Monday, May 25, 2020 at 2 PM – 3:30 PM UTC+01
As is becoming evident during the Covid-19 pandemic, global crises affect marginalised groups disproportionately. It has been established that climate change will most severely harm, and is already harming, the poorest regions of the world. To what extent are these unequal impacts a product of existing injustices and social inequality? And how do these structures combine to produce the greatest injustice of all – those who emitted the least will suffer most from the impacts of climate change? Given this stark reality, what can be done to mitigate this?
Looking ahead, will the Covid-19 crisis further deepen these inequalities or provide the opportunity for systemic change to a more fair and equal society? Experts predicted severe consequences without drastic precautionary action from governments in the lead up to the Covid-19 pandemic. Will we, this time, listen to the experts on climate? And finally how and what can we learn from the Covid-19 crisis to address the inequality of climate change?
To answer these pressing questions we are pleased to welcome two distinguished speakers to our flagship event of Trinity Term 2020.
Mary Robinson served as the Seventh President of Ireland from December 1990 to September 1997. Ms Robinson was the first woman ever to hold office in Ireland. Mary served as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 1997 to 2002. In 2001 she served as Secretary General of the World Conference against Racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance. At the University of Ireland Mary also held the position of Senator for 20 years from 1969 to 1989. After her position at the UN, Mary set up the NGO Realizing Rights: The Ethical Globalization Initiative. She was also a founding member of the Council of Women World Leaders, served as honorary president of Oxfam International and was a member of the Club of Madrid. In 2010 she established the Mary Robinson Foundation – Climate Justice. And more recently, in 2018 she published the book Climate Justice, highlighting the reality of climate change as experienced by marginalised groups across the world.
Dr Vandana Shiva is one of the world’s leading environmentalists and anti-globalization scholars. Vandana is the recipient of numerous global awards and prizes such as the Alternative Nobel Peace Prize in 1993, the Sydney Peace prize in 2010 and the Calgary Peace Prize in 2011. Dr Shiva has served as an advisor to governments in India as well as non-governmental organisations such as the World Future Council, the International Forum on Globalization, Third World Network and Women’s Environment and Development Organisation. She is the author of over 20 books covering topics such as ecofeminism, genetic engineering and the protection of localised indigenous knowledge. Some of her most notable works include Soil Not Oil, Oneness vs the 1% and Earth Democracy. She is the founder of Navdanya (Nine seeds), an organization that helps farmers to protect their seeds from genetic patents and corporate control. It consists of over 9 million farmers across 22 states in India and has helped to set up the largest direct marketing, fair trade organic network in the country.
Find out more about our Dr Shiva and Ms Robinson at their respective websites websites:
This event will be live-streamed onto Oxford Climate Society YouTube Channel: