“Oh, the weather outside is frightful,” is the opening lyric of a cheerful holiday carol that will be sung countless times during the next few weeks, but a darker truth to that phrase that will be the topic of discussion at TEDxRiceU Countdown.
Combating climate change will be the subject of featured speakers sharing their ideas from 5-8 p.m., Nov. 12 at Rice University’s Moody Center for the Arts. The “Countdown” refers to a collaboration between TED and Leaders’ Quest to identify solutions, expedite their implementation and “build a zero-carbon world — one that is safer, cleaner and fairer for everyone,” according to TED.
“One of the key features of the TED brand is there is no political agenda, even though in the United States, climate change can be viewed as political,” said junior Nicholas Ma, president of TEDxRiceU. “TED decided to launch the Countdown series to emphasize that there are environmental sciences and solutions that are apolitical. … What they’re trying to do is bring attention to the eminent threat to our habitat in the long run if we don’t do anything to save our climate.”
This year’s speakers will include Rice Assistant Professor of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences Sylvia Dee; Rice Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering Daniel Cohan; and Andrew Slaughter, former executive director of the Deloitte Research Center for Energy and Industrials. Three Rice students will also participate: senior Taylor Gilliam, junior Shikhar Verma and junior Jack Pearce.
The event aligns with Rice’s commitment to improving the environment, including its promise to become carbon neutral by 2030.
“As a prestigious university, we seek not only to be an ally in this race to a non-carbon world, but we also want to be an accelerator by having conversations on campus,” said sophomore Judy Zhu, vice president of TEDxRiceU.
Tickets costing $10 each are available on Eventbrite. For a campus map, click here.