© IMAGO / Arnulf Hettrich
In 2030 our world will be a different one. Scientists forecast that this present decade will witness a more pronounced change in the climate than any we have yet seen. Episodes of extreme weather of all kinds will become more common, the rate of biodiversity loss will increase, water resources will decline, harvests will become less secure and an increase in migration flows will inevitably follow. How humans react to global warming in the coming decade will decide whether or not our planet's climate can be returned to a stable state.
Education will have a major role to play in promoting the transformation of society that is required to tackle the issue effectively, giving future generations a fair chance to make the necessary adjustments in their turn. An online series of interdisciplinary lectures given by researchers at LMU and other experts in relevant fields will focus on possible ways of successfully responding to the challenge.
Dr. Michael Kopatz is an environmental scientist and a Project Leader at the Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy.
In his richly illustrated and absorbing presentation, he demonstrates that it is possible for people to adopt sustainable lifestyles without becoming obsessed with the details of issues such as climate change and factory farmng. Once the necessary structures - such as legally binding standards and limits - are put in place, the transition itself can become self sustaining. Many advocates of this approach refer to it as the "emancipation of the consumer".
For full details of the lecture series, together with information on how to register for the program, see the corresponding webpage. The lecture will be held in German.