By Professor Chris Fogwill, Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the School of Water, Energy and the Environment
As a climate change scientist, I’m often asked why I remain so positive. People say: “Don’t you find it depressing, or frustrating?” I honestly don’t – and this is why: we live in the most amazing time to make a difference. We just have to grasp the opportunity in front of us to define our path.
I have real optimism. That optimism is sometimes challenged by different factors, but I know that we can still make a difference. I think that’s something we’ve got to hold onto and really celebrate.
A journey, not a sprint
As a paleoclimatologist (a scientist looking at how the climate changes over time), I’ve worked in some of the most remote locations on earth, including in the middle of the East Antarctic ice sheet in Antarctica, where you are over 1,000km from any other human being. Coming from a society that is reliant on technology, transport, and connectivity, it is incredibly humbling to be in a part of the world where very few people – if any at all – have ever been. It gives you a real frame of reference about the planet and our impact on it.
We must remember that we have lived through a period of incredible global expansion; the world shrank in our eyes, pre-pandemic at least. We’ve made a huge effort to get to where we are today. Trying to reframe society and make a real difference to areas such as climate change and biodiversity loss going to be a stepwise challenge, and we’ve got to accept that.
COP 26 highlighted that this is the most important decade to make a difference to climate change. We are an intrinsic component of Planet Earth, and we have to work with it as opposed to seeing it as an infinite resource as we have, particularly over the last century. We have to learn to live within Earth’s limits.
But climate change is a global challenge, and we must remember that. For example, here in the UK, we can get to net zero but there are many other countries who will be very reliant on fossil fuels for years to come as they develop and grow. We have a responsibility in the UK to enable those countries to also move forward, to develop, and to build their economies in a sustainable way. We can help not only by reducing what we import from them, but by developing technology and supporting rollout, we can support global net zero by working in partnership. We can work together to create a just transition. But we have to start now.
We can all play our part
So, the UK as a nation has a responsibility in this, but we also have a responsibility as individuals. We must be optimistic, and we must be proactive.
Climate change is one of those big, existential threats that is really outside our frame of reference as human beings. Faced with such a huge challenge, it’s easy to feel powerless, and it’s only natural that people wonder if they, as just one individual, can really make a difference.
At Cranfield, we’re proud to have been selected as an official nominator for the 2023 Earthshot Prize, which seeks to find innovative solutions for some of the world’s most urgent environmental issues. You only have to look at last year’s winners to see the potential we all have to help our planet. Previous prize winners and runners-up show that it isn’t just big, multi-nationals and country-wide initiatives that are making a difference – it is individuals, small groups and communities of people all over the world that are making positive changes in their locality. There’s a real sense of humanity, and of hope and inspiration for those people who maybe struggle to see what can be done about some of these huge challenges. That’s something that’s a real privilege to be a part of, to contribute to, and to see succeed.
We all have an individual responsibility to play our part; action on climate change is for everyone. It’s not just important for people in less-developed countries; it’s just as important here in the UK. For me, that’s where the Earthshot Prize excels, in recognising that effective change can be something as simple as cleaning plastics out of waterways or the ocean, or as complex as trying to tackle some of the huge questions, like how to suck carbon out of the atmosphere. Those two examples are on completely different scales, but are equally important to the end goal.
Climate change at Cranfield
For my part, I’ve always loved and been interested in the natural world. I grew up in Devon, where I spent my time rock climbing, surfing, and hill walking. I then got an apprenticeship as an engineer, which led me to combine the two by working in the geosciences.
Through my research, I’ve demonstrated how elements of the natural world are changing due to anthopogenic climate change, from the acceleration in melting of the Earth’s great ice sheets, to changes in the Southern Ocean carbon cycle. Evidence shows we are making changes to the Earth’s system which are potentially irreversible. We must act now if we hope to avoid such irreversible change.
I’ve worked with some remarkable people in some amazing places – some of the most remote on earth – and it’s inspired me to want to make a difference. We’ve spent the past 15 to 20 years gathering evidence; we know what is happening. We now have a need and responsibility to develop accelerated solutions that will make a change.
That’s why I joined Cranfield – to find solutions. In leading the School of Water, Energy and the Environment, I’m bringing together scientists who are working on real solutions to some of these problems around climate change. We have world leaders in water science who provide solutions for water and sanitation for communities globally as well as understanding how the hydrological system responds to climate change, and others looking at how our energy and power systems will need to change in order to reduce CO2 and achieve net zero. We also consider how the environment, agriculture and food will respond to climate change and how nature based solutions can address challenges such as biodiversity loss and net zero. I consider myself incredibly lucky to be able to bring my experience as a climate change scientist to bear on real solutions, and to work at an institution that is playing an incredibly proactive part in providing the solutions we need to live within Earth's limits.
Ultimately, that’s why I’m here at Cranfield – to enable the researchers and students who come here to learn to start to develop the transformative solutions we need. This will be driven by research, education, and engagement. If we can get those three things right – focus our research, focus our education, and ensure engagement across our stakeholder communities globally – then the potential for real positive change is there.
That’s why I love my job – I get to highlight the questions and the challenges, and bring them to a group of individuals who are incredibly gifted, ready, willing and able to find solutions.
In that context, how can I not be positive about the future?
