Royal Holloway, University of London is hosting a COP26 Forum with a range of events and activities focused on the climate emergency available for students, staff and the general public to attend from 1-12 November 2021.

From a student-chaired panel with local councillors debating how Surrey can reach Net Zero, to local ecology and history walks as well as events on literature and the climate catastrophe, Royal Holloway has curated a number of face-to-face and online events in support of the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26.

Activities taking place during Royal Holloway’s COP26 Forum which people can attend, include:

• Eco walk (30 – 31 Oct; 7 Nov; 13 – 14 Nov, various times at Royal Holloway’s Egham campus)
  An eco-walking tour visiting areas of local environmental and historical interest.
• Health in the Anthropocene (2 Nov at 5.00 - 6.30pm, online)
  A forward-thinking panel discussion on how we can shift our approach to health, so that it cares for both people and planet.
• Decarbonising our local area: a student-led conversation with Surrey councillors
  (2 Nov at 6.30 – 7.30pm, online)
  Join a panel discussion with Surrey County Councillor Marisa Heath and Godalming Town Councillor Chris Neil on how we can reach Net Zero carbon emissions in the local area.
• Reading, writing and researching in times of climate emergency (3 Nov at 11.00am – 12.30pm, online)
  Royal Holloway academics consider how environmental concerns can shape the stories we tell.
• 39 Ways to Save the Planet (4 Nov, 6.30 - 7.15pm, online)
  Building on the popular Radio 4 show ‘39 Ways To Save The Planet’, host and author Tom Heap explores the evidence of how we can respond proactively and creatively to climate change.
• Climate and West Africa: Film and Law (8 Nov at 4.00 – 5.30pm, online)
  Explore issues of forced migration and environmental degradation in West Africa, through the medium of film.

For more information or to participate in events and activities, visit the Royal Holloway website.

Professor Paul Layzell, Principal of Royal Holloway, said: “As part of our commitment to addressing climate change, the COP26 Forum at Royal Holloway is an opportunity to showcase our world-leading research which considers the challenges of climate change, biodiversity, food and energy security, infectious disease, inequalities in education, work and participation, political polarisation and resource consumption. The events and activities will offer our students, staff and wider community the chance to learn more about how climate change impacts us in our immediate surroundings, as well as key lessons in how we can each try to live more sustainably, approaching our environment with consideration and responsibility.”

Royal Holloway is a member of the COP26 Universities Network and an accredited observer at COP26, with a number of academics attending the conference. The COP26 Forum feeds into the university’s Living Sustainably research theme.