Landslides in a changing climate – my forthcoming inaugural lecture

On Wednesday, 7 October 2026, at 6 pm (UK time), Professor Dave Petley is set to present his inaugural lecture at Nottingham Trent University (NTU). Entitled “Landslides in a changing climate,” the event will be held at the City Campus, open to all who wish to attend. Inaugural lectures are a longstanding tradition for newly appointed professors, offering a chance to showcase expertise and contribute to the academic community.

Petley’s lecture will address the critical issue of landslides as a deadly yet underappreciated natural hazard. These events occur on every continent and have caused thousands of fatalities and billions of pounds in losses each year. Over his four-decade career, Petley has observed mounting evidence suggesting that climate change, driven by human activities, is significantly altering the frequency and patterns of landslides globally.

The lecture will utilize case studies from New Zealand, the Himalayas, and the UK to illustrate these changes. It will begin by examining the catastrophic landslide and debris flow in Nepal and Tibet in August 2026, which claimed over 5,000 lives, highlighting the importance of new technologies in improving our understanding of landslides. The talk will then explore global trends in landslide losses, analyzing how these patterns are being reshaped by the rapid shifts occurring in our climate.

Ultimately, the lecture will address the future outlook for landslide-related losses. Petley will underscore the combined impact of climate-driven changes in hazard patterns and human-driven increases in vulnerability, concluding that losses are expected to escalate in the coming years due to these intertwined factors. For those interested in attending, registration details are available at https://www.ntu.ac.uk/about-us/events/events/2026/10/professor-dave-petleys-inaugural-lecture.