Security, Prosperity, and the Future of Climate

As the climate crisis intensifies, governments must navigate an increasingly difficult trade-off: how to advance ambitious climate and energy goals while safeguarding national security and economic prosperity.  Globally, the calculus behind these policy choices is shifting. Defense budgets are swelling. Economies are strained. Meanwhile global energy demand continues to rise, and climate impacts are accelerating. Against this backdrop, global climate policy must chart a new path or risk being sidelined, despite rising urgency for action. At this event, former German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck will reflect on these tensions, drawing from his experience at the frontlines of the energy transition and the choices leaders must confront.

Panelist

Robert Habeck has been Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection since December 8, 2021. Member of the Bundestag since 2021 2018 – 2022 Party Chairman of Alliance 90/The Greens 2017 – 2018 Deputy Minister-President and Minister for Energy Transition, Agriculture, Environment, Nature Conservation and Digitalization of the State of Schleswig-Holstein 2012 – 2017 Deputy Minister-President and Minister for Energy Transition, Agriculture, Environment and Rural Areas of the State of Schleswig-Holstein 2009 – 2012 Group Chairman in the State Parliament of Schleswig-Holstein 2008 – 2009 Group Chairman in the District Council of Schleswig-Flensburg 2004 – 2009 State Chairman of Alliance 90/The Greens in Schleswig-Holstein 2002 – 2004 District Chairman of Alliance 90/The Greens in Schleswig-Flensburg Member of Alliance 90/The Greens   Worked as a freelance writer 2000 Doctorate from the University of Hamburg 1991 to 1996 Studied in Freiburg im Breisgau (German Studies, Philosophy, and Philology), Roskilde, Denmark (Humanities), and Hamburg (Literature and Philosophy), receiving a Master’s degree   Dr. Robert Habeck was born on September 2, 1969, in Lübeck. He is married and has four children. 

Moderator

Sanya Carley is the Mark Alan Hughes Faculty Director of the Kleinman Center and Presidential Distinguished Professor of Energy Policy and City Planning at the Stuart Weitzman School of Design. She holds secondary appointments at the Wharton School and the School of Social Policy and Practice. She also co-directs the Energy Justice Lab and is a Resources for the Future (RFF) university fellow. Carley’s research focuses on energy justice and just transitions, energy insecurity, electricity and transportation markets, and public perceptions of energy infrastructure and technologies. She recently released a book, “Power Lines: The Human Costs of American Energy in Transition.” Carley is also an author of the Fifth National Climate Assessment report and a member of the Innovation Policy Forum for the National Academies. Prior to her appointment at Penn, Carley was a Paul H. O’Neill Professor at Indiana University, and held administrative positions there as a Chair, Program Director of the top-ranked Master of Public Affairs program, and as Associate Vice Provost of Faculty & Academic Affairs, respectively. Carley received her Ph.D. in public policy from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, her M.S. in urban and regional planning from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and bachelor’s degrees in economics and sustainable development from Swarthmore College.