Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour

Herrenhausen Conference: Climate crisis and systemic risks: Lessons Learned from COVID-19

Date
21. Jun 2023 - 23. Jun 2023
Location
Herrenhausen Palace, Herrenhäuser Str. 5, 30419 Hanover, Germany
Organizer
Volkswagen Stiftung
Speaker(s)
u.a. Prof. Dr. Cornelia Betsch
Event type
Conference/Symposium
Event Language(s)
Englisch
Audience
öffentlich

We want to debate if the systemic risk awareness gained by COVID-19 is transferable to systemic climate risks – and vice versa? What are the lessons learned in both directions and what conclusions can be drawn?

Herrenhausen Conference: Climate crisis and systemic risks: Lessons Learned from COVID-19
Corona virus and climate change

Within a short period of time, the COVID-19 (Coronavirus SARS-CoV-2) pandemic has fundamentally changed our lives worldwide with massive impacts on all fundamental systems: from health and well-being to economic, financial and political systems, food production and supply chains, to education, work and social life. It demonstrates the systemic nature of risk in a highly interconnected world challenging existing governance mechanisms. Thus societies need to learn and develop new approaches of dealing with these systemic risks.

Climate change related systemic risks have the potential to be an even greater threat than those of the COVID-19 pandemic. Both crises need a global approach, both threaten reaching the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and postponement makes the situation worse. In either case the poor are disproportionally affected. As with COVID-19 communication, fake news and social media play an important role, and science, technology and governance are crucial for societal resilience in face of climate change systemic risks. 

Prof. Dr. Cornelia Betsch and Dr. Mirjam Jenny (Institute for Planetary Health Behaviour) are part of the steering committee.