Frederik Paulsen has a clear message for shipping, and humanity in general. Current decarbonisation strategies will not avert climate disaster. The only way, he believes, to quickly curtail global warming is large scale geoengineering. Here the Chair of UArctic, and Chairman Emeritus of pharmaceutical giant Ferring Group, sits down with Nor-Shipping to outline a new pathway to success.
“Addiction is probably the right word.” Frederik Paulsen is trying to sum up what draws a multi-billionaire businessman to continually turn his back on home comforts in Switzerland and engage in a series of hair-raising polar expeditions. Expeditions that have been taking place every year for the past 25 years and that have seen him ski, walk, motor and fly to the poles.
It’s a ‘habit’ that has given him a unique perspective, while also informing a new, in his words “almost evangelical”, dedication to addressing mankind’s climate challenge. “I was a climate sceptic up until about ten years ago,” he states. “Then, when I was flying over Greenland, I saw for myself not just the scale of change – melting ice, pollution, spreading algae, and so on – but the speed of it. I was astonished.
“I knew something had to be done. And quickly.” And Paulsen may be one of the few in a position to kickstart real progress.
Collaborating for change
The Swedish businessman, knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 2020, is today Chair of UArctic. It’s a network uniting over 200 universities, colleges and research institutes focused on building knowledge, research and resources to benefit the North, and the wider world. The organisation, says Paulsen, represents “close to everyone” in Academia addressing Arctic issues, boasting 65 UArctic Thematic Networks, 25 UArctic Chairs, eight Fellows and extensive student and faculty engagement.
Hands on – Paulsen taking ice core samples to build environmental understanding
This year sees UArctic partner with Nor-Shipping, taking place 2-6 June in Oslo and Lillestrøm, to support its Blue Talks initiative, focusing on sustainable development of ocean business. Paulsen says this kind of collaboration is vital at “a pivotal time in our history”, with a strong need for stakeholders to come together, partner and enable meaningful change.
“We’ve spent much of the last 50 years conducting research on measuring climate change,” he says with marked frustration. “Surely it’s about time to support research and innovations that actually address it?”
Accelerating action
UArctic, through knowledge sharing endeavours like the Blue Talks, has a role to play in disseminating knowledge and creating a new narrative, he says, while helping marshal the influence and impact of its many members.
This is key, Paulsen stresses, “as the likely solutions to climate change will originate from academia.” And, he is quick to point out, the need for new solutions could not be greater: “Current strategies, with the focus on emission reduction, remain the only acceptable solution for the long-term. However, in the short-term it will be impossible to meet Paris Agreement goals with these measures alone,” Paulsen opines.
He says there’s now a pressing need to explore “potentially more drastic solutions”, with a first step of assessing which options exist, their weaknesses, strengths, and not least, their maturity as concepts.
UArctic, he explains, has a library of climate interventions, which provides a foundation for progress. “With this overview, UArctic can help find relevant universities, and other institutions, and then coordinate efforts across the network for optimal effect, while also trying to find project funding.” In terms of what is meant by “drastic solutions”, one word speaks volumes: geoengineering.
Let battle commence
Geoengineering encompasses large-scale environmental interventions designed to counter man-made climate change. It is, Paulsen admits, a “challenging” topic for many.
“I’d go as far as to say this will be the big ideological battleground over the next decade,” he says. “There are those that see this as a case of ‘Frankenstein’s Monster’. And the most vocal are arguably conservative environmentalists. They, of course, want to slow down the use of fossil fuels and transition to green energy, focusing on the root cause (CO2) of warming only. This ignores the current increased impact of solar radiation, which no realistic cut in emissions can hinder. We need to solve this problem.
Fragile beauty – Paulsen believes current measures won’t be sufficient to arrest climate change, creating a pressing need to assess geoengineering concepts
“It is extremely sensitive, extremely political, and that stops the scientists and researchers that are actually working on solutions from talking about it. They need funding, they need support, but negativity is a barrier to seeking this.” A team from Cambridge University has partially addressed this, he notes, by rebranding geoengineering as “climate repair.” “Smart,” smiles Paulsen.
Billion-dollar question
Climate repair projects come in many shapes and sizes and, Paulsen says, will explode in scope (and, he hopes, impact) in the years to come. They range from strengthening ice, to boosting oceanic algae, to removing and storing carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere, to huge “curtains” that protect glaciers from warm water to stop dramatic rises in global sea levels, and, a key area of debate, solar radiation management (SRM).
SRM involves injecting aerosol into the air – for example by launching sulphur dioxide into the stratosphere, where it oxidises to form aerosol – which then works to reflect some of the sun’s radiation back into space. Paulsen says an informed, stakeholder-inclusive approach is paramount to any undertaking, but that work needs to start if we’re ever going to see the progress the world demands.
