Getting ready: the UK's preparation for the impacts of climate change

The climate is changing – even in the UK. By 2050 it is probable that we will be experiencing 2o of warming globally, bringing weather significantly more extreme that we are accustomed to in the UK today. Two degrees doesn’t sound much, but it makes a big difference. What we currently experience as a ‘heatwave summer’, such as 2022 with temperatures reaching over 40oC, will be a typical summer. By mid-century we could have week-long periods with temperatures of 40oC and maximum temperatures in the mid 40os in parts of the UK. It will be wetter in winter, possibly with up to 18% more winter rainfall, but 25% less in the summer, with flooding, drought and wildfires all becoming increasingly common. Today’s extreme weather will be the norm in 2050. October 2022 to March 2024 was the wettest period on record, with 50% more rainfall in the South of England, including Storm Babet which left over 2,000 homes flooded - imagine something like that every year. And on top of that the new extreme weather will be like nothing we have experienced before.

We are already having to live with the impacts of climate change, and those impacts go on increasing until we reach net zero emissions globally – and some, like sea level rise – continue for centuries after that.

The UK’s third climate change risk assessment concluded that climate risk in the UK was getting worse – the impacts of climate change were increasing faster that we were taking action to adapt. The evidence for the UK’s 4th climate change risk assessment – CCRA4 – will be published in May 2026, alongside the Climate Change Committee’s advice to the Government on how we can address the current goal of becoming a ‘Well Adapted UK’.

The lecture will look at the state of adaptation in the UK and what is required to address this growing risk to our lives – including health, food security, productivity, financial stability and nature.

Julia King, Baroness Brown of Cambridge DBE, is a distinguished engineer and crossbench member of the House of Lords, renowned for her significant contributions to energy and climate change policy. She holds a PhD in fracture mechanics from Cambridge University and spent 16 years in academia before applying her expertise in senior roles at Rolls-Royce plc and then moving into university leadership and public service.

Twenty years ago her career focus shifted significantly toward climate change, leading to key government advisory positions. Baroness Brown currently chairs the UK Climate Change Committee’s Adaptation Committee and previously served for over a decade as Vice Chair of the Mitigation Committee. Notably, she led the influential 2008 King Review for the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which explored vehicle and fuel technologies for decarbonising road transport and helped shape the UK's electric vehicle strategy.

Baroness Brown is a non-executive director of the major renewable energy companies Ørsted and Ceres Power, influencing the way we address climate change from both policy and industry perspectives. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society, the Royal Academy of Engineering, the Indian National Academy of Engineering and an Honorary Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences, and is a leading voice on addressing climate change.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Mountjoy Centre • Durham University, Stockton Road, Durham, United Kingdom

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