Why We Disagree About Climate Change: Understanding Controversy, Inaction and Opportunity

by Mike Hulme

• ISBN13: 9780521727327
• ISBN10: 0521727324
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-05-25
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

Climate change is not 'a problem' waiting for 'a solution'. It is an environmental, cultural and political phenomenon which is re-shaping the way we think about ourselves, our societies and humanity's place on Earth. Drawing upon twenty-five years of professional work as an international climate change scientist and public commentator, Mike Hulme provides a unique insider's account of the emergence of this phenomenon and the diverse ways in which it is understood. He uses different standpoints from science, economics, faith, psychology, communication, sociology, politics and development to explain why we disagree about climate change. In this way he shows that climate change, far from being simply an 'issue' or a 'threat', can act as a catalyst to revise our perception of our place in the world. Why We Disagree About Climate Change is an important contribution to the ongoing debate over climate change and its likely impact on our lives.

Table of Contents

List of Figures	p. xiii
List of Tables	p. xv
List of Boxes	p. xvii
Acknowledgements	p. xix
Foreword	p. xxi
Preface	p. xxv
The Social Meanings of Climate	p. 1
The Discovery of Climate Change	p. 35
The Performance of Science	p. 72
The Endowment of Value	p. 109
The Things We Believe	p. 142
The Things We Fear	p. 178
The Communication of Risk	p. 211
The Challenges of Development	p. 248
The Way We Govern	p. 284
Beyond Climate Change	p. 322
Bibliography	p. 367
Index	p. 381
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