The Living Earth: Safe Home and Disaster Zone

Why is there is life on Earth and not Mars? Whilst researching this question for NASA, Scientist James Lovelock arrived at the conclusion that not only is there life on earth, but the earth, or rather the biosphere is itself alive. Lovelock named this living planetary organism ‘Gaia’ after the Ancient Greek’s Primordial Earth Goddess, and so Gaia theory was born. Whether or not Gaia theory is strictly true has been hotly debated, however, what seems undeniable is the significant role that this reconceptualization of our planetary home has to play in our adaptation to climate change. 

Why is there no such thing as a natural disaster? Why do disasters have different outcomes? And, why are certain individuals more susceptible to negative effects of disasters than others? This talk will address these questions through the feminist concept of intersectionality. Intersectionality allows us to understand how people’s identities (e.g. age, race, sexuality, and gender) and conditions (e.g. housing, immigration, and marital status) can render disaster outcomes and experiences as unequal. This talk will also discuss power, privilege, and oppression within the disaster context. 

Recently approved offshore wind projects in the UK are expected to operate with 'negative subsidies', leading to reduced energy bills for households. The advancement of technology has contributed to these declining costs of offshore wind energy. The success of UK offshore wind farms has allowed even more ambitious projects, including the generation of hydrogen fuels using wind power on site. In the future, offshore wind energy will play a pivotal role in enabling the UK and the world to achieve net-zero carbon emissions and reduce energy costs for consumers.