UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Penn State Department of Geography will conclude its spring 2025 Coffee Hour lecture series with a talk by Jessica Omukuti, senior research fellow at the University of Oxford’s Institute for Science, Innovation and Society and Oxford Net Zero. Omukuti’s talk, "The Past, Present and Future of Inclusive Net Zero," will explore the evolution of the net zero framework and the importance of equity and justice in climate action.
The event will take place at noon on Friday, April 25, in 401 Steidle Building on the University Park campus and will also be accessible via Zoom.
"Net zero" has become a key framework in global climate policy since the 2015 Paris Agreement, with governments, corporations and institutions adopting emissions reduction targets to limit global temperature rise.
Omukuti will examine the history of net zero, its current applications and its future trajectory. She will highlight why she believes that equitable and just climate action is essential to achieving net zero goals and discuss how considerations of justice have been incorporated into net zero standards and guidance over time.
Omukuti’s research focuses on making net zero more inclusive for developing countries, particularly in Africa. Her work spans climate justice and equity, climate finance, resilience and governance of climate change adaptation and mitigation. In 2022, she was appointed to the United Nations High-Level Expert Group on net zero commitments by non-state actors.
She holds a doctorate in climate finance from the University of Reading, a master’s in climate change and development from the University of Sussex and a bachelors in meteorology from the University of Nairobi.
Omukuti’s talk is part of the spring 2025 Coffee Hour seminar series hosted by Penn State’s Department of Geography. For more information and to access the Zoom link, visit the Coffee Hour event webpage.