We hope you to join us Thursday, October 22nd at noon for a discussion with Wil Burns on Climate Geoengineering and its Implications for Intergenerational Equity.

Due to the inadequate response of the global community in the context of climate policymaking, climate geoengineering has emerged as an increasingly viable option among commentators and some policymakers. One of the most widely discussed of these options is solar radiation management, or efforts to increase atmospheric albedo through techniques such as sulfur particle injection or cloud brightening. Unfortunately, while such techniques have the potential to avert “climate emergencies,” or to serve as a stopgap measure to buy time for effective emissions mitigation responses, they also pose serious risks. Many commentators have focused on intra-generational risks, such as changes in precipitation patterns, or increases in sulfur dioxide loads in the troposphere. However, SRM approaches may also poses grave threats to future generations should their use ultimately cease without concomitant reductions in greenhouse emissions, termed the so-called “termination” or “rebound” effect. This presentation focuses on the implications of the international legal principle of intergenerational equity in terms of potential deployment of SRM technologies and suggests how it should inform decision-making in this context.

Dr. Wil Burns is the founding Co-Director of the Forum for Climate Engineering Assessment, a scholarly initiative of American University; he is based in its western office in Berkeley, California. He previously served as the Director of the Master of Science, Energy Policy & Climate program at Johns Hopkins University in Washington, DC. He also serves as the Co-Chair of the International Environmental Law Committee of the American Branch of the International Law Association. He has published over 75 articles in law, science, and policy journals and has co-edited four books.

*This series provides a forum to reflect on the ground that we’ve gained over the past 25 years, and to learn from each other to build more effective, more informed strategies for changing the world through law. To that end, each event includes a presentation by a featured speaker followed by a candid, informal discussion among all attendees.

RSVP requested but not required to Amanda Kistler – akistler@ciel.org