Global Climate Change Week (GCCW) took place for the second time in October 2016. 288 academics, students, and other members of academic communities from a wide range of disciplines and countries registered including 82 from Africa, 60 from Australasia, 52 from North America, 43 from Asia, 33 from Europe, and 18 from Latin America. In this, its third year GCCW will take place on October 9-15.
Global Climate Change Week (GCCW) aims to encourage academic communities – including academics, students, and non-academic staff at universities – in all disciplines and countries to engage with each other, their communities, and policy makers on climate change action and solutions. Held annually in October, GCCW provides an open-ended framework for voluntary activities aimed at raising awareness, inspiring behaviour change, and driving political transformation in relation to climate policy. For general examples of activities to pursue during GCCW see here. For specific examples of activities pursued during GCCW in 2015 and 2016 see here, here, and here. For advice on how to organise GCCW at your university see here.
The need for action
In Copenhagen in 2009, the international community agreed to limit global warming to no more than two degrees centigrade above pre-industrial levels. Since then, a growing body of research has shown that 2°C is too much. Consequently, in Paris in 2015 the international community agreed to ‘pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C’. If current climate policies around the world continue, though, the expected result will be around 3.6°C warming. If we factor in the current pledges or promises governments have made, assuming they will all be met, global warming would still be likely to reach around 2.8°C.
What can I do?
You are only bound by the limits of your imagination! But to get you thinking, here are some of our suggestions:
- University-based education activities (including academics altering their programs to coordinate their teaching on some aspect of climate change during GCCW)
- Research activities (such as conferences and workshops on climate change; forums and Q&A sessions)
- Education activities beyond the university (such as talks to schools, community groups or the general public on climate change)
- Online activities (such as discussion groups, forums, social media, online Q&A sessions, podcasts)
- Campaigns (including petitions, consumer boycotts, demonstrations)
- Art and cultural activities (such as performances, installations, music, satire/humour)
More guidance on organising Global Climate Change Week events is available here
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