Dear Elected Officials:

As moral actors, we each have the responsibility to become informed

about the issues that have the greatest impact on those who inhabit our
world, now and in the future – always with an eye toward what each of us
can do to help achieve solutions.
We are trying in every way we know to do our part – and pledge to
continue to do all we can to learn and act in a way that will help prevent
needless suffering for others, including young people and later generations.
We implore you to do your part as an elected official. You have a
special duty, which you accepted when you became an elected official and
which you carry with you every day. Your office carries with it a sacred
public trust. What you do impacts others, including those not yet born.
Your decisions, particularly in connection with the climate crisis, will
impact the quality of life for generations to come, our local economy, our
national security, and, indeed, the habitability of our planet. You owe it to
those you serve, and you owe it to the future, to make certain those decisions
are well-informed.
What we are conveying in this letter is not a matter of belief,
prejudice, or pre-existing notions. We are basing what we say here on well-
established science and on fundamental principles of morality.
Even if you don’t presently “believe” the science, please ask
yourselves: What if we really are facing, in the absence of urgent and
effective action, an irreversible catastrophic global climate crisis? Will the
record reflect that you helped solve it – or will it reflect that you helped
bring about the tragic consequences? In the end, it all comes down to a
grave moral decision.
Today we face the greatest threat ever in human history to the
inhabitants of Earth. The spread of misinformation, the refusal to act in the
face of overwhelming proof of a climate crisis, and the profiteering in the
short-term at the expense of global catastrophe during the lives of our
children and grandchildren, equates to an historic moral abdication leading
to human tragedies and species extinctions of unprecedented scope.
Never has there been a more crucial time for people of good will,
compassion, and care for our children and later generations to come together
in taking effective action to prevent irreversible, catastrophic climate
disruption. If you will not join in that crucial effort, we urge you to get out
of the way so someone else can take informed, responsible action.
Those who fail to take action – both in elective office and elsewhere –
are creating a far more dangerous planet for our children and grandchildren.
In partial fulfillment of our responsibilities, we are joining together to
demand that you and other elected representatives take effective action to
dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation. We will
not tolerate inaction and will fight for our children and later generations in
every way possible. Too much is at stake for anyone to stand by any longer.
For those who have been confused by the intensive campaign of
misinformation, please consider that leading international scientific bodies,
national science academies worldwide, the United States Academy of
Sciences, and Utah’s top scientists are all in agreement: We are facing a
climate crisis caused by the burning of coal, oil, and gas – and if we continue
along this path, tragedy and untold misery will result to billions of people,
including, very likely, our own descendants. Even former President George
W. Bush, former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair and UK Prime Minister
Gordon Brown are in agreement: Climate change is a serious problem and
the US needs to help lead toward solutions by vastly reducing the emissions
of greenhouse gases.1
The state of the science is astoundingly consistent:
• The largest scientific collaboration in history, the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, has been
unequivocal in its findings that the mean temperature of Earth
has increased substantially due to human actions, specifically
the burning of fossil fuels – coal, oil and gas – and that a failure
to radically reduce greenhouse gas emissions will result in
immense, catastrophic consequences for our Earth and its
inhabitants.2
• The US National Academy of Sciences has stated:
[Mean global] [t]emperatures have already risen 1.4˚ F since
the start of the 20th century—with much of this warming
occurring in just the last 30 years – and temperatures will likely
rise at least another 2˚, and possibly more than 11˚, over the
1
See, e.g., “Bush Says Global Climate Change ‘Serious’ Problem,” Agence France-Presse (June 7, 2005)
(“Bush told a press conference afterwards, ‘I’ve always said it’s a serious long-term issue that needs to be
dealt with . . .’ . . . Bush said that the United States will have to change its high energy consuming habits
and move away from ‘a hydrocarbon society’.”); “Climate change fight ‘can’t wait’,” BBC News, October
31, 2006 (“Tony Blair said the Stern Review showed that scientific evidence of global warming was
‘overwhelming’ and its consequences ‘disastrous’. . . And Chancellor [now Prime Minister] Gordon Brown
promised the UK would lead the international response to tackle climate change. . . Mr. Blair said the
consequences for the planet of inaction were ‘literally disastrous’. ‘This disaster is not set to happen in
some science fiction future many years ahead, but in our lifetime,’ he said.”)
2
“Climate Change 2007: Synthesis Report, An Assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate
Change” (“Warming of the climate system is unequivocal, as is now evident from observations of increases
in global average air and ocean temperatures, widespread melting of snow and ice and rising global average
sea level.” p. 30. “Global GHG emissions due to human activities have grown since pre-industrial times,
with an increase of 70% between 1970 and 2004.” p. 36. “Most of the observed increase in global average
temperatures since the mid-20th century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic GHG
concentrations.” p. 39. “Continued GHG emissions at or above current rates would cause further warming
and induce many changes in the global climate system during the 21st century that would very likely be
larger than those observed during the 20th century.” p. 45.)
 next 100 years. This warming will cause significant changes in
sea level, ecosystems, and ice cover, among other impacts. In
the Arctic, where temperatures have increased almost twice as
much as the global average, the landscape and ecosystems are
already changing rapidly. Most scientists agree that the
warming in recent decades has been caused primarily by human
activities that have increased the amount of greenhouse gases in
the atmosphere. . . . Human actions over the next few decades
will have a major influence on the magnitude and rate of future
warming. Large, disruptive changes are much more likely if
greenhouse gases are allowed to continue building up in the
atmosphere at their present rate. However, reducing
greenhouse gas emissions will require strong national and
international commitments, technological innovation, and
human willpower.3

