On the 10th of January, 2021, a special virtual meeting took place between His Holiness the Dalai Lama, climate activist Greta Thunberg, Mind and Life Institute president Susan Bauer-Wu and scientists Susan Natali and William Moomaw. Organised by the Mind and Life institute and moderated by Diana Chapman Walsh, this meeting also served as the official launch of a series of short films on the state of the environment, more specifically on feedback loops. These films were created to bring awareness to this issue, as scientists are seriously worried about the implications while most people are completely unaware of feedback loops.

Feedback loops relate to cause and effect, Diana Chapman Walsh explained. Greenhouse gas emissions are the cause that gives rise to the warming of the planet, this in turn causes more greenhouse gases to be released in an accelerated loop. To see the five short films and learn more about feedback loops, please visit https:/feedbackloopsclimate.com. 

His Holiness wrote a letter to Greta Thunberg in his new book with Franz Alt- Our Only Home: A Climate Appeal to the World. In this letter, he expressed his admiration for all the work that she was doing to bring awareness to the issue of climate change at such a young age. He believes that her concern for the planet is a very hopeful sign for the future. On the subject of hope, His Holiness writes in this letter: “We humans are the only species with the power to destroy the earth as we know it. Yet, if we have the capacity to destroy the earth, so, too, do we have the capacity to protect it.”

His Holiness and Greta Thunberg are both global icons dedicated to protecting the Earth and all the life forms living on it. In addition to this cause, they both respect Science deeply. It was this coming together of concern based on scientific research and hope for a brighter future that brought together this interesting meeting of minds. 

The Dalai Lama Trust team would like to thank the Mind and Life Institute and all the participants of the meeting for bringing us this valuable information and for educating us on the reality and urgency of climate change. 

We highly recommend watching the whole video linked below to get a better understanding of the scientific research outlined in the meeting.