Climate Change

Although the media and politicians often portray dissenting scientific views about climate change, this is an incorrect depiction of the scientific community. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), looks at peer-reviewed published scientific literature and "states unequivocally that the consensus of scientific opinion is that Earth's climate is being affected by human activities." (Science Magazine Link)

In agreement with the IPCC, the National Science Foundation, the American Meteorological Society, the American Geophysical Union, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science all have issued statements stating that humans have played a role in climate change.

Are there dissenting scientific opinions that are being overshadowed by these organizations? Not published in peer-reviewed journals. Peer-reviewed articles labeled "climate change" during 1993 to 2003 totaled 928. Of these 928 articles, none disagreed with the consensus opinion.

Dissenting opinions often come from "[i]ndustry-financed groups like the Global Climate Coalition and the Western Fuels Association [who are] quick to send out press releases, giving the impression that there [is] an active debate within the scientific community about the threat of climate change. Mainstream media's notion of journalistic balance resulted in stories that gave the naysayers equal time to dispute the notion of catatsrophic (sic) climate change, setting the standard for all future climate change narratives." (The Nation Link)

The scientific consensus might, of course, be wrong. If the history of science teaches anything, it is humility, and no one can be faulted for failing to act on what is not known. But our grandchildren will surely blame us if they find that we understood the reality of anthropogenic climate change and failed to do anything about it. (Science Magazine Link)