A Reflection on the Oxford Climate Society’s School of Climate Change Spring 2025
Climate change is arguably a defining issue in our time and the Oxford Climate Society’s School of Climate Change (SoCC) seeks to empower individuals with knowledge and tools to confront this crisis. The SoCC offers an insightful eight-week course that explores the multifaceted issue of climate change, providing participants with a deep understanding of the science, economics, and social dimensions of the crisis. This is run by a group of dedicated volunteers, including students, twice a year with lectures, panels and discussions led by seasoned professionals.
The SoCC Spring 2025 session kicked off with a talk from Professor Myles Allen on climate change, the science, and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). The fundamentals of the science of climate change and the critical role of the IPCC in guiding global efforts to combat climate change were thoroughly explained. This set the stage for the subsequent weeks, each exploring different aspects of climate change. A key takeaway was that the best time to have everyone onboard to join the race to NetZero should have been years ago, the next best time is now.
The second week focused on the biosphere and how ecosystems and biodiversity are affected by rising temperatures, extreme weather events and habitat loss. The lecture was given by Professor Yadiner Mhali. The third week had Siddarth Shrikanth discuss the economics of climate change from the perspective of the Nature-Climate change nexus. The subsequent week had speakers, Dr Siddharth Unnithan Kumar and Dr. Zoe Todd, who explored Indigenous ontologies and human-nature relations. Kaya Axelsson and Rosalind Chaston from the Oxford NetZero engagement teams shared perspectives on climate change from both global (top-down) and local (bottom-up) in the fifth week. The sessions emphasized the need for all actors including governments, private entities, and civil society units to collaborate in efforts towards a NetZero.
A panel discussion on the intersection of climate change and healthcare was held in the sixth week. The panelists emphasized the impacts of climate change and environmental pollution on health and delivery of health services. The penultimate session focused on the role of the legal system in addressing climate change. The eight-week course ended with an interactive session on circular fashion with a call for a need for sustainability and waste reduction in the fashion industry - to work against fast fashion.
The sessions were beyond insightful. They were practical and relatable, with the use of real life examples and experiences, covering the breadth, length and depth of climate change. Indeed, the need to take practical steps towards Net Zero has become more pressing now than ever before.
Written by Dr. Henrietta Ampofo