Asilomar International Conference on Climate Intervention
Pacific Grove, CA. March 22-26, 2010
The Asilomar Conference Recommendations on Principles
for Research into Climate Engineering Techniques
Full-Length Conference Report (PDF)
The Scientific Organizing Committee for the Asilomar Conference on Climate Engineering Technologies that was held last March is pleased to provide the Conference Report. More than 165 experts from 15 countries participated, bringing a wide diversity of perspectives and backgrounds, including natural science, engineering, social science, humanities, law, and other fields. Participants reaffirmed that the risks posed by ongoing climate change require a strong commitment to mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions, adaptation to unavoidable climate change, and development of low-carbon energy sources, independent of whether climate intervention methods ultimately prove to be safe and feasible.
Presentations summarized the two major categories of climate engineering: (a) remediation technologies, such as afforestation, carbon removal, and ocean fertilization, that attempt to reduce the causes of climate change, and so represent an extension of mitigation, and (b) intervention technologies, such as solar radiation management, that attempt to moderate the results of having altered atmospheric composition, and so represent an extension of adaptation to climate change. Discussions explored a wide range of issues related to ensuring that research into proposed climate intervention methods will be responsibly and transparently conducted and that potential consequences are thoroughly investigated.
Adoption of five principles was recommended:
- Climate engineering research should be aimed at promoting the collective benefit of humankind and the environment;
- Governments must clarify responsibilities for, and, when necessary, create new mechanisms for the governance and oversight of large-scale climate engineering research activities;
- Climate-engineering research should be conducted openly and cooperatively, preferably within a framework that has broad international support;
- Iterative, independent technical assessments of research progress will be required to inform the public and policymakers; and
- Public participation and consultation in research planning and oversight, assessments, and development of decision-making mechanisms and processes must be provided.
The conferees also favored expanding and continuing the discussion with an even broader set of participants.
The Climate Institute, which assembled the Scientific Organizing Committee (SOC), is pleased to make the Conference Report available in .pdf form. Many of the presentations at the Conference can be accessed at the Web site of the Climate Response Fund, which sponsored the Conference (www.climateresponsefund.org). For further information, please contact Michael MacCracken, chair of the SOC and Chief Scientist for Climate Change Programs at the Climate Institute (mmaccracken@climate.org).
Full-Length Conference Report (PDF)