Weather and Climate Comparison of Research Proposal

Following the introduction, the report discusses framing issues, including international policy. The social and international context of global climate change is given a great deal of emphasis in this section. The relationship between climate change and sustainable development are also discussed in the framing concepts section of this report. This concept is important in order to deal with climate change because sustainable development models are what most of the development and climate change prevention models have been based upon. In order to understand how to deal with the current situation, then, developers must understand the current paradigm (123). Energy supply, transport and its infrastructure, residential and commercial buildings, industry, agriculture, waste management, mitigation from a cross-sectoral perspective, sustainable development and mitigation, and policies, instruments, and co-operative arrangements are the following chapters of the lengthy report. The report suggests that climate change is, indeed, affected not only by humans and their overpopulation and overuse of greenhouse gases in the form of energy, auto emissions, etc., but also by international and domestic policy's failure to draft measures that significantly curtail the effects of global warming.

Comparing Stevens' article with the report from which it is drawn, it becomes quickly observable that Stevens' article is much more accessible. Like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Stevens' article traces the developments in climate change over time. For Stevens, however, this change is personal, not simply scientific. While the report writes the passage of time in policies that have not worked, Stevens shines a more positive light on the subject, reminiscing about a time when people did not take global warming seriously to today, when almost everyone understands the importance and seriousness of climate change. In this way, both Stevens' article and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have the same moral -- that the policies of the past cannot be applied to today's understanding of climate change. Stevens' article undertakes the issue in a more conversational and engaging manner, however, while the report from which he draws is long, can be tedious to read, and is difficult to understand.

Other differences between the two articles include the intended audience. Stevens' article speaks directly to its readers. The well placed facts and figures contribute to Steven's article's purpose, which is not simply to reminisce about his past, but to call attention to the seriousness of the crisis. Thus, Stevens' article is focused on the personal level, deciding to devote time to writing about how humans impact global warming. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report, however, deals more with international policy, and how the differences with which countries treat this issue can be frustrating its solution. Thus, while Stevens' article summarizes and repeats key findings from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Stevens was able to pick and choose what areas of the report he wanted to focus on. While the moral of Stevens' article can be backed up by the report, it omits much contained in this report. This suggests that while mainstream media may not always be biased, its attempt to contain long reports can leave the public unaware of much.

References

Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. (2007). Climate Change 2007: Mitigation of Climate

Change. Retrieved January 12, 2008, at http://www.ipcc.ch/links/index.htm

Stevens, William K. (2007, February 6). On the Climate Change Beat, Doubt Gives Way to Certainty.

The New York Times. Retrieved at http://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/06/science/earth/06clim.html?_r=1&pagewanted=print