At COP26 in Glasgow, we’ll see action from governments, business and industry to secure global net zero by 2050 – and it’s universities which bring the solutions.

Climate change targets present the world with both an enormous challenge to overcome and an opportunity to come together, share knowledge and invest in our shared future: this is the core work of universities, and the drive which unites the 50 members International Universities Climate Alliance.

Established in April 2020 and convened by the University of New South Wales in Sydney, these leading climate research universities come from every continent, encompassing thousands of the world’s most accomplished climate researchers, including hundreds who have worked as authors of reports for the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).

During COP26, the UN’s global summit on climate change, we’re throwing the spotlight on the researchers bringing us solutions and a deeper understanding of the challenges ahead.

Securing global net zero

From zero-carbon-emission flight to net zero concrete, open-source carbon capture to clean energy for the world’s poorest billion people, it is the university sector which will provide the innovation and expertise to meet the urgent and ambitious targets set by policy-makers at COP26.

“With a suite of scientific and government reports across many nations demonstrating the damaging impacts of climate change, it is understandable that people feel frustration about a lack of government policy and leadership in tackling this issue,” says Scientia Professor Matt England of UNSW, one of the driving forces behind the Alliance. “Our member universities are united in helping to break through this barrier so decision makers have a better understanding of the significant and immediate risks posed by climate change.”

Zero carbon flight is possible, and could be ready by 2030.

Liquid hydrogen and fuel cell technology are being assessed against kerosene for carbon and other greenhouse gases by Dr Alex Rap and researchers at the University of Leeds and the FlyZero project of the government and industry-linked Aerospace Technology Institute (UK).

Yellowstone used to see big fires every 150 years – now it’s a 30-year cycle.

Virtual reality is helping Dr Erica Smithwick, Pennsylvania State University show fire managers and local people in her own state and Wisconsin that fire is a natural part of the landscape. Her work is partly powered by insights from Indigenous peoples on the use of controlled burning.

Open-source solutions for direct carbon capture

Direct air carbon capture could suck carbon directly from open air, rather than capturing it from flues or exhausts. Video game designer Associate Professor Matt Parker of New York University, is a volunteer with the OpenAir Collective, which is building open-source solutions and advocating for direct capture technology.

What does carbon mean in the context of the world’s poorest people?

There are 600 million people in East Africa who have no carbon problem, because they have no electricity at all. Professor AbuBakr Bahaj, University of Southampton advises governments across the world, and wants to ensure that in the stampede toward net zero carbon, we don’t leave people behind.

The great climate interconnect

The land masses of the Northern Hemisphere and the great open oceans around Antarctica have enormous impacts on climate. Our ability to feed the world, plan for natural disasters and build renewable energy driven by sun, wind and water rely fundamentally on the dynamic interactions between the ocean, air, ice and land. The challenge of understanding global climate, and the rapid changes underway, is highly complex, dependant on dynamic interactions and teleconnections across the globe.

“With a suite of scientific and government reports across many nations demonstrating the damaging impacts of climate change, it is understandable that people feel frustration about a lack of government policy and leadership in tackling this issue,” says Scientia Professor Matt England of UNSW, one of the driving forces behind the Alliance. “Our member universities are united in helping to break through this barrier so decision makers have a better understanding of the significant and immediate risks posed by climate change.”

Understanding heat uptake across the Southern Ocean

Global warming is already disrupting the carbon cycle over the Southern Ocean, which is responsible for absorbing about half the carbon absorbed by the global oceans. UNSW Scientia Professor Matt England says if we don’t have a deep understanding of carbon cycling in our climate system, nations might later need to update emissions treaties. We cannot assume the ocean carbon uptake of today will persist into the future.

Floods, droughts, heatwaves, polar vortexes – warming oceans drive extreme weather

The North Pole is warming more quickly than the South, and the knock-on effect to ocean currents is driving more extreme weather in Europe and North America. Professor Camille Li of the University of Bergen’s Global Climate group looks at the physics driving changes in intense North Atlantic storms. The latest IPCC report links warming oceans and air to floods and droughts. The connection to heat waves is virtually certain, she says, and there are studies suggesting a possible link to outbreaks of cold air due to distortions in the polar vortex.

Where should I plant my grapes in 2100?

At the University of Tasmania, Dr Rebecca Harris and the Climate Futures Programme can project future expected changes in regional climate until the end of the century, supporting business planning for the wine industry, ski tourism and even the City of Hobart’s plans for road resurfacing.