A GLOBE-Net Editorial by Dr. John D. Wiebe
Vancouver, March 1, 2012 - Like many in my
profession, I have grown weary of the divisive and polarized debate
over the science of climate change that has been such a disruptive
force in recent years.
This debate is too often carried out in extremes: Either you
believe, or you don't. There appears to be no middle ground. And
the uncertainty about whether climate change is caused by human
activity or is an unavoidable natural phenomenon is too often used
as an excuse for inaction.
Doing nothing about climate change is a surefire recipe for
disaster.
Let's face it, very few of us have the knowledge base to prove
or disprove the science of climate change. We depend on those
skilled in climate science to tell us what they know and how it
might affect us. Their work must continue, because we need to know
the facts about the risks associated with our changing
climate.
But you don't have to be a climate scientist to understand the
realities of the mountain pine beetle infestation, or
tsunami-related risks to low-lying coastal cities, or the suffering
of millions affected by water shortages and devastated crops. These
climate-related risks are all too obvious. These are the things we
understand and need to talk about.
We need to return to a rational discussion about the environment
and the economy, because climate-related challenges we have to deal
with in the years ahead are very real.
In fact, most of the global mega-risks we will face over the
next two decades are sustainability-related. Climate change,
natural resource scarcities, shortages of clean water, population
growth and urbanization, ecosystems decline, deforestation, food
security - these are the real challenges that require action
now.
The 2012 World Economic Forum report on global risks over the
next decade ranked rising greenhouse gas emissions and the failure
of climate change adaptation as having the highest risk impact and
the highest likelihood profile.
In many ways the pressures being placed on the world's already
stressed ecosystems are greater today than ever before. And the
associated risks are more profound than ever before, not only in
terms of bottom-line business performance, but also in terms of
economic and social stability.
We simply do not have time for rancorous or polarized debates
that only confuse the general public and lead us nowhere in terms
of rational, forward-looking policies.
We must rationalize the environment and economy debate, and the
best way to do this is to shift the discussion away from believing
or not believing in climate science and focusing more on how best
to deal with the realities of climate-related risks.
By viewing climate change as an issue not of scientific belief
but of measurable risk realities, it is possible to plan strategies
to mitigate or to transfer these risks through management
frameworks and practices that our business and financial
communities understand all too well.
Dealing with climate change from a risk-management perspective
allows a much broader audience to understand the immediate and
long-term impacts of these risks, which in turn would lead them to
put pressure on governments at all levels to adopt policies and
standards that to better address these issues.
Unfortunately the polarized debate over climate change has
extended to the policy realm as well. The enthusiasm and hope that
prevailed at the first Earth Summit in Rio 20 years ago, for
example, has given way to a weary realization that after two
decades of negotiations, we still lack a viable global regime for
managing greenhouse gas emissions.
Nonetheless, I see room for hope. The business and financial
communities recognize the bottom-line importance of responsible
environmental risk management. They understand we have the
technologies that can lessen our dependency on fossil fuels and
that we can make greater use of clean energy sources to power our
economies.
We have the capacity to do a better job not only in terms of
environmental protection, but also in terms of managing the
unavoidable climate risks that lie ahead. But to do this we need
concerted and cooperative action from both the public and private
sectors focused on common goals.
That is something that happens at our GLOBE Conferences, such as
the one taking place this month in Vancouver. We bring together
some of the best minds in the world from business and government to
help us deal with these issues, because it is only through
rational, open discussion that true progress can be made.
We also enable highly creative solutions providers and
innovators to showcase the technologies and tools needed to build a
sustainable future.
I am deeply concerned about the state of our environment. But I
am equally confident that common sense will prevail.
John D. Wiebe
President and CEO
This article was also published in the Vancouver Sun, March
1, 2012
You may download a pdf version of this article
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