On 6 July, the TRO hosted a lunch talk titled ‘Climate Change: The 21st Century’s Wealth Creation Opportunity’. The event’s guest speaker, Sir David King, a distinguished professor of physical chemistry and former government representative on climate change, told an audience of 35 diplomats, FCO officials, EBRD representatives and academics, about the imperative of harnessing the opportunities that exist in the fight against climate change.
Sir David first outlined the long-term goals for tackling climate change, insisting that governments pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and achieve net zero carbon emissions worldwide by no later than 2055. He said this could be achieved by creating more carbon sinks primarily through reforestation, while also embracing a multitude of renewable energy technologies and energy storage solutions.
He proceeded to explain the immense economic and business opportunities brought by climate change. He pointed out that it is economically right to switch to a low carbon economy, and that a five to six trillion dollar market pool in the renewable technologies industry is available by 2025. Climate change presents a great opportunity for growth, and not a cost, he said.
Sir David insisted that there is an urgent need to accelerate research and development in order to acquire the technology necessary to harness the opportunities. As most new technologies are currently publicly funded, private sector companies, especially those in the fossil fuel industry, must invest substantially more in renewable technologies, he also stressed.
As the chair of the event, Representative Lin described climate change as a fascinating topic, and one of the most important issues of our time. Referencing the upcoming G20 meeting, he said the event was very well-timed and thanked Sir David for selecting and agreeing to speak on the topic.
