Addressing climate change: A Nobel Prize Dialogue Tokyo 2022 panel discussion - Water Matters

Summary

The panel discussion addresses the urgent theme of climate change, highlighting the alarming effects of global warming, such as extreme weather patterns, and the critical need for societal adaptation. Experts from various fields emphasize the importance of understanding and preparing for rising sea levels, rethinking urban infrastructure, and the interconnection between water, energy, and climate resilience. The conversation underscores the necessity for innovative solutions, policy changes, and learning from nature to build a sustainable future.

Takeaways

• 🌡️ Climate change is already causing unprecedented extremes in weather patterns, including rainfall, droughts, and floods, which are impacting infrastructure and taking lives.
• 🏔️ The melting of polar ice, both sea ice and land ice in Greenland and Antarctica, is accelerating and contributing to rising sea levels, posing a significant threat to coastal populations.
• 🌊 Sea level rise is a tangible and serious concern, with potential increases of several meters, affecting over 40% of the global population living in coastal areas.
• 🌍 The redistribution of water due to climate change will necessitate new solutions, such as desalination, but these come with energy costs that contribute to the climate crisis.
• 💧 Access to clean water is becoming increasingly scarce, highlighting the need for more efficient water use and the development of technologies that reduce energy consumption in water production.
• 🌿 The concept of working with nature to increase the resilience of urban areas is crucial, with initiatives like 'Sponge cities' aiming to absorb and manage water more effectively.
• 🔬 Scientific understanding of the mechanisms behind climate change and its effects on ecosystems is essential for developing effective strategies to mitigate and adapt to these changes.
• ♻️ The circular economy approach to water use, reusing and recycling water at various scales, is a key strategy for building resilience against water scarcity.
• 🌿 The importance of green spaces and natural systems within urban planning is highlighted as a means to increase a city's flexibility and adaptability to climate extremes.
• 🌱 Learning from past ecosystems' responses to climate changes, such as the PETM event 55 million years ago, can inform current strategies for adapting to rapid temperature increases.
• 🔄 The interconnection between water, energy, and climate resilience is emphasized, with the need for innovative solutions that consider the environmental impacts of transitioning to renewable energy sources.

Q & A

What is the main concern expressed by the director of the Alfred Wagner Center regarding climate change?

The main concern is the speed of change and the extremes of weather events, such as droughts and floods, which are already causing significant damage and loss of life, and the rapid approach towards a 1.5-degree global warming increase.

What are the effects of global warming on the polar regions as mentioned in the script?

Global warming is causing the melting of sea ice and ice masses on land, like in Greenland and Antarctica. This melting reduces the Albedo effect, which is the Earth's natural climate buffer that reflects sunlight and prevents overheating.

What is the significance of Albedo in the context of climate change?

Albedo refers to the measure of the reflectivity of a surface, such as ice and snow. The melting of polar ice reduces Albedo, leading to more sunlight being absorbed by the darker surfaces like rocks and ocean, which in turn accelerates warming.

How does the melting of polar ice contribute to rising sea levels?

As the polar ice melts, it contributes to the increase in sea levels because the ice that was previously on land is now entering the oceans, causing them to rise.

What is the potential impact of rising sea levels on coastal populations?

Rising sea levels pose a significant threat to coastal populations, as many people live close to the coast. It could lead to displacement, loss of habitable land, and increased vulnerability to storm surges and flooding.

What is the role of CO2 emissions in the context of climate change as discussed in the script?

CO2 emissions are identified as a major contributor to global warming. The continued emission of CO2 is pushing the Earth towards exceeding the 1.5-degree global warming boundary set by the Paris climate goals.

What are the challenges associated with desalination as a solution to water scarcity?

Desalination is energy-intensive and can contribute to higher carbon emissions if not powered by renewable energy sources. It also requires significant infrastructure and can have environmental impacts on marine ecosystems.

How is the transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources impacting water resources?

