John T. Houghton

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Sir John Theodore Houghton FRS CBE is the co-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) working group. He was the lead editor of first three IPCC reports. He was professor in atmospheric physics at the University of Oxford, former Chief Executive at the Met Office and founder of the Hadley Centre.

Sir John Houghton speaking at a climate change conference in 2005.
Sir John Houghton speaking at a climate change conference in 2005.

He is the chairman of the John Ray Initiative, an organisation "connecting Environment, Science and Christianity".[1] where he has compared the stewardship of the Earth, to the stewardship of the Garden of Eden by Adam and Eve.[2]. He is a founder member of the International Society for Science and Religion.

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[edit] Quotes

In 2003 he wrote:

“ As a climate scientist who has worked on this issue for several decades, first as head of the Met Office, and then as co-chair of scientific assessment for the UN intergovernmental panel on climate change, the impacts of global warming are such that I have no hesitation in describing it as a "weapon of mass destruction". [1] ”

As co-chair of the IPCC, he defends the IPCC process, in particular against charges failure to consider non-CO2 explanations of climate change. In evidence to, the Select Committee on Science and Technology in 2000 he said:

“ We do try, in the IPCC, to look very hard at alternative explanations, and spend, actually, probably more time than we should on some of them, because they get so much publicity. We actually spend more time, for instance, on the solar variations, about which we have very little real scientific evidence but which some people have exploited in the media a great deal... [2] ”

He has accused countries such as Saudi Arabia, fed information by American coal and oil lobbyists, of attempting to subvert the IPCC process:

“ The IPCC tries to ignore those political differences and tries to make sure that, in IPCC meetings, those political differences do not influence the debate. Now that, of course, is quite difficult, because, not so much with the USA but with the oil countries, in particular Saudi Arabia and some of the oil-producing countries, who are strongly fed with information by the American lobby, actually, the American coal and oil lobbyists, they can be very difficult, in some of these meetings, because they try very hard to weaken, or to change, or to alter, scientific conclusions. But, so far, we have been able to, I think, successfully resist those influences, because we stick very firmly to a presentation of the science, not the political interpretation of that science. (ibid) ”

In further evidence, he agreed with the statement that most of the scientific objection to the consensus is actually from vested interests within the oil/coal lobby, rather than from scientists. When asked his view of green groups such as Greenpeace or Friends of the Earth, as to whether they have they been generally responsible, or have they exaggerated the argument for their own purposes?, he replied that

“ They vary from one green group to another, but some of the green groups are really very responsible. They do tend to emphasise, of course, the larger effects. On the other hand, some green groups have produced documents which are really exaggerations... [3] ”

John Houghton also applies a Christian perspective to his views, to emphasise the need for long term thinking. In 25th May 2001, in the Winstanley Lecture Theatre, Trinity College, Cambridge, he said:

“ ...why we should be concerned about climate change. It is a problem that is well downstream; many of us will not be much affected ourselves but it is going to affect our children and our grandchildren... It is our children and our grandchildren who will experience the impacts of climate change. I remember in 1990 when the first IPCC report came out, the Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher showed a lot of interest... one of the cabinet ministers asked me, "When's all this going to happen?" I replied that in 20 or 30 years we can expect to see some large effects. "Oh" he said, "that's OK, it'll see me out". But it won't see his children or grandchildren out. Christians and other religious people believe that we've been put on the earth to look after it. Creation is not just important to us, we believe also it is important to God and that the rest of creation has an importance of its own... we are destroying forests, important forests. When I say "we" I mean "we" the human race of which we are part. We are party to the destruction, we allow it to happen, in fact it helps to make us richer. We really need to take our responsibility as ‘gardeners' more seriously.[4] ”

[edit] Biographical

  • Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, Deputy Director: 1981-1983
  • Appleton Laboratory, Director: 1979-1983
  • University of Oxford, Atmospheric Physics Department, Lecturer, 1958-1963, Reader, 1963-1973, Professor: 1973-1983
  • UK Meteorological Office, Director General and Chief Executive: 1983-1991

[edit] Service

  • UK Government Panel on Sustainable Development, Member: 1994-2000
  • UK Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution, Chairman: 1992-1998
  • Scientific Assessment for Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Chairman and Co-Chairman: 1988-2002.
  • European Space Agency, Earth Observation Advisory Committee: 1980
  • Royal Meteorological Society, President: 1976-1978

[edit] Awards

[edit] Books

[edit] External links

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