climate change

Were the Paris climate talks a success or a COP-out?

By Jonas Amtoft Bruun Filed Under: All posts, Featured, Science and Engineering, Science and Technology Posted: January 11, 2016

COP 21 is good news – but only to a point, argues Jonas Amtoft Bruun. “We have an agreement.” Those redeeming words from French foreign minister Laurent Fabius in the evening of Saturday 12 December unleashed a wave of standing ovations from high level UN staff, delegates and observers from business and civil society. Preceding […]

COP21: Changing the way we think about change

By Simon Chin-Yee Filed Under: All posts, Featured, Science and Engineering, Science and Technology Posted: December 3, 2015

Change is inevitable, but climate change is damaging. Simon Chin-Yee argues that as the COP21 discussions continue in Paris, we must adapt to limit the damage being caused by climate change. Mark Twain once said: “I’m all for progress, its change I object to.” What is it about human nature that makes us averse to […]

The Paris climate change negotiations and 2°C: a view from the coal-face

By Kevin Anderson Filed Under: All posts Posted: December 2, 2015

As the Paris COP21 negotiations continue, Kevin Anderson, who is in France for the conference, gives his views. Paris will witness frenetic discussion centred ostensibly on the long-established 2°C temperature threshold between ‘acceptable’ and ‘dangerous’ climate change. However, as a citizen concerned with the moral framing of climate change, I consider the 2°C increase above the […]

Is fracking a price worth paying?

By Paul Younger and Kevin Anderson Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted: October 22, 2015

Our dependence on a constant supply of energy presents seemingly intractable dilemmas. One of these is whether fracking should be permitted. Professor Paul Younger and Professor Kevin Anderson took opposing views in a recent online debate. In the US, the recovery of underground reserves of shale gas and its extraction from solid rock through the […]

Is the IPCC overly optimistic on our climate?

By Kevin Anderson Filed Under: All posts Posted: October 16, 2015

Professor Kevin Anderson, Deputy Director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, will be attending the Climate Change Conference in Paris this December. He has a stark warning about the future of our climate. In July 2015 scientists attended a major climate conference as a prelude to the political negotiations in Paris in December. After […]

Business as usual on migration and climate change will not produce sustainable development

By Uma Kothari Filed Under: All posts Posted: September 16, 2015

Professor Uma Kothari explores what may happen with development and migration as climate change begins to have an impact. The impacts of climate change are likely to be severe. Extreme weather events, heat stress, rising sea levels, infections and disease are just some potential results, which will hit poor and vulnerable populations in developing countries […]

Managing water demand

By Alison Browne Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted: July 14, 2015

The water industry has tried to manage consumption through technological ‘fixes’. But only by understanding how and why water is used can demand be reduced, argues Dr Alison Browne. For many years the mismatch between the demand for water and its available supply was ‘solved’ by the industry through engineering or technological solutions, including mega-projects […]

Out of Time: Fracking in UK Energy Policy

By John Broderick Filed Under: All posts, Featured, Science and Technology Posted: June 26, 2015

As the decision on fracking at Little Plumpton in Lancashire is delayed, Dr John Broderick of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, part of Manchester Energy, considers whether a UK shale gas industry may turn out to be an anachronism. Whether the go-ahead for fracking in Lancashire is given or not, there is little […]

Shipping industry on course for uncertainty in low carbon future

By Sarah Mander Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted: July 30, 2014

Shipping contributes about 3 per cent of global carbon emissions. The lack of a single regulatory environment makes it difficult to bring this down, explains Dr Sarah Mander. Shipping sits at the heart of international trade and has been the primary means by which globalisation has been facilitated. So it is not surprising that carbon […]

Wasting the biomass opportunity

By Andrew Welfle Filed Under: Featured, Science and Technology Posted: June 18, 2014

The UK could generate almost half its energy needs by 2050 from UK biomass sources, including household rubbish, agricultural residues and home-grown biofuels. Unless we plan and invest for this, we will waste a great opportunity, argues Andrew Welfle. As much as 44% of our total energy requirement could be met by the potential abundance of […]