“The risk of not doing anything is as disastrous as the risk of any ‘Frankenstein Monster’ effects from interventions. We owe it to future generations to give some ideas serious consideration, giving people an opportunity to develop them, and undertaking proper evaluation.”
He continues: “For the sake of argument, what if we could give a handful of research groups two to three billion dollars and they could then bring down global temperatures by two to two and half degrees over the next four to five years? That’s theoretically possible. Some of these research concepts are at an advanced stage, but they need support. They need to see the will – both from politicians and private donors.”
Breaking down barriers
However, as any reader knows, collective political will is in short supply. Paulsen is candid about this, as he is about the swathing cuts through US research budgets and publicly funded departments. He admits it sets a worrying precedent but argues it “only heightens” the need to act. “Which puts the emphasis on private money and philanthropy,” he states.
Navigating climate change – Paulsen has extensive first hand experience of the speed of change at the Earth’s extremities. Seen here at the Antarctic Peninsula
Paulsen goes as far as stressing that private funding “is the only way” climate repair will get off the ground, due in part to the fact that “public money is in short supply” but also the “political sensitivity” of geoengineering.
“So, the funding, the projects and the decision to go ahead with them will have to come from outside the public domain. Thankfully, there are people and businesses with the money,” Paulsen notes, “but the fact that the scientific community is so reluctant to talk about their ideas is a barrier. We’d like to help overcome this.”
Rebuilding hope
Which leads back to Nor-Shipping. Knowledge sharing initiatives like the Blue Talks are critical to putting climate innovations on the radar, securing valuable partners and, Paulsen hopes, investment. “There’s plenty of people in the global shipping community that could help build the foundations of this new sector,” he says. “It’s up to us as individuals to get on board, engage and contribute to solving climate change.”
Paulsen is keen to end on a positive, saying he’s “optimistic” technology exists to cool the planet and “genuine hope” it can be implemented on a meaningful scale in the short- to mid-term. “It’s easy to feel hopeless,” he says, “but it doesn’t have to be that way. Collaboration is key to transformation.” As to whether he himself will be at Nor-Shipping to lead the collaborative charge remains uncertain. “I’ll have to double check,” he smiles. “I could be on an expedition.”
For further details about Nor-Shipping 2025 please contact:
Sidsel Norvik
Director Nor-Shipping
Email: sn@nor-shipping.com
Phone: +47 932 56 387
Frederik Paulsen has a clear message for shipping, and humanity in general. Current decarbonisation strategies will not avert climate disaster. The only way, he believes, to quickly curtail global warming is large scale geoengineering. Here the Chair of UArctic, and Chairman Emeritus of pharmaceutical giant Ferring Group, sits down with Nor-Shipping to outline a new pathway to success.
“Addiction is probably the right word.” Frederik Paulsen is trying to sum up what draws a multi-billionaire businessman to continually turn his back on home comforts in Switzerland and engage in a series of hair-raising polar expeditions. Expeditions that have been taking place every year for the past 25 years and that have seen him ski, walk, motor and fly to the poles.
It’s a ‘habit’ that has given him a unique perspective, while also informing a new, in his words “almost evangelical”, dedication to addressing mankind’s climate challenge. “I was a climate sceptic up until about ten years ago,” he states. “Then, when I was flying over Greenland, I saw for myself not just the scale of change – melting ice, pollution, spreading algae, and so on – but the speed of it. I was astonished.
“I knew something had to be done. And quickly.” And Paulsen may be one of the few in a position to kickstart real progress.
Collaborating for change
The Swedish businessman, knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 2020, is today Chair of UArctic. It’s a network uniting over 200 universities, colleges and research institutes focused on building knowledge, research and resources to benefit the North, and the wider world. The organisation, says Paulsen, represents “close to everyone” in Academia addressing Arctic issues, boasting 65 UArctic Thematic Networks, 25 UArctic Chairs, eight Fellows and extensive student and faculty engagement.
Hands on – Paulsen taking ice core samples to build environmental understanding
This year sees UArctic partner with Nor-Shipping, taking place 2-6 June in Oslo and Lillestrøm, to support its Blue Talks initiative, focusing on sustainable development of ocean business. Paulsen says this kind of collaboration is vital at “a pivotal time in our history”, with a strong need for stakeholders to come together, partner and enable meaningful change.
“We’ve spent much of the last 50 years conducting research on measuring climate change,” he says with marked frustration. “Surely it’s about time to support research and innovations that actually address it?”
Accelerating action
UArctic, through knowledge sharing endeavours like the Blue Talks, has a role to play in disseminating knowledge and creating a new narrative, he says, while helping marshal the influence and impact of its many members.
