A Virtual Dialogue: How economics can save the world

"How economics can save the world" - Invitation and call for change

21 June 2021 (16:00-17:30 BST / 17:00-18:30 CET)

With our current economic system, we are consuming huge amounts of resources and destroying the web of life on earth. The recently published Dasgupta Review, commissioned by the UK Treasury, shows in 604 pages that biodiversity conservation must become a permanent feature in all areas of policy and the economy. Protecting nature's invaluable contributions to humankind is the critical challenge of the coming decades.

But how can this challenge be addressed and solved? These questions will be the focus of the exchange of international experts in the virtual discussion.

This event is organised by the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin and co-hosted with the Centre for Science and Policy. More information on the event can be found here.

The event will be held in English and streamed live on Youtube. Registration is not required.

Speakers

Johannes Vogel, Director General, Museum für Naturkunde Berlin
Introduction and host - Nature concerns us all. The Natural History Museum Berlin, Germany, is a forum to openly discuss the really important issues of the 21st century

Sir Partha Dasgupta, Frank Ramsey Professor Emeritus of Economics at the University of Cambridge and author of the Dasgupta Review
Independent Review on the Economics of Biodiversity: key takeaways from the government commissioned report

Joseph Settele, IPBES Global Assessment Chair & Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research
Insights into the "options for decision makers" of the Global Assessment of IPBES

Julia Steinberger, Professor of Ecological Economics at the University of Lausanne & co-author of IPCC 6th Assessment reportWhat does 'Living Well Within Planetary Limits' mean for the economy?

Barbara Trachte, Secretary of State of the Brussels-Region, responsible for Economic Transition and Scientific Research
Results of the BrusselsDonut project: together towards an ecological and solidaric transition

Moderator: Akanksha Khatri, Head of Nature Action Agenda, World Economic Forum

Sir Partha Dasgupta, Frank Ramsey Professor Emeritus, University of Cambridge, will personally present the central statements of the report.

"We have to act now, we have to change our relationship with nature now, we have to adapt our economic paradigms now. The Museum für Naturkunde Berlin wants to make its contribution to this," says Professor Johannes Vogel, Director General of the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin. "We want to encourage change."

The Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) calls for a "transformative" policy change and has presented specific options for decision-makers. Is policy change in sight? Professor Josef Settele of the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) in Halle and member of the German Advisory Council on the Environment was co-chair of the IPBES Global Assessment and will share his view.

How an ecological and solidarity-based change can be started and shaped in a very practical way will be shown by Ms Barbara Trachte, a lawyer and State Secretary in the Brussels-Capital Region responsible for economic transition and research. She is responsible for the "BrusselsDonut" project.
But are doughnuts enough to preserve the web of life?

What does "a good life within planetary boundaries" mean for the economic system? Professor Julia Steinberger examines this question. She is Professor of Ecological Economics at the University of Lausanne and co-author of the 6th Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which is currently in preparation.

If you want to drive change in a sustainable way, you have to learn from nature. What responsibility do research-based natural history museums have? Professor Johannes Vogel, Director General of the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, will describe which path the museum is following in this context.

The discussion will be led by Ms Akanksha Khatri, Director of the Nature Action Agenda of the World Economic Forum.