Climate Exp0 is the first conference organised by the COP26 Universities Network – a growing group of more than 55 UK-based universities, including all four GW4 institutions, working together to raise ambition for tangible outcomes from the UN COP26 Climate Change Conference taking place in Glasgow, Scotland in November 2021.
The GW4 Climate Alliance will host a 75-minute panel session themed around Nature Based Solutions on Tuesday 18th May from 14:45-16:00.
‘You’re surrounded! Regionally led, globally relevant, nature-based solutions of water’
- Chair: Dr James Dyke, Assistant Director Global Systems Institute, University of Exeter
- Dr Jannis Wenk, University of Bath – Constructed wetlands for polishing municipal wastewater: Cromhall wetlands
- Dr Chris Clements, University of Bristol – Ecological crystal balls: can we predict the future?
- Professor Isabelle Durance, Cardiff University and Director of the GW4 Water Security Alliance – Nature-based solutions for water security
With brief, engaging, presentations from each panellist, the session will continue to consider how regionally based research can drive international progress. The panel will reflect on their direct experience, inviting audience questions throughout.
Dr James Dyke, Assistant Director Global Systems Institute at the University of Exeter and Chair of the GW4 panel session said: “Nature-based Solutions can support human societies in multiple ways from providing food, clean water and shelter, to storing carbon and protecting us from the impacts of extreme events such as floods, droughts and heatwaves.
“The GW4 Alliance panel session will focus on the geographical resource our Alliance has in abundance: water. Water security means making sure there is enough water of the right quality in the right place at the right time for people, farming, businesses and the environment.”
The Climate Exp0 will also feature other GW4 academics and students involved in other sessions throughout the week. Many of these are also members of our GW4 Climate Alliance, GW4 Water Security Alliance and ambassadors for our Accelerating to Net Zero initiative.
Dr Jane Khawaja, Interim GW4 Director, added: “It’s fantastic to see so many members of our GW4 Alliances and academics from across our four institutions engage with the COP26 Universities Network and this unique Climate Exp0 conference.
“GW4 is home to globally recognised research strengths, academic communities, world-leading facilities and regional assets relating to climate. Our researchers have already been instrumental in identifying climate change tipping points and we are uniquely placed to address the global challenge of climate change, due to both our regional ‘ecosystem’ and the complementary critical mass of expertise across the GW4 institutions.”
At a critical juncture in the COP26 pre-meetings and negotiations – six months prior to the conference itself – Climate Exp0 will showcase the latest thinking and most relevant UK and international research in the run-up to COP26 around five key themes: Adaptation and Resilience; Finance; Green Recovery; Mitigation Solutions; and Nature-based Solutions.
Free to attend and open to all, Climate Exp0 will harness the power of virtual collaboration providing a global stage at which policymakers, academics, practitioners, students and members of the public can gather together to collaborate, share and debate climate change science and policy, to help advance a resilient, zero-carbon world.
Register for the Climate Exp0 Conference here
Download the full programme here
The recorded live session will be available for one month on the Climate Exp0 website hosted by Event Concept - watch the recorded session via the Programme page, just click on the name and View Session button. After that, the session will be archived permanently and freely accessible on Cambridge Open Engage.
