wfn.org | Baha'i news: Ethics are 'missing dimension' in climate debate, says IPCC chairman

[Sally Weeks <sweeks@bwc.org>]

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Ethics are 'missing dimension' in climate debate, says IPCC chairman

NEW YORK, 23 September (BWNS) - The inequities and injustices that are like ly to occur on a global level because of climate change mean that world lea ders must carefully examine the moral and ethical dimensions of global warm ing, said Dr. Rajendra K. Pachauri, chairman of the Nobel Prize-winning Int ergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

"The impacts of climate change are going to be inequitable, unequal, and se vere in many parts of the world," said Dr. Pachauri, who spoke today at a b reakfast meeting at the Baha'i International Community offices.

"We have to think at a much higher level. And I think this is where ethics  comes in so critically as the missing dimension in this debate," he said.

Dr. Pachauri's comments came at the official launch of an appeal, directed  at world leaders gathered at this week's UN Summit on Climate Change, to em phasize the importance of the moral and ethical dimensions of global warmin g and its impact in their deliberations.

The appeal was drafted by the Baha'i International Community and has been s igned by 25 nongovernmental organizations, religious groups, and policy ins titutes. The document calls on world leaders to "consider deeply the ethica l and moral questions at the root of the climate change crisis."

"The quest for climate justice is not a competition for limited resources b ut part of an unfolding process towards greater degrees of unity among nati ons as they endeavor to build a sustainable, just and peaceful civilization ," the appeal states.

Tahirih Naylor, a Baha'i representative to the United Nations, said the pur pose of the document is to call attention to the fact that climate change i s more than a political, economic and scientific problem.

"There is a moral and ethical dimension to climate change that must be addr essed," said Ms. Naylor. "For example, we know that wealthy nations have co ntributed more to climate problems than the poor nations, and so there is a n element of justice that must be considered in any long-term solution."

Dr. Pachauri said that while science can provide the building blocks for un derstanding the impact and likelihood of climate change, it will be importa nt for citizens groups and individuals to provide the motivation for action .

"I feel you really cannot rely on the leaders, you really cannot rely on th e nation states," he said. "You really need a ground-swell of grassroots ac tion and grassroots consciousness on what needs to be done. If that is happ ening, then leaders will follow."

He encouraged the representatives of civil society gathered for the breakfa st meeting to continue to work to keep the moral and ethical issues front a nd center in the climate debate.

"You have to persevere and persist," he said. "If you do, you certainly wil l be able to change the nature of the debate."

He said, especially, that the long term impact of climate change on future  generations must be taken into account. "Ethics demands that action has to  be taken early," he said.

Dr. Pachauri also said he expects that whatever its outcome, the upcoming U N Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December is unlikely to be the  final word on the subject.

"When the IPCC's fifth assessment comes out in 2013 or 2014, there will be  a major revival of interest in action that has to be taken," said Dr. Pacha uri, speaking of the periodic assessments rendered by the group of more tha n 400 scientists around the world that he leads. "People are going to say,  'My God, we are going to have to take action much faster than we had planne d.'"

As chairman of the IPCC, Dr. Pachauri accepted the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize,  which was awarded jointly to the IPCC and former U.S. Vice President Al Gor e for their work in warning of the potential impact of global warming.

Among the organizations that have signed the appeal are the International P eace Research Association, Oxfam International, Society of Catholic Medical  Missionaries, Solar Cookers International, Women Organizing for Change in  Agriculture and Natural (WOCAN), and the Women's Environment and Developmen t Organization (WEDO).

(For the text of the appeal to the world leaders, and to see photographs, g o to http://news.bahai.org/story/729)