Climate Science Under Attack: how can we change the narrative?

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Dr Melanie Fitzpatrick, Climate Scientist

Jean Sideris, Outreach Coordinator

Union of Concerned Scientists27th April, 2010

Talk Outline

• Contrarians: 1990s to present• Manufacturing doubt• Recent events• Public opinion polls• Restoring scientific integrity• What you can do

Exposing the Campaign of Deception

• Oil and coal industry

• Junk science

• Manipulated media

• Orchestrated “astroturf”

Smoke, mirrors and hot airUCS report, 2007

• ExxonMobil, Phillip Morris, R.J. Reynolds• Manufactured uncertainty• Front groups

www.ucsusa.org/assets/documents/global_warming/exxon_report.pdf

Funding Disinformation

Fred SingerJohn Christy

Richard

Lindzen

David Legates

Sally Baliunas

Pat Michaels

Tim BallCraig Idso

Sherwood IdsoWillie Soon

www.exxonsecrets.org www.sourcewatch.org

The “blogosphere”

blog

noun : \blog, bläg\

Etymology: short for Weblog

Date: 1999

: a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer; also : the contents of such a site

— blog·ger noun

— blog·ging noun

climateaufit.org

*-gate* Climate, Glacier, Amazon, Sea, Pachauri, etc

• Stolen emails from UEA

• Himalayan glaciers

• Amazon reference

• Netherlands sea level

• IPCC process review

• Lawsuit against EPAPhoto: Indutiomarus, Wikimedia Commons

Senator Inhofe’s Report

Released by Minority Senate Committee

February 23rd, 2010

Raymond Bradley Keith BriffaTimothy Carter Edward CookMalcolm Hughes Phil JonesThomas Karl Michael MannMichael Oppenheimer Jonathan OverpeckBenjamin Santer Gavin SchmidtStephen Schneider Susan SolomonPeter Stott Kevin TrenberthThomas Wigley

“In our view, the CRU documents and emails reveal, among other things, unethical and potentially illegal behavior by some of the world’s preeminent climate scientists.”

‘Consensus’ Exposed: The CRU Controversy

Photo: US Navy 050210-N-2383B-253

What the Public Believes

Global Warming’s Six Americas, January, 2010Leiserowitz, Maibach, Roser-Renouf

http://environment.yale.edu/uploads/SixAmericasJan2010.pdf

Scientists: Trusted Messengers

http://woods.stanford.edu/research/surveys.html

Maintaining Scientific Integrity• Lead with good science

• Demystify science

• Personalize science

• Be visible and approachable

Lizette Kabré/University Of Copenhagen

Communication Training

Main Message: Climate Scientists Agree!

Examining the Scientific Consensus on Climate ChangeDoran and Zimmerman, EOS Transactions, January, 2009

tigger.uic.edu/~pdoran/012009_Doran_final.pdf

What the Public Needs to Hear

• Global warming is real (scientists agree)

• Largely human-caused

• Impacts humans (not just other animals, “outside” ecosystems)

• Solutions exist

AscensionTechnology, Inc

Public understanding

PPM Energy

Union of Concerned Scientists, 2007

Union of Concerned Scientists, 2010

Photo: NOAA

Profiles of Scientists

Photo by Brenda Ekwurzel

Photo: Regina Carns

Letters-to-the-Editor and Op-Eds

Debunking misinformation

www.ucsusa.org/global_warming/science_and_impacts/global_warming_contrarians

Weight of the Evidence

www.ucsusa.org/evidence

Useful Resources• UCS: www.ucsusa.org/evidence

• Real Climate: www.realclimate.org

• Skeptical Science: www.skepticalscience.org

• Peter Sinclair – Crock of the Week

• DeSmogBlog: www.desmogblog.org

For more information:sciencenetwork@ucsusa.org

Union of Concerned Scientistswww.ucsusa.org

What you can do!

For more information:Jean Sideris

sciencenetwork@ucsusa.org

• Share upcoming publications with us

• Build relationships between journalists and scientists

• Monitor your local media

• Submit op-eds, letters to the editor

• Participate in targeted press conferences

• Respond to online news articles (national, regional, local)

• Seek out and speak at local events