As part of their ongoing partnership, the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP) and UNESCO present the next session in the 2026 International Colloquia on Physics for Society, furthering their shared commitment to addressing pressing societal challenges through physics.

Event Details

  • Date and Time: 3 September 2026 | 15:00 – 16:00 CEST (3:00 pm – 4:00 pm CEST)
  • Location: Online (Zoom)
  • Type: Category VIII – Symposium
  • Arrangement: Virtual

Overview

Organized in the context of the International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (IDSSD 2024–2033), the next session of the IUPAP–UNESCO online colloquia series will take place on 3 September 2026. The lecture is open to the public and aligns with key UN Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 15 (Life on Land).

This session will feature Professor Paulo Artaxo, Full Professor of Environmental Physics at the University of São Paulo and a leading authority on tropical atmospheric science.

In his lecture, “Climate Change and the Impacts on the Amazon,” Professor Artaxo will examine how rapidly accelerating climate change is affecting tropical forest ecosystems across the Amazon basin. Drawing on decades of observational fieldwork, carbon flux tower networks, and satellite remote sensing data, the talk will highlight how decreased precipitation, rising temperatures, and frequent climate extremes are causing the Amazon to lose stored carbon to the atmosphere. The session will explore the physical drivers behind these biosphere–atmosphere interactions and discuss the broader ecological consequences for one of the planet’s most critical ecosystems.

About the Speaker

Professor Paulo Artaxo is Full Professor and Head of the Department of Applied Physics at the Institute of Physics, University of São Paulo (USP), Brazil. He earned his Ph.D. in Atmospheric Physics from USP and has held senior research and visiting appointments at NASA, Harvard University, the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, and the Universities of Antwerp, Lund, and Stockholm.

Throughout his career, Professor Artaxo has applied physics to solve critical environmental issues, specializing in global climate change, aerosol physics, urban air pollution, and Amazonian biosphere–atmosphere dynamics. He serves as Director of the Center for Sustainable Amazon Studies (CEAS) at USP and has led multiple major international research collaborations across the region.

A longtime member and Lead Author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Professor Artaxo was a co-recipient of the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the IPCC. He is an elected member of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) and has published over 500 peer-reviewed scientific papers.

 

 

This event is organized in joint partnership with the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics (IUPAP).