Dr. Pal Prestrud has spent much of his career in polar research. A trained ecologist, he has a special interest in the Arctic environment, mammals and birds and has written a number of publications including several on Arctic foxes. He obtained his Ph.D from Oslo University in 1992 with his thesis "Arctic foxes in Svalbard: population, ecology and rabies."

He began his career with the Norwegian Polar Research Institute, subsequently becoming Advisor in wildlife management and nature conservation in Svalbard. In 1990 he worked for the Canadian Wildlife Service in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.....Read More

The emission of greenhouse gases has been the heart of the matter in environmental discourse throughout its growth and development. For as long as the science has told us that the levels of greenhouse gases in the earth atmosphere are damaging the planet, political attempts to reach agreement on a reduction of emissions have been ongoing.

The Kyoto protocol, aimed at limiting the amount of greenhouse gas emissions and therefore stabilising the environment, was adopted nearly twelve years ago and came into force in 2005. However, despite being signed and ratified by 184 countries, Kyoto has not seen a reduction in greenhouse emissions and, crucially, the USA has never ratified the treaty therefore is not bound by it.

In this month’s Comment Visions we travel to Norway to talk to a man whose career has involved studying the changing nature of our planet. Dr Pal Prestud is an ecologist and serves as the Director of the Centre for Climate and Environmental Research in Oslo. His work has focused on the Polar Regions, which have acted as an early warning system for the sort of climatic changes greenhouse gases are driving.

In this interview Dr Prestud talks about the need to understand the impact of changes in climate and the way in which the earth’s infrastructure and ecology is interlinked. As the United Nations Conference on Climate Change prepares to meet in Copenhagen he also talks of the need for a political solution and the importance of US participation.

Monday: 01:45, 05:15, 07:45, 10:45, 15:45
Tuesday: 22:45*, 14:15
Wednesday: 03:15, 07:45, 11:15, 14:15, 18:45
Thursday: 02:15, 05:15, 13:15, 15:15, 17:45, 19:45
Friday: 11:45, 15:15, 17:15
Saturday: 04:15, 09:15, 15:45, 18:45
Sunday: 00:15, 07:15, 09:15, 19:45, 22:45

*Starts Tuesday 22:45, all times CET.

Only broadcast in the first week of each month.