One of the most senior voices on the environment in England, Sir James Bevan, has given a speech to University of East Anglia students, praising the institution’s ‘outstanding’ work on climate research.
Sir James Bevan, Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, made the remarks in his speech at the UEA on 16 January. He highlighted the need to focus on tackling climate change, rather than letting fear and doom deter action.
University of East Anglia was one of the early pioneers of climate research and has been producing world class analysis for nearly 50 years now. Both its Climatic Research Unit and the Tyndall Centre have both broken new ground in understanding our changing climate and how best to address those consequences. Sir James also referenced the scale of work yet to do within the research space and building international consensus on action.
“In my view this climate doomism is almost as dangerous as climate denial. Indeed doomism might even be the new denial. And it’s equally misplaced. It’s not justified by the facts. And it risks leading to the wrong outcome: inaction. We know what we have to do to solve the problem. The solutions are technically quite simple.
“First, we need to reduce and as far as possible stop entirely the emissions of carbon dioxide and the other greenhouse gases: what the experts call mitigation. And second, we need to adapt our infrastructure, our economies and our lifestyles so we can live safely, sustainably and well in a climate-changed world.”
UEA has worked with councils and partners to develop a 25-year environmental plan to mitigate the impact of climate change on water security and sea-level rise in region. The Climate Research Unit on UEA campus plays a leading role in producing global temperature figures. The University’s Leverhulme PhD programme is training a new generation of 21st Century climate thought leaders.
