The University of Colorado Boulder will host a global climate summit in partnership with UN Human Rights. Thought leaders attending the gathering will examine climate change as a human rights crisis.



CU Chancellor Phil DiStefano talked about the “Right Here, Right Now Global Climate Summit” in front of alumni and students in Washington, D.C. earlier this week. The idea for the summit came out of the UN climate change conference that took place in Glasgow last year.

He said CU’s been a leader in environmental studies and law, on both the human rights and environmental fronts. For him it makes sense that CU would be “a major player in addressing one of the world’s most challenging issues.”

The four day summit is scheduled to start Dec. 1. Events will happen on the campus, as well as virtually, and will bring together experts from around the world. The university is also trying to line up government support. DiStefano met with the White House Office of Science, Technology and Policy, to talk about the project.

“I believe [climate change] is a problem that takes the world to solve,” DiStefano said. “And this UN summit is the first step in doing this.”