Club Panel: Climate Change – the Science and the Solutions

Climate change is one of the most pressing issues of our time. From the Australian bushfires to America’s Hurricane Dorian, catastrophes fueled by global warming struck every corner of the globe in 2019. While 194 states and the European Union have signed the UNFCCC ’s Paris Agreement to decrease global warming, activists are asking what governments are actually doing to limit the increase in the Earth’s temperature to 1.5 °C and demanding more action.

Closer to home, Hong Kong saw its warmest year on record in 2019. A year earlier, the city was hit by Mangkhut, one of the most intense typhoons in the city’s history. How can Hong Kong tackle climate change? What are the effects on our ecosystems? And what can businesses and individuals do to avert this climate crisis? Our panel of experts will discuss the potential impact on Hong Kong and the rest of the world.

DR. CM CHENG: Dr. CM Cheng is Director of the Hong Kong Observatory, where he has worked in various roles for over 30 years. Starting as a weather forecaster, he became involved in a number of areas including automatic weather stations, aviation weather services, weather radar and satellite meteorology. On becoming Assistant Director, he was responsible for public weather services and oversaw the development of the observatory website and mobile app. He was appointed Director of the Hong Kong Observatory in February.

DR. YUN FAT LAM: Dr. Yun Fat Lam is Associate Professor, Department of Geography at The University of Hong Kong. His areas of research focus include ambient air quality sampling, future air quality and climate-change modelling. He received his BS in Civil Engineering, MS in Environmental Engineering and PhD in Civil Engineering at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

DR. HANNAH MUMBY: Dr. Hannah Mumby is Assistant Professor at School of Biological Sciences and Department of Politics and Public Administration, University of Hong Kong. She specialises in environmental and conservation science, and science and policy interface. A Fulbright scholar, Dr. Mumby is the author of a recently published book, Elephants, which discusses their population decline amid the ivory trade.