenberger Brown Professor of Meteorology, Director of the Yale Center for Earth Observation, and Program Coordinator of the Yale-Tsinghua dual degree program. His research areas include boundary-layer meteorology, micrometeorological instrumentation, remote sensing, and carbon cycle science. One focus of his research activity is on biophysical effects of land use on the climate system. Other ongoing projects investigate greenhouse gas fluxes in the terrestrial environment (forests, cropland and lakes), isotopic tracers in the cycling of carbon dioxide and water vapor, and urban climate mitigation. He is recipient of the 2015 Award for Outstanding Achievement in Biometeorology from the American Meteorological Society. His recent textbook Fundamentals of Boundary-Layer Meteorology offers the accumulation of insights gained during his academic career as a researcher and teacher in the field of boundary-layer meteorology.
Moderator:
Jeremy Goldkorn is co-host of the Sinica podcast and editor-in-chief of SupChina.com. He moved to China in 1995 and became managing editor of Beijing's first independent English-language entertainment magazine. In 2003, he founded the website and research firm, Danwei, which tracked Chinese media, markets, politics and business. It was acquired in 2013 by the Financial Times. Goldkorn is founder of Great Wall Fresh, a social enterprise to help Chinese peasant farmers run small tourism businesses catering to foreign outdoor enthusiasts. He has lived in a workers dormitory, produced a documentary film about African soccer players in Beijing, and rode a bicycle from Peshawar to Kathmandu via Kashgar and Lhasa. He moved to Nashville Tennessee in 2015 and is a board member of the Tennessee China Network.
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Greta Thunberg in conversation with Naomi Klein
Thursday, December 8
2pm EST [19:00 GMT]
Online
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/greta-thunberg-in-conversation-with-naomi-klein-tickets-461706706187
Cost: £11.06 - £30.92 [with book]
Greta Thunberg will be joined by Naomi Klein and others to discuss the climate emergency – and how we can stop it.
Have we run out of time to change the world, or is there still hope? The Climate Book gathers the wisdom and experience of more than 100 experts – from geophysicists and meteorologists, to engineers, economists and indigenous leaders – to show how the ecological and sustainability crises are all connected, and to give us the tools and knowledge we need to find hope through action.
Thunberg became a prominent figure in the fight against greenwashing, denial and climate justice in 2018, when she inspired an international movement of school strikes against government inaction. She frequently addresses parliaments and world summits, and in 2019, a collection of her speeches, No One Is Too Small To Make a Difference, made her Waterstones author of the year.
Guardian environment editor Damian Carrington will host the evening, which will include a conversation between Greta Thunberg and Naomi Klein. They will also be joined by Saleemul Huq, Director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development based in Bangladesh, Pakistani climate justice advocate Ayisha Siddiqa and Kate Raworth, author of Doughnut Economics.
£1 from every ticket sold will be donated to Fridays For Future.
This event will be hosted on a third-party live streaming platform Zoom, please refer to their privacy policy and terms and conditions before purchasing a ticket to the event. After registering, please refer to your confirmation email for access to the event.
Closed captions will be available for this event.
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Stefan Rahmstorf: 2022 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication
Friday, December 9
7am EST (10:00am PST)
RSVP at https://www.climateone.org/events/stefan-rahmstorf-2022-stephen-h-schneider-award-outstanding-climate-science-communication
Climate One is delighted to present the 2022 Stephen H. Schneider Award for Outstanding Climate Science Communication to climate scientist and ocean expert Dr. Stefan Rahmstorf.
In a year of unprecedented oceanic changes, Dr. Rahmstorf exemplifies the rare combination of superb scientist and powerful communicator in his work to convey the impact of climate on oceans, sea level rise, and increasing extreme weather events.
