Earlier this month, the national science academies of the G8 plus those of China, India, Mexico, Brazil, South Africa, and India, issued a strongly worded joint statement about global warming and energy usage.
Let us stress that it is pretty much unheard of for this many independent science bodies to agree on such an unequivocal document. This is as official as it gets in the science community. Key statements:
Our present energy course is not sustainable
A goal of confining global warming to an average of 2 centigrade degrees above pre-industrial levels would be very challenging, and even this amount of warming would be likely to have some severe impacts
Responding to this demand while minimizing further climate change will need all the determination and ingenuity we can muster
The problem is not yet insoluble but becomes more difficult with each passing day
G8 countries bear a special responsibility for the current high level of energy consumption and the associated climate change. Newly industrialized countries will share this responsibility in the future
It is also noteworthy that the US joined, despite its government’s refusal to join Germany’s and the UK’s proposals at the upcoming GB meetings. Similarly, the Chinese also signed, despite its government’s obstructionist posture in the drafting of the latest IPCC report.
Yet, at least so far, this important document has gotten just about no coverage in the English language media. One has to wonder whether humanity has a collective death wish.
