Trinity College Dublin’s Faculty of STEM recently hosted a remarkable inaugural lecture by Professor Karen Wiltshire, who was appointed earlier this year as the first CRH Chair of Climate Science. Held on Wednesday, 21 May, the event attracted a diverse audience of researchers, students, academics, policymakers and members of the public – all drawn by Professor Wiltshire’s rare ability to combine scientific depth with storytelling flair.

Her lecture, A Walk on the Bright Side: A Climate Scientist’s Reflections on a Life and Career with Islands, Expeditions and the Wonder of It All, offered a vivid, personal account of the global climate story, spanning from 1862 to the present day. With data, humour, and a few well-chosen Monty Python clips, she guided listeners through her four-decade career – from her roots in Dublin to the frozen landscapes of the Antarctic.

From Dublin to the World

Born in Dublin in 1962, Professor Wiltshire began her academic path at Trinity College Dublin with a Master’s degree in Environmental Science. She later earned a doctorate and habilitation in hydrobiology at the University of Hamburg. Her career has focused on marine systems, ocean data, coastal policy and, above all, climate change.

She served as Vice-Director of the Alfred Wegener Institute in Germany and led its research stations on the North Sea islands of Helgoland and Sylt – key locations for studying coastal ecosystems.

Professor Wiltshire is more than a scientist; she is a champion of international collaboration, education and public engagement. A founding member of Scientists for Future in Germany, she has advised governments and international bodies on ocean and climate policy. Her return to Trinity in 2024 marks a major milestone, as she becomes the first to hold the newly established CRH Chair – a role created to enhance research, teaching and outreach in climate science, generously supported by CRH.

Introducing a “Sea Goddess” of Science

Professor Sylvia Draper, Dean of the Faculty of STEM, introduced Professor Wiltshire with a warm and heartfelt tribute. She highlighted not only her outstanding scientific achievements, but her return to Trinity as an act of giving back to the place where her journey began.

Describing her as a “marine ecologist, a climate teacher, and a scientist,” Professor Draper drew attention to two guiding themes in Wiltshire’s work:

  • International Education: Through projects like All Aboard, which equips researchers with shipboard skills while building global capacity in ocean observation, Wiltshire is committed to fostering global knowledge-sharing.

  • Data and Collaboration: Her research on vulnerable marine systems – including her recent studies on the Wadden Sea’s response to sea level rise – highlights the power of long-term data and the need for networked science.

She also touched on Professor Wiltshire’s ability to link human vulnerability with environmental change. As a coordinating author with the UN’s Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS), Wiltshire is helping shape international climate policy.

To conclude, Professor Draper offered a poetic metaphor: likening her colleague to sea goddesses Amphitrite, Sedna, and Ran – representing the calm, bounty, and capriciousness of the ocean. The imagery perfectly captures Professor Wiltshire’s scientific ethos – grounded, visionary, and deeply human.

Looking at the Blue Marble: Climate Through a Personal Lens

Professor Wiltshire opened her talk with the famous "Blue Marble" image of Earth, reminding the audience that oceans dominate our planet. "Without ocean, we have no climate," she said – a simple truth that formed the backbone of her lecture.

She presented global temperature data from 1862 to the present, showing how dramatically our world has warmed – particularly in recent decades. “I’m just going to talk about the red,” she said, referring to the modern warming period that has unfolded during her own lifetime.

She also pointed out the stark increase in global population density, from 21 to 55 people per square kilometre during her lifetime, highlighting the growing human footprint on the planet.

From Jam Jars to Climate Models

Woven through her lecture were vivid memories from her childhood in Dublin – of jam jar experiments on windowsills, of her German mother’s love of plants, and her father’s magician’s toolkit, which she would secretly dismantle and reassemble.

These early experiences planted the seeds of her scientific curiosity. Her education at the unconventional St. Kilian’s School further encouraged exploration and creativity. Initially drawn to forestry, she was turned away from UCD due to gender restrictions in the field at the time. Instead, she enrolled at Maynooth University, where she flourished under the guidance of Professor Peter Whittaker and developed a fascination with biology.

Amusingly, she also recalled helping organise a rebellious student screening of The Life of Brian – a nod to her independent spirit and willingness to challenge convention.

Confronting Harsh Realities

As the lecture progressed, the tone shifted. Professor Wiltshire spoke of the suppressed 1982 Exxon report that accurately predicted global warming, and the early science behind the greenhouse effect. Her MSc years at Trinity coincided with Europe's acid rain crisis – a problem that was solved not by chance, but through policy and action.

Her resourceful thesis on the effects of emissions from Moneypoint power station on Glencree Forests showed her early commitment to real-world environmental issues.

After the Chernobyl disaster, she moved to Germany, where she immersed herself in marine science. She shared colourful stories from the field – collecting data knee-deep in mud, working aboard research ships, and joining her first expedition on the Polarstern, a ship bound for Antarctica.

Her long-term research on Helgoland led to the discovery that the North Sea is warming at nearly twice the rate of the global average. Initially met with scepticism, her findings are now widely accepted.

She later joined the European ice drilling programme, analysing ancient gas bubbles trapped in Antarctic ice. These ice cores show CO₂ levels remained below 280 parts per million for 800,000 years – until the last century. Now, that number has surged past 420 ppm. “I was seeing the warming with my own eyes,” she said, recounting expeditions to Svalbard and Siberia where she observed glaciers melting and permafrost thawing.

She shared a moving haiku to reflect her emotional response:
A question of life,
Only moments count in time.
And eternity awaits.

From Research to Real-World Impact

Professor Wiltshire also discussed her work in European coastal regions, where the challenges of climate change often meet human denial or fear. This spurred her to speak more directly to the public – even answering tourists’ questions about sea level rise and waste disposal on the island of Sylt.

She argued that climate solutions require more than data; they need people, perceptions and cooperation across disciplines. Her team now works on advanced models that integrate biology, mathematics, AI and social science – tools that predict how actions like overfishing can ripple through ecosystems and economies.

These flexible models are especially relevant for Ireland, which currently experiences the fastest rate of sea level rise in Europe. Her work explores how infrastructure – such as pylons or wind turbines – impacts coastal ecosystems, and how we might adapt or even restore habitats by reintroducing lost species.

Ireland and the Ocean: A Call to Action

In closing, Professor Wiltshire brought the focus back home. “We’re just this speck in the ocean,” she remarked, underlining Ireland’s deep connection to the sea. She encouraged the audience to look at an alternative map of Ireland – one that includes its vast maritime territory stretching to the Atlantic Ridge – to fully appreciate the country’s oceanic identity.

Her lecture was more than a timeline of scientific achievements. It was a powerful and personal call to action – a reminder that the fight against climate change is not abstract, but urgent, human, and deeply interconnected.

From a curious child with a microscope in Dublin to a global leader in climate science, Professor Karen Wiltshire’s journey is a testament to resilience, vision, and the power of science to make a difference.