By Jessica Reed
Today representatives from more than 20 countries are meeting in Mexico to discuss climate change. The summit will take place as the Stern Report on climate change is being released - a study which warns the world of the gigantic costs we will soon face to tackle Global warming.
The report is said to be framed so that the Bush administration recognises it will not cost the earth to solve climate change, but will cost the earth literally and financially if it does not.
George Marshall, Executive director of the Climate Outreach Information Network and author previously published on openDemocracy, currently writes a blog titled Climate Denial, which aims to "explore the topic of our deep and profound denial of climate change- with observations and anecdotes about our weird and disturbed response to the problem".
Reading the extravagant amount of information made available to the public about the issue everyday, it seems that it all comes down to simple observations: if we act now we can all limit the potential damages, but if we decide to wait we will certainly increase the risks of not being able to repair our own human-made damages soon enough. While multiple and emerging talks and summits do help the global debate, giving it a more serious tone and raising global awareness, it is not satisfactory yet, as unconcerned and oblivious scientists dismiss the issue with a simple "It's serious, but don't panic".
At the end of the day, we are left with contradictory analyses, big threats ("One third of the planet will be desert by 2100"!), reassuring pamphlets (no need to be alarmist, as "climate porn" is slowing public initiatives), an Al Gore documentary, and endless recommendations (we need to work on "daily chores and minor lifestyle adjustments").
Phew... If there is no doubt that Climate Change is one of the biggest challenge we will have to work on in the next decades, the way the problematics are being handled is a little bit too confusing: a set of dissonent voices humming the same song, but unwilling to listen to one another.
Related - ChinaDialogue: China and the World discuss the environment + openDemocracy forums' discussion on Climate Change.
(Picture via twmlabs' flickR account)
