Challenging Climate

23. Luke Kemp on defining, evaluating and managing catastrophic climate risk

November 15, 2022 Episode 23
Challenging Climate
23. Luke Kemp on defining, evaluating and managing catastrophic climate risk
Show Notes Chapter Markers

Dr Luke Kemp is a Research Associate at the Centre for the Study of Existential Risk, University of Cambridge. He has a PhD in international relations from the ANU and previous experience as a senior economist at Vivid Economics. In this episode, Luke sheds light on a surprisingly understudied and overlooked topic – catastrophic climate risk. This episode explores catastrophic and extinction risk, why the topic is understudied, and how we can weigh out the catastrophic risks of climate change and solar geo-engineering. 

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Introduction and background
What is catastrophic risk?
Discussing Luke’s paper ‘Climate endgame’: How might catastrophic climate risk arise?
The likelihood of worst-case scenarios
Why is catastrophic climate risk understudied?
How can a better understanding of catastrophic risk inform policymaking?
Media portrayal and distortion of research findings
The catastrophic risks of solar geo-engineering: is it worth it?
What gives you optimism?