G7 SUMMIT 2021

126 Nobel Laureates tell G7 summit “Humanity is taking colossal risks with our common future”

The statement, signed by Nobel laureates including Brian Schmidt, the Dalai Lama, Steven Chu, Shirin Ebadi, Jennifer Doudna, Alice Munro and Paul Nurse, implores leaders to act

Story highlights

  • The statement calls on leaders to take action to halve greenhouse gas emissions and reverse loss of nature by 2030
  • Nobel Prize laureates from around the world and other experts stress the need to for humanity to establish a new relationship with the planet and offering seven proposals
  • The statement was issued by the steering committee of the first Nobel Prize summit, Our Planet, Our Future

In advance of the G7 summit in the UK, a scientific statement signed by an unprecedented 126 Nobel Laureates has been delivered to summit leaders.

The statement said, ““Without transformational action this decade, humanity is taking colossal risks with our common future. Societies risk large-scale, irreversible changes to Earth’s biosphere.”

The statement, signed by Nobel laureates including Brian Schmidt, the Dalai Lama, Steven Chu, Shirin Ebadi, Jennifer Doudna, Alice Munro and Paul Nurse, implores leaders to act:

Time is running out to prevent irreversible changes. The long-term potential of humanity depends upon our ability today to value our common future. Ultimately, this means valuing the resilience of societies and the resilience of Earth’s biosphere.

Loud and clear voice

The statement, submitted to G7 president Boris Johnson and the United Nations Secretary General, calls on leaders to take action to halve greenhouse gas emissions and reverse loss of nature by 2030.

The statement was issued by the steering committee of the first Nobel Prize summit, Our Planet, Our Future.

The summit was hosted by the Nobel Foundation and organized by the National Academy of Sciences with the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research and the Stockholm Resilience Centre and Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics.

Professor Johan Rockström, director of the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, an organizer of the summit said, “Never have we seen such a loud and clear call to humanity from our most respected scholars. With one voice they conclude we face unacceptable risks.”

“The risks are colossal, the necessary action will be unprecedented. This decade societies must halve emissions of greenhouse gases and reverse loss of nature to become nature positive.”

New world view

Professor Carl Folke, a signatory of the statement and chair of the Stockholm Resilience Centre and director of the Beijer Institute for Ecological Economics said, “We need an entirely new world view that we call planetary stewardship. We are seeing strong signs that planetary stewardship is emerging. The question is: will it emerge fast enough?”

The first Nobel Prize Summit brought together Nobel Prize laureates and other esteemed leaders in the sciences, policy, business, the youth movement, and the arts to explore actions that can be achieved this decade to put the world on a path to a more sustainable, more prosperous future for all.

Inspired by the summit’s discussions, Nobel Prize laureates from around the world and other experts issued a statement that called for urgent action, stressing the need to for humanity to establish a new relationship with the planet and offering seven proposals.

The full text of the statement is here

Published: 2021-06-03

Related info

The Nobel Prize Summit Our Planet, Our Future brough together Nobel Prize laureates, scientists, policymakers, business leaders, and youth leaders to explore what can be achieved to put the world on a path to a more sustainable, more prosperous future for all of humanity

Read more about the Nobel Prize Summit Our Planet, Our future

Share

News & events