Climate change is expected to be particularly severe in the Middle East. Israel and its neighbors are already seeing statistically significant changes in the weather. This lecture constitutes a briefing of the present situation and what changes are projected ahead. It will also consider the geopolitical implications associated with extreme weather events, droughts and climate refugees. While Israel for many years was slow in fielding a meaningful response to the climate crisis, in response to the increasing manifestations and new signals about global norms coming from Washington and the Biden administration — this is starting to change. What can we expect from the Israeli government policies as the world looks to the UN Climate Conference in Glasgow and how does Israel’s new government differ from that of previous, Netanyahu cabinets?
Dr. Alon Tal is a Serling Visiting Israeli Scholar at James Madison College in MSU for the seventh time during the
Fall 2021 semester.
Dr. Alon Tal [Sc.D., Harvard University; Ll.B., Hebrew University] is the Chair of the Department of Public Policy at Tel Aviv University and founded the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, a graduate studies center in which students join Israeli, Palestinian and Jordanian environmentalists to study common environmental challenges and solutions.
Dr. Tal served as the co-chair of Israel’s Green Party. He is also a founding member of the Blue & White party’s list of Knesset candidates, who actively participated in both 2019 campaigns.
He is the author of five books. The latest is The Land Is Full: Addressing Overpopulation in Israel, New Haven, Yale University Press, 2016.