As the son of student doctors working and volunteering in Africa in the mid-1980s, Thomas Crowther spent his first birthday camping in the middle of the Sahara Desert. It was a foreshadow for a career working in the field of ecology and biodiversity: as he says, “I’ve never had a moment’s thought about what I was going to do with my life. And while I didn’t think I’d become a professor, I knew for sure it would be something nature related.” After doing his post-doctorate at Yale, his research has encompassed estimating the number of trees on Earth and mapping the distribution of soil organisms, while driving major conservation efforts such as the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, in a mission to prove our deep reliance on nature. Tom is also the founder of Restor, an online platform supporting thousands of community-led restoration projects around the world, and which in 2021 was a finalist for the Royal Foundation’s Earthshot Prize for providing ecological insights, transparency and connectivity to conservation and restoration efforts across the globe. Named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum, he joined the Villars Institute Board in 2024 to advance nature-focused solutions to both the climate and biodiversity crises.

If You Can’t Measure It, You Can’t Fix It. The results of an historic scientific health check of the planet were unveiled during Climate Week 2024 in New York, indicating that Earth’s systems remain at risk. This was the first in a series of annual updates on the status of each planetary boundary. “By quantifying the boundaries for a healthy planet, we provide policy, economics and business with the tools needed to steer away from unmanageable risks," said Johan Rockström, PIK Director, Pioneer of the Planetary Boundaries Framework and Co-Founder of the Planetary Guardians. As one of the most resource-intensive sectors, the steel industry sits at the nexus of these boundaries from carbon emissions and freshwater use to air emissions and resource consumption. Notably, iron and steel production accounts for around 8% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, making decarbonizing this sector a core focus in mitigating climate change. To align with global climate goals and achieve a net-zero energy system, the sector needs to reduce its emissions by at least 90% by 2050.

For the award-winning ecological artist, Thijs Biersteker, art really can change the world. Biersteker collaborated with the Villars Institute on his new work, Memories of the Melted which was previewed at the Montreux Jazz Festival

From pollen paper, to weather-predicting umbrellas, bringing together deep learning from nature and machines can augment human intelligence and show the possibility of systems thinking, and why it matters for our future.

Villars Institute sat down with two leading ecopreneurs who will be leading the flagship course this coming August to learn more about their own backgrounds and what we can expect this summer.

Minerva Project and Villars Institute pioneer an innovative approach to teaching youth and adult learners about tackling systemic challenges.

At the Villars Institute Summit 2024, Lord Malloch-Brown was invited to deliver the 3rd Villars Institute Distinguished Lecture. He shared invaluable insights, drawing from his vast experience, on the challenges and opportunities shaping the geopolitical and multilateral context, and the pivotal role of communities, coalitions and connections on the critical pathway to progress and prosperity within our planetary boundaries. Below is a transcript of his insightful lecture.

How do today’s youth perceive the impact of global issues on their future? Although their lives will be shaped by climate change and biodiversity loss, young people are seldom heard when it comes to such global challenges. The first Villars Global Issues Survey sets out to give them the floor.

We want to thank the Villars community and our partners for their great support and active engagement as the Villars Institute celebrates its 2nd anniversary this year and begins its 3rd year of programming. Below is a review of our key milestones achieved in 2023.