Though the ocean covers more than two-thirds of our planet, produces roughly half of the oxygen we breathe, and has sequestered over 40% of the carbon dioxide emitted since the dawn of the industrial revolution, its contributions to ameliorating the global climate crisis are regularly overlooked; the full text of the Paris Climate Accord includes the word “ocean” exactly once. We tend to think of the warming, acidifying, rising ocean as a victim of climate change when in fact it’s poised to be a hero, with natural systems that help undo the damage human activity has caused.
Anthony Leiserowitz, Director of the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, explains his program's research that has identified six unique audiences within the American public that each responds to the issue of global warming in their own distinct way.
Forests are often narrowly valued for their capacity to store huge amounts of carbon. While they do play a crucial role in the carbon cycle, this simplified view can be harmful in promoting questionable carbon offsets schemes and advancing reforestation and set-asides as priority strategies. But existing forests — from the old-growth Tongass National Forest described as “America’s lungs,” to the giant bamboo kelp in the Great African Sea Forest, and the planet’s tropical rainforests — are so much more than mere carbon depositories. This session will turn to the individuals that know these forests best, and explore how the communities that live in harmony with these ecosystems have managed to support their own needs, protect their forests, and tap into diverse climate solutions buried deep within the trees.
The climate crisis represents a challenge of epic proportions for policy makers everywhere. And making progress - on everything from securing climate funding to navigating the impact of gas prices - inevitably means negotiating the complex politics of climate change. In this conversation, two governors (Kate Brown of Oregon and Phil Murphy of New Jersey) share what works, what doesn’t, and what it takes to make a real difference at the state level.
Our massive electricity system was designed many decades ago to deliver energy from power plants — but that’s not what the power system of the future will need to do. The future of the grid will be greener, distributed, and more resilient, and will work with the planet rather than against it. This session will explore the various ways we will power our lives in tomorrow’s world, and what it will take to make clean neighborhood energy systems a reality for all people.
Are you new to sustainability investing? Do you want to know how you can craft an individual investment portfolio that aligns with climate goals? In this session, we’ll review the basics tenets and broad approaches to green investing, clarifying the key relevant terms and providing tools for building investment strategies. Sophie Purdom, Principal, C6 Solutions