Doha 2

Yesterday delegates at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Doha heard that this year should be among the hottest on record.  The director of the U.N. World Meteorological Organization, Michael Jarraud, said that data confirmed trends towards a warmer planet.  “Climate change," he added, "is taking place before our eyes and will continue to do so as a result of concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, which have risen constantly and again reached new records.”  And yet delegates in Doha are not expected to do much during these two weeks of meetings.  This probably because the U.S. and China, the two principal actors at the conference, aren't ready to act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Leaving China aside, after Obama’s reelection, can we expect a change in the U.S. approach, if not now, over the next few months?  It would seem unlikely given Republican magical thinking about climate change and the pressures to deal with the economy.  Right after Obama’s reelection, David Renmick, in the New Yorker, took a moment to celebrate and then said that, despite these obstacles, we have to recognize climate change as the central issue.  He noted that Obama has more than once spoken of its importance, most recently in his acceptance speech on election night.  As a way to move to action, Renmick proposed that the President take the lead in making us aware of what’s at stake, perhaps with an address from the Capitol on Inauguration Day.  If only.