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Rupert Read

Rupert Read
Rupert Read campaigning in Cambridge during the general election of 2015.
Norwich City Councillor for Wensum Ward
In office
10 June 2004 – 5 May 2011
Preceded by(new seat)
Succeeded byLucy Galvin
Personal details
Born1966 (age 57–58)
Political partyGreen Party of England and Wales
Alma materBalliol College, Oxford

Rupert Read (born 1966) is an academic and a Green Party campaigner, a former spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion, and the current director of the Climate Majority Project.[1] He is the author of several books on Wittgenstein, philosophy, and/or climate change, most recently Why Climate Breakdown Matters, Deep Adaptation: Navigating the Realities of Climate Chaos, and Do You Want to Know the Truth?[2] Until 2023, Read was a reader in philosophy at the University of East Anglia[3] where he was awarded – as Principal Investigator – Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funding for two projects on "natural capital".[4][5] His other major recent academic focus has been on the precautionary principle, having contributed substantially to work co-authored with Nassim Nicholas Taleb on applying the principle to questions of genetic modification of organisms.[6] In further work, Read has theorised the utility of the precautionary principle in a wide range of areas, including: climate change, the environment, as well as financial and technology sectors.[7]

Read's application of the precautionary principle in climate and environmental affairs underlies many of his talks and presentations, notably including "Shed a Light – This civilisation is finished: so what is to be done?" which was given at Churchill College, Cambridge and has gained success on YouTube with over 200,000 views.[8]

In June 2018, Read triggered a BBC policy shift by publicly refusing to debate with a climate change denier.[9] This led to new policy that meant the BBC would no longer present climate change deniers' views as a counterbalance to scientific standpoints.[10][11][12]

In October 2018, Read declared his support for Extinction Rebellion.[13] Acting as Extinction Rebellion's spokesperson, he gave a number of interviews on national news programmes during the Rebellion's London protests in April 2019 (see below). Read was part of the five members of the group invited to meet with Environment Secretary Michael Gove to discuss their demands.[14] The following day the UK Parliament declared a "climate change emergency";[15] part of Extinction Rebellion's demands.[16]

Read commented regularly through the Eastern Daily Press "One World Column" for five years.[17] In his regular appearances in the local and national press, he speaks on sustainable transport, green economics, and social justice. He was formerly chair of the Green House thinktank, a former Green Party spokesperson for transport[18] and former East of England party co-ordinator.

Read left UEA in the Summer of 2023, citing his dissatisfaction with current academia's failure to adequately confront the climate crisis, as well as its tendency to over-appreciate the sciences and under-appreciate the arts and humanities, coupled with the opportunity for Read to spend his time building the Climate Majority Project which he believes is a more vital use of his time.[19]

  1. ^ "Climate Majority Project". Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  2. ^ "Rupert Read Books". RupertRead.
  3. ^ UEA Faculty page, Accessed 9 July 2009
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference :1 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Read, Rupert; O'Riordan, Tim (3 September 2017). "The Precautionary Principle Under Fire" (PDF). Environment: Science and Policy for Sustainable Development. 59 (5): 4–15. doi:10.1080/00139157.2017.1350005. ISSN 0013-9157. S2CID 158589782.
  8. ^ Churchill College, University of Cambridge (9 November 2018), Shed A Light: Rupert Read – This civilisation is finished: so what is to be done?, archived from the original on 12 December 2021, retrieved 22 May 2019
  9. ^ Read, Rupert (31 July 2018). "BBC Radio wanted to have me on today to debate a climate-denier in the context of the drought/heatwave. I said NO. I told them it was a disgrace that they still give climate-deniers airtime at a time like this. I won't be part of such charades any longer. Please RT if you agree". @GreenRupertRead. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  10. ^ Read, Rupert (2 August 2018). "I won't go on the BBC if it supplies climate change deniers as 'balance' | Rupert Read". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  11. ^ Carrington, Damian (7 September 2018). "BBC admits 'we get climate change coverage wrong too often'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  12. ^ "Facing Criticism Over Past Climate Reporting, BBC Commits to Reining in 'False Balance'". Snopes. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  16. ^ Cite error: The named reference :6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  17. ^ 'One World Column', Eastern Daily Press. Archived 5 November 2007 at the Wayback Machine (Accessed 21 November 2007)
  18. ^ "Green Party Spokespeople". GPofE&W.
  19. ^ Read, Rupert. "UEA humanities cuts reflect inability of academia to confront climate crisis". Time Higher Education. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
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