Writing Explanation Part 1: Claims, Evidence and Reasoning

Now is the time to lead other countries

GREEN BAY, Wis. — In a report released this fall, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) said that warming of the Earth's climate system is both unequivocal and unprecedented.

The IPCC is an organization of scientists set up by the United Nations. Its conclusion comes from multiple independent sources of data and information.

The authoritative IPCC study also found that it was "extremely likely" that human influence has been the major cause of climate change. Our burning of fossil fuels — like coal, oil, and gas — is particularly to blame.

At the same time, international meetings — such as the Climate Change Conference just concluded in Warsaw, Poland — struggle to devise broadly acceptable agreements among countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Yet, the emission of these gases pose grave risks to the world's economy, its environment and public health.