British PM to speak to NZ Climate Conference

7 March 2006

British PM to speak at NZ Climate Change Conference

British Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Tony Blair, is to address an international conference on climate change organised by Victoria University of Wellington.

Mr Blair will speak, via interactive video link, to the multidisciplinary conference on Climate Change & Governance: Critical Issues for New Zealand & the Pacific, on 29 March.

Vice-Chancellor, Professor Pat Walsh, said the University was honoured that Mr Blair had agreed to speak to the conference.

“Mr Blair has been a consistent leader of international efforts to tackle the problem of global climate change and we are honoured that a speaker of his calibre has agreed to take the time from his busy schedule to speak at the conference and answer questions from the delegates.

“As the nation’s capital, Wellington is also home to the diplomatic corps and as New Zealand’s Capital City University, we have a long-standing and strong relationship with the corps and Mr Blair’s involvement highlights that. In the last two years the leaders of Sweden, Norway, Vietnam, Malaysia, Chile and New Zealand have given addresses at seminars and conferences organised by Victoria University.”

The conference, which has drawn a host of internationally distinguished speakers from New Zealand and around the world is being held at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa on 28 and 29 March and is being organised by the University’s Institute of Policy Studies and the School of Earth Sciences.

The first day of the conference opens with the scientific evidence regarding climate change, assessing the risks and its impact on health, water, biodiversity, food and the marine environment in New Zealand and the Pacific. The second day examines the policy issues and options.

The conference website, with programme details and registration information, can be viewed http://www.vuw.ac.nz/sog/events/info-climate.aspx

ENDS

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