Skeptics on the Fringe:Thom Brooks-How Not To Save The Planet

Speaker

Dr Thom Brooks is Reader in Law at Durham University Law and founding editor of the Journal of Moral Philosophy (http://www.brill.com/journal-moral-philosophy). He has held visiting appointments at the universities of Oxford, St Andrews and Uppsala. Dr Brooks publishes widely in the areas of ethics, law and public policy. His recent books include The Global Justice Reader (http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/id/The_Global_Justice_Reader/9781405169653) (2008),New Waves in Ethics (http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/id/New_Waves_in_Ethics/9780230232761) (2011) and Punishment (http://bookshop.blackwell.co.uk/jsp/id/Punishment/9780415431828) (2012).

Talk

Climate change presents us with a pressing challenge. A global consensus accepts that human activity is responsible for climate change and its associated dangers. However, there is disagreement on how best to address this challenge.

Should we live within an ‘environmental footprint’?

Should we promote the ‘polluter pays principle’?

Should we focus more on adaptation rather than conservation?

Thom critically examines these and other questions and argues that most policy solutions are unsatisfactory and that climate change may pose a greater challenge than often thought.

http://www.edinburghskeptics.co.uk/events-2/