Rotman Insights Hub | University of Toronto - Rotman School of Management
Groundbreaking ideas and research for engaged leaders
Rotman Insights Hub | University of Toronto - Rotman School of Management
Rotman Insights Hub | University of Toronto - Rotman School of Management Groundbreaking ideas and research for engaged leaders
Rotman Insights Hub | University of Toronto - Rotman School of Management

How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need

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The world needs a plan for how to get to zero greenhouse gas emissions in time to avoid an irreversible climate catastrophe. In this conversation, an interview with Ariel Bissett, Bill Gates suggests why we need to work towards the net-zero target and detail what we need to do to achieve this profoundly important goal.

Bill Gates, Ariel Bissett, Kenneth Corts

The Rotman School was proud to co-host a livestream event with Indigo Books to introduce Bill Gates' new book, How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need, to the Canadian business community.  This was a sold-out event, but climate change is such an important topic that we are sharing the full video from the event.

Bill Gates has spent a decade investigating the causes and effect of climate change. With the help and guidance of experts in the fields of physics, chemistry, biology, engineering, political science and finance, he has focused exactly on what must be done in order to stop the planet’s slide toward certain environmental disaster. 

In his book, he gives readers  a clear-eyed description of the challenges we face. He describes the areas in which technology is already helping to reduce emissions; where and how the current technology can be made to function more effectively; where breakthrough technologies are needed, and who is working on these essential innovations.

Finally, he lays out a concrete plan for achieving the goal of zero emissions — suggesting not only policies that governments should adopt, but what we as individuals can do to keep our government, our employers and ourselves accountable in this crucial enterprise.

As Gates makes clear in this interview achieving zero emissions will not be simple or easy to do, but by following the guidelines he sets out , it is a goal firmly within our reach.

Read the full write-up on our livestream by U of T Student Newspaper, The Varsity: https://thevarsity.ca/2021/03/14/bill-gates-at-rotman-climate-crisis-is-one-of-humanitys-greatest-challenges

Bill Gates is co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and founder of Breakthrough Energy. In 1975, Bill Gates founded Microsoft with Paul Allen and led the company to become the worldwide leader in business and personal software and services. In 2008, Bill transitioned to focus full-time on his foundation’s work to expand opportunity to the world’s most disadvantaged people. Along with co-chair Melinda Gates, he leads the foundation’s development of strategies and sets the overall direction of the organization. At Breakthrough Energy, he’s putting his experience as an innovator and problem-solver to work to address climate change by supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs, big thinkers, and clean technologies. Bill uses his experience partnering with global leaders across sectors to help drive the policy, market, and technological changes required for a clean energy transition.
Ariel Bissett is a Canadian writer and filmmaker. Her YouTube channel has over 250k subscribers and is a place where she tries to encourage everyone to pick up a book. She has spoken at VidCon, premiered videos at Buffer Festival, was an official Man Booker Prize Vlogger, has appeared in the New York Times, Variety, HuffPost, and Forbes, and has interviewed Michelle Obama, Bill Gates, and Margaret Atwood. She is the creator and co-host of Books Unbound, a weekly bookish podcast. She has a master of arts in english literature from the University of Ottawa.
Kenneth S. Corts is the vice-dean, research, strategy and resources, Desautels chair in entrepreneurship, and professor of ecominic analysis and policy at the Rotman School. He previously served as interim dean of the Rotman School and as acting vice-president, university operations at the University of Toronto.
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