One of the environment movement’s leading figures, Jonathon Porritt, will be tackling the climate change deniers in a talk held in Nottingham on December 14.
Jonathon, who is a founder director of Forum for the Future and former chairman of the Sustainable Development Commission, will be speaking at No.1 Nottingham Science Park in an event co-sponsored by Nottinghamshire’s new Greentech Business Network and sustainable developer Blueprint.
Titled ‘good science, bad science and the scourge of denialism,’ the talk will deal with way ‘bad’ science is used to deny climate change.
“Everybody accepts that the foundations for a low-carbon, genuinely sustainable economy have to be built on the best possible scientific evidence,” said Jonathon. “Politicians are only too keen to sign up to the principle of evidence-based policy-making, but the reality looks rather different. Policy responses on climate, energy, biodiversity, resource management, water and waste are all extremely partial in the way they reflect the state of science today. Debates around these issues are often compromised by ‘bad science’, by which I mean the use of incomplete or inaccurate data to justify pre-determined positions. Worse yet, the growing phenomenon of ‘denialism’ (where scientific evidence is seen to have no more value to decision makers than partisan and ideologically-motivated viewpoints), particularly in the US, poses a serious threat to the role of science in society today.”
Jonathon, who chairs the igloo / Blueprint “Footprint” Sustainable Investment committee, will also be talking about the potential of Britain’s low-carbon economy, especially in the light of further investment in renewable technologies and the Green Investment Bank announced by Chancellor George Osborne in the Comprehensive Spending Review.
The December 14 talk is the latest in a series of events debating climate change organised by Nottingham Science City and held at No.1 Nottingham Science Park. Previous speakers have included environmental commentators and writers such as Prof David MacKay, Chris Goodall, Mark Lynas and Jeremy Leggett.
The event will feature a 30-40 minute talk followed by a lively Q&A debate with an invited audience. To register for the Jonathon Porritt event please contact Vanessa Corns at vc@nde.org.uk or ring (0115) 876 4501. The event begins at 5.30pm for a 6pm start and will end at approximately 8pm.
