Push the Politicians: One Way to Preserve Life on Earth

Larry J. Schweiger

Seas will continue to rise and methane will continue to leak from the tundra long after we drastically cut greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, so we have no time to waste. In addition to carbon-capping legislation, there are important policies that must be enacted. You can help support the Obama administration’s commitment to a new chapter in international climate policy by urging the administration and Congress to adopt a tight schedule to end CO2 emissions and by urging them to support an international treaty to do the same world-wide. You can help put the pressure on by:

• Getting involved in letter and e-mail writing, phoning, and lobbying your member of Congress and your US senators to get them to acknowledge the growing insecurity of a destabilizing climate.

• Asking lawmakers to put aside political differences and the endless bickering that goes nowhere and to start moving toward clean domestic energy sources such as efficiency, wind, solar, and geothermal. If lawmakers can move in that direction, we will set a new course toward recharging the nation’s economy while stopping climate change.

• Joining any of many good conservation or environmental organizations that are working to avoid a climate crisis and supporting their work. To find one that meets your expectations, Wikipedia provides a link to the many environmental and conservation groups.

• Using your social networking sites to encourage others to act. Start blogging about global warming and stay informed about the latest science and policy issues. Read my daily blogs to stay engaged on wildlife impacts, legislative and policy developments, and new climate science and to learn what people and organizations are doing to change the outcome.

• Drawing from and linking your blog posts to a number of reliable free sites, including the National Wildlife Federation, Daily Climate, or Climate Debate Daily. Or to get a steady feed of the latest science, sign up for the Climate Crisis Coalition daily feeds. College and high school students may want to sign up with PowerShift 2009 and visit Climate Classroom.

• Learn more about the impacts of international climate negotiations through the C-LEARN simulator. C-LEARN is a simulator designed for climate communicators, educators, and leaders of international climate negotiations, and its primary purpose is to help users understand the long-term climate effects (CO2 concentrations, global temperature, sea-level rise) of various customized actions to reduce fossil fuel emissions, reduce deforestation, and grow more trees. You can ask multiple, customized "what if" questions and understand why the system reacts as it does. The Climate Interactive website has updated content for C-LEARN, including new front ends for the simulation and teaching and learning tools.

An excerpt from the book "Last Chance: Preserving Life on Earth" by Larry J. Schweiger. © Fulcrum Publishing. Reprinted with Permission