BA President speaks out on the challenges of climate change and science education (4 September 2006)
Policies that prepare the world to adapt to climate change are now just as important as efforts to mitigate its likely effects, according to Frances Cairncross, President of the BA and Chair of Britain’s Economic and Social Research Council.
“Adaptation policies have had far less attention than mitigation, and that is a mistake,” says Ms Cairncross, “…we need to think now about policies that prepare for a hotter, drier world, especially in poorer countries. That may involve, for instance, developing new crops, constructing flood defences, setting different building regulations, or banning building close to sea level.”
Ms Cairncross makes her comments as part of her Presidential Address at the BA Festival of Science in Norwich, speaking 35 years after her father, Sir Alec Cairncross, gave his Presidential address, the first time that father and daughter have been President of the BA. The Festival is taking place at the University of East Anglia and across the city of Norwich from 2-9 September and will bring together over 300 of the UK’s top scientists and engineers to discuss the latest scientific developments with the public.
Ms Cairncross will also criticise the “ineffectual” nature of the Kyoto agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions, and suggest that developing a successful global deal on the environment will mean “persuading this generation to accept sacrifices on behalf of posterity; and persuading countries that will gain from climate change, or lose little, to take action not on behalf of their own grandchildren but of the descendants of people in other nations.”
“Of course, there are important areas where no adaptation is possible,” she says. “We cannot relocate the Amazon or insulate coral reefs – and so we need mitigation too. But the government could and should put in place an adaptation strategy right away.”
The BA President, who is also Rector of Exeter College, Oxford, will also speak out on the state of mathematics and science education in light of the recent A-level and GCSE results and comments made by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).
Urging scientists to be more concerned about the declining number of students studying maths and science, Ms Cairncross insists that improving the teaching of these subjects in schools is particularly important, not just for maintaining the “future health” of UK science, but also for enhancing public understanding of the global-warming debate.
“An innumerate population is less likely to devise good solutions to climate change and a host of other environmental problems than one at home with mathematical and scientific concepts,” she says. “…Perhaps we need to experiment with a bounty for every grade ‘A’ maths A-level taken in a maintained school – divided equally between the student and the class teachers – or a couple of extra UCAS points for each ‘A’ grade.”
According to figures analysed by the Independent Schools Council, roughly 45% of A grades in A-level Maths, Chemistry, Biology and Physics and 58% of A grades in Economics come from independent schools. In each case, the proportion of A grades is considerably higher than the proportion of entries – and that gap has widened. Yet independent schools educate only 7% of Britain’s school children.
The full text of Frances Cairncross' Presidential Address is now available.
ENDS
For further information on the BA Festival of Science, visit www.the-ba.net/festivalofscience.
This year’s Festival is supported by the University of East Anglia, the East of England Development Agency and Microsoft Research. The Press Centre is sponsored by AstraZeneca.
For further information please contact:
Lisa Hendry, Press Assistant, the BA
Tel: +44 (0)20 7019 4946
Email: lisa.hendry@the-ba.net
Note for editors
1. The BA (British Association for the Advancement of Science) is the UK's nationwide, open membership organisation that exists to advance the public understanding, accessibility and accountability of the sciences and engineering. Established in 1831, the BA organises major initiatives across the UK, including the annual BA Festival of Science, National Science Week, programmes of regional and local events, and an extensive programme for young people in schools and colleges. For more information about the BA, please visit www.the-ba.net.
2. Speakers have been asked to submit press papers for their talks, which include a summary of the talk and what is newsworthy about their research. Press papers will be available from mid-August at www.the-ba.net/presspapers.
3. To register for access to the press papers or to the Press Centre at the BA Festival of Science, visit www.the-ba.net/pressregister.
4. The BA Festival of Science 2006 is being hosted in Norwich by the University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park and Norwich City Council.
5. The University of East Anglia (UEA) is an internationally renowned, research-led University. Over 13,000 students from more than 100 countries and around 2500 staff enjoy its architecturally distinguished campus on the edge of the city of Norwich. UEA is known for its pioneering and collaborative approach to research, bringing together academics from different disciplines to create innovative research groups. The latest Research Assessment Exercise (2001) confirmed the breadth and depth of UEA's research excellence through the achievement of the top 5* or 5 ratings in eleven subject areas, with staff inclusion rates in the top 10% across the board.
6. The East of England Development Agency (EEDA) is the driving force behind sustainable economic regeneration in the East of England: Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Its vision is to create a leading economy, founded on a world class knowledge base, creativity and enterprise to improve the quality of life for all who live and work here. EEDA aims to do this by: (1) Setting and shaping the direction of economic development in the region, (2) Persuading and influencing others to bring resources together, (3) Investing in imaginative projects that challenge the norm. For further information visit www.eeda.org.uk.
7. Founded in 1991, Microsoft Research is dedicated to conducting both basic and applied research in computer science and software engineering. Its goals are to enhance the user experience on computing devices, reduce the cost of writing and maintaining software, and invent novel computing technologies. Researchers focus on more than 55 areas of computing and collaborate with leading academic, government and industry researchers to advance the state of the art in such areas as graphics, speech recognition, user-interface research, natural language processing, programming tools and methodologies, operating systems and networking, and the mathematical sciences. Microsoft Research employs more than 700 people in five labs located in Redmond, Wash.; Silicon Valley, Calif.; Cambridge, England; Beijing, China; and Bangalore, India. Microsoft Research collaborates openly with colleges and universities worldwide to enhance the teaching and learning experience, inspire technological innovation, and broadly advance the field of computer science. More information can be found at www.research.microsoft.com.
