Rising Star or Declining Comet? --- I take nothing from Ms. Thunburg’s evident intelligence and skillful rhetoric. Like my colleagues, I believe the repetitive alliteration diminished her effectiveness. I concur with Desiree’s observation regarding the statistical “burping”. More serious, again as Desiree also observed, is the absence of specific solutions.

This was the Youth-Climate Conference and there were no solutions offered. No apparent solutions emerged from the parallel COP 26 UN Climate Change Conference. This was hosted by the UK in partnership with Italy (the Youth Climate conference was in Milan).

The absence of China, Saudi Arabia, and Russia from this COP 26 conference must be appreciated. Each of these three nations approach climate change from the perspective of national priorities and not necessarily, or exclusively, as a global solution.

The green jobs that Ms. Thunberg proposed as a “solution” resonated with her audience. Ms. Thunberg cited both science and the economy as supporting her argument. Yet, Europe shivers in the cold, while the efficacy of solar and wind options remains unproven. If planetary survival is the contention, martialing the evidence for and against all options, including nuclear energy, requires public debate.

Source author: John D. Hipsley jhipsley@igc.org