Global Warming

  The Ad Council campaign on global warming launched today in partnership with Environmental Defense with the objective to give Americans an emotional connection to global warming and a sense of urgency to personally take actions to reduce green house gas emissions.

Our research revealed that while Americans are aware of global warming, they don't think its consequences will affect them in their lifetime. They also don't believe they can personally do anything about it. To break through the cluttered media environment, the creative is powerful and compelling. I invite you to view the television spots Tick and Train that were created pro bono by Ogilvy New York. Other campaign elements can be seen on www.adcouncil.org.

Consumers exposed to these PSA report they are motivated to act. So the call to action is to visit www.fightglobalwarming.com and learn what you can personally do to stop global warming. Actions can be a s simple as utilizing energy saving light bulbs and turning down the thermostat in the winter to purchasing energy efficient appliances and fuel efficient cars. The website also helps people understand how their personal action can have significant impact. For example, if every family in America replaced their three most used light bulbs with a compact fluorescent, that would be like taking 3 1/2 million cars off the road.

While global warming is often politicized, this campaign is non political. It is not designed to influence policy or legislation but to give Americans things they can personally do to address this critical environmental issue. And just as our messages over the years have reduced littering and encouraged recycling, increased seat belt use and reduced drunk driving. I know this campaign will mobilize people to do their part to stop global warming.

Comments

[Lee]

Ad Council is way out of bounds endorsing the frivilous assertion that human activity is the cause of global warming. There are many, many scientists who do not believe humans are the cause of global warming. Earth's climate has widely fluctuated throughout the centuries. Furhermore, there is much evidence supporitng the theory that Earth is on the verge of a cooling period, not warming!

[Jill]

I commend the Ad Council for taking on this important issue. In today's New York Times, there is yet another story about the adverse effects of global warming - not cooling - that will melt more of the polar ice caps in the next 100 years. The article states that "the future rise in sea levels, driven by loss of ice from both Greenland and West Antarctica, would occur over many centuries and be largely irreversible, but could be delayed by curbing emissions of the greenhouse gases."

So, while humans may not be the sole cause of global warming, the actions we take now certainly have an effect one way or the other. We can and should make changes now - while we still can - on behalf of future generations. http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/23/science/23cnd-melt.html

[Chris]

I'd also like to commend the Ad Council and Environmental Defense for taking on the issue of global warming through this PSA campaign.

Over at Gristmill, the blog of Grist Magazine, there is a debate on whether fear or hope is a better motivator for this issue. Feel free to stop by and chime in.

http://gristmill.grist.org/story/2006/3/23/163553/190

[Morgen Fleisig]

Plaudits to the Ad Council and Environmental Defense for weighing in on one of the most important topics of our lifetime. While there is obviously plenty of lively debate about the causes and effects of global warming, most of the evidence does unfortunately seem to point to its being a reality that we must confront. The more voices are heard, the more policy makers will feel the confidence to take a stand on the issue. I especially like the nonpartisan message of individual empowerment expressed here.

[David]

Kudos to the Global Warming campaign - urging individuals to assess their actions should be seen as a positive one - if the increasing force of hurricanes, melting ice floes or lingering droughts throughout the world do not open our eyes - maybe our children's generation and those that follow will understand the effect that humans have on the environment - we talk of reducing our need for Middle East oil but refuse to increase the fuel efficiency of our cars or the efficiency of power plants - alternative energy R&D should be at the forefront of our energy policies, not drilling for oil in Alaska - And why anyone has a problem with a campaign promoting the use of compact flourescent bulbs, among other things, which not only promotes energy efficiency but saves money in the long run - that I don't understand.

[Tom]

Kudos to all the dedicated employees at the AD Council for taking on so many controversial issues and still standing their ground. This issue in particular has to be taken seriously, regardless if it will effect us significantly in our lifetime; we need to begin the process and be preventative for many generations to come. Global Warming should not be overlooked by anyone, and all need to actively participate in the reduction of greenhouse gasses. Lets all try to keep the world turning and preserve our resources.

[Charles Runolfson]

I don't see any consideration being given to the fact that global warming may be inevitable. History records that the Vikings lived in Greenland from around 1000 AD to about 1300 AD. The Vikings must have been growing gardens and crops to survive in Greenland and probably global cooling brought their civilization to an end.

