How does our knowledge of climate change affect our sense of identity? What might underlie issues of connection with, and disconnection from, the natural world? How do we understand the denial of climate change?

Speakers from the field of psychoanalysis explored these and other questions with scientists, environmentalists, writers, educationalists and policy makers. The conference aimed to achieve a better understanding through interdisciplinary exchange.

Programme

Saturday 16th October 2010

09.00am: Registration and coffee

09.30am: Welcoming remarks by David Bell (President, Institute of Psychoanalysis), Robert Bud (Principal Curator of Medicine at the Science Museum) and Agastya Muthanna (British Council Climate Change Programme)

10.00am: “Great Expectations: some psychic consequences of the discovery of personal ecological debt", Rosemary Randall, with discussants Margaret Rustin and Bob Ward. Followed by a general discussion

11.40am: Coffee, Cakes and Bookstall

12.10am: “The myth of apathy”, Renee Lertzman, with discussants Irma Brenman-Pick and Erik Bichard. Followed by a general discussion

13.50pm: Lunch and Bookstall

14.50pm: “Different structures of feeling in relation to the natural world”, Michael Rustin, with discussants Jon Alexander and Ted Benton. Followed by a general discussion

16.30pm: Tea and Cake

17.00pm: Breakout groups

18.00pm: Wine, nibbles and wind down

Sunday 17th October 2010

09.00am: Short film by Tim Kasser (Prof of Psychology, Knox College), then Summary of themes raised on Saturday, discussed by Lothar Bayer and Jeremy Gaines

09.30am: ”Unconscious obstacles to caring for the planet”, John Keene, with discussants Michael Brearley and Bob HInshelwood. Followed by a general discussion.

11.10am: Coffee and Cake

11.30am: “On the love of nature and on human nature”, Sally Weintrobe, with discussants Tom Crompton and Mike Hannis. Followed by a general discussion

13.10pm: Lunch

14.00pm: “Climate change denial in a perverse culture", Paul Hoggett, with discussants Stanley Cohen and John Steiner. Followed by a general discussion.

15.40pm: Tea and Cake

16.00pm: Plenary

Short contribution by Wilson Ang

17.00 Close of Conference

Speakers:

Dr Rosemary Randall is a psychoanalytic psychotherapist working in private practice and a member of Cambridge Society for Psychotherapy. She is co-founder of Cambridge Carbon Footprint and its 'Carbon Conversations' project which takes a psychological approach to personal carbon reduction. She writes and lectures on psychological approaches to the problem of climate change.

Professor Michael Rustin is Head of Department of Sociology at the University of East London from 1974-88 and Dean of Faculty of Social Sciences from 1991-2001. Visiting Fellow at the School of Sciences, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton in 1984-85. His current roles are primarily in research and research supervision, and as academic link between the University and the Tavistock Clinic, where there are over 25 UEL-accredited postgraduate courses.

Professor Paul Hoggett is Professor of Politics at the University of the West of England in Bristol. Also a psychoanalytic psychotherapist trained at the Lincoln Clinic and Centre for Psychotherapy. He is an experienced group relations consultant.

Mr John Keene is a Training Psychoanalyst of The Institute of Psychoanalysis and in private practice in London and St Albans. After commencing studies as a geologist he changed to humanities and first encountered psychoanalysis ‘live’ through Group Relations training events. His psychoanalytical interest in group, institutional and political processes developed while working at the Tavistock Clinic. He is an experienced organizational consultant.

Dr Renee Lertzman is a senior research fellow at Portland State University. She received her PhD from the Cardiff School of Social Sciences at Cardiff University and has a MA in Communication Studies from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Her work is concerned with the relations of psychoanalytic research and theory with contemporary environmental crises. She is special editor of Environment and Sustainability for Psychoanalysis, Culture and Society and is working on her book, The Myth of Apathy.

Mrs Sally Weintrobe is a Fellow of The Institute of Psychoanalysis and Chairs its Scientific Committee. She was formerly a Member of Senior Teaching Staff at the Tavistock Clinic and an Hon Senior Lecturer at University College London in the Dept for Psychoanalytic Studies. She has written and lectured on identity and entitlement attitudes, grievance, prejudice and greed. Her most recent paper was on runaway greed and climate change denial.

Discussants:

Jon Alexander, Conservation Economy

Dr Lothar Bayer, Psychoanalyst, Member of the German Psychoanalytic Association (DPV)

Ted Benton, Professor of Sociology, University of Essex

Erik Bichard, Professor of Regeneration and Sustainable Development, Salford University

Michael Brearley, Psychoanalyst, Fellow of The Institute of Psychoanalysis

Irma Brenman Pick, Training Psychoanalyst, The Institute of Psychoanalysis

Stanley Cohen, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, LSE

Dr Tom Crompton, Change Strategist, WWF UK

Dr. Jeremy Gaines, Writer on art, architecture and political theory, with a focus on sustainability and Africa

Dr Mike Hannis, Hon. Research Fellow, School of Politics, International Relations and the Environment, Keele University

Bob Hinshelwood, Psychoanalyst, Fellow of The Institute of Psychoanalysis and Professor. in the Centre for Psychoanalytic Studies, University of Essex

Margaret Rustin, Child and Adult Psychotherapist and Child Psychoanalyst

Dr John Steiner, Training Psychoanalyst, The Institute of Psychoanalysis

Bob Ward, Policy and Communications Director, Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, LSE

Nicky Gavron, Greater London Assembly, will lead the plenary discussion.

David Bell, who opened the conference, is President of The Institute of Psychoanalysis, a Training Psychoanalyst and a Consultant Psychiatrist in Psychotherapy in the Adult Department at the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. He lectures and publishes widely on various subjects including philosophy and socio-political theory and is one of the UK's leading psychiatric experts in asylum and immigration.

Tim Kasser, who also gave an opening address, is Professor and Chair of Psychology at Knox College. He has written extensively on materialism, values, goals, well-being, and environmental sustainability.

Agastya Muthanna, who also gave an opening address, is an activist in the field of climate change currently studying Economics at the University of Cambridge. He has just completed an internship with the Minister of Environment and Forests, Government of India. Agastya has been closely associated with the British Council Climate Change Programme over the last few years.

Robert Bud, who also gave an opening address, is an historian of science and Principal Curator of medicine at the Science Museum. He is director of the Psychoanalysis Exhibition project. Both as curator and as historian he is interested in the nature of stories. He has directed a series of major web exhibits, www.ingenious.org.uk; www.makingthemodernworld.org.uk and www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/broughttolife which have been experiments in storytelling in a new medium. He has also published on the nature of stories as myths with meaning in a museum. He is now studying the origin and function of inherited stories which give significance to artefacts.

Wilson Ang, who spoke at the close of the conference, is founder and President of the Environmental Challenge Organisation (Singapore), also known as ECO Singapore. He is also closely involved with the British Council Climate Change Program.