Nobel Winner Talks Tactics On Climate Change
By MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE
RICHMOND - Mohan Munasinghe says world leaders recognize there are problems with poverty, energy and the environment, but what they don’t understand is that they are all connected.
“You don’t want to start solving problems piecemeal here and make the other problem worse,” said Munasinghe, vice chairman of the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. The panel and former Vice President Al Gore won the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for their work on climate change.
Munasinghe spoke Thursday at a luncheon for the participants in a Virginia State University summer program on wetland ecosystem and management for teachers from grade school to community colleges.
One example of a solution creating another problem is corn ethanol and the oil crisis, Munasinghe said.
Using corn ethanol creates a net energy loss and worsens the food shortage, he said.
Munasinghe’s approach to climate changes involves the economy, environment and society. Social capital is the most neglected aspect, he said.
“If you want to build social capital, the essence is to find a common purpose,” said Munasinghe, who is from Sri Lanka. “Find a common purpose and work together for it.”
Climate change is the ultimate common purpose, Munasinghe said.
Taking simple steps can help fight problems associated with climate change, he said.
“If you see some rubbish on the road, pick it up and clean it up,” Munasinghe said. “We can start the process of transition, but it has to be done by the young people.
“So, basically, the teachers have a huge responsibility here — not just to cram subject material into the student’s head just to pass an exam, but to develop the good citizenship concept,” he said.
Maria Celia Colendrino, a second-grade science teacher at Ellen W. Chambliss Elementary in Sussex County, said she agreed with starting out with the younger generation.
“What I’m thinking is start with the small kids,” she said. “Maybe they can tell their parents.”
