While it’s sometimes hard to distinguish the crackpot from the consequential, many sober scientists believe that even far-out schemes are worth exploring, considering the alternatives.

Any effective climate strategy will have to rely upon a combination of emissions reductions, adaptation, and, if circumstances warrant, some degree of geoengineering.

At this event, panelists discussed the emergence of geoengineering as a policy option and the congressional hearings being held on the subject.

This event will discuss who should set the rules for geoengineering, What should those rules permit or forbid, and how should they be enforced.

Geoengineering could be one of the very best ways of hedging against the larger risks and uncertainties that surround climate policy.

For more than twenty years, policymakers have struggled to find ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions enough to stop global climate change. Congress is likely to enact federal climate legislation in 2009, but many scientists fear that emissions reductions may not occur quickly enough to prevent significant warming. Some scientists...