Australian Forum for Climate Intervention Governance
The Australian Forum for Climate Intervention Governance (AFCIG) aims to be the leading research centre for climate intervention governance in the Southern Hemisphere, producing high-quality, policy-relevant analysis to improve the national and international governance of solar radiation management and carbon dioxide removal activities.
The University of Tasmania is strategically placed to play a leading role in the research and development of climate intervention governance in Australia in the Southern Hemisphere. The University has established strengths in the fields of environmental law, climate change law, marine governance, environmental humanities and marine and Antarctic science that feeds directly into climate intervention research. There is a group of researchers in the School of Law, Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) who are actively engaged in climate intervention governance research and already informally comprise one of the leading groups of researchers on the topic nationally.
The formation of AFCIG will take this research agenda to the next level by providing an institutional focal point to lead national and international research on the legal and governance issues relating to Climate Intervention Proposals. This will position the University to consolidate its international profile in the field, access competitive external grant funding, and make an impact on national and international policy development.
Location
School of Law
College of Arts, Law, and Education
Inter-College Linkage
Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS)
College of Sciences and Engineering
Events
In the News
Coral Reefs are in Hot Water – We May Need Geoengineering to Cool Things Down7 April 2019, Published by Climate Strategies/Climate Policy blog
A report referencing a recently published journal article in Climate Policy by AFCIG members, Dr Kerryn Brent, Professor Jan McDonald and Dr Jeff McGee (link to journal article below).
Research Themes
1. Domestic Governance of Climate Intervention
- Capacity for domestic legal systems in Australia, United States, Europe etc to manage climate intervention research, field-testing and implementation
- Governance for mutually supportive outcomes and co-benefits
- Environmental/risk assessment procedures
- Managing cost/benefit trade-offs
2. Social Dimensions of Climate Intervention
- Public acceptance and risk perception
- Lessons from social uptake of earlier controversial technologies (e.g. GM crops, genetics)
- Ethics/justice
- Public communication, deliberative processes and aesthetics
3. International Governance of Climate Intervention
- Gaps in international governance frameworks
- Relationship between climate intervention, adaptation and loss and damage frameworks
- Liability and responsibility for climate intervention research and implementation
- Polar climate intervention
4. Security Dimensions of Climate Intervention
- Climate change, climate intervention and conflict
- Counter-geoengineering
- National security and human security
- Developing countries and human rights
Available Research Degree Projects
For a full list of current University projects, see the Research Division – Available Research Degree Projects.
