An essay for the McQuillian Institute’s project: ‘A Constitution for the Twenty-First Century’ By Mike Hulme Summary The western liberal democratic tradition has evolved to place a very high value on science and its relevance, if not necessity, for public policy decision-making. A powerful exemplar of this view over recent decades has been the design, […]
In this short item of ‘correspondence’ published in Nature last week, I argue that Stiglitz’s recently proposed International Panel on Inequality, modelled on the IPCC, is unlikely to be effective. It is one more case of ‘IPCC envy’, the reasons for which I have previously explored. I find it remarkable how so many commentators continue […]
Amitav Ghosh, ‘The Great Derangement: Climate Change and the Unthinkable’ (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. 176pp.) 1 October 2026, roughly an 8-minute read This essay continues my series of monthly posts in which I select one ‘climate’ book to highlight and review from one of the 44 years of my professional career in climate […]
Two big talking points have dominated climate politics in the UK this summer: whether the new PM should authorise exploitation of the Rosebank (oil) and Jackdaw (gas) fields in the North Sea and what the country should be doing to better cope with summer heatwaves and drought. These topics were also in the air 50 […]
