Stories

Cambridge Zero is pleased to introduce the Student Societies Climate Fund: a funding call for all student societies and JCR/MCRs at the University of Cambridge to apply for a share of £1000, available termly, to fund climate-related events.

Learn more about the fund details and how to apply here.

From heatwave 'dismay' to the 'deadly' effects of climate change, here's what two Cambridge experts say about the UK's record-breaking temperatures. "It’s going to be one very hot day..."

We are pleased to announce that Dr Ramit Debnath has been awarded an inaugural Cambridge Zero Fellowship to improve public understanding of climate change. Learn more about his work to uncover the institutional structure of climate change misinformation and the role of social media platforms in this article.

On 11 July 2022, Cambridge Zero Director, Prof Emily Shuckburgh, joined the UK government’s chief scientific adviser in giving an emergency climate change briefing to MPs, warning of the dangers of the climate crisis and urging them to act.

Here's the full text of her briefing along with links to sources.

We are inviting young people to send in video clips of themselves in conversation with someone from a different generation talking about how climate change is affecting them. These videos will be compiled into ActNowFilm2 and showcased at COP27.

Cambridge Zero Director Prof Emily Shuckburgh joined the UK government’s chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, Prof Stephen Belcher from the Met Office and Prof Gideon Henderson, the chief scientific adviser at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, in giving an emergency briefing to parliamentarians, warning of the dangers of the climate crisis and urging them to act.

Once a month, we'll be sitting down with one of the experts in our community to talk about what they do, how they got there and what they believe are the greatest challenges and opportunities in solving the climate crisis.

This month, we're talking to Dr Shaun Fitzgerald OBE FREng, Director of the Centre for Climate Repair at the University of Cambridge (CCRC).

Cambridge Zero is pleased to be partnering with the University of Cambridge Careers Service on delivering the University’s second Green Careers Fair and first Green Careers Festival. The transition to a climate-resilient, net zero world will require skilled and talented individuals working in all sectors of society from finance and law to education and healthcare. The changes that will be needed both to mitigate the effects of climate change and adapt to life with climate change are wide-ranging and will need innovative thinkers from across disciplines.

Are you a problem solver who thrives on challenge? Do you want to take action on climate change? The Cambridge Carbon Challenge is an initiative for student and staff teams to develop ideas to decarbonise our everyday lives!

We are pleased to present our annual report for academic year 2020-21. This report outlines the huge amount of work done by our growing team both across the University of Cambridge and with local, national and international partners during our first full year of operation.

Across the November fortnight in Glasgow, a plethora of those from the Cambridge community contributed to a diverse array of COP26 events and initiatives, reflective of Cambridge’s strength in breadth and depth. Here we round up just some of the many events the University of Cambridge was involved in.

Cambridge Zero is offering a unique opportunity for a highly motivated postdoc to join our team as part of a 3 month mini-fellowship programme. This is an ideal opportunity for a Postdoc or recent PhD student looking to gain experience of climate research engagement in an interdisciplinary environment.

Over the course of a November fortnight, Cambridge students were among the strong Youth contingent which descended on Glasgow for the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP26. Of those in attendance, a sample have spoken to Cambridge Zero about their experiences, sharing their reflections on the conference and the final agreement.

Raheela Rehman summarises the first Symposium of this Michaelmas term, 'Climate Science'. Bringing together academics and early career researchers, the afternoon showcased the latest research taking place in this field across the University of Cambridge and British Antarctic Survey. The fundamental scientific models spanned the physical environment, from the atmosphere to the oceans and ice sheet loss.

This paper presents a complementary new approach for calculating ocean fronts using an unsupervised classification method called Gaussian mixture modelling (GMM) and a novel inter-class parameter called the I-metric. By researchers at the University of Cambridge, the British Antarctic Survey and Sorbonne University LOCEAN-IPSL Laboratory.

Dr Joanna Depledge, expert in international climate change negotiations, unpicks the intricate global politics which underlined COP26 in Glasgow.

The People’s summit for Climate Justice in Glasgow was attended by Cambridge Student Maryam Grassley who has fed back the poignant quotes which moved her from the range of talks and discussions.

On COP26’s impromptu Saturday, an agreement was made by the parties. Friederike Hartz stayed in Glasgow and caught almost all interventions, including an emotional plea from Tuvalu’s representative, emphasising the agreement’s human impact by showing his grandchildren.

On COP26’s final Friday, pressure mounted for parties to reach an agreement. Friederike Hartz reports on the presidency’s informal stocktaking and the people’s plenary which discussed transparency and inclusivity problems.

On the penultimate day of COP26, negotiations were ongoing and issues like finance proved difficult. Read the highlights alongside on the ground reporting from Friederike Hartz.

A round up of week two’s Tuesday and Wednesday negotiation developments, and Cambridge’s involvement ranging from COPTV to students attending the Presidency event and updating on China’s energy transformation.

A round-up of highlights and reports from Cambridge on the Ground at COP26 on Adaptation, loss and damage day. Here from Friederike Hartz about her first day at COP26, and read about Cambridge Zero's Arctic Basecamp event.

In an incredibly busy Friday and weekend at #COP26, many Cambridge academics and students alike were involved and have fed back their insights! Read here highlights, two politics lecturers protests commentary and see two student’s photos from taking part!

My personal view would be “so far so good”. In fact, I would venture even further, and say that COP 26 has exceeded my (admittedly low) expectations. Perhaps it’s because I am following the Conference from the comfort of my home office, and haven’t been frustrated by queues, restricted access, the threat of Covid, and poorly functioning online systems. But I detect a positive buzz and – dare I say it – a sense of cautious optimism among many, especially veterans of the process.