The Nobel Prize in Physics and Obama Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, interested in Climate-KIC initiative
In The News
07 Jun 2016
- Climate-KIC Spain was very active in the discussion on climate change and research held with the 11 Nobel laureates panel.
- Steven Chu was interested in the european Climate-KIC initiative and its integration between education, innovation and business which Spanish headquarters are in Valencia.
Valencia, 7 June 2016.- One more edition, Valencia is set as the scientific and intellectual epicenter of the world, which gets together 23 Nobel laureates as Jaime I Awards Jury. The Awards will be announced today afternoon in the following topics Environmental Improvement, Economics, Entrepreneurship, Development of New Technologies, Basic Research and Medical Advances.
Among the 23 Nobel who formed the jury, it is worth noting the presence of the American scientists Edward S. Rubin, Professor of Engineering and Policy Carnergie Unirversity Mellon, Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 and member of the International Panel on Climate Change, and Steven Chu, physicist at the University of California in Berkeley, Nobel Prize in Physics in 1997, and Secretary of Energy with Obama since January 2009.
In the discussion of this awards parallel activities Ramakrishnan, president of the Royal Society of London and Chemistry Nobel (2009) said that the problem of climate change is very serious and will need big solutions in the coming years, which will require ” a package of measures including carbon capture and use of nuclear energy “in addition to maintaining and increasing renewable energy.
Chu and Ramakrishnan agreed on the need to create a collective “mentality” to curb climate change. He also recalled that around a third of emissions is originated in “food production and land use”. Ramakrishnan pointed out with sense of humour that “a great environmental contribution of humanity might be to become vegetarian like me”, despite the controversy and disbelief raised in the debate about methane emissions attributed to meat consumption.
Both scientists believe that in the next two decades, research and technology will continue to improve and becoming more and more efficient the renewable sources of energy.
In this regard, the Director of Climate-KIC Spain, Jose-Luis Muñoz pointed out the importance “to boost the social and technological innovation to tackle the challenges associated with climate change, the cooperation of all stakeholders and the training of multidisciplinary experts in order to set up products and services for society to face this challenge” where he also said that traditional consumer goods, such as private vehicles, are becoming a service as the car sharing, transforming the old economic models.
Coming back to the debate, where several Nobel of Physics participated, as Sheldon Lee Glasgow (1979), Jerome I. Friedman (1990), Frank Wilczek (2004), Nobel of Chemistry as Jean-Marie Lehn (1987), Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (2009) or Aaron Ciechanover (2004) or Nobel of Medicine, as Richard Roberts (1993), and different issues on science, research and technology were raised. Among them, the great society challenge for tackling climate change and the future for the next generations gained special prominence on the discussion.
The Director of Climate-KIC Spain, Jose-Luis Muñoz and his team, besides having an active participation in this science debate, which was held yesterday afternoon with the participation of 11 Nobel laureates, had the opportunity to talk with two of them, Steven Chu and Richard Roberts, about the change of society and the economic model and how the European Climate-KIC initiative is contributing to promote and boost a low carbon society.
In the debate, it was alos highlighted the need to continue investing in basic science, to keep on being motivated to further research and the importance of working collaboratively with other disciplines, where there was a common reflection raised in other forums about the position and role of women in the field of research.