The summit drew participants from across a wide range of disciplines, including numerous Yale alumni. Among them was Avril Walters, a 2025 Yale graduate who is now working for a health care technology company. The Climate Week gathering, Walters said, “was a perfect space to renew my spark for climate work” — introducing her to new potential areas for climate solutions, such as marketing and AI, and deepening her understanding of others, such as climate adaptation and risk.
She noted, for instance, the “Ripple Effect” event, in which panelists from Yale, industry, and government highlighted development projects taking place on the Yale campus, including the investment in geothermal systems and job skills training and development, in partnership with Brightcore Energy.
“All of them used local businesses and leaders from across Connecticut to bring new technologies to the fore,” said Walters. “Each panelist stressed the importance of Yale’s commitment to green projects and noted how it helps to carve a path for others and provides the kind of assurance that will attract further financial backing for ecologically conscious businesses.”
Beyond Climate Week
The experts and partnerships that were part of the summit are now looking beyond Climate Week.
One partner, the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, introduced a forthcoming study on public demand for climate adaptation that will inform national adaptation plans for the next year’s UN climate talks (COP32) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Working with intergovernmental organizations and partners in 11 countries, Yale researchers will survey how people perceive climate risks, how they prepare for extreme climate events, and which adaptation policies they support.
For YPS, this focus on what comes next is the main purpose of Climate Week.
“The value of Climate Week is not simply in bringing inspirational people together,” Zimmerman said. “It is in what those connections make possible afterward.”
Andy Bromage contributed to this report.