by Oliver St John

     Over the past few years, we've seen the world's scientists debate whether global warming is indeed a real phenomenon, largely putting their check marks in the 'yes' column. We've also seen the world's politicians and corporate interests have the same debate, largely opting for 'no'.

     Is global warming real? Of course. Anyone seeing the increase in temperatures and frequency of heat waves in this third millennium can see that. There is also a wealth of incontrovertible scientific data to back up the assertion that the Earth is, in fact, warming up. Unfortunately for those stubbornly clinging to their 'no' votes on this one, all the money and political influence in the world will not actually change the numbers.

     The question of whether human activity is responsible for global warming is still up for debate; we've seen sporadic instances of large-scale global warming at points throughout measurable geological history, in some cases well before mankind had the ability to wreak such havoc upon its home.

     What many people are not grasping, though, is that if global warming is not in fact directly attributable to humankind, then we are at least giving it a helping hand. We fill our air and water with damaging chemicals, gouge holes in our own atmosphere, tear down the trees which could help keep our own menace under control... and blithely turn around and insist global warming has nothing to do with us?

     The men and women of planet Earth need to take this matter into their own hands. If global warming is a natural, cyclical property of the planet, we can at least act to keep it under control as much as possible rather than simply ignoring it. If it is attributable to human actions, the shame in ignoring it is magnified tenfold.

     Regrettably, it is not only humans who suffer the effects of rising global temperatures; as the temperatures rise and we continue to befoul our water and air, the very chemistry of the planet's lifeblood is being altered, causing catastrophic damage to other life across the planet.

     In the time it takes you to read this month's issue of The Green Room, another species will have been eradicated from the planet. Perhaps that was the plant which held the key to curing cancer or AIDS. Perhaps it was an animal whose physiology would have promoted the greatest scientific discovery of the century. Perhaps it was something beautiful, like a species of tiger or panda.

     Now it's gone, never to return.

     Some individuals have taken action to reduce the impact of their own activities. Some corporations and governments are following suit, using biofuels, recycled paper or renewable energy in order to avoid causing further damage. While these are laudable measures, they are not enough to contain a problem of this magnitude. We need a global effort from all individuals, companies and nations to bring their own contributions to global warming under control.

     The Earth has given us plenty of warning signs of the perils of global warming: melting ice caps, forest fires and of course Hurricane Katrina. To have ignored the signs thus far has been foolish. Continuing to ignore them would constitute idiocy in the extreme.