The transition to renewable energy, such as the use of lithium for batteries, still requires water for extraction and processing, indicating that water-intensive processes are not eliminated but rather shifted.

What is the concept of Sponge cities as mentioned in the script?

Sponge cities are urban areas designed to be more resilient to climate change by incorporating green spaces and water-absorbing infrastructure to better manage water during heavy rainfall and prevent flooding.

What are the potential benefits of using microbes in the context of CO2 reduction as discussed by the panel?

Certain microbes can utilize protons and electrons to convert CO2 into methane or other useful fuels. This process, known as electron microbiology, can contribute to CO2 reduction and the development of innovative, natural ecosystem-based technologies.

What is the importance of understanding past ecosystems in preparing for future climate changes?

Studying past ecosystems can provide insights into how they adapted to and evolved through climate changes. This historical understanding can inform strategies for building resilience and adapting to current and future climate challenges.

What is the concept of 'climate trading' as suggested by one of the panelists?

Climate trading is a hypothetical market-based approach where individuals or entities could trade 'climate credits,' potentially influencing local climates based on their consumption or conservation of resources like water and energy.

Outlines

00:00

🌡️ Climate Change Impacts and Global Warming

The first paragraph introduces the overarching theme of climate change, highlighting the urgency of the situation with current global warming at 1.2 degrees Celsius. The speaker emphasizes the unprecedented extremes in weather patterns, such as rainfall, droughts, and floods, which are already causing loss of life and damage to infrastructure. The rapid pace towards the 1.5-degree threshold is a major concern, with the effects being felt globally. The discussion also touches on the human impact on climate through fossil fuel usage and the need for immediate action to mitigate the emission of CO2.

05:03

🌊 Sea Level Rise and Coastal Vulnerability

This paragraph delves into the specific issue of sea level rise, a critical consequence of climate change, with the potential for rapid ice dissolution in polar regions. The speaker, a professor from Tohoku University, underscores the seriousness of this issue, as it affects over 40% of the world's population living in coastal areas. The potential for sea levels to rise significantly, possibly more than 4 meters, poses a substantial threat to human sustainability and ecosystems. The need for a scientific understanding of these changes and their impacts on freshwater systems and marine life is highlighted, as well as the importance of exploring solutions to this looming crisis.

10:03

💧 Water, Energy, and Climate Nexus

The third paragraph explores the intricate relationship between water, energy, and climate change. The discussion points out that while we focus on decarbonizing our energy sources, there is a lack of consideration for the water and environmental footprint of these transitions, such as the water-intensive process of lithium extraction for batteries. The panelists emphasize the need for local solutions, such as desalination and energy production that do not exacerbate climate change, and the importance of rethinking our urban planning and infrastructure to adapt to the new climate reality.

15:08

🔬 Geoscience and Sociocultural Perspectives on Climate Change

This paragraph brings in the perspectives of geoscience and sociocultural settings in understanding and addressing climate change. The importance of balancing local and global scales is stressed, as well as the need to understand fundamental mechanisms of climate systems. The discussion also touches on the potential for new technologies, such as those involving electrophilic microbes, to contribute to CO2 reduction and the utilization of natural ecosystems in innovative ways.

20:08

🌿 Building Resilience Through Circular Economy and Green Spaces

The focus of this paragraph is on building resilience in the face of climate change. The panelists discuss the importance of implementing circular economy principles in water management, such as reusing and recycling water at various scales. They also highlight the need for urban areas to be more flexible and adaptive to climate extremes, suggesting the creation of green spaces and sponge cities as ways to increase resilience and work with nature to better handle the impacts of climate change.

25:11

🌱 Learning from the Past to Build a Resilient Future

The final paragraph emphasizes the importance of learning from past ecosystems to prepare for future climate changes. The speaker suggests that by understanding how ecosystems adapted to past climate events, such as the PETM 55 million years ago, we can glean insights into how to build resilience today. The discussion also touches on the need for better predictive models and the importance of local observation points to monitor and respond to climate changes effectively.