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Nature-Based Adaptation: Getting to Scale
Friday, December 9
9:00 am - 12:00 pm
CDM Smith, 75 State Street, Boston
and Online
RSVP at https://climateadaptationforum.org/event/nature-based-adaptation-getting-to-scale/
Cost: $15 - $45
Flooding risks, sea level rise, storm surges, and extreme heat are accelerating with a changing climate. Ecosystems are also at risk, along with the social, economic, and environmental benefits they provide. Nature-based climate adaptation approaches offer opportunities to bring people into greater harmony with ecology, secure and enhance ecosystem services for future generations, and cost-effectively reduce some flooding risks. Funders, regulators, adaptation professionals, and the public now view nature-based adaptation as no longer an aspiration, but a priority or requirement. Pilot projects are being scaled up to billions of oysters, miles of shoreline, and hectares of wetlands. But how feasible and effective are they? And how do we effectively regulate and build the capacity to plan and implement them at scales that match the urgency of risks, speed of climate changes, and our own expectations? Join us to learn about the opportunities and barriers to scaling up nature-based approaches to climate adaptation, from planning to permitting to implementation.
Forum Co-Chairs
Nasser Brahim, Senior Climate Resiliency Specialist, Woods Hole Group
Mark Costa, Water Resources and Civil Engineer, VHB
Melanie Gárate, Director of Climate Engagement, Stone Living Lab
Forum Speakers
Alison Bowden, Director of Science & Strategy, The Nature Conservancy
Pippa Brashear, Resilience Principal, SCAPE
Jason Burtner, South Shore Regional Coordinator, Massachusetts Office of Coastal Zone Management (CZM)
Leah Feldman, Coastal Policy Analyst, Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council (RI CRMC)
Heidi Nutters, Senior Program Manager, San Francisco Estuary Partnership
Steve Rochette, Chief of Public Affairs, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) Philadelphia District
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Zaporizhzhia: Facing the Dangers of Nuclear Plants in War and Peace
Sunday, December 11
1:00 pm - 2:00 pm EST
Online
RSVP at https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZYvdeGqqjsoEt2Q05E4H-A7_2doPCMPPeH7
As we learned from Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima, dangers are inherent to the generation of nuclear power. These dangers expand exponentially in wartime. With six reactors, Zaporizhzhia is the largest nuclear plant in Ukraine and all of Europe. It has been occupied by Russian military forces since early March but has continued to be operated by its Ukrainian staff. Near the frontline of the war, the plant has been damaged by shelling of disputed origins, and all six reactors have been shut down. Faced with the dangers of a possible incident that could transform the plant into a massive dirty bomb and fallout impacting much of Europe and possibly Russia, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has been leading efforts to establish a safety and security zone at, and around, the plant.
In this webinar, Russian and U.S. experts will explain the present situation at the Zaporizhzhia plant, the dangers by the plant and others across Ukraine, and what the international community do to prevent a nuclear catastrophe.
Oleg V. Bodrov is an engineer-physicist, environmentalist, former member of the Council of IPB, chairman of the Public Council of the South Coast of the Gulf of Finland, St. Petersburg, Russia. He was elected a board member of the International Peace Bureau in October 2022.
A leader of the Russian peace, environmental protection and nuclear safety movements, Bodrov works in coalition with partners from the Baltic Sea countries is working to reduce the level of confrontation between NATO and Russia in the Baltic. He is one of the organizers of the campaign “The Baltic Sea – the sea of peace, peace among people and environmental protection!”
He has authored reports at international anti-war conferences in Helsinki, Paris, New York, Hiroshima, Nagasaki, produced documentaries on the consequences of nuclear weapons production and “peaceful nuclear energy, which are translated into English, German and Japanese, and promotes safe decommissioning of nuclear power plants based on world best practices and democratic participation of authorities, the nuclear industry and the public.
Linda Pentz Gunter founded Beyond Nuclear in 2007 and serves as its international specialist as well as its media and development director. She also writes for and curates Beyond Nuclear International. Prior to her work in anti-nuclear advocacy, she was a journalist for 20 years in print and broadcast, working for USA Network, Reuters, The Times (UK) and other US and international outlets.
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Environmental Destruction: The Effects of War, Pollution & Capital
Wednesday, December 14
Wednesday, December 14
7am - 11am [12:00 – 16:00 GMT]
Online
RSVP at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/environmental-destruction-the-effects-of-war-pollution-capital-tickets-426078390937
(In)Justice International are proud to put out a call for attendees and papers/abstracts for our December Workshop which is open to all academics, researchers, students (of any level), Barristers, reporters and people who have lived experienced of the devastating traumas of environmental destruction.
