SCIENCE AT THE SHINE DOME canberra 7 - 9 may 2008

Symposium: Dangerous Climate Change: Is it inevitable?

Friday, 9 May 2008

Closing remarks

Professor Michael Dopita, FAA

I have been asked to make a few closing remarks. First of all I thank the Australian Academy of Science for inviting me here today. I have found it fascinating. I have enjoyed being able to sit here for a whole day and not have meetings and an agenda to deal with. It has been great to hear some good science.

This is about the fourth or fifth time I have been to one of these meetings somewhere in the world focusing on the 'dangerous' question, and scientists are very often uncomfortable with the 'dangerous' question because clearly at the end it is a political judgment. A lot of scientists just want to deal with the science issues, but how the community perceives the dangers comes from the evidence the scientists put before them, and the judgments the politicians make. So there is a cycle that goes on, and it has been interesting to see it here today.

The scientists do have a voice, a very loud voice, through the IPCC – which some of you know I have been involved in. But that always tries not to be policy prescriptive, and at the end of the day there is also a bunch of people, such as some I have talked to here today, who say, 'We want to hear the scientists' views. We want their opinions expressed. We want them to enter the policy debate as well.' So there is this great tension between the science community that wants to do science, and the broader community that wants to hear the scientists' view on the policy issues. I think we have seen that bubbling along today.

My take on this is that there is a heck of a lot of good science still to be done. Neville Nicholls highlighted some, and I guess I am closest to that science. The policy issues that some speakers touched on are going to be absolutely fundamental. I have a personal view, having been involved in the IPCC work, that it is very conservative. It has underestimated the rate of change in some areas. It is very, very complex; we don't understand it. And that is why we need the science.

Once again thank you to the Academy, thank you to the speakers, and well done!