Summary
According to UK government Chief Scientist Sir John Beddington, by 2030 a ‘perfect storm’ that combines food, water and energy shortages will unleash public unrest and international conflict
Over 250 delegates attended this day-long seminar. A follow-up event: "Navigating the perfect storm: the international challenge of food, water and energy security"
Programme and Presentations
Presentations and speaker biographies can be downloaded from the right-hand menus.
A full transcript of the keynote speech is available.
Introduction
Dr Rita Gardner, Director, Royal Geographical Society (with IBG)
Morning Chair: Professor Sir Gordon Conway, Chair in International Development, Imperial College
Session one - Background
Professor Julia Slingo, Chief Scientist, Met Office - Climate change context
Professor Andrew Watkinson, Director Living With Environmental Change (LWEC) and University of East Anglia - Research background
Session two - Keynote speaker
Rt Hon Chris Huhne MP, Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change. A full transcript of the speech is now available.
Session three - Security challenges from the 'Perfect Storm'
Professor Nigel Arnell, Director Walker Institute, University of Reading - Water
Dr David Buffin, Centre for Food Policy, City University London - Food
Mike Bradshaw, Professor of Human Geography, University of Leicester - Energy
Afternoon chair: Mike Bradshaw, Professor of Human Geography, University of Leicester
Session four - Geographical understanding: case studies
Dr Glyn Davies, Director of Programmes, WWF-UK - The heart of Borneo – land use options
Professor Carys Swanwick, Department of Landscape, University of Sheffield - Changes in UK Land Use
Professor Harriet Bulkeley, Chair of Geography, Energy, and Environment at the Department of Geography, and Deputy Director of the Durham Energy Institute, Durham University - Cities and housing
Session five - Discussion: weathering the storm
Rob Hopkins, Co-Founder of Transition Towns Totnes and Transition Network
Mike Barry, Head of Sustainable Business, Marks and Spencer
Professor Mike Bradshaw, University of Leicester [Closing statement]
The post-event was reception sponsored by Global Environmental Change and Food Systems (GECAFS) to mark their publication of Food Security and Global Environmental Change (Earthscan, 2010).
About the Environment & Society Forum series
This event was delivered as part of the Environment & Society Forum series, which address major policy challenges by bringing geographers into dialogue with stakeholders in business, government and research.
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How to cite
Royal Geographical Society (with IBG), Association for Geographic Information (2019). A perfect storm ahead: food, water and energy security. Available at: https://rgs-rebuild.netcprev.co.uk/perfectstormahead Last accessed on: <date>
Featured image: Anandu Vinod/Unsplash