Keywords

💡Climate Change

Climate change refers to long-term shifts in temperatures and weather patterns, primarily as a result of human activities such as the burning of fossil fuels and deforestation. In the video, it is the central theme, with discussions on its effects on global warming, extreme weather events, and sea level rise, illustrating the urgency and impact on society and ecosystems.

💡Global Warming

Global warming is the increase in Earth's average surface temperature due to human-induced factors, such as greenhouse gas emissions. The script mentions the current global warming of 1.2 degrees Celsius and the rapid approach towards 1.5 degrees, highlighting the severity of climate change and its immediate effects on weather patterns and human life.

💡Extremes

In the context of the video, 'extremes' refers to unprecedented weather events such as intense rainfall, droughts, and floods. These extremes are a direct consequence of climate change and are causing significant disruptions and damages to infrastructure and human life, as exemplified by the catastrophes in Pakistan and Germany mentioned in the script.

💡Infrastructure

Infrastructure encompasses the basic physical and organizational structures needed for a society to function, such as transportation, water, and energy systems. The script discusses the inadequacy of current infrastructures to cope with the new extremes of weather, emphasizing the need for rethinking and adapting infrastructure to the changing climate.

💡Albedo

Albedo is the measure of the reflectivity of a surface, with implications for the Earth's energy balance. In the script, Albedo is described as a 'critical shield' or 'climate buffer' that reflects sunlight, helping to prevent overheating. The melting of ice reduces Earth's Albedo, leading to more warming, which is a significant concern in polar regions.

💡Polar Regions

Polar regions are the areas around the Earth's poles, characterized by cold temperatures and ice. The script discusses how changes in the polar regions, such as the melting of sea ice and ice masses, contribute to rising sea levels and the loss of Albedo, which accelerates global warming.

💡Sea Level Rise

Sea level rise is the increase in the volume of water covering the Earth's surface, primarily caused by melting ice and the thermal expansion of seawater. The video emphasizes the consequences of sea level rise, such as the inundation of coastal areas, which poses a significant threat to populations and ecosystems, particularly in light of the potential for rapid ice dissolution in polar regions.

💡Desalination

Desalination is the process of removing salt and other minerals from seawater to produce fresh water. The script mentions desalination as a potential solution to water scarcity caused by climate change but also points out its high energy consumption and the environmental implications of this trade-off.

💡Decarbonization

Decarbonization refers to the shift away from carbon-based energy sources to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The video underscores the importance of decarbonization in addressing climate change, with a focus on transitioning to renewable energy sources and reducing the environmental footprint of energy production.

💡Resilience

Resilience in the context of the video refers to the ability of societies, ecosystems, and infrastructure to withstand, adapt to, or recover from climate change impacts. The script discusses building resilience through various means, such as improving water management, rethinking urban planning, and leveraging natural systems to enhance adaptability to climate extremes.

💡Sponge Cities

Sponge cities is a concept where urban areas are designed to absorb, store, and utilize rainwater, enhancing their resilience to flooding and water scarcity. The script refers to efforts in China to create sponge cities as an example of working with nature to increase urban resilience to climate change effects.

💡Circular Economy

A circular economy is an economic system aimed at eliminating waste and the continual use of resources. In the script, the concept is related to water management, suggesting that reusing and recycling water at various scales, from homes to cities, can contribute to building resilience and sustainability in the face of climate change.

💡Ecosystem

An ecosystem consists of all the living organisms and their physical environment in a particular area. The video discusses how ecosystems are affected by climate change and the importance of understanding their responses to past climate events to predict and prepare for future changes, emphasizing the interconnectedness of ecological health and climate resilience.

💡CO2 Capture and Sequestration (CCS)

CO2 capture and sequestration is a process that involves capturing carbon dioxide emissions from the atmosphere or point sources and storing them to mitigate climate change. The script mentions the need to continue efforts in CCS as part of a comprehensive strategy to reduce greenhouse gas concentrations and build resilience against climate change.

