Science Café: The Earth Under Fire and Brimstone.
How Can We Remain Indifferent or Even Deny It?
Wednesday, May 20, from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM
Serra dei Giardini, Castello 1254 (Venice)
Opening Remarks:
- Francesca Vianello, Europe Direct Venezia Veneto
- Luciana Favaro, EuCliPa.IT
- Erica Villa, DVRI
Presentation:
Fabio Trincardi, marine geologist and oceanographer, Senior Associate at CNR-ISMAR
The greenhouse effect is a natural process that makes Earth habitable, but our economy (based on the growing consumption of fossil fuels) has intensified it, causing a rising concentration of greenhouse gases and a consequent increase in global average temperature that is reaching 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. The rate at which the concentration of major greenhouse gases in the atmosphere is rising is unprecedented in the history of the planet.
Why can’t we deny it or pretend it isn’t happening? If you realized you had a high fever, would you throw away the thermometer or call the doctor? The question is rhetorical because you would certainly call the doctor. In the case of global warming, however, we hesitate, and take refuge in statements like “it has been hot in other geological periods, and even hotter,” or “the climate has always changed.” These statements are true but misplaced because in many of these hot periods of the past, humans could not have survived. In short, too many people are still trying to throw away the thermometer and say there’s nothing to worry about. Amitav Ghosh calls it “great blindness”—we don’t see something not because it’s insignificant, but because it’s enormous.
