The Oxford Martin School’s next seminar series, starting on 22 January, will bring together leading academics to explore the different dimensions of climate change in the run up to the 2015 UN negotiations.

December 2015 will see world leaders will gather in Paris for the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21). The conference aim is to secure a legally binding, global climate change agreement with emission reduction commitments from all 196 UN member states. Following the fiasco of the 2009 negotiations in Copenhagen, which failed to achieve a legally binding successor to the Kyoto Protocol, an agreement is vital.

Opinions on the outcomes of the 2014 COP in Lima are mixed. Some are relieved that any agreement at all was reached. Others feel that the outcomes were weak and disappointing. If the Paris negotiations fail, then warming will be set to go beyond 2°C above pre-industrial levels, threatening the stability and prosperity of both current and future generations.

The Oxford Martin School has drawn upon its wide range of research programmes to create a seminar series examining the key issues underpinning climate change. From water security to biodiversity, and from sustainable transport to the potential of geoengineering, 'Creating a climate for change: what’s at stake in global climate negotiations' will look at the impact of climate change, the challenge of turning science into policy, and the consequences of failure.

All of the seminars will be streamed live online and available to watch again on our YouTube channel, so even if you're not in Oxford you don't have to miss out. Use the hashtag #2015climate to join the debate on Twitter.

• Visit our events page for full details of all of the seminars and to register.