This is key, Paulsen stresses, “as the likely solutions to climate change will originate from academia.” And, he is quick to point out, the need for new solutions could not be greater: “Current strategies, with the focus on emission reduction, remain the only acceptable solution for the long-term. However, in the short-term it will be impossible to meet Paris Agreement goals with these measures alone,” Paulsen opines.
He says there’s now a pressing need to explore “potentially more drastic solutions”, with a first step of assessing which options exist, their weaknesses, strengths, and not least, their maturity as concepts.
UArctic, he explains, has a library of climate interventions, which provides a foundation for progress. “With this overview, UArctic can help find relevant universities, and other institutions, and then coordinate efforts across the network for optimal effect, while also trying to find project funding.” In terms of what is meant by “drastic solutions”, one word speaks volumes: geoengineering.
Let battle commence
Geoengineering encompasses large-scale environmental interventions designed to counter man-made climate change. It is, Paulsen admits, a “challenging” topic for many.
“I’d go as far as to say this will be the big ideological battleground over the next decade,” he says. “There are those that see this as a case of ‘Frankenstein’s Monster’. And the most vocal are arguably conservative environmentalists. They, of course, want to slow down the use of fossil fuels and transition to green energy, focusing on the root cause (CO2) of warming only. This ignores the current increased impact of solar radiation, which no realistic cut in emissions can hinder. We need to solve this problem.
Fragile beauty – Paulsen believes current measures won’t be sufficient to arrest climate change, creating a pressing need to assess geoengineering concepts
“It is extremely sensitive, extremely political, and that stops the scientists and researchers that are actually working on solutions from talking about it. They need funding, they need support, but negativity is a barrier to seeking this.” A team from Cambridge University has partially addressed this, he notes, by rebranding geoengineering as “climate repair.” “Smart,” smiles Paulsen.
Billion-dollar question
Climate repair projects come in many shapes and sizes and, Paulsen says, will explode in scope (and, he hopes, impact) in the years to come. They range from strengthening ice, to boosting oceanic algae, to removing and storing carbon dioxide present in the atmosphere, to huge “curtains” that protect glaciers from warm water to stop dramatic rises in global sea levels, and, a key area of debate, solar radiation management (SRM).
SRM involves injecting aerosol into the air – for example by launching sulphur dioxide into the stratosphere, where it oxidises to form aerosol – which then works to reflect some of the sun’s radiation back into space. Paulsen says an informed, stakeholder-inclusive approach is paramount to any undertaking, but that work needs to start if we’re ever going to see the progress the world demands.
“The risk of not doing anything is as disastrous as the risk of any ‘Frankenstein Monster’ effects from interventions. We owe it to future generations to give some ideas serious consideration, giving people an opportunity to develop them, and undertaking proper evaluation.”
He continues: “For the sake of argument, what if we could give a handful of research groups two to three billion dollars and they could then bring down global temperatures by two to two and half degrees over the next four to five years? That’s theoretically possible. Some of these research concepts are at an advanced stage, but they need support. They need to see the will – both from politicians and private donors.”
Breaking down barriers
However, as any reader knows, collective political will is in short supply. Paulsen is candid about this, as he is about the swathing cuts through US research budgets and publicly funded departments. He admits it sets a worrying precedent but argues it “only heightens” the need to act. “Which puts the emphasis on private money and philanthropy,” he states.
Navigating climate change – Paulsen has extensive first hand experience of the speed of change at the Earth’s extremities. Seen here at the Antarctic Peninsula
Paulsen goes as far as stressing that private funding “is the only way” climate repair will get off the ground, due in part to the fact that “public money is in short supply” but also the “political sensitivity” of geoengineering.
“So, the funding, the projects and the decision to go ahead with them will have to come from outside the public domain. Thankfully, there are people and businesses with the money,” Paulsen notes, “but the fact that the scientific community is so reluctant to talk about their ideas is a barrier. We’d like to help overcome this.”
Rebuilding hope
Which leads back to Nor-Shipping. Knowledge sharing initiatives like the Blue Talks are critical to putting climate innovations on the radar, securing valuable partners and, Paulsen hopes, investment. “There’s plenty of people in the global shipping community that could help build the foundations of this new sector,” he says. “It’s up to us as individuals to get on board, engage and contribute to solving climate change.”
Paulsen is keen to end on a positive, saying he’s “optimistic” technology exists to cool the planet and “genuine hope” it can be implemented on a meaningful scale in the short- to mid-term. “It’s easy to feel hopeless,” he says, “but it doesn’t have to be that way. Collaboration is key to transformation.” As to whether he himself will be at Nor-Shipping to lead the collaborative charge remains uncertain. “I’ll have to double check,” he smiles. “I could be on an expedition.”
For further details about Nor-Shipping 2025 please contact:
Sidsel Norvik
Director Nor-Shipping
Email: sn@nor-shipping.com
Phone: +47 932 56 387
