Lloyd's: Denial Not Just a River in Egypt
Allow me to start with a provocation: If you don’t believe the science behind climate change, I think you’re silly.*
Further, if you’re in the insurance industry and you’re not concerned about the impact climate change will have on your livelihood, I think you’re really silly and ought to read this recent release from Lloyd’s of London, a reinsurer that’s taking global climate change seriously.
My position is on the table. Feel free to jump right to the comments section and tell me how silly I am; how there is a sizeable yet conveniently ignored body of evidence to suggest that global warming is part of a natural—not manmade—cycle; how ice shelves and glaciers have melted long before we started driving SUVs; how Al Gore and other radical environmentalists are the architects of a shadowy conspiracy; how you shouldn’t believe what They tell you.
**Yawn**
I will concede, Agent Blog skeptic, that there is a scarcity of civility when it comes to this subject, that both those who acknowedge climate change and those who deny it can be nasty in their delivery. (Just check out the comments on the Lloyd’s press release over at the Insurance Journal.)
I will also concede that once upon a time (back in the 1970s) there was a need for debate on the idea of anthropogenic climate change. But that time has passed. The only worthwhile debate now is what we should do to mitigate the effects of climate change. Insurers, who will be on the front lines in future climate-related catastrophes, are right to demand action.
In the words of Lord Peter Levene, chairman of Lloyd's, "We cannot risk being in denial on catastrophe trends. We urgently need a radical rethink of public policy, and to build the facts into future planning."
Read the entire release here.
* Please understand that I use the word silly in a loving way and not as a proxy for a mean-nasty word.
Comments
Today I heard that Moscow (along with Duluth Minnesota) didn't have any snow this Christmas. Vladimir Putin said it was great for business and PR.
: P
I guess I better finish watching An Inconvenient Truth.
It still seems hard to believe that the effects will be immediate enough to affect insurance companies.
It seems, rather, that we all should be alarmed for our grandchildren.
Posted by: Lori Reed | January 15, 2007 04:30 PM
Global climate change is real, and it's something everybody is just trying to get their heads around. Even the thought of sea levels rising to the point of changing the way our continents look is enough to make most people shut the thought down and pigeon hole it somewhere deep in their minds. Governments are talking more and more about this crisis (and we can call it that) and it's going to have more and more of a greater presence on political agendas in a lot of countries. I agree with Lori though that the major effects will happen over time, and a longer period of time than say a few years or so. Decades. What is impacting the insurance industry now are the climate patterns of hurricanes, storms and the like. These alone are huge. Over the decades that are to come, the insurance industry will no doubt consider climate change on a greater scale.
Posted by: Michaela Roberts | January 18, 2007 08:02 PM
Another great point, Micheala.
Climate change is a particularly difficult thing to grasp—maybe it’s the scale of the issue that makes comprehension so elusive. For most of us it seems pretty abstract, far from our own day-to-day concerns.
Posted by: Jeb | January 19, 2007 03:24 PM
I believe climate change is real. I live in Ohio which used to be covered by a glacier. What I find absurd is the idea that we control it.
If that doesn't convince you, consider the growing middle class in China and India. If you want to stop this, you'd better start there.
All businesses will get on the green bandwagon. There is no alternative. But other than giving us cleaner air and water (a good thing) it isn't going to change the weather. American businesses will be regulated out of any kind of creativity.
Posted by: Norma | May 17, 2007 03:05 PM
Norma:
While it's hard to believe that we control the global climte, that's exactly what the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says we're doing.
The UN IPCC is made up of top scientists from around the world. This past spring, they issued a report that says they are 90 percent certain that we're experiencing man-made climate change.
You're right that we need to get China and India on board in order to stall and ultimately reverse climate change. The fact is, though, the U.S. is still the biggest contributor of greenhouse gases in the world. The best place to address global climate change is right here. Once we clean up our act, we can help other countries do the same (preferably by selling them our own green technology).
Climate change is the biggest challenge the world has faced since fascism. Will we stand up and mount a fight? Or will we, like Neville Chamberlain once did, cross our fingers and naively hope that the danger passes?
It will take all sorts of creativity to meet this challenge. American businesses--the most creative in the world--will be put to the test. I'm confident that they are up for it.
Posted by: Jeb | May 17, 2007 03:29 PM