Beyond climate change: We are facing interconnected challenges

Thursday, 25 March 2010 11:33

SEI executive director Johan Rockström was among the list of speakers for the 2010 State of the Planet conference which took place on 25 March in New York.

Hosted by The Economist, Ericsson and The Earth Institute at Colombia University, the conference brought together the world's most influential and innovative thinkers and leaders in a wide range of fields — from many academic disciplines to media, government, policy and business spheres — to tackle critical issues facing the world.

This year´s conference addressed issues regarding climate change, poverty, economic recovery and international systems.

Together with Wallace S. Broecker, Newberry Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Columbia University and Mark Cane, G. Unger Vetlesen Professor of Earth and Climate Sciences, Columbia University, Rockström took part as a panelist discussing climate change and what it would take to complete a climate deal.

Rockström not only stressed the moral importance of acting, but also how climate change should be seen in a broader perspective, linking the discussion to the recent identification of the nine planetary boundaries:

 - Perhaps solving the climate issue is the easy part of the story, because we are facing interconnected challenges of reduced biodiversity, ocean acidification, nitrogen and phosphorus inputs to the biosphere, land use change, which all reinforce climate change and deteriorate the resilience of ecosystems, Rockström said.

The climate change session was hosted by Matthew Bishop, American Business Editor and New York Bureau Chief for The Economist.


See the videos from the conference (external link)