Highlights

Climate change is causing unprecedented extremes in weather patterns, impacting both developed and developing countries.

Global warming of 1.2 degrees Celsius is already resulting in costly damages and loss of life.

The rapid pace of climate change and its extremes are among the most concerning societal effects today.

Human activities, particularly the use of fossil fuels, are the primary drivers of these changes.

Droughts and lack of clean water access are increasing pressures on people's lives worldwide.

Polar regions are critical for climate regulation, with ice acting as a shield against overheating.

Melting ice from global warming is accelerating sea level rise, posing a threat to coastal populations.

Sea level rise could be more significant than predicted, with potential increases of several meters.

Urban areas are experiencing 'sunny day flooding' due to sea level rise, highlighting infrastructure inadequacies.

The need for reimagining city and community infrastructures in light of climate change impacts.

The importance of linking modeling across different scales to understand and predict climate change effects.

The interconnection between water, energy, and climate, and the need for innovative solutions to address them.

Desalination as an energy-intensive process that contributes to climate change when considering its carbon footprint.

The concept of water trading as a potential economic approach to managing water scarcity.

The importance of learning from past ecosystems to understand and prepare for future climate changes.

Technological advancements in using microbes for CO2 reduction and energy production.

The need for economic and institutional changes to build resilience against climate change.

The role of nature in creating flexible urban environments that can adapt to climate extremes.

The potential of using local production of energy and water to reduce environmental impact and increase resilience.

The importance of understanding and mimicking natural processes for effective climate change adaptation.

