Join us for Climate, Carbon, and What Really Matters – Dale Jamieson, Professor of Environmental Studies and Philosophy at New York University, on March 3, 2022 either in person at the wǝɫǝbʔaltxʷ – Intellectual House or virtually on zoom from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT.
Register here for Climate, Carbon, and What Really Matters lecture.
Abstract:
For decades, I, like many others, have beat the drum for climate change action. Yet, little meaningful action has been taken. Much of what is under discussion today, such as geoengineering, looks backwards, towards strategies that we hope would allow us to turn the global thermostat down to something closer to the comfortable Holocene norm. However, looking backwards can lead to myopic, complacent, and self-righteous views of climate justice. There would be no climate crisis without settler colonialism or fossil capitalism. Nor would there be a climate crisis had Homo sapiens never left Africa, or even, perhaps, if agricultural surpluses, the green revolution, or the suppression of infectious diseases had not occurred. Some of these considerations matter and matter a lot, but exactly how they matter and to what extent, depends on how they fit into a path forward. What matters is not decarbonization, alternative energy, or even “sustainability” per se, but the roles they may play in respecting our values, and in enabling our lives to have meaning in a world in which the invitation to participate in the dance between humans and the rest of nature cannot politely be declined.
Dale Jamieson is Professor of Environmental Studies and Philosophy at New York University, Affiliated Professor of Law, and Director of NYU’s Animal Studies Initiative. He is also Distinguished Visiting Professor of the Dickson Poon School of Law at King’s College, London, and Adjunct Professor at the University of the Sunshine Coast in Australia. His research extends to a number of timely topics, such as environmental ethics, animal rights, and the contemporary discourse on climate change.