Following the style and spirit of the IOC Forum series, this book provides the non-specialist with the basic scientific background and information essential for understanding the complex processes that bring about climate change. This book is a valuable aid, facilitating public and private debate - and rational decision-making. The authors explain the difficulties involved in making realistic climate predictions. They also examine the kyoto protocol from different points of view, shedding new light on the challenges at stake and the need to foster international cooperation. Finally, they outline the work ahead needed to both develop effective climate prediction models and to come up with countermeasures to cope with the dangers facing our Earth and society.
The series, managed by UNESCO's Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC), not only presents the scientific aspects of the themes in question but also the issues as debated by society at large. Science is therefore set within the wider context of economics, politics and society.