Transcripts

next we're coming on to the theme of

climate change although we're already

there of course in all everything we

talk about and in these conversations uh

we're going to have a panel on it but

first I'd like to just um introduce A

short segment from antibiotius we're

going to see from I hear from her twice

in just very short pre-recorded videos

um like more Barlow and here isn't

available this weekend to join us online

but I did speak to her a couple of days

ago and had her thought collected some

of her thoughts on climate change she is

the director of the Alfred Wagner Center

for marine and polar research in Germany

spends a lot of time at the polls and

here once these everything is put out we

will see her thoughts on climate change

the problem with what we call climate

change is that we're experiencing

already now at the global warming of 1.2

degrees on average

extremes that have not been observed

before Extremes in patterns when it

comes to rain when it comes to Drought

when it comes to floods and more that

are not known by people where our

infrastructures be it that we are from

highly developed countries or not we

haven't seen it it costs lives it

creates damages and it's only 1.2 and

we're moving fastly towards 1.5 degrees

so the speed of change and the extremes

that we are facing are to me the most

worrisome effects on society today of

course in human history we have

knowledge of extremes but we are a

high-tech Society in many places and

other places even more vulnerable

because there's so many people affected

just look at this year's catastrophes in

Pakistan for example but also last

year's in Germany so no matter where you

turn you will find observations that say

this is one in a thousand years but we

know it's not a stochastic event to

paths that we can even model and

simulate it is US humans that are on the

wrong track with regards to the use of

fossil fuels and still are on the wrong

track despite all the really good

political goals when we look around us

it is clear that droughts cause an

absence of water and that creates a

pressure on people's lives because

humans need water we cannot go very long

without clean water and there is not

enough access to clean water on Earth

when we go to the polar regions we

observe water in a different form in the

form of ice there's sea ice there is the

ice masses on land Greenland for example

and Antarctica and there's the Frozen

soil with snow on top and all of that

whiteness of Earth that reflects the

sunlight we call that Albedo is a

critical Shield a climate buffer a

buffer against overheating and this

buffers against the sunlight that wants

to warm the darker surfaces like rocks

and ocean where the sea ice is smelting

away and the dark ocean comes out the

sun will warm the ocean water more and

the ocean will start melting the ice

from beneath it also the same process

can be observed around the Shelf eyes of

Antarctica and also Greenland where the

ocean gets warm it melts these ice

masses from underneath and they start

sliding and another worrisome news is

that the speed of ice Mass loss to the

oceans increasing sea level to more than

we have predicted in last decades is a

threat to basically all of humanity when

you think that half of the eight

billions that we are live close to the

coast it is something that that we have

to prepare for that we really have to

move people fast out of critical zones

that we have rethink the way we build

infrastructure on course that we have to

understand what coasts do for us and

learn how to protect them some people

speak of the immense complexity of the

climate crisis as to say there is no

chance we can solve that problem today

but when you think about it when you

read your science then it becomes very

clear it's just one factor it's us the

humans that use fossil fuel the emission

of CO2 that we have today brings us

already within seven years across the

1.5 degrees global warming boundary

close to the Paris climate goals and

probably even beyond that when we

continue the way we work today then we

must understand that emission of CO2 to

the atmosphere is our greatest risk and

it's the one factor we need to get a

handle on

thank you okay

please

so

I now have the possibility of welcoming

my panel thank you please join me

[Applause]

