A Velvet or Violent Climate Revolution: which will we choose?
The deliberate failure of leaders, whether in politics, business, journalism or indeed much of academia to be honest about the climate emergency has left us facing fundamental questions of every facet of modern society. Central amongst these is the issue of equity – both between and within nations. In this presentation, Kevin Anderson will unpick the policy gulf that exists between the temperature and equity commitments enshrined in the Paris Agreement and the emission trajectory of so called “developed” nations. “Nature will not be fooled” by empty rhetoric, subterfuge and unsubstantiated optimism – and nor should we. He will close by looking beyond techno-optimistic solutions, concluding there are now no non-radical futures. The choice is between immediate and profound social and technical change or waiting a little longer for chaotic and violent social change. In 2023 the window for this choice is rapidly closing.
Short Bio’
Kevin is professor of Energy and Climate Change at the University of Manchester and visiting professor at the Universities of Uppsala (Sweden) and Bergen (Norway). Formerly he held the position of Zennström professor (in Uppsala) and was director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research (UK). Kevin engages widely with governments, industry and civil society, and remains research active with publications in Climate policy, Nature and Science. He has a decade’s industrial experience in the petrochemical industry, is a chartered engineer and fellow of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers.
The presentation will build on the following work:
How alive is 1.5°C
Phaseout schedules for fossil fuel production
What’s in a name (offer a short critique of net-zero)
The New Denialism piece in Greta Thunberg’s The Climate Book (this link is for an abridged audio version, following Greta’s intro)
Three decades of failure to bend the emissions curve
Critique of the IPCC’s 2023 Synthesis report
Twitter: @KevinClimate
Website: https://climateuncensored.com
