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In my opinion, Elizabeth Kolbert’s Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change (2006) could not be a better and more timely choice for MHC’s Common Read this year. I mean, is there a hotter topic than global warming and climate change just now? (Pardon the pun.) But seriously, is there? Everyone, just everyone suddenly seems interested.
Al Gore’s documentary An Inconvenient Truth (2006) appears to have been a tipping point, pushing the topic into the mainstream media’s and everyperson’s consciousness. The “truth” needed a bit of time to digest, but then suddenly, beginning in April/May of this year–just around the time Mount Holyoke College announced its Common Read 2007 pick–global warming and climate change as topics and buzzwords were ubiquitous (and I had to overcome myself to use that word): On 1 May, NPR launched its yearlong news series “Climate Connections,” advertising and marketing for the 7-continent, 24-hour music extravaganza Live Earth (7.7.07) seemed to go into full gear, Vanity Fair’s May Issue was a special green issue, on and on. And it is not just the usual suspects who are talking and interested anymore, i.e., liberals, democrats, lefties, greens, etc etc. Even President Bush went on topic in May, and the National Review, a conservative magazine, featured a piece by Jim Manzi, titled “Game Plan: What conservatives should do about global warming,” as its cover story 25 June. And groups considered ‘conservative’ but concerned about global warming/climate change and its (broader) effects are advertising in the National Review. Two I thought rather interesting were: Balanced Food and Fuel, an alliance of agricultural groups concerned about ethanol policy, and the Evangelical Climate Initiative.
Global warming and climate change seem truly to be on everyone’s mind now. And I am hoping this blog will be a forum for all to come to and talk and learn about this very hot topic.
