Interdisciplinary conference on climate change in Athens: Message by His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew

Academics and policymakers from ten countries around the world met in Athens to discuss climate change. As the President of the Modern Greek Studies Association (MGSA), Professor Katerina Lagos, pointed out in her introduction: “the inspiration for this three-day conference came from the events surrounding the Bicentennial of the Greek Revolution. Very little was discussed about the environment at these events, so the organizers felt that a conference was needed to address this very important topic.”  

Accordingly, the Hellenic Studies programs of California State University, Sacramento (Sac State) https://sacstatehellenicstudies.org/;  the University of California (UCLA) https://hellenic.ucla.edu/; Simon Fraser University, Canada (SFU) https://www.sfu.ca/hellenic-studies.html, and the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA) www.uoa.gr (https://en.uoa.gr/) hosted a conference in Athens, Greece entitled “Envisioning the Greek Landscape: From Thera to Climate Change”October 19–21, 2023.  

The Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, in his message to the organizers and participants applauded this endeavor and conveyed his support “on such a vital issue at such a critical time.”

This international-interdisciplinary conference was held at the NKUA “Kostis Palamas” building (constructed in 1857) on the 19^th and 20^th of October 2023, and at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens on the 21^st of October.  This conference had proven incredibly timely, as we have all witnessed the horrible fires of the summer and, more recently, devastating floods affecting Greece.

The Vice Rector for Academic Affairs, International Relations and Extroversion of the NKUA, Professor Sophia Papaioannou declared the conference opening and welcomed the participants. She also attended the conference and the policy panel discussion at the American School of Classical Studies at Athens (ASCS).

Additionally, the Lieutenant Governor of California Eleni Kounelaki conveyed her support and congratulatory remarks.Eleni Kounalakis was sworn in as the 50th Lieutenant Governor of California on January 7th, 2019. She is the first woman elected Lieutenant Governor of California.

For the past year Professor Katerina Lagos (Sac State), Professor Sharon Gerstel (UCLA), Professor James Horncastle (SFU), Professor Dimitris Krallis (SFU) Professor Irene Kamberidou (NKUA) had been organizing this interdisciplinary conference which succeeded in bringing together academics and policymakers from ten countries around the world to discuss the perception and exploitation of the Greek environment, from antiquity to the present.

The conference explored how the various peoples and institutions who have overseen the Greek landscape have understood its natural wealth and how they have overcome natural climatic challenges. In looking to the past for sources of inspiration, this conference succeeded in generating ideas and proposals for business leaders and policymakers, while beginning the conversation that will help shape future policies. 

Speakers-participants included:

Sharon Gerstel, Professor of Byzantine Art & Archaeology at the UCLA, and Director of the UCLA Stavros Niarchos Foundation Center for the Study of Hellenic Culture. She holds the “George P. Kolovos Family Centennial Term Chair in Hellenic Studies”.

James Horncastle Assistant Professor in Global Humanities at Simon Fraser University, Canada (SFU). He also holds an endowed chair in the Edward & Emily McWinney Professor in International Relations.

Constantine Cartalis, Professor of Environmental and Climate Physics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). He is an acting member of the European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change as well as of the respective Scientific Committee in Greece.

Andreas Borgeas, politician who has served as a California State Senator and an appointed commissioner on the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission. Borgeas now specializes in the renewable energy sectors of California and Greece.

Ino Afentouli, Program Manager, NATO Public Division, and on the team of the NATO 2030, the flagship project launched by the Secretary General.

Keynote speaker at Policy Panel session at the ASCS at Athens:

Andreas A. Papandreou, Professor of Environmental Economics at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). He is a member of the Climate Change Impacts Study Committee of the Bank of Greece; Director of the Political Economy of Sustainable Development Lab (PESD), and Co-chair of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Nework Greece (SDSN Greece). 

See detailed program in: Conference Program