What is it like to be on the frontline of climate change research? It’s certainly demanding, but it can get addictive, according to Dr. Alaa Al Khourdajie.

In this episode, Alaa shares with us his personal experience with the IPCC, as well as giving a mini-explainer about the organisation. Beyond his current research on the application of integrated assessment models (IAMs) and the roles of Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), Alaa also shows up on social media with his limited free time. He tries to bring as many people on board as possible to tackle climate change by communicating scientific messages in a clear and accessible way, as he believes ‘social consensus building is as key as scientific consensus building'.

Dr. Alaa Al Khourdajie is a Research Fellow at the Centre of Environmental Policy at Imperial College London. He was a Senior Scientist and Contributing Author in the Working Group III of IPCC, which is the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. He is also a lead author at the UNEP 7th Global Environmental Outlook assessment, and a guest researcher at the International Institute of Applied System Analysis in Austria, University of Utrecht and the Netherland Environmental Assessment Agency.

Chapters

(00:00 ) Dr. Alaa Al Khourdajie

(01:08 ) Introduction to the IPCC and the Working Groups (WG)

(07:47 ) Alaa's Experience in the Technical Support Unit in WG III & as a Contributing Author

(15:15 ) Alaa's Career Journey & How He Got to Work with the IPCC

(20:53 ) Alaa's Current Research in Integrated Assessment Models and the Roles of Carbon Dioxide Capture & Storage with Machine Learning & AI

(24:00 ) IPCC Experience Helped Expand Professional Network

(29:08 ) How Alaa Discovered His Passion for Climate Change Research

(34:58 ) Why Alaa Showed Up on Social Media as a Science Communicator

(39:03 ) Handling Pressure from Social Media

(43:41 ) Work-Life Balance as a Researcher

(46:53 ) Books to Read

Booklist by Alaa

1. The Climate Book, edited by Greta Thunberg https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61153762-the-climate-book?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=aXBQQCf7ow&rank=1

2. Technical Summary, by the IPCC

3. The Age of AI, by Henry A Kissinger, Eric Schmidt, Daniel Huttenlocher https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/56620811

4. The Art of Explanation, by Ros Atkins https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/64631477-the-art-of-explanation?ref=nav_sb_ss_2_18