The Royal Statistical Society publishes a truly readable magazine called “Significance”, and until today I hadn’t realised it’s available online.
The front cover of the March 2010 Volume 7 Issue 1 edition shows an artist’s mock-up of severe drought and the headline question is “After Copenhagen : What can be done ?”
The magazine contains three really helpful articles on Climate Change :-
https://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/123300803/PDFSTART
“Copenhagen 1 : Climate change : making certain what the uncertainties are”
https://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/123300799/PDFSTART
“Copenhagen 2 : The perfect storm : food security and nutrition under climate change”
https://www3.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/fulltext/123300795/PDFSTART
“Copenhagen 3 : The behavioural wedge : reducing greenhouse gas by individuals and households”.
The diagram above is from the second article, discussing stress on food supplies in the coming years due to Climate Change. I found it important to note that India and China are going to suffer from terrible problems with failing rice crops.
Selected comments :-
“The conclusions of the report, “Climate Change: Impact on Agriculture and Costs of Adaptation”, are dire and indicate a reversal of much of the progress made to date against poverty and hunger. By 2050, climate change could cause an additional 25 million children to be malnourished, yields for all major crops to be reduced, and food prices to rise…”
“These gloomy outcomes are not predestined. Much of climate change’s harmful effects through to 2050 can be avoided if governments and the international community commit the needed funding and all countries implement appropriate policies…”
This is a key point that Climate Change “sceptics” forget to mention when they level the accusation of “alarmist” at Climate Change Scientists – if the world does decide to significantly reduce Carbon Emissions then we will still be eating curry and rice in 2050.