On March 14, 2007, Intelligence Squared U.S. (IQ2US) addressed one of the most divisive topics of the 21st century: global warming. Less than a year after the release of An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore’s Oscar-winning exploration into the risks and realities of climate change, IQ2US’s expert panelists Michael Crichton, Richard S. Lindzen, Philip Stott, Brenda Ekwurzel, Gavin Schmidt, and Richard C.J. Somerville took on a topic that has only become more polarizing in the years since. The panelists debated the proposition “Global Warming is Not a Crisis,” and it remains a matter of contention among the international scientific and political communities. In late 2015, the United Nations will pursue a universally binding climate change policy at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Paris, France, seeking to conclude over two decades of negotiations among world leaders.

1. The Debate
Continues: Is
Global
Warming a
Crisis?

2. Introduction
 On March 14, 2007, Intelligence Squared U.S.
(IQ2US) addressed one of the most divisive topics
of the 21st century: global warming.
 Less than a year after the release of An
Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore’s Oscar-winning
exploration into the risks and realities of climate
change, IQ2US’s expert panelists Michael
Crichton, Richard S. Lindzen, Philip Stott, Brenda
Ekwurzel, Gavin Schmidt, and Richard C.J.
Somerville took on a topic that has only become
more polarizing in the years since.

3. Debate Overview
 The panelists debated the proposition “Global
Warming is Not a Crisis,” and it remains a
matter of contention among the international
scientific and political communities.
 In late 2015, the United Nations will pursue a
universally binding climate change policy at
the United Nations Climate Change
Conference in Paris, France, seeking to
conclude over two decades of negotiations
among world leaders.

4. Is Global Warming a Crisis?
Introducing the high-profile topic in 2007, IQ2US chairman Robert
Rosenkranz began,
“So tonight’s debate […] is addressing issues that for me are very real
and which, at Intelligence Squared, we feel can use some serious
enlightenment.”
Noting the multifaceted nature of the climate change debate, he
continued,
“First of all, on the science of it. Does science really have the ability to
tell us with a good degree of reliability what is going to happen to our
climate over a hundred year period? And secondly, the economics.
This all leads in effect to public policies that say, ‘We should invest
money now for benefits in the future.’ Well, that always poses the
traditional questions of, well, what are the costs? What are the
benefits? What are the alternatives? What are the risks of action?
What are the risks of inaction? So there are a whole welter of
economic aspects that I think, hopefully, tonight we’re going to get
some enlightenment on as well.”

5. Conclusion
 While the percentage of the global
community that views global warming as a
reality is gradually increasing, debates over
mankind’s role in climate change, the severity
of the issue, and strategies for addressing it
continue to rage on.
 The public continues to weigh in on the issue
via the IQ2US poll, where you can still cast
your vote: Global Warming is Not a Crisis