The next Roger W. Gale Symposium in Philosophy, Politics and Economics will focus on whether individual freedoms should be limited in order to stabilize the global climate.
What: Roger W. Gale Symposium in Philosophy, Politics and Economics
Who: Expert panel including keynote speaker Michael Ignatieff, Ed Dolan, John Dryzek, Kathryn Harrison, William Rees, Meghan Robinson, Mark Sagoff, Marlowe Sam and Andrew Weaver
When: Tuesday, April 12–Individual and panel sessions between 9 am and 6:30 pm PST
Where: Zoom webinar
With the increase in wildfires, flooding and other natural disasters, it is evident that the state of the global climate is shifting. Humans are directly impacted by the adverse changes in their environment—yet continue activities that put the climate at risk.
Individual choices—especially those that emit heat-trapping gases—are a catalyst for the disruption in the current state, should they be limited? If the answer is yes—who would be limited and how?
On Tuesday, April 12, the Irving K. Barber Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences‘ Department of Economics, Philosophy and Political Science at UBC Okanagan presents A Wicked Problem: Individual Freedoms and Climate Change. The event will explore if constraining human choices can promote climate stability. A panel of subject-matter experts—including keynote speaker Michael Ignatieff—will take the virtual stage to explore this topic in individual and panel sessions.
Dr. Johannus Janmaat, event organizer and Associate Professor of Economics, says the symposium comes at a crucial time when there is a shortcoming in the efforts for climate stability.
“On April 4, 2022, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change released the third component of its latest assessment, pointing out that the nations of the world have done far less than promised to reduce climate change,” he states. “Why? Are the people of the world simply not willing to sacrifice their own freedoms now to reduce the chance of a less livable future?”
The Roger W. Gale Symposium is a series of events focusing on current issues that overlap multiple disciplines. Its goal is to bring together the academic and public worlds for a fruitful dialogue with subject-matter experts.
This virtual event is free and open to all, with online pre-registration required.
To register, or learn more about the lineup of speakers, visit: epp.ok.ubc.ca/about/freedomsandclimatechange
