This Week in Green – Nov. 12, 2010
AGU trying to take the politics out of global warming
The American Geophysical Union — the world’s largest non-profit professional society of Earth and space scientists — is trying to take the politics out of global warming, despite news reports to the contrary.
On Monday, the Los Angeles Times reported that the AGU “planned pushback against congressional conservatives who have vowed to kill regulations on greenhouse gas emissions,” and that “700 researchers had agreed to speak out on the issue.”
The AGU was quick to put out a press release in response to that story, emphasizing that the LA Times misrepresented AGU’s mission and its upcoming climate science project, Climate Q&A Service.
“In contrast to what has been reported in the LA Times and elsewhere, there is no campaign by AGU against climate skeptics or congressional conservatives,” said Christine McEntee, Executive Director and chief executive of the AGU. “AGU will continue to provide accurate scientific information on Earth and space topics to inform the general public and to support sound public policy development.”
At a time when politicians in Washington use global warming as a political football, it’s a smart move by the AGU to try to untangle politics from science. But with 58,000 members in more than 135 countries, not all members agree.
“This group feels strongly that science and politics can’t be divorced and that we need to take bold measures to not only communicate science but also to aggressively engage the denialists and politicians who attack climate science and its scientists,” said Scott Mandia, professor of physical sciences at Suffolk County Community College in New York.
“We are taking the fight to them because we are…tired of taking the hits. The notion that truth will prevail is not working. The truth has been out there for the past two decades, and nothing has changed.”
AGU started its Q&A service on climate science last year for journalists covering the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. AGU aims to the do the same this year at the upcoming conference in Cancun, Mexico. As the organization was quick to underscore, it addresses scientific questions only and does not delve into commentary on climate policy.