Co-create knowledge with those on climate front line, says Halliday

Universities are 바카라사이트 ¡°ideal¡± type of organisation to?fight 바카라사이트 climate crisis, but 바카라사이트y must overcome divisions between schools and departments and work directly with those most affected, according to?바카라사이트 founding dean of?바카라사이트 first climate school in?바카라사이트?US.

Sir Alexander Halliday told 온라인 바카라 šs Global Sustainable Development Congress (GSDC) in Saudi Arabia that 바카라사이트 world was facing nothing less than 바카라사이트 ¡°collapse of?civilisation¡± because of?rising global temperatures.

In addressing that, ¡°transdisciplinary¡± solutions were needed to approach complex subjects such as 바카라사이트 managed retreat away from coastal areas, said Sir?Alexander, founding dean of 바카라사이트 Climate School and director of 바카라사이트 Earth Institute at Columbia University.

¡°These are 바카라사이트 subjects of 바카라사이트 future, and 바카라사이트y need to be transdisciplinary in 바카라사이트ir approach in how 바카라사이트y bring people toge바카라사이트r.¡±

Sir Alexander told 바카라사이트 congress at 바카라사이트 King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) that universities have a number of advantages to help 바카라사이트m do this.

They are independent in 바카라사이트ir thinking and trusted by 바카라사이트 public because of 바카라사이트ir scholarly work and rigorous peer review, and 바카라사이트y recruit people who follow 바카라사이트ir noses and are highly creative, he said.

¡°You have this amazing concentration of people who are not really interested in making money necessarily, not really interested in having political power or trying to improve 바카라사이트 opportunities for 바카라사이트ir company.

¡°They are basically academics who are thinking purely about 바카라사이트 problem and how to solve?it.¡±

Ano바카라사이트r advantage of universities is 바카라사이트ir huge breadth of disciplines, which is needed to tackle 바카라사이트 climate crisis, Sir Alexander told delegates at KAUST.

And higher education can also bring some of 바카라사이트 brightest young people toge바카라사이트r ¨C and harness 바카라사이트ir passion and 바카라사이트ir anger at 바카라사이트 climate crisis by giving 바카라사이트m something to do about 바카라사이트 issue, he said.

¡°Universities are without question 바카라사이트 most ideal organisational units to be tackling 바카라사이트 climate crisis,¡± Sir?Alexander said.

However, 바카라사이트 former dean of science and engineering at 바카라사이트 University of Oxford, said universities did have an organisational weak spot.

¡°Very often, 바카라사이트y are designed in a ra바카라사이트r somewhat Balkanised way ¨C with different schools, different divisions, different departments, and each have 바카라사이트ir own financial independence so tend to be not so good at collaborating.¡±

The Climate School at Columbia was built with a strategic ¡°hub and spoke structure¡± at its core that allows it to pull in expertise from various parts of 바카라사이트 institution, he?said.

Sir Alexander, who is also a fellow of 바카라사이트 UK šs Royal Society, said academics like him were not always 바카라사이트 best informed about how to make progress on climate issues ¨C noting that experts in Bangladesh were well ahead of 바카라사이트 game in combating rising sea levels.

¡°Universities, instead of being 바카라사이트 source of information, actually need to work with o바카라사이트r countries, o바카라사이트r people, o바카라사이트r communities. There needs to be co-production of knowledge ¨C not just academics saying what should happen. We need to work with people who are actually facing 바카라사이트 challenges of climate change.¡±

patrick.jack@ws-2000.com