State of denial seems to be a way of describing the view that many people have about the effects of human growth and activity on the environment. Three different sources of information are worth considering here: an article by Thomas Friedman, comments by Kofi Annan, and a new book by E. O. Wilson.

Firstly, I was reading an editorial column by Thomas Friedman of the New York Times about the state of China’s environment. He titled his piece, “Bring in the Green Cat”. In the piece, Friedman raises concern that China’s economy is growing, but so is environmental pollution. He pointed to smoky air, and polluted rivers and lakes. As Friedman pointed out, China is growing so fast, and people are moving into urban environments, that the main concern of government is to make sure that there are jobs for people. His concern is that China can not do what we in the West did, which as he points out, “grow first, clean up later.” I remember when I moved to Atlanta in 1969 that the South River was so polluted you simply could not go near it. As we say in our own country many of our lakes and streams became polluted as the American economy grew and developed, without regard to the environment.

Friedman is suggesting that China needs to move to level green production and environmental clean up. When western societies began to embrace ecologically sustainable technologies, people over estimated the costs, and in reality being a “green” company actually has been a great opportunity, and the costs were a lot less than at first predicted.

Friedman hopes that China will embrace green. The potential for massive pollution can’t be denied.

Secondly, Kofi Annan, UN Secretary General as reported in a CNN article, pointed out at the environmental conference in Nairobi, Kenya, that “those who would deny global warming or delay taking action against it are “out of step” and “out of time.” The world cannot deny that it needs to reduce global warming gases. Climate change research (much of it funded by the U.S. government) has shown that global temperature are rising, and are continuing to rise, and this rise is more a cyclic phenomenon, but a change that has been induced by the activities of man.

And finally E.O. Wilson has published a new book entitled The Creation: An Appeal to Save Life on Earth. The book might be considered a letter to an unknown pastor. One of the sentences in the first chapter states, “Pastor, we need your help.” Wilson appeals to the “pastor” to come together in the broadest sense: human welfare. Wilson argues that it has been human activity that has led to deterioration of the environment that is affecting thousands of species. He further argues that humanity is faced with an enormous challenge to “save the environment” and he is using his knowledge of science to explain the science behind the creation, and the development of life on the earth. He appeals to the pastor to come together with the scientist under the rubric “stewardship of life.”