CANCELLED: Science Foundations for Governing Solar Radiation Management

As greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise, climate impacts become more visible, and actual mitigation falls short, consideration of solar radiation management (SRM) - a class of climate intervention that focuses on reducing the amount of solar energy that reaches the Earth - has moved closer to mainstream policy discussions. Both research on and the practice of SRM are rightly considered difficult to govern. Such climate interventions are ultimately localized actions with regional-to-global impacts on temperature, precipitation, and ecosystems that we cannot currently fully anticipate. This paper adds to the literature on SRM governance by showing how particular kinds of science can expand the range of options that we have to better steer the choices of whether and how to implement SRM. It uses a first principles approach to identify the capacities that any future regime would need to steer SRM toward meeting societal goals, then maps these back to their informational requirements. It concludes with next steps for addressing the gap between the current state of observations and analytical capabilities and the foundations we need to govern SRM. We do not argue that investments in science would be sufficient for considerate use of SRM, but rather that they are a necessary foundation for the conversations, deliberations, and choices about risks that we are likely to face. We do not argue for or against deployment of SRM as an option in mitigating impacts of climate change, but are pragmatic in acknowledging that the option exists.

This IRES Seminar Series event will discuss a work in progress by Jessica Seddon (and in collaboration with Piers Forster, Professor of Physical Climate Change and Director of the Priestly International Centre for Climate, University of Leeds). For more information on this event, please visit the Institute for Resources, the Environment and Sustainability.

Please note that this event is not located at Green College.