Welcome to the inaugural lecture and panel discussion with Uppsala University’s Zennström Visiting Professor in Climate Change Leadership 2026, Karen O’Brien.
Karen O’Brien is co-founder of cCHANGE and Professor Emerita of human geography at University of Oslo. Building on decades of research on the social and human dimensions of environmental change, her current work focuses on connecting theory with practice to scale equitable and sustainable transformations. We are delighted about her appointment as the ninth Zennström Visiting Professor in Climate Change Leadership at Uppsala University.
The inaugural lecture is a welcome for Karen. The event will be held in English and takes place on Monday 16 March 2026 starting at 13:00 in Hambergsalen, Geocentrum (Villavägen 16) Uppsala University.
Programme of the event
- 13:05 Welcome message by Anders Hagfeldt, Vice-chancellor Uppsala University
- 13:15 Lecture by the Zennström professor 2026 Karen O’Brien
Scaling transformative change for a just and sustainable world
The scale of the climate crisis challenges us to think, organize, and act differently. To do so, we may need to relate differently to ourselves, each other, nature, and the future. Drawing on my past research on climate change impacts, vulnerability, and adaptation and the recent Transformative Change Assessment of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), this talk will focus on the importance of engaging with the practical, political, and personal spheres of transformation, as well as my current work on fractal approaches to scaling transformations to sustainability. Finally, I will consider some of the implications for climate change leadership, with an emphasis on why we matter more than we think. - 13:45 Panel discussion
- 14:30 Reflection on the panel discussion by the Zennström professor
- 14:40 Discussion with all participants and the audience
- 15:00 – 16.30 Mingle with fika
Please note that registration is mandatory and the number of seats is limited. The deadline for registration is 8 March 2026.
