Climate change & global leadership: Putting our vote to use

In light of recent world events, American focus has shifted away from the environment. The Bush administration has not only ignored growing environmental concerns but it has exacerbated the problem by retracting from key environmental policies: lifting regulations on power-producing industries, repealing the Clean Air Act in favor of the Clear Skies Initiative, and refusing to ratify the Kyoto Protocol.

Bush highlights our unilateral invasion of Iraq as being indicative of our status as global leaders. For instance, the perception of countries that ratified the Kyoto Protocol has been negatively altered by US inaction. In turn, US clout at the international negotiating table has decreased. For our country to truly be a leading member of the global community we must recognize, accept, and then reverse the trend of global climate change.

What is climate change? Global warming is defined as an increase in the average temperature of the Earth's surface, which occurs following an increase in greenhouse gases. When solar radiation is trapped by greenhouse gases, the concentration of CO2 and other greenhouse gases rises, as does the earth's temperature over time. The implications of climate change are more than environmental. There are severe political and economic ramifications of global warming, such as costs associated with severe weather events. Furthermore, people in industrial areas will be impacted less than those in poorer countries.

There is a wide economic gap between the developed and developing nations. With China and India rapidly expanding, it is not viable for them to sacrifice their economic advances to halt the progress of global climate change. There is no incentive to do so when the US, the wealthiest and most developed nation, is not itself willing to make such changes. The US must lead the charge and accept its responsibility and address global warming. I propose that the first step in accepting this responsibility is to acknowledge the problem. The Bush administration has repeatedly questioned whether climate change is fact or fiction.

Recent scientific publications based on Costa Rican studies verify that global warming is assuredly fact and that strong actions must be taken to halt the progress of climate change. However, the evidence is clearly reflected in today's science. Climate change is a devastating trend that is most notably evident in the tropics, where cloud forests, along with the organisms that dwell in them, are suffering due to rising sea surface temperature coupled with the result of an upward shifting cloud base.

In his recent article "Biological Response to Climate Change on a Tropical Mountain", scientist J. Alan Pounds and his colleagues explain that cloud forests are unique and vital tropical ecosystems that trap moisture and protect the cloud-immersed habitat from solar radiation. Pounds argues that accelerated atmospheric warming and drying conditions, caused by rising sea surface temperature, is forcing species to shift habitats to higher elevations and, in some cases, is leading to local extinction. This hypothesis is known as the lifting-cloud-base hypothesis, and it has severe implications for our tropical forests.

Lowland deforestation results in similar outcomes. Because of the properties of cloud patterns, the conversion of lowland forests to agricultural farmland has resulted in reduced evapotranspiration and thus decreased the amount of moisture in the air as it travels towards upland mountains. Thus, loss of cloud protection and necessary moisture is caused by lowland deforestation and by global environmental warming trends. In short: what is happening in the tropics has a global explanation, such as climate change around the world.

With science demonstrating the effects of climate change, the Bush administration has no recourse to deny that global warming is occurring. By doing so we fail as leaders. The Kyoto Protocol asks the United States to reduce its carbon emissions by 7 percent below its 1990 levels by 2012. Without the US taking responsibility, it is up to us as community members to become leaders by promoting a green philosophy through our actions. Tufts has recognized the severity of the problem by committing to "meet or beat the Kyoto target for university-related greenhouse gas emissions."

Under the guidance of Tufts Institute for the Environment (TIE) and Tufts Climate Initiative (TCI), along with support from President Bacow, Tufts has adopted many projects and made many infrastructural renovations to reduce its carbon emissions. For instance, Tufts has partnered with Toyota and Zipcar to raise awareness of the environmental impact of driving. Making these low-emissions and highly fuel efficient cars available will help Tufts meet its goal while simultaneously providing students with inexpensive transportation options.

Another project Tufts has adopted is Sophia Gordon Hall, the proposed "Solar Residence Hall". This structure will use photovoltaic electricity and high efficiency designs to reduce energy consumption. Both projects are important steps in decreasing the university's generation of greenhouse gasses.

As a University, we have recognized the devastating effects of climate change, but it is time for the rest of the country to take action. With the upcoming Presidential elections, we as voters have the opportunity to push this issue to the forefront of American policy. Now is the time to elect an administration to the White House that will act responsibly; an administration that will address climate change; and an administration that will pass the legislation necessary for ensuring our global safety.



Erin Allweiss is a junior majoring in International Relations.