Sustain Ability. The Potsdam Dialogues - Science for a Safe Tomorrow.

The concept of “Loss and Damage” gained substantial attention at this year’s climate conference COP27 in Egypt. Koko Warner from the UNFCCC Secretariat and Christoph Gornott from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research PIK dive into the loss & damage debate, with focus on the potential benefits / shortcomings of the recently established loss & damage fund, the possible support by science and a look ahead on the year to come. Please note: At the time this podcast was recorded, Koko Warner was still with UNFCCC; since Mid-December she has moved to another position outside UNFCCC.

We are in the middle of the first global energy crisis. The entire fossil system is at an incredibly high level of energy prices, putting affordability, cost of living and energy security issues as well as the climate crisis in the very centre. Gunnar Luderer, Lead of the Energy Systems Group & Deputy Chair of the Research Department Transformation Pathways at PIK, and Laura Cozzi, Chief Energy Modeler at the IEA, discuss what is needed to accelerate the clean energy transition away from fossil fuels towards renewables. Together, they explore energy saving options that everybody can follow, talk about critical steps that are key now towards transforming our current energy system into and explain why they remain cautiously positive, despite all the challenges ahead.

Climate change makes people lose their homes. Barbora Sedova, PIK Co-Lead of the FutureLab Security, Ethnic Conflicts and Migration, and Chris Hodder, the first UN Climate Security and Environmental Advisor to Somalia, discuss climate change and its impacts on migration, displacement and even conflict.

Festive season is in full swing in many countries. For lots of people, it’s all about buying, cooking, eating yummy foods, traditional meals, sharing them with friends and family – that’s the one side. On the other side, the food we buy and eat plays an important role in climate change. Especially meat and dairy consumption have been increasing for years in many parts of the world, making greenhouse gas emissions from food and agriculture rise further. Chef Megha Kohli and Agricultural Economist Hermann Lotze-Campen share with us how they tackle the challenges of our current food system.

Extreme weather events are on the rise. Are these events connected? Are they becoming more likely with global warming? What does science say about extreme weather events? In the new episode of the podcast ‘Sustain Ability. The Potsdam Dialogues - Science for a Safe Tomorrow’, experts Friederike Otto and Stefan Rahmstorf give insight into their latest research. They discuss attribution science, economic costs of extreme events, the art of communicating science - and what keeps them going in their personal scientific chasing of extreme weather events.

How can the European agriculture shift from climate culprit to saviour? Earth Scientist and PIK Director Johan Rockström discusses challenges of the current Common Agricultural Policy - short CAP - reform and its ability to live up to the objectives of the Green Deal with two guests who work at the very frontiers of the CAP: Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice President of the European Commission, and Alan Matthews, Professor Emeritus of European Agricultural Policy at Trinity College.