Just recently, I went back to Tagaytay. I was expecting the same cold weather. To my dismay, I needed not wear my jacket anymore, even at dawn. Is there really a climate change? I tried to do some readings on climate change. I got one article that appeared in "America" magazine. It was written by Fr. Sean McDonagh who has written several books on ecology and religion. Thanks to Michael Miller who did this summary:

"President George W. Bush, after almost a decade of denial, used the
dreaded words 'climate change' very recently. The publication of the
report of the fourth Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change
(I.P.C.C.) makes it very clear to everyone that climate change is one
of the most serious ethical issues facing humanity in the 21st
century.

"China's glaciers are diminishing each year. If they disappear, where
will 250 million people who depend on meltwaters get water in the dry
season? Other places depend on meltwaters from glaciers.

"Australia is having a severe drought that probably is due to global
warming. Will there be enough water to support Perth or Sydney? A
rise of one meter in sea level will make it impossible for 30 million
Bangladeshis to live in their delta area. A significant rise in sea
level will inundate cities around the world including the east coast
of the United States. All of this will create a torrent of
environmental refugees.

"The I.P.C.C. document was compiled by 2,500 scientist. They have
done humanity a great service. "They have made it clear beyond
reasonable doubt that there is a direct relationship between burning
fossil fuels and climate change." [McDonagh]

"At the U.N. climate change conference in Nairobi in November 2006,
almost all discussion of climate change cited scientific, political
and economic data. Rarely were ethical values invoked which should
govern any human activity. Unless these ethical issues are
addressed, individual nations will continue to seek their short-term
economic gain no matter how it affects the global common good.

"A fundamental ethical principle calls for identifying those who are
responsible for the damages caused by climate change. "A nation
cannot use the excuse of minimizing the cost to its own economy as an
ethically acceptable reason for failing to take action on greenhouse
gas emissions that affect the entire planet. Yet this was the reason
that President George W. Bush gave for withdrawing from the Kyoto
Protocol that his predecessor had signed." [McDonagh]

"In the past few months the economist Sir Nicholas Stern has added his
voice to the debate. He argues that global warming constitutes the
greatest failure of market economics.

"Christians are called to care for God's creation. Religious faith
also calls us to care for others, especially those that are most
vulnerable. Climate change will have a severe impact on the poor who
least caused the problem.

"The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' document Global Climate
Change, A Plea for Dialogue, Prudence and the Common Good (2001)
accurately analyzed the future impact of climate change.
Unfortunately, the bishops did not directly challenge the morally
questionable course of action on greenhouse gas emissions being
pursued by the Bush administration. " [McDonagh]

"Christian churches working together with people of other faiths -
Muslims, Hindus, Buddhist - could help create a moral climate that
would make it easier for political leaders to urge the necessary
sacrifices that this generation must make to protect creation and
succeeding generations."