(Jonathan H. Adler) Yesterday the Inter-Academy Council, a consortium of the world’s leading national academies of science, issued a report highly critical of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).  (Full report here.)  The report does not challenge the IPCC’s central findings about the science of climate change, but strongly criticizes the IPCC’s procedures and management structure, and urges fundamental reform.  Among other things, it urges the IPCC to acknowledge the degree of uncertainty and controversy surrounding certain aspects of climate science, to respond more fully to reviewer comments, and to make the entire IPCC process more transparent.  It also suggests that current IPCC head Rajendra Pachauri should step aside lest a single individual oversee...

The UN's climate science body needs fundamental reforms to the way it is managed, an international review has...

An international review of the "processes and procedures" used by the UN's climate science panel is set to deliver its report on...

For deniers, politics beats the science. George Monbiot - The Guardian The further to the right you travel, the more likely you are to insist that man-made climate change isn't happening. Denial has nothing to do with science and everything to do with politics. It is also true that in some respects an antagonism to climate science is consistent with rightwing – especially neoliberal – politics. The philosophy of the new right is summarised by this chilling statement from Václav Klaus. "Human wants are unlimited and should stay so." The politics have been shaped around the demands of industrial lobby groups – which in many cases fund those who articulate them. Rightwingers are making monkeys of themselves not just because their beliefs take precedence over the evidence, but also...

We are running out of excuses to deny global warming | The Times Paul Simons August 7 2010 It is easy to get carried away with headlines about heatwave records and blame it on global climate change. Yes, the extraordinary catalogue of weather records across the world so far this year is breathtaking, but let us not forget that only a few months ago half the world seemed to be buried in snow and all the talk was of the end of global warming. It is the global temperature over decades that counts in climate science, though, and the trend is unmistakable — temperatures are rising. The trouble is, the idea of climate change has been badly tarnished by the “climategate” e-mails and the UN climate conference in Copenhagen that ended in fiasco last year. We are running out of excuses....

Obama must take a lead on climate change – and soon | Jeffrey Sachs | Environment | guardian.co.uk May was the warmest month ever. Intense heat waves are currently hitting many parts of the world, yet still we fail to act (There is a)...problem in addressing climate change, which stems from a combination of the economic implications of the issue and the uncertainty that surrounds it. This is reflected in the brutal, destructive campaign against climate science by powerful vested interests and ideologues, apparently aimed at creating an atmosphere of ignorance and confusion. Major oil companies and other big corporate interests are also playing this game, and have financed disreputable PR campaigns against climate science. Their general approach is to exaggerate the uncertainties of...

(Jonathan H. Adler) Last week, the UK Independent Climate Change Email Review (aka the Muir Russell Review) released its report on the alleged scientific misconduct of climate researchers reveleaed by the disclosure of e-mails from the Climatic Research Unit at East Anglia University.  As the NYT reports, the review rejects the claims that the ClimateGate e-mails disclosed scientific fraud or chicanery in climate science, but also criticized some of the scientists involved for some of their conduct and concluded that a specific graph of past temperatures was “misleading,” even if not fraudulent.  In other words, the “trick” to “hide the decline” did produce a misleading graph, but the underlying scientific case for a human contribution to global climate change remains...

It’s beginning to look like a pattern.  An apparent scandal is unveiled that threatens to rock climate science to its very core, a scandal that usually ends in the suffix “-gate”. Himalaya, Amazon, and Climate itself are just three of the stems that have borne the suffix in recent months. Sections of the blogosphere then erupt with claims of deception, malpractice, political machinations and even fraud. Later, a more sober analysis by some body of learned men and women tends to turn that view on its head, concluding - in summary - that while there may be lessons to be learned, the science of human-induced climate change is not rotten at its core - in fact, it is in pretty good health. The latest in this series of sober analyses is the investigation by the...

A Dutch inquiry into the UN climate science panel backs its main findings, but calls for more...

After the hacked emails scandal scientists became 'more upfront, open and explicit about their uncertainties'Science has been changed forever by the so-called "climategate" saga, leading researchers have said ahead of publication of an inquiry into the affair – and mostly it has been changed for the better.This Wednesday sees the publication of the Muir Russell report into the conduct of scientists from the University of East Anglia's Climatic Research Unit (CRU), whose emails caused a furore in November after they were hacked into and published online.Critics say the emails reveal evasion of freedom of information law, secret deals done during the writing of reports for the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a cover-up of uncertainties in key research findings and...

UK Climate Minister: “Britons Are ‘Inherently Sceptical’ Of Climate Science And Politics” | Watts Up With That? No, we`re not big on dogma,our history shows it to be dangerous in the extreme. Hence only three or four percent church attendance,and an almost instinctive resistance to the strident tones of hempen-clad crustafarian soap-dodgers preaching `the new truth`. The beautiful irony is that the `activists` and pressure groups are really turning the public off,and long may they continue.Nothing turns people off a `cause` quicker than being berated by a dangerously uninformed teenager with a planet to save.The BBC springs to...

