From the 1992 Rio Earth Summit to the 2009 Copenhagen Climate Conference
there was a concerted international effort to stop climate change. Yet
greenhouse gas emissions increased, atmospheric concentrations grew, and
global warming became an observable fact of life. In this book,
philosopher Dale Jamieson explains what climate change is, why we have
failed to stop it, and why it still matters what we do. Centered in
philosophy, the volume also treats the scientific, historical, economic,
and political dimensions of climate change. Our failure to prevent or
even to respond significantly to climate change, Jamieson argues,
reflects the impoverishment of our systems of practical reason, the
paralysis of our politics, and the limits of our cognitive and affective
capacities. The climate change that is underway is remaking the world in
such a way that familiar comforts, places, and ways of life will
disappear in years or decades rather than centuries. Climate change also
threatens our sense of meaning, since it is difficult to believe that
our individual actions matter. The challenges that climate change
presents go beyond the resources of common sense morality--it can be
hard to view such everyday acts as driving and flying as presenting
moral problems. Yet there is much that we can do to slow climate change,
to adapt to it and restore a sense of agency while living meaningful
lives in a changing world.
The accompanying reference guide is included as a PDF on this disc.
