Pathway to a Post-Global Warming Future: Presenting Climate Science with Inspiration, Not (Only) Fear, presented by Jeffrey Bennett (CASA) — April 8, 2025
STScI Engineering & Technology Colloquium hosts:
Pathway to a Post-Global Warming Future: Presenting Climate Science with Inspiration, Not (Only) Fear, presented by Jeffrey Bennett (CASA)
Abstract:
Many people, and especially young people, express despair when it comes to the topic of climate change, which is unsurprising given that the media often portrays our climate future as a choice between bleak and bleaker. But it doesn’t have to be that way, because if we understand the science behind global warming, then we can also see pathways to its solution. In this presentation, I’ll show you how I try to approach the topic “with inspiration, not (only) fear,” by providing simple ways to discuss global warming science, consequences, and solutions – and how these solutions could lead to a “post-global warming” future in which today’s young people will someday be able to speak of the threat of global warming in the past tense. I’ll focus in particular on the role that astronomy plays in our understanding of global warming, and on why this gives astronomers a unique opportunity to educate the public about this critical topic.