Remember when: Just a decade ago, ‘adaptation’ was something of a dirty word in the climate arena — an insinuation that nations could continue with business as usual and deal with the mess later. That’s Olive Heffernan, reminiscing several months ago in Nature. She goes on to say: But greenhouse-gas emissions are increasing at an…Continue Reading…
In his State of the Union Address last night, President Obama spoke forcefully about global warming. He said that, “for the sake of our children and our future, we must do more to combat climate change.” Notably, the President framed his case this way: Now, it’s true that no single event makes a trend. But…Continue Reading…
I don’t think anyone can top this: Lots of snow falling outside. This proves whatever I believe. — Dan Gardner (@dgardner) February 9, 2013 Now I read that as a clever rejoinder to all sides in the climate debate. But since we’re already seeing stories that link global warming to the blizzard that has just…Continue Reading…
It appears that certain media moguls and self-important, publicity-addicted narcissists are in good company when it comes to confusing climate and weather. Yesterday, I was alerted to this press release, which starts off: A University of British Columbia study of American attitudes toward climate change finds that local weather – temperature, in particular – is…Continue Reading…
The underlying basis for why some people become so fiercely opposed to genetically modified crops or to action on climate change is often not grounded in science. That’s why I’ve come to believe that the anti-science tag is misused and a distraction from what’s really at play. An example of what I mean is captured…Continue Reading…
In case you hadn’t heard, the state of the planet is not good. At a big gathering earlier in the year, an assortment of esteemed, professional worriers reaffirmed this diagnosis and warned: Without urgent action, we could face threats to water, food, biodiversity and other critical resources. I don’t take these concerns lightly. Global changes…Continue Reading…
Are we at a crossroads in the climate debate? Will the renewed attention being paid to global warming in the wake of Hurricane Sandy be a lasting “teachable moment,” or more of a Groundhog Day-like moment? What do I mean? Let’s recall the wave of media (and science) coverage that followed Hurricane Katrina in 2005. It served as…Continue Reading…
The debate over climate change is well known for excesses on all sides. Those who claim that the issue is a hoax actually have a lot in common with those who see climate change in every weather extreme. The logic behind such tactics is apparently that a sufficiently scared public will support the political program…Continue Reading…
A blogger at Daily Kos rewinds back to the 1988 vice presidential debate and discovers that a question about global warming was posed to Dan Quayle about the the “Greenhouse Effect”: I guess that’s what they called it back then, before Global Warming and Climate Change became popular…There was no, do you think it is…Continue Reading…
Two bits of climate news caught my attention today. One comes from Grist’s David Roberts, who says: Yikes: Avoiding dangerous climate change is still possible, but just barely. Whew. Good to hear us humans are still mathematically in the race to avert climate doom. But then I saw this article from ClimateWire, reporting: India is poised to…Continue Reading…