Why funding the UK-Africa Physics Partnership programme will help us tackle climate change

With net zero making the headlines daily, the focus in the UK has been on the politics of how and when this can be achieved. But without global collaboration and the right science in place to develop alternatives to carbon and energy-efficient technologies, there is little chance of delivering on any plan to reverse climate change.

Physics plays a crucial role in helping to solve real-world problems, but science research funding throughout the world varies massively. The funding for science, especially in African universities, remains severely limited.

Across Africa, with its sensitive ecosystems, growing population and political and economic challenges, people are particularly vulnerable to the impact of climate change.

However, Africa also has the potential to help tackle these challenges head on. It’s home to 1 billion people, half of whom will be under 25 years old by 2050, and is a region of the world where it is estimated that 55% of the world’s potential renewable energy sources are located.

Many of the scientific and technical disciplines that are needed to help tackle the global challenges we face are underpinned by physics and Africa is a diverse region offering significant talent and natural resources with the potential to deliver real sustainable growth. It is vital we capitalise on the extensive untapped talent that Africa holds.

This is why the Institute of Physics (IOP), with our colleagues at the Science and Technology Facilities Council, has been working hard to make this a reality, and we are absolutely delighted that the UK government is committing £10.33m to our UK-Africa Physics Partnership programme. We have been developing this programme over the last three years to help build physics capacity in seven African countries, including Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda.

“Africa is a diverse region offering significant talent and natural resources with the potential to deliver real sustainable growth.”

It is great that physics is being recognised as of key importance globally, and in each country we will be working on projects in partnership with institutions from across the UK. We are investing in physics talent, developing the people, the skills and infrastructure to support them.

In 2022, I was fortunate to visit some of our partner countries and I heard from them how climate change is already disproportionately impacting the continent and their daily lives. They talk about changing seasons, floods, and droughts in a way that they have never witnessed before.

The UK-Africa Physics Partnership programme will help ensure that a more diverse community of physicists can contribute to tackling climate change. We know the most effective way to do this and move towards net zero is to take a global approach, so this funding is good news not only for physicists in Africa, but for us all.

Dominic Hurley, IOP Head of International Relations