The AXA Futures event ‘Climate Change and Extreme Weather – How Do We Protect Communities at Risk?’ hosted by the Grantham Institute brought together leading climate change scientists and influencers to debate how to manage climate change and what COP21 should seek to achieve.
World Meteorological Organisation figures show that weather and climate-related disasters have caused $2.4 trillion in economic losses and nearly 2 million deaths globally since 1971 and the panel agreed that climate change will continue to get more serious and cause more damage unless action is taken to cut emissions.
However while it was broadly agreed that COP21 will be of critical importance in creating the political framework to manage emissions, the panel agreed that many countries are not well prepared to deal with the extreme weather and impact of climate change that we are experiencing today. The risks associated with climate change are something that the world has to deal with now, not in the future.
This video highlights the key views and conclusions of the AXA Futures debate and we hope it provides further insight and food for thought as preparations for COP 21 progress.
Panellists:
• Chair: David Williams, Managing Director Underwriting, AXA Insurance
• Professor Martin Siegert, Co-Director, Grantham Institute for Climate Change and the Environment, Imperial College, London
• Professor Colin Prentice, Chair in Biosphere and Climate Impacts, Imperial College, London
• Richard Aylard, External Affairs and Sustainability Director, Thames Water
• Professor Paul Bates, Professor of Hydrology and Head of School in Geographical Sciences, University of Bristol
• Professor Hannah Cloke, Professor of Hydrology and Director of Water@Reading, University of Reading
