List of figures; List of tables; List of boxes; Acknowledgements; Preface; Foreword Steve Rayner; 1. The social meanings of climate; 2. The discovery of climate change; 3. The performance of science; 4. The endowment of value; 5. The things we believe; 6. The things we fear; 7. The communication of risk; 8. The challenges of development; 9. The way we govern; 10. Beyond climate change; Bibliography; Index.
A unique insider's account of climate change and the diverse ways in which it is understood.
Mike Hulme is Professor of Climate Change in the School of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia (UEA), and Founding Director of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed journal papers and over 30 books or book chapters on climate change topics. He has prepared climate scenarios and reports for the UK Government, the European Commission, UNEP, UNDP, WWF-International and the IPCC. He is leading the EU Integrated Project ADAM (Adaptation and Mitigation Strategies) during the period 2006–2009, which comprises a 26-member European research consortium contributing research to the development of EU climate policy. He co-edits the journal Global Environmental Change and is Editor-in-Chief of the Interdisciplinary Review on Climate Change.
'This is a very rare book. A scientific book about climate change,
that deals both with the science, and our own personal response to
this science. It does all this supremely well, and should be
compulsory reading for both sceptics and advocates. However, it
does so much more, it is a book of great modesty and humanity. It
uses climate change to ask questions more broadly about our own
beliefs, assumptions and prejudices, and how we make individual and
collective decisions.' Chris Mottershead, Distinguished Advisor, BP
p.l.c.
'In this personal and deeply reflective book, a distinguished
climate researcher shows why it may be both wrong and frustrating
to keep asking what we can do for climate change. Tracing the many
meanings of climate in culture, Hulme asks instead what climate
change can do for us. Uncertainty and ambiguity emerge here as
resources, because they force us to confront those things we really
want - not safety in some distant, contested future but justice and
self-understanding now. Without downplaying its seriousness, Hulme
demotes climate change from ultimate threat to constant companion,
whose murmurs unlock in us the instinct for justice and equality.'
Sheila Jasanoff, Harvard University
'This book is a 'must read' for anyone interested in the
relationship between science and society. As we know from other
controversies over GM Crops and MMR, by the time science hits the
headlines, and therefore the public consciousness, it's always
about much more than the science. This book shines a fascinating
light on this process by revealing how climate change has been
transformed from a physical phenomenon, measurable and observable
by scientists, into a social, cultural and political one … This
book is so important because Mike Hulme cannot be dismissed as a
skeptic yet he is calling for a radical change in the way we
discuss climate change. Whether or not people agree with his
conclusions - this book is a challenging, thought-provoking and
radical way to kick start that discussion.' Fiona Fox, Director,
Science Media Centre, London
'With empirical experience that includes seven years' leading the
influential Tyndall Centre, Professor Hulme here argues that
science alone is insufficient to face climate change. We also 'need
to reveal the creative psychological, spiritual and ethical work
that climate change can do and is doing for us'. It is the very
'intractability of climate change', its sociological status as a
'wicked' problematique, that requires us to reappraise the 'myths'
or foundational belief systems in which the science unfolds. That
returns Hulme to the bottom line question: 'What is the human
project ultimately about?' and herein resides this book's
distinctive importance.' Alastair McIntosh, University of
Strathclyde and author of Hell and High Water: Climate Change, Hope
and the Human Condition
'A much needed re-examination of the idea of climate change from a
vantage point that takes its cultural coordinates as seriously as
its physical properties. Through the twin lenses of scientific
scrutiny and rhetorical analysis, Mike Hulme helps us to see just
why we disagree about climate change and what we can do about it.
With wisdom, wit and winsome writing, he shows us that debates
about climate change turn out to be disputes about ourselves - our
hopes, our fears, our aspirations, our identity. Hindsight, insight
and foresight combine to make this book a rare treat.' David N.
Livingstone, Queen's University, Belfast
'In a crowded and noisy world of climate change publications, this
will stand tall. Mike Hulme speaks with the calm yet authoritative
voice of the integrationist. He sees climate change as both a
scientific and a moral issue, challenging our presumed right to be
'human' to our offspring and to the pulsating web of life that
sustains habitability for all living beings. As a peculiar species
we have the power do create intolerable conditions for the majority
of our descendents. Yet we also have the scientific knowledge, the
economic strength, and the political capacity to change direction
and put a stop to avoidable calamity. This readable book provides
us with the necessary argument and strategy to follow the latter
course.' Tim O'Riordan, University of East Anglia
'Hulme articulates quite complex arguments in a remarkably clear
and effective manner. He not only covers a lot of ground, but by
avoiding an overly compartmentalized approach he achieves a great
deal of connectivity throughout the book. For those who are
regularly immersed in the social sciences literature on climate
change, the content itself may not hold many surprises. But Hulme's
approach makes these arguments accessible and meaningful for a
wider audience, and this tome could also serve as a great teaching
text … Hulme makes important contributions to continued
understanding of environmental, cultural, political and physical -
eminently interdisciplinary - aspects of climate change. As more
citizens, students, scientists and policy players read it, [this
book] is very likely to be an important and 'discernible influence'
on the ways we think about and discuss global change, and how we
plan to engage with it.' Nature Reports: Climate Change
'How global warming has been transformed from a physical phenomenon
that is measurable and observable by scientists into a social,
cultural and political one, by a professor of climate change at the
(now controversial) University of East Anglia. In the crowded and
noisy world of climate-change publications, this book will stand
out.' The Economist
'Mr Hulme does not reach a fatalist or relativist conclusion that
we cannot do or even know anything significant. On the contrary, he
advises a practical, multi-level approach to the challenge,
proceeding faster in certain geographical and industrial areas,
which does not depend on a single beautiful blueprint being
accepted by the entire world.' www.timesofmalta.com
'… scholarly, candid and intensely thought-provoking … I urge you
all to buy, read, digest and ponder this valuable book. It will be
a long time before it will be rivalled for its breadth and depth of
coverage of this vitally important subject.' Peter Rogers,
International Journal of Meteorology
'The book highlights several topical issues. Through its selection
of clever interdisciplinary themes combined with a
thought-provoking further-reading list at the end of each chapter,
[it] will provide new knowledge to anyone who reads it - students,
educators, politicians, policymakers, activists.' Vigya Sharma,
Australian Journal of International Affairs
'This book by Mike Hulme simply is vital for anyone interested in
the global climate change debate and for those that seek
challenging arguments in understanding the role of individual and
social behaviour when confronted with perceived or real global risk
issues. I can wholeheartedly recommend it and am convinced that
most readers will thoroughly enjoy and benefit from this work.'
Environmental Earth Sciences
'The totemic position of climate change and cognate environmental
issues within the public and media consciousness makes it an ideal
exemplar through which to explore scientific debates, which Hulme
achieves in this book. … one of the greatest strengths of the
volume is Hulme's ability to clearly and effectively communicate
what are often complex interactions and abstruse concepts. … this
book will grow in value and appreciation as time goes on.' The
Geographical Journal
'… he has written an excellent analysis of the terrain and does a
great service by drawing together the essence of a very large
multi-disciplinary literature. Anecdotes are freely employed to
illustrate arguments and these provide a useful aid to
comprehension.' Transactions of the Royal Society of South Africa
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