Key Takeaways: French-Ameri-Can Climate Talks (FACTS).
By the Pacific Institute for the Mathematical Sciences.
The following are brief and rough summaries of the presentations. Recordings of the full presentations are available through Mathtube.
René Aïd: More electricity demand response for less carbon emissions.
Wind and solar energy suffer from intermittency; there can be large variations in the energy capacity when the sun does not shine or the wind does not blow. Incorporation of battery storage in the system can mitigate the problem. Another approach is for an “action-demand” response to lower consumption in times of peak usage and reduced availability of energy. The idea is to regulate demand, by making the consumer participate in a manner that makes the system more flexible. There are three ways to implement this: distributed control of home appliances, incentives, and transmission of information signals. If this signal is sent through an electrical system, consumers may reduce or increase their consumption based on the electrical system needs. Different approaches may be compared for efficiency using sophisticated mathematical models.
Gaël Giraud: Macroeconomics and climate.
Recent research suggests that traditional macroeconomics models, assuming the system is in equilibrium, may be poor predictors of future trends. This may be particularly true for models that incorporate climate change. Alternatives include complexity economies, which push for the system to evolve towards equilibrium in the long run and are modeled by nonlinear ordinary differential equations. They may include factors such as the relation between wages and employment. The equations are two-dimensional and have rather simple behaviour, yet are surprisingly accurate when tested with real data. When incorporating other factors such as the balance between private and public debt, one gets equations in three dimensions and this can exhibit a wide variety of complex behaviours with various equilibria. This allows a coupling between the economic model and a climate model. An example is given that shows projections of the spatial distribution of lethal combinations of temperature and humidity under various climate change scenarios in the future.
Seth Klein: Mobilizing Canada for the climate emergency.
Evidence of climate change in terms of severe weather events, such as those that cause forest fires, is clear. Solutions to the crisis abound and the public broadly supports action. What we lack is the political will on the part of our leaders to do what is needed to implement the solutions. It may seem like a daunting task, but our history of action, such as the monumental efforts made in World War II and the Covid-19 pandemic prove that bold action to solve the climate crisis is possible. How will we know when we are acting in a true emergency mode? Here are six markers of such action: we spend what it takes to win, we create new institutions to get the job done, we shift from voluntary and incentive-based policies to mandatory measures, we tell the truth about the severity of the crisis and communicate a sense of urgency, we leave no one behind, and we embrace the rights of Indigenous people, who have shown throughout their history a responsible stewardship of our natural resources.
Judith Sayers: First Nations leadership in clean energy and climate action.
Climate change has affected First Nations in remote communities disproportionately, for example through forest fires and floods. Also, since these communities are often located at the end of transmission lines, when power goes out, they can be among the last communities to have power restored. First Nations have also been dependent on diesel, which is costly, dangerous to transport and damaging for the environment. And they have often been cut out of mainstream energy decisions. As a result, they have shown remarkable leadership by building their own renewable energy solutions consistent with their historically responsible stewardship of natural resources. These solutions include wind, solar, run of the river, geothermal, heat pumps, and now they are developing their own micro-grids. With a $6 billion contribution to the economy from these projects and the creation of more than 10,000 developmental and operational jobs, the impact of the First Nations to the renewable energy industry is immense. It is to everyone’s interest to more effectively utilize existing Indigenous laws, protocols, and knowledge in establishing new policies and codes of conduct in decision-making processes.
Andrew Weaver: Privilege, agency, and the climate scientist’s role in the global warming debate.
The current state of the climate system is marked by record-high temperature levels. Our political leadership is failing us partly because of short term thinking. Assuming that we care about widespread species extinction and geopolitical instability, we must achieve the 2050 target of zero fossil emissions AND negative technological emissions to remove greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere. We must invest in negative emission technology and change human behavior in energy consumption by creating suitable market instruments. Nature-based sequestration solutions will not suffice because their effects will only be temporary. The challenges of climate change present the greatest opportunity for innovation, creativity and economic prosperity the world has ever seen. The right kind of optimism is needed moving forward, by publicly supporting progressive government policies; running for office; advocating for constructive solutions; and demonstrating leadership through our own behavior and choices.
Recordings for the PIMS-ACTS event series are now available for viewing via Mathtube.
