Oliver Inderwildi is an expert in emission control. He works on the reaction mechanism of pollutant abatement from automotive exhausts and improving fuel combustion and synthesis to reduce pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions.

A native of Switzerland, Dr Inderwildi is a research fellow at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at the University of Oxford, where he heads the School’s Centre for Low-Carbon Mobility. He is a Senior Member of Linacre College, Oxford University, and associated researcher at the Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Cambridge.Read More

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The issue: The COP15 conference was widely seen as a setback for the EU. The agreement that was reached fell short of the global deal to replace the Kyoto protocol that the EU had sought.

The summit also revealed the limits of EU influence. The EU, which had been instrumental in getting the Kyoto protocol agreed, was unable to shape a deal in Copenhagen, outmanoeuvred by the US and China.

What lessons should the EU draw from Copenhagen? Can the EU still be a driving force in global climate politics? Should the EU continue to push for a global agreement, or should it consider other options, such as bilateral agreements? Should it even take unilateral action, as advocated by some European stakeholders, and increase its emissions reduction target from 20% to 30% without waiting for the US and China to follow? Is a global deal still possible, and when might it be reached?

These are just some of the questions that Comment:Visions invites you to debate with a panel of senior EU decision-makers and stakeholders.

The Earth’s atmosphere is the result of billions of years of geological activity and interaction with living organisms. Until recently, the stability of its composition has been something we have taken for granted. Now human activity is beginning to change that and for the first time we find that we must begin to manage the atmosphere, or risk destabilising our planet’s climate. Read More

As nations gather to seek an agreement on solving climate change, many are working behind the scenes to create the innovations and protocols that will form the foundation of a new, emission-free society. The fossil fuels that are greatest source of greenhouse gas emissions also provide the majority of the energy that we rely on. Is it possible to create new clean sources of energy and a business environment that will help transform our planet without compromising our way of life? Read More

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

Dr Paul Nieuwenhuis is co-Director of the Centre for Automotive Industry Research (CAIR) at Cardiff University, which he joined in 1990. CAIR studies economic and strategic aspects of the world motor industry. He is a founder member of the ESRC Centre for Business Relationships, Accountability, Sustainability and Society (BRASS). His main interests have been historic and environmental and publications have been in these areas, notably The Green Car Guide (1992), The Death of Motoring? (1997), The Automotive Industry and the Environment (2003)....Read More

Unterhaching is a town of around 25,000 people a few kilometers south of Munich, Germany. In most respects it is typical of small towns in Europe, except for one thing, it has built and now operates its own power generating station using hot water from deep within the Earth’s crust. The idea first arose in the 1990’s and over the following decade the town secured the venture capital and the engineering resources to drill down three-and-a half kilometers to tap into a permeable limestone layer containing hot water....Read More

Enzo Tiezzi has been full professor of physical chemistry in the Faculty of Science of the University of Siena since 1979 where he coordinates the research doctorate in chemistry and Chemistry for Sustainable Development at Siena University.

He gave the plenary lecture at the FIAT International Conference in 1996 and has been invited to speak in Dublin, Madras, Florida University, Krakow, Lyon, London, Cadiz and many other venues....Read More

Enzo Tiezzi has been full professor of physical chemistry in the Faculty of Science of the University of Siena since 1979 where he coordinates the research doctorate in chemistry and Chemistry for Sustainable Development at Siena University.

He gave the plenary lecture at the FIAT International Conference in 1996 and has been invited to speak in Dublin, Madras, Florida University, Krakow, Lyon, London, Cadiz and many other venues....Read More

José Esquinas-Alcázar received his M.Sc. in Vegetable Crops and a Ph.D. in Genetics from the University of California at Davis. He has taught in numerous universities, mainly in Europe and Latin America, in the fields of genetics, plant breeding, agronomy, agrarian development, and UN system and international cooperation. He is currently a professor of Plant Production at the Polytechnic University of Madrid, Spain, as well as Director of Studies on Hunger and Poverty at the University of Córdoba, Spain....

Stefano Stramigioli received the M.Sc. with honors (cum laude) in 1992 and the Ph.D with honors (cum laude) in 1998. Since 1998 he has been a faculty member and is currently full professor of the chair of Advanced Robotics at the University of Twente, an entrepreneurial research university in Enschede, Netherlands....

Based at the Observatoire de Paris, Dr Athena Coustenis is the world's pre-eminent expert on Titan, the Saturn moon that has fascinated astronomers and astrophysicists since its discovery in 1655.

Born in Athens, Greece, Dr Coustenis moved to France to study, receiving her PhD Astrophysics and Space Techniques in 1989 for her research into Titan. In the past two decades, as technological development has allowed space exploration to expand, she has deepened her fascination with Titan and in particular it's atmosphere and environment....

Dr Ahmet Lokurlu is a Turkish engineer, entrepreneur and the founder of Solitem GmbH, a pioneering company at the forefront of eco-technology.

Dr Lokurlu studied mechanical engineering in his native Turkey, before moving to the University of Essen in Germany to study energy engineering. In 1993 he began to investigate methods for harnessing the power of the sun for environmental gain, the work forming the centre of his PhD research. The system he developed during his doctoral studies uses solar power to provide air conditioning for buildings....

Bjorn Stigson has been President of the World Business Council for Sustainable Development since 1995. An expert on the challenges of sustainable development, his background in international business has enabled him to lead the WBCSD over the past decade as it has established itself as the world’s leading organisation focused on business and sustainable development... read more

Dr. Olav Orheim is a distinguished glaciologist, climatologist and polar expert who has spent more than thirty years studying the effects of global warming... read more