Canadian author, journalist, and historian Gwynne Dyer to speak at UPEI on November 3
Canadian author, journalist, and historian Gwynne Dyer will give a public lecture titled “Planetary Maintenance Engineers: A Last-Ditch Climate Rescue Strategy,” on November 3 at 7 pm in the Duffy Science Centre Amphitheatre (Room 135) at UPEI.
Dyer will discuss challenges facing the world because of climate change and explore the concept of “geoengineering,” or cooling the planet by artificial means. He has interviewed over 50 climate scientists “who must be our reluctant guides in this crisis.”
“Most of them are terrified of that responsibility, and some are in despair, but this is what I have learned from them. We are in deep trouble, but we are not doomed.”
An essential part of the solution is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to stop destabilizing the climate, says Dyer. However, even if greenhouse gas emissions reach zero by 2050, the world is not out of danger. If the average global temperature is two degrees higher by 2050, it will stay at that level until the long and expensive task of removing excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is finished, maybe in the early 2100s.
“That’s if we’re lucky. If we’re not, then the warming we have caused by 2035 or 2045 will have also triggered natural sources of emissions—"feedbacks" or "tipping points"—that drive temperatures still higher. Those we cannot even turn off except by artificially cooling the entire planet.”
Dyer said that geoengineering, which “scares even climate scientists half to death,” is only a temporary patch, not a solution. Climate engineering may be the necessary bridge to get through the crisis without a catastrophe.
“Human beings will have to intervene to keep the basic systems we have damaged running, at least until and unless we can restore most of the natural systems and the old climate. We will not see the end of this emergency in our lifetimes, nor will our children in theirs.”
Dyer is a respected London-based independent Canadian journalist, syndicated columnist, and military historian. In 2010 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. His lecture is presented by the Saint Dunstan’s University Board of Governors, in cooperation with the University of Prince Edward Island. All are welcome to attend. Please note that masks are required.
