Salam Distinguished Lecture Series

Are increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere due to human activities, and are they causing climate change? How fast are sea levels rising, and how quickly is Arctic sea ice decreasing? How much might the climate change in future and what can we do about it?

Climate change, a defining issue of our times, raises many questions about our relationship to Earth and how we should respond to related environmental challenges. There is a clear need for solid scientific understanding and evidence to inform future climate and environmental policies.

ICTP is pleased to announce that Professor Sir Brian Hoskins, a meteorologist with years of experience at the science-policy interface, is this year's featured speaker for the Salam  Distinguished Lecture Series. He will present an overview of how the climate system works, with a focus on the roles and interaction of the atmosphere and ocean, the current status of climate change science, and the likely impact and risks of continued emission of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. He will discuss the international effort to limit climate change and the need for adapting to the change that occurs. He will also highlight the major challenges climate change poses to science, technology and our socio-economic behaviour.

The lectures will take place from 3 to 5 May in the Budinich Lecture Hall in ICTP's Leonardo Building. Lectures on Tuesday and Wednesday start at 16:30, while the one on Thursday begins at 11:00. The talks are open to all.

Sir Brian is Chair of the Grantham Institute for Climate Change at Imperial College London and Professor of meteorology at the University of Reading, UK.

The ICTP Salam Distinguished Lecture Series is sponsored by the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences. To view recordings of past years' Salam Lecture Series, click here.