An Audience with Nigel Topping

Event date: 07 Mar 2022
6:00pm - 7:30pm

An Audience with Nigel Topping – The UN’s High Level Climate Action Champion for COP26

Reflections from COP26 and how you can get involved in the run up to COP27

The Centre for Climate Engagement (CCE) supported a three-day visit to the University of Cambridge by Nigel Topping, the UN High Level Champion for Climate Action, to showcase the range of research and initiatives supporting a zero-carbon world as part of Cambridge Zero. Nigel marked the first day of his visit by addressing an audience of students at Hughes Hall, home to CCE, where he spoke about his role as UN Champion for Climate Change, solving the brutally complex climate crisis and the opportunities and challenges from COP26.

Read the event report and watch the video of the event.

About Nigel Topping

Nigel Topping is the UN’s High-Level Climate Action Champion for COP26, appointed by the UK Prime Minister in January 2020 and will serve until COP27. The role of the High Level Champion is to strengthen collaboration and drive action from businesses, investors, organisations, cities, and regions on climate change, and coordinate this work with governments and Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).

Since his appointment, Nigel, alongside the COP25 High Level Champion Gonzalo Muñoz, established the Race to Zero – a global campaign to commit all actors to net zero by 2050, the Race to Resilience – a global campaign for secure the resilience of 4 billion people by 2030, and the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) – a coalition of existing and new net zero finance initiatives.

Prior to his appointment, Nigel was CEO of We Mean Business, a coalition of businesses working to accelerate the transition to a zero carbon economy. Prior to that he was Executive Director of the Carbon Disclosure Project, following an 18 year career in the private sector, having worked across the world in emerging markets and manufacturing.