Climate Change, Sustainability, and Us

Brown Professors Kim Cobb & Stephen Porder on tackling the climate crisis

photo by Margot Richard on Unsplash

Join the Brown Club in New York for a timely discussion about climate change and sustainability with two members of the faculty at the Institute at Brown University for Environment and Society (IBES): Professor Kim Cobb and Professor Stephen Porder.

The Institute at Brown for Environment and Society is accelerating solutions to the most complex climate and sustainability challenges of our time through interdisciplinary research and teaching. Learn about the challenges and solutions from Professor Kim Cobb, Director of IBES, and Professor Stephen Porder, Associate Provost for Sustainability. The program will include a presentation by the guest speakers along with a Q&A session, followed by a reception with light refreshments.

Through solutions-focused research and education enabled by deep partnerships across Brown and beyond, IBES aims to be an engine of real-world impact and a training ground for the next generation of changemakers building a just, sustainable world. Grounded in a culture that promotes interdisciplinary collaboration, nimble innovation, public engagement, and equitable outcomes, IBES seeks to bolster knowledge-to-action pathways in Providence, across the nation, and around the world.

Kim Cobb is the Director of IBES. and a Professor in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences. In her climate research, she uses observations of past and present climate to advance our understanding of future climate change impacts, with a focus on climate extremes and coastal flood hazards. Kim has sailed on oceanographic cruises and led caving expeditions in the Borneo rainforests. As a mother to four, Kim is a strong advocate for women in science, and champions diversity and inclusion in all that she does. She is also devoted to the communication of climate change to the public through media appearances, public speaking, and social media channels, and enjoys frequent exchanges with policymakers about climate impacts and solutions.

Stephen Porder is the Associate Provost for Sustainability and the Acacia Professor of Ecology, Evolution and Organismal Biology and Environment and Society. His research publications explore tropical rainforest ecology, the impacts of intensive agriculture on people and the environment, and the potential for large-scale tropical forest restoration. He also steers Brown University's Sustainability efforts, first and foremost the elimination of fossil fuel use and transition to 100% emissions-free energy sources.  His book Elemental: How five elements changed Earth's past and will shape our future was published in 2023. He is also a founder and scientific lead on the radioshow/podcast Possibly, a practical guide to the transition to a more sustainable future.

Check out the podcast and radio show "Possibly" for everyday issues regarding sustainability, climate change and the environment. It airs on public radio stations around the country.

Questions? Email: dkbranch@gmail.com or jh@brownnyc.org