FST JOURNAL

The 2023 IPPC report notes that the planet has already warmed to 1.1˚ C above preindustrial levels, and it is likely warming will exceed 1.5˚ C this century. Current national plans are not sufficient to meet climate goals. Meanwhile, in the UK the Climate Change Committee’s report of June 2023 suggests that the rate of emissions reduction in the UK is too slow, so hitting our own emissions targets will be very difficult. In addition, the Prime Minister announced a relaxation of some climate-related policies at the Conservative Party Conference in October.

To discuss the issues facing the UK and the world, and in advance of the COP28 Climate Conference in November 2023, the Foundation for Science and Technology organised a discussion on 11 October 2023. The speakers were: Lord Deben, Former Chair, Climate Change Committee; Professor Paul Monks, Chief Scientific Adviser, Department of Energy Security and Net Zero; Baroness Brown of Cambridge, Chair of the Adaptation Committee, Committee on Climate Change and Chair, House of Lord Science and Technology Committee; and Professor Jim Skea, Chair, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. A video recording, presentation slides and speaker audio from the event are available on the FST website: www.foundation.org.uk/Events/2023/Net-Zero-UK-and-global-progress