[Philippe Boucher]

EcoTalk interviewed Steve Cochran of Environmental Defense about this campaign. The podcast is available on www.ecotalk.net and we are curious to hear the audio clips...

[Mario]

This is a terrific campaign. I really love the campaign strategy and don’t believe this topic can be given too much attention.

If I may suggest making the videos downloadable. It would make it a lot easier to pass those videos around the web and I'd even like to be able to upload them to YouTube and Google video. While most of the users on those sites probably fall outside of your target demographic, I'd love to drive awareness wherever I can.

Thanks.

[rcraiglefebvre]

Great to see a blog up and running to support the campiagn! A quick note regarding your comment that the global warming campaign is 'not political.' By focusing on individual actions the ads and their calls to action at the website have made a 'political' decision to focus on the individual and not the social causes. The same type of thinking is what kept giving the tobacco industry a free pass for many years. Not that the Ad Council can reframe an issue like this by itself and overnight, but the blog will hopefully provide the opportunity for you and readers to think through some of these issues, perhaps in the formative stages of one of your next campaigns.

[Mike Kriewald]

Where do you get your funding. This sounds like a bunch of left wing nut cases. I do not apreciate a one sided line of pure B.S. like I am seeing here and would hope that none of my tax dollars are contributing to you.

[pete]

check out this article for an interesting and different take on global warming: http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2006/04/the_media_and_reporting_on_the.html

[Eric C]

In the Gore film, the question of scientific consensus is addressed; they cite that a review of 928 peer-reviewed papers on climate related topics published by respected scientific journals, not a single paper disputed that “there is a discernible human influence on global climate.” Furthermore, they produce an internal Exxon document that states that its objective is too cast doubt on the issue by asserting that there is no consensus when in fact the debate is over. I'd suggest that those who remain unpersuaded, ask themselves why they purchase fire insurance. A person doesn't buy fire insurance because they know their house will burn down, but because it is possible that it might and prudence dictates the precaution.

[Dave Holt]

Global warming? Non-political? The mere fact that you've started this campaign reeks of politics. You state that global warming is an established fact, thereby positioning yourself with (and advancing) the extreme liberal agenda. The facts indicate that what is happening is normal cyclic activity within a very dynamic system. Gore's effort at fear mongering cannot stand up to the facts. To say that this campaign is non-political is very naive.

[Mark T]

God & Global Warming

This idea of global warming being caused by CO2 emissions is very similar to those who believe deeply in God. These “believers” do so purely based on faith and unproven theories.

The “facts” as you put it, are not clear, have not been proven, and any "scientific organization" which unequivocally says the opposite is proving itself truly unscientific.

I believe at one time many well known "scientific organizations" also thought certain people were genetically better than others, another "fact" proven incorrect over the years.

While the Suns intensity may be increasing and urban sprawl may be raising regional (city) temperatures, does this equate to “global warming”, no. How does an increase of CO2 from .032% to .038% of the total atmosphere over the past 40 years cause “global warming”, and why does NASA not detect a build up of green house gases in the upper atmosphere, isn’t that what causes the “greenhouse effect”? And forget about that chart with the big CO2 spike around the end of the 20th century, I can make another chart that shows how insignificant CO2 really is in today’s atmosphere.

For those that wish to believe in this new 21st century faith, please feel free, but do not attach "real" science to this new faith, as real scientist are clearly still looking for the proof, much like most other religions in the world.

I and the millions of others who would lose their jobs over these scare tactics ask you to stop forcing your “religion” upon us.

Mark

[Michael Ignatowski]

I have not seen the global warming train ad on TV yet, and neither have any of the friends that I asked. I understood that it was supposed to start showing last summer. What happened? Did we all miss it?

[Matt]

By engaging the issue of Global Warming, and clearly taking a side on the debate, the ad council has violated part of its mission statement: to be non-partisan. I have been told this is not the first time it has done so. If this organization does not want to alienate certain political persuasions, and thus undermine the effectiveness of future advertising campaigns, these global warming ads need to be stopped.

Personally, I think politics has pushed this human caused global warming claim; not science. When politics crosses with science, science is destroyed. Like the Nuclear Winter theory that came before it, the politics needs to cool before true science can adequately evaluate this theory.