King’s is pleased to welcome Catherine Witherspoon, former chief executive of the California Air Resources Board (CARB), who will give a lecture in the college on 18th April 2008.

Ms Witherspoon is an international expert on air quality and climate change issues, with 26 years of combined experience at the federal, state and local level in the US. As CARB's Executive Officer, Ms. Witherspoon presided over the adoption of California's greenhouse gas standards for motor vehicles and was directly involved in the drafting of Assembly Bill 32, California's landmark Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006.

Since 1967, California has led the US and the world on cutting-edge research to identify the causes and impacts of air pollution, including those upon public health, societal welfare and the broader ecology. California has pioneered technology-forcing regulations across a wide spectrum of emission sources including mobile sources, fuels, consumer products, industrial facilities and diesel engines of all kinds.

In the 1970s, California launched major energy efficiency programs that have held the State’s per capita power consumption constant for the last 35 years. Now California is moving aggressively to reverse the growth in greenhouse gases, with a long-term goal of cutting state-wide emissions 80% below 1990 levels by 2050. California's half-century of experience is instructive to other governments seeking to advance environmental initiatives.

Ms Witherspoon will be speaking at King's, as part of the London Air Quality Network seminar series, on policy and research at the state level in the U.S. to address climate change and other environmental challenges. This event will begin at 11:30 and will be followed by lunch. To book your place at this free seminar please contact Valentina.lotti@erg.kcl.ac.uk

The presentation for the seminar is linked below:

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Item date 04/04/2008