Climate Change Denial:
Debate, rhetoric, and total stupidity has overshadowed scientific discussion. The debate has taken on many of the characteristics of 1940's early warnings that cigarettes cause cancer - something that is universally accepted today, but took decades to become mainstream - for many of the same reasons that there is global warming denial today. There are those few scientists among the climate change "deniers" who can be understood to be simply misinformed. A disproportionate number of this small group of denying scientists seem to be trained in disciplines that provide limited opportunity for real understanding of complex ecosystems. There has also been a massive outpouring of funds to debate and deny what are the clear results of detailed science studies. Regretably, there are a few scientists for whom the opportunity for short term wealth or professional advancement outweigh moral and ethical considerations.
Problem: Climate Change Denial Leading to Lack of Political Action
Entent of Problem: Hundreds of Millions of Dollars have been spent by fossil fuel organizations to deny the science that exists. Hired "trolls" on the internet continually try to upset any rational discussion of the dangers of climate change, the causes, and the solutions. Some countries that are heavily invested in fossil fuels as a resource industry fund groups that spread alt-science designed to delay progress, or propose potentially dangerous solutions like upper atmosphere geoengineering while blocking international attempts to regulate such activities.
US and Saudi Arabia block U.N. Measures to critical examine carbon capture and solar radiation management .
Trend or Prognosis: There is widespread and justifiable concerns that the geoengineering may have widespread negative outcomes and that atmospheric carbon capture is "smoke and mirrors" greenwashing by the fossil fuel industry.
Why Is This Important? In the absence of a clear understanding of the dangers and the true costs, much of the public is failing to take action or to hold companies, politicians, and the media accountable. Some banks and many public and private pension plans continue to loan money or hold stock in fossil fuel extraction and transportation infrastructure.
Root Causes: Politicians in countries that produce fossil fuels seem incapable of understanding the extent of the problem, or engage in nihilistic "Après moi, le déluge" thinking,
What MUST be Done? What Can We Do? Be informed; Take time to understand the issues and the lingo; Spread the data and the sources to debunk the garbage science proferred by the fossil fuel industry and its toadies; Scientists need to be better communicators; Universities need to be independent of funding agencies with ties to fossil fuels. Governments, banks, and pension funds must be pressured to drop support for fossil fuel industries.
Defeating Kyoto: The Conservative Movement's Impact on U.S. Climate Change Policy (2003)
Funders Behind the Climate-Change-Denial Effort (2013) (note this is not the "first" to reveal the funding sources as alleged in paragraph one.)