The Wake

If you ever need to assemble Walter Mondale, Al Franken and about 183 other people in a pinch, just call Senator Amy Klobuchar.

On Monday, April 2, Klobuchar came to the University of Minnesota campus as part of a new program series from the Center for the Study of Politics and Governance (CSPG), drawing a crowd of almost 200. The series, called “Connecting With Government,” will bring a number of Minnesota’s elected officials to the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute to speak at Cowles Auditorium.

After a short introduction by Political Science Professor Larry Jacobs, Klobuchar took the stage. She started her speech with a couple of jokes, loosening up the audience with a story of her first lunch in Washington D.C., where she mistook a bowl of Thousand Island salad dressing for a bowl of soup and hilarity ensued.

The title of Klobuchar’s speech was “The Heat Is On: Time for Action on Global Warming.” She introduced the subject by pointing out that science is key in the fight against global warming, and that Minnesota is one of the states leading the way in scientific research.

“There is no more debate on the existence of global warming,” Klobuchar says. “The only debate is on solutions.”

Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere are one of the leading causes of global warming. Since the Industrial Revolution the concentration of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere has increased dramatically. Gases like carbon dioxide and methane absorb and trap heat. Largely due to these factors, 2006 was the hottest year in United States history.

The rising temperatures are affecting every continent, changing rain patterns and melting glaciers. According to Klobuchar, there have been almost $300 billion worth of weather related damages in the last ten years alone.

“It is not too late to act,” Klobuchar insists, “but we have to act now.”

In order to facilitate the changes necessary to help slow global warming Klobuchar proposes a series of suggestions that the national government needs to take into consideration.

The first idea was to establish economic incentives for companies that reduce emissions. Klobuchar proposes that business should be given a certain number of “emission credits” each year. Those who exceed their number of allotted credits would be forced to pay for their extra emissions.

In order to make this work, there must be an accurate and extensive system for monitoring sources of emissions. As Klobuchar pointed out, there is no way to change or fix this situation if there is no way to measure who is emitting harmful gases and how much they are emitting.

Klobuchar also pointed out simple changes people could make to their everyday lives to be more energy efficient, like changing traditional light bulbs to energy-saving bulbs. Generating more power from natural sources like wind, the sun and homegrown energy sources like corn and soybeans were also main points of the speech.

Sen. Klobuchar was quick to point out that just as there is no single source of global warming, there is no one policy that will fix it. Now it is everybody’s responsibility to work on slowing down the effects of global warming. One way to encourage this is through Klobuchar’s new award program, Carbon Busters! This award will recognize the efforts of governments, business and students to reduce and reverse global warming contributions.

Before wrapping up the event, Professor Jacobs came back on stage and did an informal interview with Klobuchar. During this time he asked some of his own questions, along with some questions submitted by the crowd. One audience member wondered how an individual could make a difference. Klobuchar encouraged each person to participate and facilitate in open discussion about global warming to help further awareness. Those in attendance were also encouraged to attend the rally at the State Capitol on April 14 for the Global Warming Day of Action.