Usted no se lo cree

Citas destacadas:

«As a climate scientist who has worked on this issue for several decades, first as head of the Met Office, and then as co-chair of scientific assessment for the UN intergovernmental panel on climate change, the impacts of global warming are such that I have no hesitation in describing it as a «weapon of mass destruction».» (The Guardian, 29/07/2003)

«Scientists need to be patient with politicians.» (Ehsan Masood, 1997)

Fecha de nacimiento:

31/12/1931

Formación:

Catedrático de Fïsica de la Atmósfera

Posición:

Ex-director general del Met Office en tiempos de Margaret Thatcher
Co-presidente del IPCC
Presidente de la John Ray Initiative (Science, Environment and Christianity)
Fundador de la International Society for Science and Religion
Presidente de la UK Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution (1992-1996)
Presidente del Victoria Institute, o Philosophical Society of Great Britain

Departamento, Universidad:

University of Oxford

Área principal de conocimiento:

Forzamiento radiativo

Observaciones:

Presencia en los medios convencionales:

John Houghton – Global warming is now a weapon of mass destruction – The Guardian, 29/07/2003 – http://www.theguardian.com/politics/2003/jul/28/environment.greenpolitics
«As a climate scientist who has worked on this issue for several decades, first as head of the Met Office, and then as co-chair of scientific assessment for the UN intergovernmental panel on climate change, the impacts of global warming are such that I have no hesitation in describing it as a «weapon of mass destruction».”

John T. Houghton (2009) – The truth about climate change – Project Syndicate, 22/04/2009 – http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/the-truth-about-climate-change
“Vested interests have tried to spread misinformation about global warming, but scientific evidence shows urgent action is needed… Urgent action is needed both to adapt to the climate change that is inevitable and to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, especially CO2 , to prevent further damage as far as possible … CO2 must not be allowed to exceed 450 parts per million (it is now nearly 390 ppm). This implies that before 2050 global emissions of CO2 must be reduced to below 50% of the 1990 level (they are currently 15% above that level), and that average emissions in developed countries must be reduced by at least 80% of the 1990 level.”

Libros:

Sir John Houghton (1994) – Global Warming – The Complete Briefing – Cambridge University Press

Papers destacados:

Autor principal de los tres primeros informes del IPCC

Otros papers:

John T. Houghton et al (1997) – Stabilization of Atmospheric Greenhouse Gases: Physical, Biological and Socio-Economic Implications – Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – IPCC Technical Paper III – https://www.ipcc.ch/pdf/technical-papers/paper-III-en.pdf
“With regard to mitigation costs (the subject of this section), a positive discount rate lowers the present value of the costs incurred. This is because it places a lower weight on investments made in the future. Indeed, the further in the future an economic burden (here, emission reductions) lies, the lower the present value of costs. In a wider context, discounting reduces the weight placed on future environmental impacts relative to the benefits of current energy use. Its use makes serious challenges, such as rapid switching of energy systems in the future, seem easy in terms of present dollars and may affect consideration of intergenerational equity. ”

Otras referencias

Sir David Wallace and Sir John Houghton (2005)- A guide to facts and fictions about climate change – The Royal Society – http://royalsociety.org/uploadedFiles/Royal_Society_Content/News_and_Issues/Science_Issues/Climate_change/climate_facts_and_fictions.pdf
“This document has been endorsed by the Council of the Royal Society, and draws primarily on scientific papers published in leading peer-reviewed journals and the work of authoritative scientific organisations, such as the IPCC and the United States National Academy of Sciences.”

John Houghton (2008) – Meetings that changed the world: Madrid 1995: Diagnosing climate change – Nature 455:737-738 doi:10.1038/455737a
«One industry NGO, the Global Climate Coalition (now «deactivated»), was among the most active in challenging the IPCC’s conclusions on climate change. Backed by powerful parts of the US and international energy industry, the coalition had begun to take part in the IPCC’s activities by attending meetings, and writing and reviewing papers. Its representatives worked closely with the official delegates from Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and other oil- and gas-exporting states.»

Ehsan Masood (1997) – Climate panel forecasts way ahead – Nature 385:7 doi:10.1038/385007a0 – http://www.readcube.com/articles/10.1038/385007a0?locale=en
«In another example, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait lobbied to water down conclusions on the human influence on global climate. They eventually relented after being marginalized by therest of the drafting committee. But their campaign was taken up by a prominent U/S fossil fuel lobby, which protested when it learnt that parts of the main report has been altered after peer review to clarify ambiguities that had arisen during the writing of the policy-maker’s summary (Nature 381:546)». Despite the setbacks, Houghton believes the IPCC has proved a success. «The science must never be compromised. But scientists need to be patient with politicians.»