so sir

thank you please do sit down please

hello

um so some of you have met before you've

met newsha before because I love who

you've met before I'm have a great

pleasure in introducing fumio inagaki

from tohoko University and kaiko so I'm

sorry

from Target University and kaiko

Takahashi from wasedi University

welcome to this panel

um so uh we've been hearing all day

about the

um

effects on water globally of climate

change is there anything we've missed is

there any aspect of the effect of

climate change on water that we just

need to add to the mix fumio is there

anything yeah the forest I'm I'm a

professor atoku University but I have

long working on the deep sea and

Associates the Japan Agency for money

Earth Science and Technology and I

completely agree with what the Auntie

had just mentioned that the the climate

change is accelerating and tangible

threat for human sustainability and uh

I'm now feeling the maybe the biggest

concern uh caused by climate change will

be the sea level rise the consequence of

sea level lies

uh because

um uh you know that Auntie mentioned the

the global warming accelerating and then

we may expect a rapid

dissolution of ice on the poorer regions

and Greenland ice sheet and the power

frost on land for example and then some

people are expecting maybe the sea level

rise is more than

4 meters or three meters it is not just

a few centimeters it is serious because

and especially series for the coastal

area because

the over 40 percent of our population is

living in the coastal area you know

within the 100 kilometers so it's a big

problem so so we need to solve the issue

and also the consequent effects on

ecosystems that live in water yes yes

right because

um this is not an issue of our human

cities of course the resident is

important but also the the we need to

scientifically understand what is the

you know the land to see a transport

system like a fresh water in the sea

water interaction and also ecosystem so

how ecosystem will change so from the

geoscience point of view so if the four

meter for example if four meters sea

level light occurs the large amount of

air coastal areas the centered on liver

data Maybe it became a you know the

shuttle sea then what happened

what is the impact on biogework and

cycle with war ugly culture you know the

I expect the enormous impact but it is

not yet scientifically solved so we need

to explore it

thank you very much indeed

um I don't know whether anyone else

wants to throw in any other effects feel

free if you do but otherwise

do you

say do you want to talk or you

yeah I just wanted to add something to

it for me I said which is

what cellularizes such an important

issue another part of it is it's not

just sea level is rising we are

experiencing more floods because of sea

level rise your experienced our cities

Urban coastal cities are experiencing

daytime flooding which is you know sunny

sunny day flooding which is that there's

not raining but the sea is rising and

actually showing up in the streets

um so um it is you know our the setup

that we have is really not well equipped

to deal with a lot of these experiences

we are having and Auntie said mentioned

that very eloquently which is like we

really do need to go back and rethink

and reimagine how we build in these

cities and communities that we rethink

and imagine the ones that we have and we

also need to seriously think have your

building the future cities

uh considering all these impacts of

climate change thank you newsha so can I

code that that reimagining depends very

much on the ability to link our modeling

of the what we see happening on

different scales right so

yeah I'm either in the computational

stimulation for the prediction and uh we

are caused about the very importance

between the scale differences so City

scales is very important for the people

but not also the that is a very

important things to the influence to the

global so that is between with

balance of the scale is a very important

thing so that is a same things in the

water whatever matters

female you you might want to comment on

that also this transition from the local

to the global or the human time scale to

the I mean you're a Geo microbiologist

to the geologic time scale oh yeah the

logo is of course very important because

uh geological setting cultural setting

socioculturals element is also very

important sociocultural setting and

climate systems all our different local

but on the other hand I think it is

important to understand the growth of

the fundamental mechanisms of our system

as a driver so for instance

the the many people working on the you

know the

tomorrow's sustainability but on the

other hand

if we don't have the you know the

fundamental mechanism uh understanding

uh in the mid to long term time scales

it is very difficult to you know

understand if the immediate action is

correct or not so the both the short and

long time scale investigation is

necessary in my opinion the a word that

anti-use was transparent

important word we need to see where

we're going sorry Costa please yeah I

think this this transition between

Global and local is is extremely

important and it's going to be even more

more important in the future we need to

realize that in fact we don't have

Global shortage of water so the amount

of water is is still the same with the

global with the climate change and

global warming what we're going to have

is a new

redistribution and maybe more severe

distribution of uh of of water and it

will it will it will force us to invent

new solutions for for this and

unfortunately every new solution comes

it doesn't count for for free we have to

use energy for this and energy and that

and that just goes goes back into the

into the climate change so we've been

talking uh this morning about

desalination desalination

problem is that those discriminations is

extremely expansive in terms of in terms

of energy you basically trade your fresh

water for uh for your for your carbon

credits so we really have to we really

have to think about how to get it uh

without the the use of of of of extra

extra energy and without without cost of

the of the of the transportation so

local production of energies

simultaneously with the local

desalination is one possible way even

better would be and and then and and

there are ways how to do it getting

