Making a Change or Making Some Change: The False Binary in Climate Sustainability
By Mikey Hadley; Photos by Grace Chai, Ha Nguyen, and Theo Nims
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On Monday, March 9th, Dr. Auroop Ganguly, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Northeastern University delivered a lecture to an eager crowd at the Student Union Ballroom. Titled “AI and Entrepreneurship in Climate and Sustainability”, his talk aimed to highlight the opportunities emerging in the intersection between AI and climate research technologies, and how students can get involved.
Dean Mari Castañeda kicked off the event by briefly recapping the history of Commonwealth Honors College’s (CHC) annual Daffodil Lecture. The lecture is held in spring to celebrate the blooming daffodils that are planted each year, a tradition started by the late Priscilla M. Clarkson, a former CHC dean. Dean Castañeda explained that Clarkson oversaw the creation of the CHC residential community, which was "built with the belief that nature, especially daffodils and trees, which is why so many of the halls are named after trees, have a lot to teach us about creativity, vitality, and resilience. As my favorite saying goes, the oak trees gain their strength by enduring the winds."
Dr. Ganguly then started by recounting the summers he had spent taking students from his research lab to developing parts of the world, where he claimed problems are felt more acutely, and where problem-solving can be more impactful.
He explained that in a world where many feel like they must choose between either a comfortable salary or a change-making career, "there is an option to do both."
One summer, when visiting Chile with a group of his students, Dr. Ganguly posed a question: "if ice from the Antarctic breaks and falls into the ocean, will the impacts be felt more here, or in Boston?" The surprising answer, despite Chile’s close proximity to Antarctica, is Boston. His point was to illustrate the interconnectedness of our world, and the impact that climate change has not just on localized regions, but human society as a whole.
While we all might feel the interconnected effects of climate catastrophe, according to Dr. Ganguly: "the economics keep us planets apart." He explained that if we want developing countries to switch to sustainable energy, we cannot simply tell them to "slow down." Instead, we need to create the technological means to facilitate a transition to clean energy while also maintaining the financial viability of such sustainable options. This, Dr. Ganguly claimed, is where entrepreneurship can play a vital role.
Dr. Ganguly’s lab has already spawned 4 startups, one of which is RisQ, which was acquired in 2022 by the Fortune 500 company Intercontinental Exchange. Two of his other former PhD students Kate Duffy and Thomas Vandal received NASA funding for their startup Zeus AI, a company which claims to use globally assimilated data to create predictive meteorological models powered by artificial intelligence.
Dr. Ganguly believes it is stories like those of his students that prove the choice between making a change and making a living is a false one.
When asked how students looking to make a difference could stay motivated in the face of modern-day challenges, he responded: "You need to have the imagination. People think saving lives and making money are two different things. You shouldn't put the burden on people to make that decision. You can try to do something to address a critical problem, which also encourages economic stimulation. It is not a binary choice."
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Featuring
Mikey Hadley
Grace Chai
Ha Nguyen
Theo Nims
