To get the conversation on campus in full swing, Hawai‘i Pacific University hosted a series of lectures by Stanford University professor, 2007 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, and internationally recognized climate change expert Dr. Stephen Schneider in April. Schneider has been featured in numerous television and film productions including Leonardo DiCaprio’s “The 11th Hour,” “Real Time” with Bill Maher, PBS’s “Global Warming: The Signs and the Science,” and HBO’s “Too Hot Not to Handle.”

“This is an extraordinary opportunity to connect students and faculty with one of the most gifted climate change experts in the world,” said Dr. Nancy Hedlund, HPU Associate Vice President of Planning and Assessment. “His lectures provided valuable insights about the consequences of climate change outcomes and how we determine those that may be considered dangerous.”

In his two on-campus lectures, “Global Warming: Is the Science Settled Enough for Policy” and “Global Warming: Teaching and Learning Complex Science Without Oversimplifying,” Schneider emphasized that climate change is an issue we must face together because it will affect us all, no matter our geographic location or socio-economic status. “This is a planetary gamble we cannot afford to lose,” said Schneider. “You cannot solve climate problems without community.”

While humans have made unprecedented changes to the Earth and its ecosystems to meet growing demands for food, fresh water, fiber, and energy, and these changes may have helped to improve the lives of billions of people, the same actions have weakened nature’s ability to deliver other key services such as air and water purification, protection from disasters, and the provisions of medicines.

“We are treating the atmosphere as a free sewer for our tailpipe and smokestack emissions,” said Schneider. “This is not an experiment we want to perform.”
Schneider also pointed out that while the issue of global climate change has seemed to divide the nation and much of the world politically, it is not a political battle.

“There is no such thing as a democratic floor or a republican forest fire,” he said. “We are really good at competition. We need to get better at cooperation, which takes trust in leadership.”
Schneider also stressed that individuals have a deep impact on what the future brings.

“It is like saying, ‘traffic lights and speed limits are for somebody else because I’m too puny to make an impact,’” he said. “We need to make the investments to find a way out of this problem.”
Schneider left his audiences with a final question,

“What message are you sending?”