energy from the ambient getting energy

from the evaporation of water as well

but then maybe there are I mean there

are Technologies which which allow your

local Water Production without the use

of use of electricity you use the uh

operation you you use algae for example

and so this local production would be

extremely important in the future that's

a

it's such an important point to bring

the the connection between water and

energy and I mean antia said the key is

simply is decarbonization and that's

true but this water lies at the very

heart of our efforts to decarbonize and

I see a nusha nodding there so please

yes I think I just wanted to touch on

that because the interlinks between

water energy and climate is quite real

and I think we are putting a lot of

energy and resources into carbonizing

and reimagining our energy portfolio

however there is very limited thought is

going into what are the water and

environmental footprint of that

transition for example we talk about

having batteries as a storage space that

requires lithium what does lithium

requires water

so that means that all of a sudden we

are actually having a we have you're

transitioning from uh carbon fossil fuel

extraction

to lithium extraction

we are changing one water intensive

process to another in water intensive

process

and that is actually not going to solve

our problem in a sense that because our

demand is growing exponentially so there

is no way we can meet future demand the

way we are going

and be able to decarbonize and replace

everything with Renewables and not

impact the environment in a negative way

so it's very important I think going

back to the comment that was brought up

on a city scale local scale I think that

that is a building block of the society

so if you really want to have a

long-term solution for climate we

actually need to start from the building

block and figure out what is if you're

doing that's not working and how can we

how can we change that for example

um I'm switching topic a little bit but

I think it's very important because it

goes back to the comment I made earlier

as well

in in developed countries we flush down

toilet drinkable water

right

or views in California we use drinkable

water to water our lawns

um we are building we are building new

cities with with a high speed right now

and especially in global South and a lot

of those cities are being designed and

built the same way the r series and the

developed world is being was designed

and built so not only we are

decarbonizing and rethinking how to do

um use generate and use energy we are

also so that we are not doing that in

the water side so we are actually

re-emphasizing the bad habits that we

had on the water side as you're going

from location to location so for example

we are not looking at how people use

water we want to have more water so we

bring desalination

to create water abundance

and without necessarily thinking how

that impacts a long-term need

propagating the current model absolutely

yes absolutely thank you thank you very

much indeed I'd like to bring everyone

in costaire you did want to come in on

this lithium I'm just I'm sorry that if

I'm just keeping on on and on on this

and uh but I would like to pick up the

button from new show again so this and

we we this morning again we discussed

exactly that that we really need to to

put to descale the the the Water

Production and just and and bring it

bring it closer to the to to people on

the local level because it would really

allow you to save a lot of a lot of

energy on uh on the on the on the water

cleaning on the water the desalination

then but then uh talking about this this

story about about the relation between

energy and water so we spend uh

huge amount of of energy on on creation

of the of the of the fresh water it's

simply because the hydration energy of

uh of uh of sodiums which is really huge

uh hundreds of of kilojoules per per

mole so we we have to provide this

energy in order to withdraw water

molecules from uh from from sodium but

then at the end of the day we just we

drank it we we just we we flushed be

told it and then this water end UPS in

the uh in in Sea again releasing the the

same amount of energy so just energy is

not going it's not going anywhere so

maybe we need to learn how to use this

and in say in Japan in uh in in Israel

in Singapore most of our Wastewater goes

back into the into the ocean so and the

right technology which allows you to

gain this this energy back which you

previously spent on the uh on on the

desalination and I think a technology is

like this which which allows you to

reduce dramatically reduce the the

energy consumption on on the Water

Production especially locally would be

very important thank you very much thank

you

first

oh yes I think in order to prepare to

climate change in a short time scale I

think it is also important to understand

the past ecosystem past is a key for

eliminating the future because we have

already experienced you know some

climate changes for example roughly 55

million years ago there was a global

event of petm the player thing else in

summer maximum at the Times us was

pretty much warm so the CO2

concentration is over

2000 PPM which is five times uh you know

the larger than the current CO2

concentration and there is no ice in the

applicator but the there's diverse

ecosystem and the the temperature change

will be 5 to 9 degrees C then the

ecosystem response to such a changes the

temperature increase or decrease then we

can learn from the past and how

ecosystem

adapted to those changes and evolved and

established some new functions of life

and then we can learn from them then how

we can prepare it so because you know

the increasing speed as Auntie asset the

temperature is increasing after you're

increasing so so that brings us very

nicely onto the topic of resilience

which I wanted to address now but kaiko

please all right

former lady defined point of the view so

we do we'd like to the

take a simulation for the global global

warming and predictable overwhelming and

due to the

workers and but but we have to thinking

about the uh of the patients very very

important things to to predict over the

to control of the water and the

temperature it was a in the seas and

some kind of the energy from the to the

seeds so that is a very important things

to predict and over the world

