Headline: The IASS at the Katowice Climate Change Conference

The 24th UN Climate Change Conference (COP24) is due to take place in the Polish city of Katowice from 2 to 14 December. At this year’s COP, minds will focus on concrete steps towards implementing the Paris Climate Agreement. A whole host of experts from the Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS) will be there. At the international symposium on “Safeguarding Our Climate, Advancing Our Society”, IASS Scientific Director Patrizia Nanz will speak about the role democratic structures can play in the shift to sustainability. And IASS Scientific Director Mark Lawrence will represent the institute at the High Level Assembly of the Climate and Clean Air Coalition on the margins of the conference.

The IASS at the COP23 in Bonn in November 2017. The institute will also inform about its work at a booth in Katowice.
IASS/Anja Krieger

29.11.2018

Other IASS researchers will speak at various COP events. For example, the IASS is the co-organiser of an official side event of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) on “Delivering Renewables at Scale: A must to meet the Paris Agree-ment”. At that event, Sebastian Helgenberger, Laura Nagel and Ayodeji Okunlola will discuss how the co-benefits of renewable energies can advance an ambitious climate agenda. Kathleen Mar will give a talk on reducing black carbon emissions in Europe, and Dorota Stasiak will speak about the changes in behaviour that are necessary for more effective climate protection.

Events with the participation of IASS experts

Sustainable solutions to combat climate change: contribution of engineers and reduction of air pollutants / Monday, 3 December, 10:30–12:00, with Kathleen Mar

Kathleen Mar heads the IASS project on Climate Action in National and International Pro-cesses (ClimAct). She examines how scientific insights can advance climate protection, particularly in the context of international bodies.

Community energy – civil society’s role in a just and sustainable energy transition / Tuesday, 4 December, 10:30–12:00, with Sebastian Helgenberger

Sebastian Helgenberger has led research projects on the international dimension of the energy transition and the social and economic co-benefits of renewables since he joined the IASS in 2014. His work is currently focused on the social and economic opportunities presented by energy change (with case studies from Vietnam, South Africa, India, Turkey and Mexico) and the socially equitable implementation of the Energiewende in Germany.

Contributions of the research community to climate action and implementation of the Paris Agreement / Tuesday, 4 December, 11:30 -13:00.

Climate Change Needs Change in Behavior / Tuesday, 4 December, 19:00–20:00, with Dorota Stasiak

Dorota Stasiak heads the IASS project on Co-creation and Contemporary Policy Advice, which investigates the transformative potential of co-creation through research, design and experimentation. She studies existing practices of reciprocal learning and decision-making, explores their societal effects, and tests new models for generating knowledge and courses of action that transcend the boundaries between science, politics, civil society, and the business world.

Mobilising the social and economic benefits of clean energy in our countries / Thursday, 6 December, 10:00–12:00, with Sebastian Helgenberger

Opportunities for energy transition in Turkey: the role of technology, financing and policy / Thursday, 6 December, 15:30 -17:30.

Reflection Space: Time to change the way we deal with each other: understanding [the COP] / Thursday, 6. December, 18:00.

Experiences with National and Subnational Climate Laws Adopted Post-Paris: Enhancing ambition / Friday, 7 December, 11:30–12:45, with Cecilia Oliveira, Patrick Toussaint and Julius Honke

Cecilia Oliveira heads the IASS project on Implementing the Paris Agreement. Her research focuses on climate policy in Brasil.
Patrick Toussaint is a research associate in the same project and works primarily on the issue of loss and damage as a result of climate change.

Oceans Action Day / Saturday, 8 December, 10:00–19:30, with Torsten Thiele

Joint Symposium on Climate Change: Safeguarding Our Climate, Advancing Our Society / Monday, 10 December, 9:00–16:00, with Patrizia Nanz

Patrizia Nanz is a political scientist and Managing Scientific Director of the IASS. She is also Professor of Transformative Sustainability Studies at the University of Potsdam and co-chair of the Science Platform Sustainability 2030. Her main areas of research are political philosophy, democratic theory, and the role of public participation in transformations to sustainability.

Innovative Finance for Climate and Oceans. / Monday, 10 December, 15:00–16:30, with Torsten Thiele.

Mobilising the Social and Economic Co-Benefits of Renewable Energy: Turkey & Emerging Economies / Monday, 10 December, 15:30–17:30, with Sebastian Helgenberger

Co-benefits: making the Paris Agreement a success for the planet and the people / Monday, 10 December, 18:00-21:00.

Climate and Clean Air Coalition High Level Assembly / Tuesday, 11 December, 16:00–18:00, with Mark Lawrence, Charlotte Unger and Kristina Steinmar

Mark Lawrence is a Scientific Director at the IASS. His research focuses on a range of sus-tainable development topics at the science-policy and science-society interface, including mitigating the impacts of short-lived climate-forcing pollutants (SLCPs) and the potential impacts, uncertainties, and risks of climate engineering.

Interview with the Climate Action Studio / Wednesday, 12 December, 11:00, with Mark Lawrence and Konrad Gürtler

Public Participation in Climate Decision Making / Wednesday, 12 December, 16:45–18:15, with Adrian Martínez Blanco, Patrick Toussaint and Julius Honke

Delivering Renewables at Scale: A must to meet the Paris Agreement, Wednesday, 12 December, 16:45–18:15, with Sebastian Helgenberger, Laura Nagel and Ayodeji Okunlola