The workshop invites holistic, intersectional approaches relating to war, oppression, pollution, neoliberalism, discrimination and climate change. For example, one could take the influence of capital and, by association, neoliberalism where the drive for profit can create unnecessary pollution across the world. Global organisations often seek the least expensive means of production often characterised by a low paid (poverty stricken) workforce. Allied to the weaker Health and Safety regulations in many countries, productivity targets are often enforced.
As a consequence, any shortcuts that result in greater productivity at the expense of the environment or working conditions are either ignored or encouraged which, in turn, can result in the ‘dumping’ of waste products as opposed to recycling or disposal processes that cost more money. Indeed, this ‘dumping’ tends to take place in the poorer neighbourhoods and, therefore, affects those more susceptible to poverty than more elite sections of society (see https://www.injustice-intl.org/environment).
War on the other hand can result in similarly devastating consequences. The use of heavy ammunition, the raising of buildings and power stations the war has exacerbated levels of pollution. In addition, war intensifies relations appertaining to forced migration (and subsequent discriminatory practices) alongside concerns over energy supplies with those countries that have agreed to zero emissions targets beginning to resort back to the burning of fossil fuels. All-in-all, there is an exacerbation of the causes of climate change and an increase in relative poverty if not absolute poverty.
And with climate change, the poorest are disproportionately affected.
These are but a few of the examples that can lead to both an intersectional and holistic account of the overwhelming havoc being caused by environmental destruction. From whatever the preferred approach of the speaker/researcher on the subject, (In)Justice International welcomes the submission of abstracts.
Agenda
12-12.10 (GMT) Brief Introduction.
12.10-13.10 Four fifteen-minute presentations.
13.10-13.30 Breakout sessions
13.30-13.50 Q&A
13-50-14.00 Break
14.00-15.00 Four fifteen-minute presentations.
15.00-15.20 Breakout session
15.20-15.40 Q&A
15.40-15.50 Closing remarks
Presentations in this event could lead to publication in either our journals (please click on https://www.injustice-intl.org/cfp1-call-for-journal-abstracts) or books (https://anthempress.com/crime-criminality-and-injustice-hb). It could also secure a place at our World Convention in Finland 2023 (see CfPs on https://www.injustice-intl.org/copy-of-call-for-abstracts-papers-2).
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Great Decisions with Rachel Kyte | Climate Change
December 14
December 14
6:00 PM - 7:30 PM
Hybrid Event at the Boston Public Library, Rabb Hall, 700 Boylston Street, Boston
Hybrid Event at the Boston Public Library, Rabb Hall, 700 Boylston Street, Boston
and Online
RSVP at https://www.worldboston.org/calendar/2022/12/14/climate-change
The ideological divide in the United States on the subject of climate change has impeded progress in curbing greenhouse emissions. But extreme weather events at both ends of the thermometer have focused attention on the consequences of inaction. What role will the United States play in future negotiations on climate?
Join WorldBoston for a discussion of this complex topic with Rachel Kyte, Dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University. The program will feature expert remarks from Dean Kyte, live audience Q&A, and time for networking and discussion with other globally-oriented participants over light refreshments.
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. This program will take place at the Boston Public Library from 6:00 to 7:30 PM ET and will also be live-streamed to Zoom from 6:00 to 7:00 PM ET.
Email
nmase@worldboston.org
Website
https://www.worldboston.org/calendar/2022/12/14/climate-change
RSVP at https://www.worldboston.org/calendar/2022/12/14/climate-change
The ideological divide in the United States on the subject of climate change has impeded progress in curbing greenhouse emissions. But extreme weather events at both ends of the thermometer have focused attention on the consequences of inaction. What role will the United States play in future negotiations on climate?
Join WorldBoston for a discussion of this complex topic with Rachel Kyte, Dean of The Fletcher School at Tufts University. The program will feature expert remarks from Dean Kyte, live audience Q&A, and time for networking and discussion with other globally-oriented participants over light refreshments.
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. This program will take place at the Boston Public Library from 6:00 to 7:30 PM ET and will also be live-streamed to Zoom from 6:00 to 7:00 PM ET.
nmase@worldboston.org
Website
https://www.worldboston.org/calendar/2022/12/14/climate-change
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