The full version of the policy address is available at: https://www.policyaddress.gov.hk/10-11/eng/index.html. “
“The 4 International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Assessment Reports have had increasing

impacts on science and on scientific articles (Vasileiadou et al., in press). However, the December 2009 Copenhagen World Climate Change Conference set no ambitious targets, maximum global warming limits of +2 °C which have not been generally accepted, and public interest and concern about climate change appears to be waning even in developed countries. Thus, it is unlikely that meaningful global efforts TAM Receptor inhibitor to reduce let alone reverse climate change will occur. Consequently, whether climate change is occurring primarily due to human activities or natural factors is irrelevant. Global climate change

is a reality. selleck inhibitor And it is a reality that will inevitably result in major changes to the ecosystems on which we depend. Climate change will interact with the other major stressors of ecosystems which are, in order of relative importance (Chapman, 1995): habitat change; invasive species; eutrophication; and, chemical pollution. For instance, sea level rise and temperature increases will change habitats including patterns of water flow. Such changes will also enhance opportunities for invasive species including species moving north or south to habitats whose temperatures have increased to tolerable levels. Algal growth will increase as will the rate of chemical reactions, changing the biological availability of chemical contaminants. The interactions between climate change and these other major stressors will be extensive. In some cases the effects will be negative. Celecoxib In some cases the effects could be considered positive. In no cases will the effects be neutral. There is an old saying that, once you leave, you can never go home again. This is unfortunately true in the case of climate

change – maintenance of, or return to baseline conditions will no longer be possible. This reality will require a paradigm shift in our thinking – as scientists, managers, and as members of the public. We have been somewhat successful in the very recent past in our efforts to maintain the status quo in the face of human developments, but will no longer be able to do so. Thus, for instance, assessing and monitoring effects of present and future developments can no longer be based on a before-after-control-impact (BACI) model but rather must be compared to reference conditions (which will also be changing), and to what humanity needs and desires. The latter point is critically important. Climate change will limit the choices we can make in terms of the ecosystems we live in. Change is inevitable and, as previously noted, we are not going to be stopping climate change. But we can make decisions to a limited extent regarding the direction of change.