#229 | Tipping Points: Cascading Climate Shifts & Nonlinear Changes Are Upon Us w/ Timothy Lenton
Intro: 6:06
In this episode, I speak with Timothy Lenton, director of the Global Systems Institute at the University of Exeter in the United Kingdom. We discuss his research into climate tipping points presented in the article ‘Climate tipping points — too risky to bet against’ published at Nature.
To adequately comprehend global climate change and how its impacts will play out in the near and distant future, identifying various tipping points in the Earth’s intersecting systems, and how crossing them will amplify and accelerate global warming, needs to be more seriously understood. “Politicians, economists and even some natural scientists have tended to assume that tipping points in the Earth system — such as the loss of the Amazon rainforest or the West Antarctic ice sheet — are of low probability and little understood. Yet evidence is mounting that these events could be more likely than was thought, have high impacts and are interconnected across different biophysical systems, potentially committing the world to long-term irreversible changes.” (https://go.nature.com/2TfNQ9G)
As we approach 1.5°C of warming above pre-industrial baseline temperatures, with several more degrees warming on the way, scientist are observing that numerous tipping points have been, or very soon will be, crossed. Timothy explains what these tipping points are, what impacts they will have (and are already having) on the living systems of the planet (including human societies), and what he believes can still be done to avert the impacts of the ones yet to be crossed.
Timothy Lenton is Professor of Climate Change and Earth System Science at the University of Exeter and Director of the Global Systems Institute. He has over 20 years of research experience in studying the Earth as a system, and developing and using models to understand its behavior. He is particularly interested in how life has reshaped the planet in the past, and what lessons we can draw from this as we proceed to reshape the planet now. These topics are covered in his books ‘Earth System Science: A Very Short Introduction’ (OUP, 2016) and (with Andrew Watson) ’Revolutions that made the Earth’ (OUP, 2011). Tim leads the University of Exeter’s Climate Change MOOC (Massive Open Online Course), which has attracted over 60,000 learners worldwide since its launch in 2014.
Episode Notes:
- Read Timothy’s article ‘Climate tipping points — too risky to bet against’ published at Nature: https://go.nature.com/2TfNQ9G
- The song featured in this episode is “Sahara Deserts” by Paul White from the Running on a Rainy Day - Single.
