Heatwave commentary from Dr Leslie Mabon

Our media team worked with OU expert in Environmental Systems Dr Leslie Mabon and the Science Media Centre, to sell-in his expertise to media and broadcast covering the drought and heatwave. As a result commentary from Dr Mabon was syndicated across Press Association and covered in more than 200 media outlets including the Mail on Sunday, Sky News and a large number of regional publications.

Dr Leslie Mabon, Lecturer in Environmental Systems at The Open University, said: “Above all else, the drought risk we are seeing in the UK is a reminder that we urgently need to tackle the problem at source: this means reducing emissions from fossil fuels to limit the extent of harmful climate change we will face. Moreover, countries like the UK, which have traditionally had more a more temperate climate and have less experience of managing the prolonged effects of hot, dry spells, need to plan now to adapt to hotter weather. More than encouraging individuals to save water, this also means looking at our water infrastructure and considering where investments are made to ensure we are better prepared for managing water in hot spells.”