Northwestern and the University of Toronto will launch a new alliance focused on promoting research and dialogue about decarbonization, NU announced in a Tuesday news release. 

The alliance will pool resources from the University of Toronto and NU’s Buffett Institute for Global Affairs and Paula M. Trienens Institute for Sustainability and Energy. The two universities will launch the alliance at a series of keynote lectures on Oct. 2-3 on NU’s Evanston campus titled “Roadmapping the Clean Energy Transition,” according to the news release.

This series will be led by both universities’ faculty, discussing efforts to reduce carbon dioxide emissions to prevent further global warming.

“Achieving decarbonization will require all aspects of the economy to change, from how energy is produced to how goods are manufactured to how lands are managed,” the Buffett Institute said in the release. “The University of Toronto-Northwestern Decarbonization Alliance will foster interdisciplinary dialogue spanning the social sciences, humanities, physical sciences and engineering to generate joint research.”

University of Toronto human geography Prof. Imre Szeman and NU political science Prof. Kimberly Marion Suiseeya will kick off the series. Keynotes from University of Toronto Research Chair Paty Romero-Lankao and McCormick Prof. Sossina Haile will follow the next day. 

NU was elected as the first Secretariat of the U7+ Alliance, charging the University with leading a coalition of university presidents around the world focused on collectively addressing global challenges in 2021. The decarbonization alliance will see NU team up with the University of Toronto, another U7+ partner, in its goal to catalyze research and progress dialogue on the state of carbon dioxide emissions.

“We believe we can make a more substantial impact through a unified approach and know universities have a crucial role to play in the fight against climate change,” John Robinson, the University of Toronto’s presidential adviser on the environment, said in a 2021 Northwestern Now article. “We have a responsibility to our students and communities to work towards a more sustainable future.”

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @HabashySam

Related Stories: 

— NU students, faculty and staff help organize the Midwest Climate Summit

— Northwestern receives STARS Gold rating for sustainability efforts

— Northwestern hosts intergenerational justice summit with university presidents