Global Climate Change: Corporate and Personal Action Martin Abraham Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, The University of Toledo, Toledo, OH 43606; martin.abraham@utoledo.edu (for correspondence) Published online 7 March 2007 in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ep.10196 It’s official. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has reported that global climate change is real and that humans are responsible [1]. Some specific con- clusions include the following:  Most of the observed increase in globally averaged temperatures since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic greenhouse gas concentrations.  For the next two decades a warming of about 0.28C per decade is projected for a range of emission scenarios.  Continued greenhouse gas emissions at or above current rates would cause further warming and induce many changes in the global climate system during the 21st century that would very likely be larger than those observed during the 20th century.  Anthropogenic warming and sea level rise would continue for centuries due to the timescales associ- ated with climate processes and feedbacks, even if greenhouse gas concentrations were to be stabilized. In summary, global climate change is real, much of climate change is due to human activity, global average temperatures will continue to rise, and actions that we take now will only impact climate sometime in the next century. For those trained to analyze scientific data (and for many of those not trained), the charts and tables that are presented within the report are quite clear, and in many respects, quite chilling. The scientific world has been aligning around the notion that climate change is real and humans are re- sponsible for some time. On June 2, 2005, the National Academy of Sciences, along with the national academ- ies of 10 other nations, issued their Joint science aca- demies’ statement: Global response to climate change [2], which starts off with the words, ‘‘Climate change is real.’’ They go on to point out that ‘‘Action taken now to reduce significantly the build-up of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere will lessen the magnitude and rate of climate change,’’ and urge all nations to take action to begin to address climate change issues. In June 2005, U.S. National Academy of Sciences President Ralph Cicerone followed up in his report to Congress ‘‘The earth is warming’’ and that by 2100, ‘‘global sur- face temperatures will be from 2.5 to 10.4 8F above 1990 levels.’’ The NAS 2006 summary report states unequivo- cally, ‘‘Humans have had an impact on climate’’ [3]. Individuals and corporations are beginning to take notice that scientific advice is uniformly identifying anthropogenic global climate change as a serious issue that needs to be addressed now. For example, a large and diverse group of US business leaders has formed the US Climate Action Partnership. In their inaugural state- ment, USCAP announced, ‘‘We, the members of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership, pledge to work with the Pres- ident, the Congress, and all other stakeholders to enact an environmentally effective, economically sustainable, and fair climate change program consistent with our prin- ciples at the earliest practicable date.’’ Their principles are outlined in their report, ‘‘A Call to Action’’ [4]: 1. Account for the global dimensions of climate change; 2. Create incentives for technology innovation; 3. Be environmentally effective; 4. Create economic opportunity and advantage; 5. Be fair to sectors disproportionately impacted; and 6. Reward early action. And their conclusion on an appropriate industrial response to climate change: ‘‘In our view, the climate change challenge, like other challenges our country has confronted in the past, will create more economic opportunities than risks for the U.S. economy. Climate stabilization requires immediate action and sustained effort over several decades.’’ SUSTAINABLITY SUSTAINABILITY Ó 2007 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Environmental Progress (Vol.26, No.1) DOI 10.1002/ep April 2007 9