observation and the global and localized

local areas though so that we have to

thinking about some kind of the lack of

the observation point so that not only

is uh satellite but also the our our

very

uh fine in other patient point is a very

important thing to do with the uh create

you know our very good activities

are you pleased with the progress in the

prediction predictive models uh yeah

yeah yeah so and uh very important

things to predict and promote of the

model of what the Futures predictions

thank you very much okay I'd like to

turn we don't have too long but I'd like

to turn to the topic of resilience and

how we build resilience

I suppose let's

let's ask are we ready are we able to

build resilience are we prepared

um new show do you want to go first are

we are we well set up oh yeah so

well I I lovely to have too many

panelists wanting to answer a question

it's a moderator's dream thank you let's

have Nisha first and then from here

so I would say we have all the tools

but we might not have the right

institutional and policies in place to

help us to sort of become more resilient

and for example I think the topic again

going back to desalination we use the

same technology for desalination as we

used for recycling

we actually talk about

um circular economy at every scale at

every on every commodity or topic that

we are interested in think about

Plastics or anything circular economy is

a big topic right now but when it comes

to water people cannot really imagine

what this how does that look like but

imagine your home

would uh you know take the water from

your shower use it for trashing your

toilets or for example in a building you

can capture all the waters that you can

get and treat it and reuse it and then

that can actually scale up to the city

scale and then the regional scale and

beyond that so we can do this but it

requires willingness requires the right

institutional setup and requires a you

know local interest and capacity to do

something like this and

um and another piece of this is also

working in nature I think for me has

brought up something very important what

we have learned in the cities we have

right now is that they don't have enough

flexibility in them they are not

resilient because they can't handle the

changes they're experiencing they can

adapt fast enough and I think what we

are trying to do is work with nature to

create that flexibility trying to create

more green spaces or this effort in

China on Sponge cities they're all meant

to kind of create that flexibility in

our three existing urban areas to work

with nature and adapt faster and respond

to the extremes we are experiencing in a

more

um in a in a time scale that can be

practical and help us to kind of be able

to function in this new Extremes in a

new sort of setup that we are in

thank you fumia oh yes in upcoming

decades I think as it is important for

us to monitor CO2 reduction as well uh

the uh I I think we need to keep we need

to keep the effort on the CCS the the

CO2 capture and the sequestration but on

the other hand uh of course we need to

secure the safe and Innovative way more

Innovative way to secure security safety

and uh you know contribute to the CO2

reduction but on the other hand uh I

think that circulation is important and

actually we had a very good conversation

with uh in this morning about the

membrane and membrane and the electron

transfer so the micro is a brilliant

some microbes can eat instead of

hydrogen the proton and electron and

directory and the combust CO2 to methane

or other useful fuels this is so-called

electron microbiology or electrophilic

electrophilic microbes and then that

reaction occur on a cathode and what is

the effective cathode materials now

maybe you can say something that I we

sometimes tested glutathione the gluten

is brilliant material I think so such a

technology development contribute to how

you know that we can utilize a natural

ecosystem effectively by human

technology so they say I like to ask I

can I can only I mean thank you so much

for uh for for giving this just feeding

this line to me I mean it will require a

full a full lecture on how you can

basically grow your your your your

batteries from graphene polymers and and

bacteria and it's a very exciting and

and and and very and very promising area

but just coming back to uh to to Adam's

questions I'm not sure if we actually if

actually if God if God's Harrison

because I mean with my communist

background I don't believe in in

institutional approaches so I'm actually

much more excited about the previous

talk by by Poland and and and Nisha and

I think the the economical approaches

are by far more more effective here and

it was really exciting to to listen

about so after car after carbon trading

so about water trading but maybe we need

to think a bit more globally and and

think about climate trading because say

if if Bob is trading his water for uh or

just consuming less water trading it to

to to Alice than the local climate would

would be a little bit hotter we have to

switch our air conditioning a little bit

more in the area where Bob who is doing

his uh his his agricultural activity we

just bring those aircons a bit down

where where Alice's is doing this so I

think taking it into account and

bringing it to a regular household that

we actually feel responsible for the for

the climate change would be an

interesting solution

thank you very much indeed kaiko I must

give the last word to you because we're

out of time so all right okay

um I'm feel that some kind of the uh

important things of the art as

homeostasis

some some kind there was a means

secretion of the life and that is a very

important things the energy and water

and some kind of the CO2 in the size

these things is a very uh the means that

that's a stock with nature so that is a

very important things to segregation

meaning is a very important thing for

the earth I think thank you very much

indeed

uh listening to Nature seems to be one

of the lessons before we started this

fumio advised me not to get too

pessimistic in this panel and I think

it's not been too bad I think we've

there's there's been tinges of Hope in

there as well so that's nice it's a good

thing before our coffee break so we're

out of time and I just just remains for

me to thank all my panelists very much

into your thinking