New start – same challenges

As the leaves begin to change and the air becomes crisp, the campus at Exeter comes alive with the energy of new beginnings. It is great to see colleagues, returning students, and particularly welcoming new students who are beginning their journey with us.

The start of any new academic year is always filled with excitement but is also an opportunity for introspection. For our students, as future business leaders, you will be entrusted with considerable influence, and with that influence comes a profound responsibility to make the world a better place. As academics and teachers, we share that responsibility, and it’s something intrinsic to life and work at Exeter. Time at business school is not just about acquiring knowledge but about developing the wisdom and ethical compass needed to address the challenges of our time.

Two issues demand our attention and action: climate change and artificial intelligence. They are interconnected aspects of our evolving world.

Progress on climate change?

The latest G20 summit was held in New Delhi at which an agreement was made to “pursue and encourage efforts to triple renewable energy capacity globally through existing targets and policies”. In addition, there was a Global Biofuels Alliance agreed between India, the US, and Brazil, aimed at increasing the use of cleaner fuels. Whilst this appears like progress, was any real progress made? Colleagues from across Exeter have provided their views:

Professor Pierre Friedlingstein, who leads the Global Carbon Budget, said: “While the G20 follows the words of IPCC and recognises that “limiting global warming to 1.5°C requires rapid, deep and sustained reductions in global GHG emissions”, the G20 declaration falls short providing the route to achieve this. “Although the G20 encourages efforts to ‘triple renewable energy capacity globally’, coal is only mentioned once without any quantitative timeline, and gas or oil is simply not discussed at all. Not ambitious enough, sorry!”

Professor Gail Whiteman, Professor of Sustainability at the Business School commented: “The G20 did not deliver substantial advancements on climate action. “The world has 16 climate tipping points and five of these are in the polar regions and will be triggered between +1.5C and +2C. “We are at a critical juncture where we rapidly phase down coal and fossil fuel use, or we stagger into climate catastrophe.”

In short, our view is that while commitments like these are to be welcomed more urgent action needs to be taken.

Related to this key challenge, our colleague Dr Ethan Addicott has started work with various external partners on a project looking at how to mitigate the risks of conflict driven by climate change and changing fishing grounds. It is a great example of the multiple effects of climate change and the way we are going to have to adapt and act.

AI – its development and consciousness?

In the last year, there has been an increased debate about the place of AI and how it will affect our lives and daily work. Is it a force for good, or the beginning of the end of humans? It is an amazing technology and at this stage, the onus is on all of us to try and understand its potential and the good it can be used for. It is not going away and is a key part of our future. There is of course the interesting perspective of its consciousness. It is a mind-blowing subject and where do you start?

Professor Oliver Hauser is looking at this topic and I’d encourage you to read his recent Exter Expertise piece exploring how AI needs to undergo a process similar to evolution before it can be treated as a conscious entity.

As we navigate the complexities of climate change and the limitless potentials of artificial intelligence, amongst other challenges, let us remember that Exeter is not just a place of learning but a centre of ideas, new thinking, and actions that make a positive difference. Long may that continue.