Reunion: Climate and Energy Panel

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On Friday afternoon of Reunion Weekend, a panel of classmates presented some views on “current developments in climate and energy” and then hosted a discussion with classmates and their guests.  Host Derry Allen reminded the audience of the robust discussion at the 50th reunion, and asked the panel for an update:

Tom Guterbock presented the results of the latest class survey, where he used a tool developed by the Yale Program for Climate Change Communications which classifies people’s views on climate change into 6 categories:

  • Alarmed – The Alarmed are the most worried about global warming and the most likely to support and engage in pro-climate action.
  • Concerned – The Concerned are also worried about global warming, but they view it as a less serious threat and are less motivated to act.
  • Cautious – The Cautious are uncertain about global warming and are not very worried about it, so they are less motivated to take action.
  • Disengaged – The Disengaged are disconnected from the issue and rarely hear about it.
  • Doubtful, The Doubtful question whether global warming is happening or human-caused, and are among the least worried about it and motivated to act.
  • Dismissive – The Dismissive reject the idea that global warming is happening and human-caused and do not believe it is a threat, so they are the most likely to oppose climate action.

Here is what he found:


Eugene Linden (bio below) then introduced a framework for understanding both climate change and how humanity responds.  Using “the four clocks” framework from his latest book (Fire and Flood), he observed that actual climate changes follow the first clock — REALITY — the underlying phenomena.  The second clock — SCIENCE — lags behind reality because it relies on measurement, evidence, argument and confirmation.  The third clock — PUBLIC AWARENESS — lags even further as the scientific findings enter the popular conversation and inform the public about the nature and extent of climate change.  The last clock — the reactions of BUSINESS AND FINANCE — react to changes in behavior from consumers, investors, suppliers and other members of the public.  Eugene recommended especially the Op-ed linked below.

Skip Hobbs (bio below) then reviewed the latest scientific findings about the progress of climate change.  As past president of the American Geosciences Institute, a federation of earth science professional societies, Skip was able to synthesize the latest measures of how climate change is progressing.  In short, it’s going badly — and confirmed for the 75% of us who are “Concerned” or “Alarmed” that the situation is bad and getting worse.

Click here or on the image to get a copy of his slide deck:

Tom Emmons, who is deeply involved in the financing of renewal energy and sustainable infrastructure projects, reported on some trends in financing the transition to a clean energy future.  There are some positive developments, e.g., significant improvements in the price-performance of solar panels and battery storage, as well as other technological advances that are making the transition less costly.  He noted, however, serious challenges owing to the sheer scale of the need (trillions of dollars!), the relatively short time frame in which the transition needs to occur and the more difficult capital markets (especially regarding interest rates) for clean energy projects.

Last, Wayne Willis, a volunteer leader with Citizens’ Climate Lobby, explored how we members of ’69 might take action that would address the problems.  He speculated that we might have concluded that there’s nothing we can do … a common reaction from those who see the problem as hopelessly intractable and/or that individually we are powerless to do anything meaningful to address it.  He shared some data showing how technology has surfaced some promising solutions but needs political and consumer support. If “Action is the antidote to despair” as Joan Baez said, then we can band together and learn more to empower us to take action that, in the aggregate, will make a real difference.

Speakers

DERRY ALLEN (Co-organizer): Introduction: For the planet
Derry Allen served at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in Washington, DC for 37 years, working on a wide variety of environmental and sustainability issues, both nationally and internationally. He has continued some of that work with the EPA Alumni Association and several Yale-related activities, as well as by co-chairing a group working on local transportation issues in Washington, DC.

TOM EMMONS (Co-organizer): The Energy Transition: How far have we come? Much more to do!
Tom Emmons has been financing energy, natural resources, and infrastructure projects globally for almost 50 years, with a focus in the last 20 years on renewables, particularly solar, battery storage, and wind. He currently manages a renewable energy and sustainable infrastructure fund based in New York. He is on the Leadership Council of the Yale School of the Environment.

TOM GUTERBOCK: Class Survey Results: How we view the problem of climate change
Thomas M. Guterbock is Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Senior Survey Consultant at the Center for Survey Research at the University of Virginia.  Tom founded CSR 35 years ago and has designed and carried out hundreds of scientific surveys, including two surveys for the Yale Class of ’69 as well as surveys for other alumni groups.  Most of his publications are survey-based or investigate problems in survey methodology.

SKIP HOBBS: State of the Earth: Some very worrying trends in global warming
G. Warfield “Skip” Hobbs is a professional geologist and Managing Partner of Ammonite Resources, a consulting firm that has specialized in the business of global energy and mineral exploration and production since 1982. He is a Past-President of the American Geosciences Institute, a federation of earth science professional societies with a combined membership of over 250,000 geoscientists of every discipline. Skip lectures frequently on climate change and resource sustainability.

EUGENE LINDEN: The Big Picture: Four clocks moving at different and changing speeds
Eugene Linden is the author of ten books of non-fiction and one novel, and still going… or at least trying. His most recent book, Fire and Flood: A People’s History of Climate Change from 1979 to the Present, was the recipient of the American Meteorological Society’s 2023 Louis J. Battan Award. A previous book on climate change, Winds of Change: Climate, Weather and the Destruction of Civilizations, won the Grantham Prize’s Special Award of Merit. Linden’s other books and articles have ranged widely from finance, to animal intelligence, to the nature and origins of the consumer society.

WAYNE WILLIS: Public Opinion and Political Will: What can a boomer do?
Wayne Willis, a co-webmaster of Yale1969.org, is a self-described “recovering entrepreneur.”  Having led tech-based companies and advised others, he’s now focusing on citizens’ advocacy in support of a sustainable world.

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