Rajendra Pachauri tells BBC News that he welcomes the vigorous debate on climate...

A remote weather station in Antarctica. Photograph: Cliff Leight/Getty Images Climate science’s winter of discontent has not made a large impact on the British public’s attitudes to global warming, according to poll of over 1,800 people. The poll, by researchers at the University of Cardiff, showed a small drop in public acceptance of climate change but not the major falls that some observers had predicted after a series of media controversies over the actions of climate scientists, combined with the failure of the Copenhagen summit and the record-breaking cold temperatures. “By no means has there been a collapse in confidence in climate science,” said Professor Nick Pidgeon, who led the study. “If I was in policy circles I would not be complacent, but...

Professor John Beddington dismisses 'unreasonable' comments from groups including Nigel Lawson's thinktank, as Royal Society responds to critics with new climate science guide• UK Royal Society revives confusion as US concludes climate change certaintyThe government's chief scientific adviser has hit out at climate sceptics who attack global warming science on spurious grounds.The statements from Professor John Beddington appeared to be a veiled attack on the former Tory chancellor and arch climate sceptic Nigel Lawson.Beddington said that he had met Lord Lawson to brief him about the science of global warming.His comments came as the Royal Society announced that it would publish a new guide to climate science for the public following criticism of existing statements on the topic,...

A forum to make sense of climate science | Chris Rapley | Environment | guardian.co.uk The Science Museum's new gallery aims to deepen the understanding of those who accept man-made global warming and inform those who are unsure. There is evidence that reactions to climate change are often strongly influenced by people's beliefs and values. Healthy scepticism, in which claims are examined with an open mind and facts followed to their conclusion, is often replaced by a closed-minded pursuit of a prejudged position, of acceptance or denial. The situation is not helped by the discussion being framed as a debate, in which it is assumed that one "side" has the right answer, and that the purpose of the exercise is to seek out flaws and defend assumptions in order to win the argument. This is...

BBC News - Society to review climate message The UK's Royal Society is reviewing its public statements on climate change after 43 Fellows complained that it had oversimplified its messages. They said the communications did not properly distinguish between what was widely agreed on climate science and what is not fully understood. The motto, "nullius in verba", is Latin for "Take nobody's word for it", and was adopted to signify the Fellows' determination to establish facts via experiments. Excellent news that maybe they are going back to their...

Full text of an open letter from 255 members of the US National Academy of Sciences in defence of climate research We are deeply disturbed by the recent escalation of political assaults on scientists in general and on climate scientists in particular. All citizens should understand some basic scientific facts. There is always some uncertainty associated with scientific conclusions; science never absolutely proves anything. When someone says that society should wait until scientists are absolutely certain before taking any action, it is the same as saying society should never take action. For a problem as potentially catastrophic as climate change, taking no action poses a dangerous risk for our planet. Scientific conclusions derive from an understanding of basic laws supported...

Open letter defends the integrity of climate science and hits out at recent attacks driven by 'special interests or dogma' • Read the full text of the open letterA group of 255 of the world's top scientists today written an open letter aimed at restoring public faith in the integrity of climate science.In a strongly worded reproof of the recent escalation of political assaults on climatologists, the letter, published in the US Journal Science and signed by 11 Nobel laureates, attacks critics driven by "special interests or dogma" and "McCarthy-like" threats against researchers. It also attempts to set the record straight on the process of rigorous scientific research.The letter is a response to negative publicity following the release of thousands of hacked emails from climate...

Climate scientists, used to dealing with skeptics, are under siege like never before, targeted by hate emails brimming with abuse and accusations of fabricating global warming data. Some emails contain thinly veiled death threats.  Across the Internet, climate blogs are no less venomous, underscoring the surge in abuse over the past six months triggered by purported evidence that global warming is either a hoax or the threat from a warmer world is grossly overstated. A major source of the anger is from companies with a vested interest in fighting green legislation that might curtail their activities or make their operations more costly.  ”The attacks against climate science represent the most highly coordinated, heavily financed, attack against science that we have ever...

I have never felt more popular. Chevening's facebook page has 1400 fans. I have also apparently had 81 interactionsthis week. Is that good? This is one of those interactions. In cooperation with many of our overseas Posts we havea wide range of partnership agreements with other bodies which provide additional funding for scholarships. Onesuch scholar is Ankur Garg from India, a Chevening Shell centenary scholar at the University of Cambridge. "I had some crazy amazing 2 days of my life last week. Stuck in Ireland due to the volcanic ash, did everything Icould never imagine I would ever do like sleeping in a bathtub. Flights got cancelled and rebooked five times.Managed to get the last ticket left on the last ferry to London.I feel delighted and honoured to be in the position I am...

