Climate Breakdown Climate Expertise Centre - VU Amsterdam

Is there a better way to wrap up our first series than delving into the wonderful world of global climate politics and diplomacy?!

At COP28 in December 2023, negotiators officially agreed for the first time ever the need to ‘transition away from fossil fuels.’ This was deemed historic and it supposedly signalled the ‘end of the fossil fuel era’. But how historic is this decision really? And why did it take so long to politically acknowledge the role of fossil fuels in the climate crisis?

Mathieu is joined by IVM Professor Philipp Pattberg to answer these questions, and many more. They try to grasp what makes climate negotiations and finding agreement at the global level so difficult. After all, aren’t we all in the same boat?

Questions or want to know more? Visit our Climate Expertise Centre website or e-mail us at m.c.blondeel@vu.nl.

We're back with Part II of our double whammy on Science & Activism!

Today, Mathieu is joined by Dr. Marthe Wens, Assistant Professor of Water Security at the Institute for Environmental Studies of VU Amsterdam. She's an academic and a very active member of Scientist Rebellion in the Netherlands. She's taken part in a lot of civil disobedience actions of SR and shares her ideas on reconciling her roles as scientist, concerned citizen and activist.

Questions or want to learn more? Visit the Climate Expertise Centre website or e-mail us directly at m.c.blondeel@vu.nl.

We're back with a double episode on a very hot topic!

Can scientists and universities be activists or must they remain neutral? But what does ‘neutrality’ mean in the face of an ever growing climate crisis, with facts and evidence about causes and consequences so abundantly clear? Does this neutrality argument still hold up then? Or, in the words of Albert Einstein, does the privilege to know, entail a duty to act?

In Part I, Mathieu is joined by Professor Davide Iannuzzi, Chief Impact Officer at VU Amsterdam. He played a crucial part in the VU's decision last year to break research ties with the fossil fuel industry. They talk about the different societal roles that universities can(not) play in addressing the climate crisis.

As always, questions or want to learn more? Visit the Climate Expertise Centre website or e-mail us at m.c.blondeel@vu.nl

Welcome to round two in our double episode 'Beyond the Climate Crisis'!

In today's episode, we talk about biodiversity! How biodiversity is 'governed' globally, nationally and locally, the extent of the biodiversity crisis that we're in, but also -importantly- what we can do to get us out of the crisis we find ourselves in.

Guests today are Marije Schaafsma, Associate Professor of Environmental Economics and Ina Lehmann, Assistant Professor of Global Governance of Biodiversity. Both work at the Institute for Environmental Studies (IVM) of VU Amsterdam.

As always, if you have questions or want to know more, visit our Climate Expertise Centre website or e-mail Mathieu directly at: m.c.blondeel@vu.nl

Today and next week we have a two-parter in store for our listeners!

It is clear that we are not just in the midst of a climate crisis. A lot more is at stake. Last year, environmental scientists warned that the earth is now ‘well outside the safe operating space for humanity’ because multiple ‘planetary boundaries’ have been broken.

In the first part of our double 'Beyond the Climate Crisis' episode, Mathieu is joined by Kristiaan Kok, Assistant Professor at the Athena Institute of VU Amsterdam. They discuss the environmental, social and economic impacts of the global food system, as well its relation to the climate crisis. Kris also talks about how we can truly transform the system to make it more fair and sustainable.

If you have questions or want to learn more, visit the website of the Climate Expertise Centre or e-mail us at m.c.blondeel@vu.nl

There’s a new tool in the toolbox of climate activists: litigation. Increasingly, fossil fuel companies and governments are being sued for their lack of climate action. It makes one wonder, what are the advantages and disadvantages of taking these companies and governments to court?

In this episode, Mathieu is joined by two guests. VU Assistant Professor Clemens Kaupa is an expert in climate law. Together with students, he has launched a successful complaint with the Dutch Advertising Code Committee against Shell’s misleading
advertising practices. Our second guest, Sjoukje van Oosterhout, is Lead Researcher in Milieudefensie’s ongoing landmark case against Shell.

If you have questions or want to learn more, visit the website of our Climate Expertise Centre or e-mail us at m.c.blondeel@vu.nl