Climate Change Science and Policy

[Music]

good afternoon

the theme of these series of tedx talks

is on what keeps me up at night

there are a number of different topics

that resonate especially in the current

pandemic

from health to energy security

and technology one common ground for all

of these however

is the similar objectives to facilitate

our survival and the survival of our

societies

this is the one topic that remains to be

independent of political religious or

any other

differences in vision among us how

do they survive within this reality no

one

can stand up and say one topic is more

important than the other

and no one can stand up to and say the

topic does not matter

as much as the other because these all

involve our survival

and are all important this is the very

first principle of democracy the very

first

step in peaceful coexistence amongst the

multicultural

and visionary people the truth of the

matter is that

the world we live in is a complex one

one that involves multiple fronts in the

war for survival

technology matters it matters to enable

us to live longer

better easier and be better press

prospects

bloodshed is a threat a trip that needs

to be dealt with towards a longer

lasting peace

another as important of a matter is the

war we have to win

against nature this is a battle that has

very limited chance for retrial one that

the enemy

has an embedded advantage and a right

to win one that requires extraordinary

efforts

and a unifying masters for all those

involved

one that is not limited to me or to you

or even to our civilization rather this

is the one battle that unifies all those

living on this planet

for a longer lasting survival

we have been fighting this battle for

the entire life

of our species but now we have

identified a name for it that resonates

across the globe

one that everybody relates to and it is

called climate change

what do we really mean by climate change

where they come from who is responsible

for it

these are all the questions that we keep

asking ourselves

and the ones we keep trying to answer in

elections

in research in developing a plan for the

future

but not all these are the right

questions to ask

climate change is not a single

phenomenon

that we need to address it is not an

isolated process that

needs to be reversed it neither is a

socio-political challenge

that they can tackle in demonstration or

marches

nor it is a scientific problem that can

be

handled by researchers and scholars

not alone it is a different phase

of our conflict with nature that has

been happening through millenniums

it requires all of us and requires

all our attention

the best that we can describe and define

climate change

is through facts and observations

what we can observe is that for example

the average temperature of the planet

is increasing annually here is the data

that shows since 1980s the temperature

had gradually increased and stayed up

there

this makes it a factual observation not

an interpretation

not a political argument but a real

observation that we can measure this

does not mean that we have an increased

temperature everywhere around the world

it means the average temperature in our

planet is increasing

we can also measure the level of co2 in

earth’s atmosphere over the years

using ice samples from antarctica these

are the data that we have collected

with known uncertainties and scientific

terminologies

based on scientific methods that have

been proven

is this the cause for climate change

well that would be an interpretation

and not an observation here i would just

stick

with the facts and observations and

leave out any personal

or scientific interpretations of these

data to other experts to do so

since this does not serve the purpose of

our discussion

consequently to the rising temperature

isis starts to melt

as expected we observe that the arctic

ice levels are start shrinking as that

happens

the sea levels are start rising this is

a major issue that is observed daily

in pacific islands or seaside countries

and cities

where the sea levels are taking away a

little lamb from people

every day you can put a stick on the

beach and you can see it happen

this is an observation you look at the

beach

and you identify that life for those

people is changing every day

we also have extreme weather events that

are happening more frequently

does not necessarily mean hotter weather

is going to happen everywhere

it simply means that the strange events

happen more frequently

because the ocean temperature is

changing

because of the melting x and the

consequence of that

the better systems change

these are only a few examples of the

observations we have made

to account for what we call our changing

climate and that’s the magical war

changing

all around us everything is changing and

the reason for it is because the climate

is changing

this implies that the world around us

being temperature

being wetter our everyday life

all different aspects of it is changing

on this

and these changes what we can observe

is what we can agree on and we can

quantify

this is independent from a political

view it doesn’t matter

who you believe in this is what you can

see

i was an official observer at the united

nations climate meetings

in 2015. my first-hand experience with

the negotiations

in these meetings was that of

astonishment followed by disbelief and

finally an

understanding of the huge barrier

between politicians

scientists and industry leaders

the main problem though was that

negotiations are not done honestly

toward a common ground but rather

to simply put the burden on the other

party

but also the issues of feasibility

scientific and technology is sound goals

and the discussions on what we are

aiming for and fighting for

that we cannot achieve it the u.n is

investing greatly on research to prove

that climate change is real

well they should be focusing on research

on means to address the effects we are

already observing and experiencing today

let’s say to prove that climate change

is real identify the person

responsible for it all beyond any doubt

to anybody

that’s the same to us does that solve a

problem

does that bring nations together or does

that make

any difference whatsoever may address in

this crisis

no it does not it just divides people

we have seen this play throughout our

history and they have played similar

roles

in the past over and over again

this time instead of repeating the same

mistakes

let’s change our approach let’s focus on

the problem

rather than the sideshow of who is to

blame and how to make them pay for

this would be a political argument and

we need a scientific and social approach

to solve the issues associated with

climate change