The second of three reviews into hacked climate e-mails from the University of East Anglia (UEA) is set to be released later.  It has examined scientific papers published over 20 years by the Climatic Research Unit (CRU) at the heart of the e-mail controversy.  The panel was nominated by the Royal Society, and climate sceptics forecast it would defend establishment science. But the BBC understands the panel has taken a hard look at CRU methodology.  It is thought to have focued on statistical methods used by the CRU and the way uncertainties inherent in climate science may have been down-played by government bodies.  The review has been funded by UEA and chaired by Lord Oxburgh, a former academic and industry scientist. The chair has been challenged over his other interests. Lord...

Our narrow, antiquated school system is at the root of the climate email fiasco | George Monbiot | Comment is free | The Guardian The MPs were kind to Professor Phil Jones. During its hearings, the Commons science and technology committee didn't even ask the man at the centre of the hacked climate emails crisis about the central charge he faces: that he urged other scientists to delete material subject to a freedom of information request. Last week the committee published its report, and blamed his university for the "culture of non-disclosure" over which Jones presided. Perhaps the MPs were swayed by the disastrous performance of his boss at the hearings. Edward Acton, the vice-chancellor of the University of East Anglia, came across as flamboyant, slippery and insincere. Jones, on the...

MPs investigating the recent climate change row demand greater transparency from climate...

Climate unit criticised for stonewalling sceptics - The Irish Times - Tue, Mar 30, 2010 Scientists at a leading British climate research centre had a culture of withholding information from global warming sceptics but did not deliberately manipulate data to support their case, politicians said today. UTV News - Climate researchers 'secrecy' criticised – but MPs say science remains intact The parliamentary science and technology select committee was also scathing about the "standard practice" among the climate science community of not routinely releasing all its raw data and computer codes – something the committee's chair Phil Willis MP described as "reprehensible". He added: "That practice needs to change and it needs to change quickly." The latter report may be at...

The trillion-dollar question is: who will now lead the climate battle? | The Observer Some of the planet's most powerful paymasters will gather in London on Wednesday to discuss a nagging financial problem: how to raise a trillion dollars...The prices we pay for our goods do not reflect one key cost: the damage that their production does to the planet's climate system," said Bob Ward, of the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change at the LSE. "We need to find ways to extract payment from those who cause that damage ... Politicians and negotiators are preparing another assault on the issue, though this time talks will be very different. For a start, climate science has suffered damaging setbacks. There was the leaking from the University of East Anglia's climate research...

In the wake of the Oxfam/Prefero report, we now have Greenpeace weighing in with a report headed: "Dealing in Doubt: The Climate Denial Industry and Climate Science. A Brief History of Attacks on Climate Science, Climate Scientists and the IPCC."It would seem from the warmist obsession with such events that they are hurting grievously. They seem to be devoting far more attention to this issue than on the other side of the fence, where the debate is still largely on the science and related matters.However, despite our criticisms of the Prefero report (what we know of it), it shines out as a paragon of virtue compared with the Greenpeace effort, which could best be described as a lengthy rant against the Machiavellian machinations of "Big Oil". Purporting to describe "20 years of...

Public scepticism prompts Science Museum to rename climate exhibition - Times Online The Science Museum is revising the contents of its new climate science gallery to reflect the wave of scepticism that has engulfed the issue in recent months. The decision by the 100-year-old London museum reveals how deeply scientific institutions have been shaken by the public’s reaction to revelations of malpractice by climate scientists. The museum is abandoning its previous practice of trying to persuade visitors of the dangers of global warming. It is instead adopting a neutral position, acknowledging that there are legitimate doubts about the impact of man-made emissions on the climate. Professor Rapley, a climate scientist and former director of the British Antarctic Survey research...

Lord Oxburgh, the climate science peer, ‘has a conflict of interest’ - Times Online A member of the House of Lords appointed to investigate the veracity of climate science has close links to businesses that stand to make billions of pounds from low-carbon technology. Details, as ever at His...

US belief in climate science lowest since polling began 13 years ago, with 31% saying the threat is 'definitely' a realityPublic belief in climate science has seen a precipitous slide in the US, according to new polling that suggests fewer Americans are concerned about the threat posed by global warming.Nearly half of Americans – 48% – now believe the threat of global warming has been exaggerated, the highest level since polling began 13 years ago, the poll published today by Gallup said.It directly linked the decline in concern to the controversies about media coverage of stolen emails from the University of East Anglia climate research unit and a mistake about the Himalayan glaciers melting by 2035 in the UN's authoritative report on global warming."These news reports may well have...

Climate scientists from the Met Office hit back at the sceptics last week with new research  revealing the clear fingerprints of man-made global warming.  Advances in observational data and the way it is analysed are giving scientists a better insight into the climate system than ever before.  The study concluded there is an "increasingly remote possibility" of human influence not being the chief driver of climate change.  Peter Stott, Head of Climate Monitoring and Attribution at the Met Office discussed the new study. One quote stood out: “The science reveals a consistent picture of global change that clearly bears the fingerprint of man-made greenhouse gas emissions. This shows the evidence of climate change has gone beyond temperature increases...