Food Thinkers Lunch: Climate, Methane, Metrics, & Food Systems
What is methane “worth” to the climate, and what are the implications for our food system?

Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, which contributes significantly to climate change. However, it is also a relatively short-lived gas, so it affects the climate in a fundamentally different way to CO2. This distinction between short- and long-lived greenhouse gases can cause problems if climate emissions metrics (which are used to compare different emissions) are inappropriately applied. About two-thirds of the anthropogenic sources of methane are from agriculture and waste. How these emissions of methane are (mis-)represented makes a big difference to estimates of a food’s carbon footprint. This in turn has implications for the types of agricultural production system we support, and how we might prioritise potential mitigations.
Date: 22 May 2018, 12:15
Venue: Linacre College, St Cross Road OX1 3JA
Venue Details: Private Dining Room
Speakers: Michelle Cain (Oxford Martin School), John Lynch (Department of Physics)
Organising department: Environmental Change Institute
Organisers: Dr Saher Hasnain (University of Oxford), Roger Sykes (Environmental Change Institute), Dr Rebecca White (University of Oxford)
Organiser contact email address: ifstal-oxford@eci.ox.ac.uk
Host: Dr Rebecca White (University of Oxford)
Part of: Food Thinkers Lunches - Trinity Term 2018
Topics:
Booking required?: Required
Booking url: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/food-thinkers-lunches-trinity-term-2018-tickets-45383382920
Cost: Free
Audience: Public
Editor: Saher Hasnain