Climate Change: What Would Thoreau Say?

 Scientist Bill Moomaw will share current insights and proposals for addressing and adapting to a changing climate and speculate about how Thoreau might react were he here today. Would his commitment to simplicity prevent him from endorsing or adopting climate friendly technologies like solar panels? What would be his reaction to the changes taking place in Nature, about which he cared deeply. Finally, what are some of his words of wisdom that might inspire us to more effective action?

Bill Moomaw is Professor Emeritus, Tufts University and Distinguished Visiting Scientist at Woodwell Climate Research Center. He holds a PhD from MIT and previously taught chemistry and was Director of Environmental Studies at Williams College. He is a physical chemist who helped develop the first ozone layer protection legislation while working for the U.S. Senate and has been a lead author of five Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Reports including the 2007 report that shared the Nobel Peace Prize. He has published extensively on technical solutions to reduce climate altering emissions. He is currently working internationally and nationally to identify and implement Natural Climate Solutions that accumulate additional atmospheric carbon out of the atmosphere in forests, wetlands, and soils. In 2019, he was elected a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science for his “contributions to our understanding of climate change and its global impacts and to the work of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.”