News

The Costs of Climate Change

Media Release, Monday 1 June 2009

A free public lecture ‘The Costs of Climate Change’ will examine the implications of climate change for business, government and the community, and engage the audience with the complex and dynamic problem of adaptation as a challenge for society at large.

The speakers will highlight ways that climate change costs society now, and in future, and address issues such as:
How do we calculate and plan for these costs?
How do we evaluate risks?
What does humanitarian cost mean?
How can we make predictions that accurately reflect the interests of all sectors of society in adapting to climate change?

The lecture will be held on Tuesday 2nd June 5.30-7.00pm to tie in with the first week of June being Victorian Climate Adaptation Week. Adapting city life, food production and transportation to climate change impacts is now a basic requirement for continued prosperity and good health.

‘The Costs of Climate Change’ will feature leading international researchers in the areas of economics, social mobilisation and assessment of global change.

The lecture is being jointly hosted by the University of Melbourne’s Sustainable Society Institute (SSI) and Office for Environmental Programs (OEP) in association with the Victorian Government’s Department of Sustainability and Environment.

‘The Costs of Climate Change’ will be held at the new Faculty of Economics and Commerce building at 198 Berkeley Street, which has a Five-Star Green Rating and is easily recognised by its pixellated spots for shading the interior.

What: ‘The Costs of Climate Change’
Where: Faculty of Economics and Commerce building, 198 Berkeley Street
When: Tuesday 2 June 5.30-7.00pm

Speakers:
Dr Samuel Fankhauser:
Dr Fankhauser is an economist and Principal Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute at the London School of Economics. He is a member of the UK Government Committee on Climate Change and is a former Deputy Chief Economist at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Dr Hans-Martin Füssel
Dr Füssell is a specialist in conceptual frameworks for climate change adaptation assessment, notably ‘Climate Change and Adaptation Strategies for Human Health’ for the World Health Organisation. He is a senior research fellow at Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

Discussant - Ms Rebecca McNaught. Rebecca is Senior Program Officer for the Red Cross/Red Crescent Climate Centre. She supports these organisations in the Asia Pacific region to better understand and address the humanitarian issues of climate change, and works globally to engage Red Cross/Red Crescent youth on the topic.

This event is part of Victorian Climate Change Adaptation Week. Dr Fankhauser and Dr Füssel will be keynote speakers at Working with Climate Change: an adaptation symposium www.climatechange.vic.gov.au’

‘The Costs of Climate Change’ is being held two weeks before the start of the University of Melbourne’s Festival of Ideas, with the theme Climate Change/ Cultural Change.
The festival will run from June 15 -20 and will feature more than 50 outstanding thinkers who will discuss the science of climate change, as well as its impact on the community. ideas.unimelb.edu.au/

198 Berkeley Street

Architects: Metier3
Rating: 5 Star Green Rating ('Australian Excellence' in environmentally sustainable design and construction)
New technologies: The building incorporates chilled beam cooling technology and natural air ventilation systems, double-glazed facade with the ability to minimise heat and glare, rainwater collection, low-energy light fittings, and bike storage. The building provides 100 per cent fresh air, thereby improving the quality of the indoor environment.