Polis kocht! Make it Stick – Traditional and academic knowledge in the fight against climate change in the Global South

Climate change is a global issue. But while the countries of the Global South have contributed very little to the emissions that are causing and accelerating climate change, they are disproportionately facing its devastating effects. The Global North has played a pivotal role by offering crucial financial aid, technical skills, and expertise to fight the emerging effects of the climate crisis in the Global South. However, the local challenges that come with these interventions, are often overlooked. Bringing together perspectives from the Global North and the Global South, Antonia Krefeld-Schwalb, a behavioral psychologist and professor in marketing, and Hlengiwe Radebe, a community activist on energy access and sustainability from South Africa, shed light on these challenges and explore ways towards the incorporation of traditional as well as academic perspectives to grapple climate change in the Global South.

‚Polis kocht‘ is an ongoing event-series where we cook and eat together with experts and policymakers to have an informal exchange about a specific topic.

The event takes place on 24 August 2023, 7:00 – 9:30 pm. The event will be held in english. The address is Berlin Global Village, Am Sudhaus 2, 12053 Berlin.

For food and drinks, we ask for a small financial contribution. We will be in touch with further details once you register with eventbrite.

Feel free to reach out to David Weyl (david.weyl@polis180.org) if you have any further questions.

This event takes place in cooperation with the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation´s Humboldt Residency Programme. By exploring the interface of global ecological urgency, political volatility, and societal conditions the Humboldt Residency Programme aims to foster a wide-ranging exchange between scientific and non-scientific stakeholders to inspire solutions for the most pressing questions currently facing humankind. In 2023, the participants work on the topic “Our Precious Resources:Pathways to a Secure and Sustainable Future”. Check out this year’s cohort’s profiles in the profile brochure: https://www.humboldt-foundation.de/fileadmin/Bewerben/Programme/Humboldt_Residency-Programm/Residency_2023/profile_brochure_residency_2023.pdf

ANTONIA KREFELD-SCHWALB: Antonia Krefeld-Schwalb is an Assistant Professor at the Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University. She is a consumer researcher with a background in cogni<ve psychology. Over the course of her career, she has worked on understanding and predicting consumer preferences in method-focused research projects. More recently, Antonia used this knowledge to understand why behavioural interventions to motivate sustainable behaviour do not work the same on everyone.

HLENGIWE RADEBE: Hlengiwe Radebe is a Civil Society and Youth Engagement Officer at WWF South Africa. She is the Chairperson of the Climate Action Network South Africa’s board of directors and a board advisor at Mukuru Clean Stoves. She has over eight years of experience working on the human dimensions of sustainable energy access, energy poverty, climate change, gender, and capacity building. She has worked extensively in South Africa and other African countries on projects addressing urban energy, equitable and inclusive low carbon development, climate change migration, and gender mainstreaming.