The Only Hope of Having Global Net Zero by 2050

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I think it's feasible with technology we have now for the Global North, in particular North America and Europe, to achieve net zero by 2050. But as you say, the problem is that the Global South,. which is now using much less per capita energy by a factor of 10. And we are and where there will be a billion more people by mid century. Now, if they develop the way the Chinese have will be producing CO2 - our coal, power stations, etc. At about 40% of the world's total emissions today. So I would say that what we have to do is to prioritize the development of more advanced and cheaper clean energy so that the developing countries can leapfrog

Shermer and Rees discuss: existential threats • overpopulation • biodiversity loss • climate change • AI and self-driving cars, robots, and unemployment • his bet with Steven Pinker • his disagreement with Richard Dawkins • how science works as a communal activity • scientific creativity • science communication • science education • why there aren’t more women and people of color in STEM fields • verification vs. falsification • Bayesian reasoning and scientific progress • Model Dependent Realism and the nature of reality Fermi’s Paradox • why he’s an atheist but wants to be buried in the Presbyterian church in which he was raised • mysterian mysteries.

Martin Rees is Astronomer Royal, former President of the Royal Society, Fellow (and former Master) of Trinity College, Cambridge, and Emeritus Professor of Cosmology and Astrophysics at the University of Cambridge. He sits as a member of the UK House of Lords. He is the author of many bestselling popular science books, including: On the Future; Just Six Numbers; Before the Beginning; and Our Final Hour. His newest book is If Science is to Save Us.