our negotiators and decision makers need

to have a better

appreciation of what each and every

motion they’re taking

and aiming for means in terms of

technology technological capabilities

and scientific merit if they want to

redefine

the issues of climate change if we set

goals that are not achievable

then those who lose in this battle are

us

we should aim for those goals that we

can be sure to meet in the period of

time to step forward

i can list a number of different

problems that i can see

with the current approach that we have

and with a cognitive strategy

from both a scientific and

socio-political point of view

one some objectives are technologically

and scientifically impossible to meet

in some of these cases for example

greenhouse gas emission reduction

for airliners marine transportation of

goods

and how you can reduce the greenhouse

gas emissions associated with that

and how greenhouse gases emission

reductions

affect global trade and economies of

economies and economic developments

by 2050 is it achievable

you have to think about that two we

should enable technology transfers to

under

underdeveloped nations so that they do

not need to

pay the same cost to achieve the same

level of technological advancements as

we have paid

it will be faster it will be easier and

less costly both for the environment and

otherwise

technological embargoes are problematic

we need to open a technology

bank for transfer scientific and

technology developments across

borders

population control is another problem an

important issue that we need to address

in other developed nations

sustainability in energy production is

as

important as it is to look at the

consumption of that

energy number four

populism the burden should be on

industries and governments rather than

people in the first place

for example if we try to enforce capital

trade and

capital related policies at a time of

economic difficulty

it will backfire we need to be business

public perception and we have to start

with what matters

the most today and people can deal with

that

we need to focus our research and

development on the industries and

technologies that matter the most

it’s not about only how we generate

power how do we extract energy it is

also about how do we transform it

how we transport it and how do we

consume it

all of these matter and this all

requires new and revolutionary

approaches to the concepts

rather than just making small tunes into

the technologies

to make instead of making a big

difference let’s start thinking and

realizing that new technologies

that we need are thinking out of the box

we need a new definition for innovation

because what we need goes beyond our

current understanding of the term

innovation

these set forward a fruitful approach in

solving a common problem

the same way we got together to solve

the current pandemic

we have to get together to solve the

problems we face with climate change

answering the question of who did it has

never been a unifying

approach in any conflict or crisis

finding the person to blame

is the minimalist step in a long list

of psychological steps and processes

that are faced

by humans when they’re trying to have

this crisis

they’re finally at the point of

acceptance it is only now

that you start looking for means to

adopt and to address the problem or the

challenge you have in hand

this is the nature of human beings this

is our psychology

if you’re going to fight with nature you

better take advantage of our own

have come a long way to be here but to

accelerate this process going forward

there is only one approach that i can

recommend

finding your common ground amongst all

our people

this common cause is valid for all that

are involved with this idea

one unifying voice that resonates across

the political social economic

and scientific communities

one that aims not to address these

polarizing questions

that i have listed in the beginning of

my talk but rather to deflect the need

to answer them all while addressing the

very nature

of this crisis one that goes beyond the

bounds of greed movements

and extends past the prosperities that

are promised

by the oil and gas and energy

enthusiasts a wall

that satisfies all those that are

involved but only slightly

oh that is the magical trick to a

monumental challenge

that is if one side is all happy

it only could mean that others all of

their needs

are not met at all the common ground

is clear here the common ground that

this

unifies all the parties involved is

technology

and technology advancement and

improvements to our current systems

to design better higher efficiency and

better performing mechanisms to lower

the cost

associated with any of these energy

systems

this is the language that all those that

are involved can agree on

a better efficiency means more

profitability

that its core for industry is good for

economy

and is good for the people therefore

governments

will take advantage of that too a lower

cost

in our energy systems we mean a better

economy and a better happier society

because of it

if we can reduce our footprints on the

environment

that means that our lives are going to

be more comfortable

and if the technology that we need to

get there is there this has been for all

of us

why do we need to wait for bloodshed to

push us to invest in technologies

that can revolutionize our lives in the

future

this has been the trend for years and

centuries

war and the fear for examination and the

need for survival

has pushed us to invest in technology

developments

that gave us the edge in the war

but in return over time they became

relevant in bettering their lives during

the time of peace

now we have an opportunity to come

together towards designing better

systems engineering higher efficiency

technologies

and better in our lives without the

actual bloodshed of war

but with the real danger for survival

this is an ugly enemy it does not haunt

you in history you can’t find one

just like it but it slowly makes its

presence known in the shape of what

we can all call as a common name climate

change

i only pose one question to all those

from either side of the spectrum

who fight for or against policies

related to climate change

what would you lose to transform a

polarizing disagreement

to a unifying cause in climate change

let’s look at climate change from a new

lens

one that allows us to make this crisis

an opportunity

to bring us together and to unify us

towards a better future

for all of us for children and for our

grandchildren

but that enables technology developments

that help industries thrive and

economies grow

all with a reduction in environmental

footprint

let’s work together to elect the right

people for the right job

thank you