Lunch & Learn: The science of Net Zero with Professor Myles Allen
The Science & Technology Network are pleased to host Professor Myles Allen, Professor of Geosystem Science at the University of Oxford, for their next Lunch & Learn. Myles's research looks into how human and natural influences contribute to observed climate change. He will talk about the science behind Net Zero, a topic he has been closely attached to for many years. Here is a brief overview of what the Lunch & Learn will cover:
The UK Government has a legally binding commitment to a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050. The net refers to the option – which will definitely be required at some level – of compensating for residual emissions with active removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This Lunch & Learn will dig into what was actually meant by net zero in the papers that originally established the cumulative impact of carbon dioxide emissions on climate back in 2009, and what it takes to stop fossil fuels from causing global warming. Modern re-interpretations of net zero – and much of the global offsetting industry – use a very different definition, which even if implemented globally and perfectly enforced, would not actually stop global warming.
Myles has worked in climate science for over three decades and has contributed extensively to the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), including as Coordinating Lead Author for the 2018 IPCC Special Report on Global Warming of 1.5 °C. He is currently head of Atmospheric, Oceanic and Planetary Physics at the University of Oxford.
Thursday May 9th, 12:00-13:00