“Adaptation policies have had far less attention than mitigation, and that is a mistake,” says Ms Cairncross, “…we need to think now about policies that prepare for a hotter, drier world, especially in poorer countries. That may involve, for instance, developing new crops, constructing flood defences, setting different building regulations, or banning building close to sea level.”
Ms Cairncross makes her comments as part of her Presidential Address at the BA Festival of Science in Norwich, speaking 35 years after her father, Sir Alec Cairncross, gave his Presidential address, the first time that father and daughter have been President of the BA. The Festival is taking place at the University of East Anglia and across the city of Norwich from 2-9 September and will bring together over 300 of the UK’s top scientists and engineers to discuss the latest scientific developments with the public.
Ms Cairncross will also criticise the “ineffectual” nature of the Kyoto agreement to cut greenhouse gas emissions, and suggest that developing a successful global deal on the environment will mean “persuading this generation to accept sacrifices on behalf of posterity; and persuading countries that will gain from climate change, or lose little, to take action not on behalf of their own grandchildren but of the descendants of people in other nations.”
“Of course, there are important areas where no adaptation is possible,” she says. “We cannot relocate the Amazon or insulate coral reefs – and so we need mitigation too. But the government could and should put in place an adaptation strategy right away.”
The BA President, who is also Rector of Exeter College, Oxford, will also speak out on the state of mathematics and science education in light of the recent A-level and GCSE results and comments made by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).
Urging scientists to be more concerned about the declining number of students studying maths and science, Ms Cairncross insists that improving the teaching of these subjects in schools is particularly important, not just for maintaining the “future health” of UK science, but also for enhancing public understanding of the global-warming debate.
“An innumerate population is less likely to devise good solutions to climate change and a host of other environmental problems than one at home with mathematical and scientific concepts,” she says. “…Perhaps we need to experiment with a bounty for every grade ‘A’ maths A-level taken in a maintained school – divided equally between the student and the class teachers – or a couple of extra UCAS points for each ‘A’ grade.”
According to figures analysed by the Independent Schools Council, roughly 45% of A grades in A-level Maths, Chemistry, Biology and Physics and 58% of A grades in Economics come from independent schools. In each case, the proportion of A grades is considerably higher than the proportion of entries – and that gap has widened. Yet independent schools educate only 7% of Britain’s school children.
The full text of Frances Cairncross' Presidential Address is now available.
ENDS
For further information on the BA Festival of Science, visit www.the-ba.net/festivalofscience.
This year’s Festival is supported by the University of East Anglia, the East of England Development Agency and Microsoft Research. The Press Centre is sponsored by AstraZeneca.
For further information please contact:
Lisa Hendry, Press Assistant, the BA
Tel: +44 (0)20 7019 4946
Email: lisa.hendry@the-ba.net
Note for editors
1. The BA (British Association for the Advancement of Science) is the UK's nationwide, open membership organisation that exists to advance the public understanding, accessibility and accountability of the sciences and engineering. Established in 1831, the BA organises major initiatives across the UK, including the annual BA Festival of Science, National Science Week, programmes of regional and local events, and an extensive programme for young people in schools and colleges. For more information about the BA, please visit www.the-ba.net.
2. Speakers have been asked to submit press papers for their talks, which include a summary of the talk and what is newsworthy about their research. Press papers will be available from mid-August at www.the-ba.net/presspapers.
3. To register for access to the press papers or to the Press Centre at the BA Festival of Science, visit www.the-ba.net/pressregister.
4. The BA Festival of Science 2006 is being hosted in Norwich by the University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park and Norwich City Council.
5. The University of East Anglia (UEA) is an internationally renowned, research-led University. Over 13,000 students from more than 100 countries and around 2500 staff enjoy its architecturally distinguished campus on the edge of the city of Norwich. UEA is known for its pioneering and collaborative approach to research, bringing together academics from different disciplines to create innovative research groups. The latest Research Assessment Exercise (2001) confirmed the breadth and depth of UEA's research excellence through the achievement of the top 5* or 5 ratings in eleven subject areas, with staff inclusion rates in the top 10% across the board.
6. The East of England Development Agency (EEDA) is the driving force behind sustainable economic regeneration in the East of England: Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk and Suffolk. Its vision is to create a leading economy, founded on a world class knowledge base, creativity and enterprise to improve the quality of life for all who live and work here. EEDA aims to do this by: (1) Setting and shaping the direction of economic development in the region, (2) Persuading and influencing others to bring resources together, (3) Investing in imaginative projects that challenge the norm. For further information visit www.eeda.org.uk.
7. Founded in 1991, Microsoft Research is dedicated to conducting both basic and applied research in computer science and software engineering. Its goals are to enhance the user experience on computing devices, reduce the cost of writing and maintaining software, and invent novel computing technologies. Researchers focus on more than 55 areas of computing and collaborate with leading academic, government and industry researchers to advance the state of the art in such areas as graphics, speech recognition, user-interface research, natural language processing, programming tools and methodologies, operating systems and networking, and the mathematical sciences. Microsoft Research employs more than 700 people in five labs located in Redmond, Wash.; Silicon Valley, Calif.; Cambridge, England; Beijing, China; and Bangalore, India. Microsoft Research collaborates openly with colleges and universities worldwide to enhance the teaching and learning experience, inspire technological innovation, and broadly advance the field of computer science. More information can be found at www.research.microsoft.com.
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