The Keeling Curve is a visual representation of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations measured at the Mauna Loa Observatory, and it has been climbing since 1958. You would think that such horrific scientific findings would eventually lead to actions by politicians and leaders. But what happened is that the politicians froze, while the curve kept going up—until this day.
In 1991, during the Bush administration, leaders decided to meet in Rio at the Earth Summit. Especially since the Cold War had ended, tensions were lower, making it a good time to discuss international regulations for what’s called “sustainable development”—a term that means “development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs” (article). President George Bush signed the UNFCCC—a non-binding international agreement to tackle climate change. A few years later, in 1997, the Kyoto Protocol was introduced—a binding commitment that targeted developed countries. The United States was the only industrialized nation that failed to ratify the agreement (article). The U.S. did not view the agreement as fair; it wanted developing countries to also have binding commitments. But from the third world’s perspective, this was not sustainable, as economic growth is essential to lifting their populations out of poverty. Meanwhile, the U.S. was worried about its own economy—that these new rules would slow its growth and put it at a disadvantage in competing with developing countries.
The U.S. often shows hesitation and resistance when it comes to international agreements. I think this goes back to the high values the U.S. has set for itself. The most apparent one is freedom—and such agreements dictate domestic policies. Listening to the environment and slowing down industrialization means taking the risk that the economy might decline. On top of that, CO2 is something you can neither see nor smell; “The Keeling Curve shows that CO2 is rising, but you cannot see CO2” (article)—unlike a financial curve, which you can see and feel. I also think it’s about the nature of politics. Politics is all about short-term goals and acting fast, whereas CO2 levels rise slowly, and addressing global warming requires long-term planning. That’s hard to achieve in a system where elected officials change from one mandate to another, often with diffirent intentions and goals.
Will Wright 