By Nathan Miller, MEM ‘16
Nicholas School Communications Assistant

DURHAM, N.C. – Leaders from some of the world’s most influential environmental organizations, agencies and industries are scheduled to take part in the Nicholas Institute for Environmental Policy Solution’s 10th anniversary forum, “Leadership in a Time of Rapid Change: Envisioning Solutions to Environmental Challenges,” next Thursday, Oct. 22, at the Fuqua School of Business

The free forum, which runs from 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m., is open to all faculty, staff and students.

It will bring together national and international experts from the nonprofit, government, and private sectors to address a wide range of issues, ranging from population dynamics and data storage to resource management economic development, as they relate to solving the major environmental challenges of the 21st century.

Speakers include Bill Reilly, former EPA head and recent chair of the National Commission of the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling; Fred Krupp, president of the Environmental Defense Fund; Pawan Patil, a senior economist at the World Bank who focuses on global uses of natural resources; and Carter Roberts, president and CEO of the World Wildlife Fund.

The day’s line-up also includes talks or panel discussions featuring Alfred S. Romualdez, the mayor of Tacloban, Philippines, whose city was devastated by Typhoon Haiyan in 2013; Jim Rogers, former CEO of Duke Energy; Mark Laabs, chief operating officers of Soligent Holdings; and other leaders from Duke and beyond.

A complete agenda for the day’s events is available online. Advance registration is required.

For ten years, the Nicholas Institute has strived to improve environmental policymaking by using peer-reviewed research to highlight the valuation of ecosystem services, natural resource consumption, and climate change. It has informed the carbon cap and trade program in California and recommended how current environmental laws, like the Clean Air Act, can act as a legal framework for new climate mitigation policies. One of its current studies is focusing on the economic viability of mangrove swamps as blue carbon offsets in West Africa.

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