Climate Change – Finding the ‘Agency’ to Act
About the Event:
Prof. Rapley discusses the spate of climate-related extreme events, such as worldwide heatwaves, droughts, and intense flooding events. He looks at the underlying reasons for and consequences of climate change. Prof. Rapley then focuses on the psychological and institutional reasons for the inadequate scale and pace of the human response. He describes the ‘mind science’ insights adopted in the UCL Climate Action Unit, which help institutions and communities ‘stuck’ find their ‘agency’ to act.
About the Speaker:
Christopher Rapley, CBE, is a professor of Climate Science at University College London. He is a fellow of St. Edmund’s College Cambridge, a Distinguished Visiting Scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, a member of the Academia Europaea, a board member of the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, chairman of the European Space Agency Director General’s High-Level Science Policy Advisory Committee, and chairman of the London Climate Change Partnership. His previous posts include director of the Science Museum London, director of the British Antarctic Survey, executive director of the International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, and head of the Earth Observation satellite group at University College London’s Mullard Space Science Laboratory. His current interests are in the communication of climate science. With the playwright Duncan Macmillan, he wrote and performed at The Royal Court Theater in London the acclaimed play 2071 – The World We’ll Leave Our Grandchildren, available as a book published by John Murray. Rapley was awarded the 2008 Edinburgh Science Medal for his “significant contribution to the understanding and wellbeing of humanity.”
Starmus is a global festival of science communication and art that brings together the most brilliant minds on the planet. As part of the festivities, the American University of Armenia (AUA), an official university partner, hosted the Starmus Speaker series with three speakers presenting their rich experiences in science and art to the AUA community and general public.
