Navigating politics and populism: collective intelligence for climate action

Political uncertainty and climate populism are jeopardising our ability to prevent the worst climate change impacts or prepare effectively for those already happening. As multilateral talks stumble, local opposition builds at home, and extreme weather events become more common, is all hope lost? 
This talk will argue that now more than ever, we need to harness the collective intelligence of communities to drive effective climate action. Drawing on inspiring examples from all over the world we’ll see how combining people’s knowledge with new forms of data and digital technology – 21st-century collective intelligence – can help to achieve more effective, localised progress on climate change.

Accessibility

An access guide to Birkbeck Room B34 can be found on AccessAble.

About the speaker

Kathy Peach is the Director and co-founder of the Centre for Collective Intelligence Design at Nesta, which explores how human and machine intelligence can be combined to develop innovative solutions to social challenges. Kathy was the lead author of the Collective Intelligence Design Playbook, and leads the Centre's partnerships with UNDP and the International Federation of the Red Cross & Red Crescent Societies - applying collective intelligence design to address the Sustainable Development Goals and improve local humanitarian response. She also oversees the Centre's grants programme, which has supported 30 different experiments around the world. Her Nesta publications include Collective Intelligence for Sustainable Development, Collective Crisis Intelligence for Frontline Humanitarian Response, Our Futures: By the people, for the people, Participatory AI for Humanitarian Innovation, and Combining Crowds & Machines.   

Previously, Kathy was Head of Innovation & Foresight at Bond - the global network for international development organisations. She has also held leadership roles at a range of non-profits, including disability charity Scope, international development agency VSO, and the public body Healthwatch England. She was a board member of the Nobel prize-winning charity Mines Advisory Group (MAG) between 2013-2019, and a member of the Newton Fund Prize Committee in 2018 and 2020. She is currently an expert adviser to the World Economic Forum on Technology & Society.

About this event series

Political turning points, 2024-2025: Causes, consequences, solutions

2024 and 2025 are crucial years for global politics, with a number of highly anticipated elections (in India, the United Kingdom, the United States and elsewhere). These elections are coming at a time ofcoinciding with major armed conflicts (especially in Ukraine and Gaza), as well as rising levels of income inequality (globally and nationally), deflated living standards that still have not recovered to pre-Covid levels, crumbling healthcare systems, and fierce culture wars that are tearing up the fabric of our societies.

The sense of uncertainty and volatility is overwhelming and there is no way to predict what world we will live in two years from now. How can we understand thisthe causes and consequences of this overwhelming uncertainty and volatility? and what are the different components that define its causes and consequences? What is being done to mitigate for its effects and address the different challenges that emerge in it?

This series of Director’s Seminars and Soundbites will approach the question of uncertainty by exploring the complex range of practices and processes that define it today as a condition that is closely interlinked with economic, cultural, and environmental challenges.

Soundbites are a platform for professionals and entrepreneurs who are leading in their field. Speakers are innovators and inspiring actors working in new and traditional sectors, outside of academia. The Soundbite gives the audience an insight into how their organisation contributes to sustainable and inclusive prosperity.

For more events in this series visit the series page ►