• Dozens of other nations’ science academies are in agreement. For

instance, in a recent statement on ocean acidification, 70 science
academies, including the US National Academy of Sciences,
expressed their alarm that at current CO2 emission rates, all coral
reefs and polar ecosystems will be severely affected by 2050 or
earlier, with significant reductions in marine food supplies, and
that such acidification is irreversible on timescales of at least tens
of thousands of years. According to those 70 science academies,
“large and rapid reductions of global CO2 emissions are needed
globally by at least 50% by 2050.”4
• Scientists in Utah are also in agreement. Eighteen BYU scientists
recently joined in a letter urging “legislators not to manipulate the
scientific evidence to suit any political agenda” and expressing
agreement with the scientific “consensus view” – “that climate is
3
“Understanding and Responding to Climate Change – Highlights of National Academies Reports” (2008
Edition), p. 2.
4
“IAP Statement on Ocean Acidification” (June 2009), The Interacademy Panel on International Issues, p.
1.
 changing and is significantly influenced by human activity.”5 As
part of Governor Huntsman’s efforts to determine the facts about
climate change, some of the state’s top scientists joined in a 2007
report they entitled “The Scientific Consensus,” emphasizing as
follows:
There is no longer any scientific doubt that the Earth’s average
surface temperature is increasing and that changes in ocean
temperature, ice and snow cover, and sea level are consistent
with this global warming. . . Based on extensive scientific
research, there is very high confidence that human-generated
increases in greenhouse gas concentrations are responsible for
most of the global warming observed during the past 50 years.6

When leading international scientific panels, the science academies of

every industrialized nation, and Utah’s top scientists all agree about the
nature, cause, and tragic scope of the climate crisis, leadership at every level
is required to achieve massive reductions in greenhouse gas emissions. The
lives of billions of people are at risk; our nation’s security is at risk; the
continued existence of thousands of species is at risk; and the habitability of
our planet is at risk.
The good news is that we can make a difference if we act decisively.
And it can pay off economically. While some Utah legislators are seeking to
renege on Utah’s commitments to the Western Climate Initiative, it was
5
“Open letter to the Utah Public Utilities and Technology Interim Committee, Governor, U.S. Senators and
Congressmen,” p. 2, signed by Summer Rupper, Ph.D., Barry Bickmore, Ph.D., Rick Gill, Ph.D., David
Long, Ph.D., Scott Ritter, Ph.D., Sam St. Clair, Ph.D., Steve Nelson, Ph.D., Jani Radebaugh, Ph.D.,
William Christensen, Ph.D., Ron Harris, Ph.D., Bart Kowallis, Ph.D., Alan Mayo, Ph.D., Tom Morris,
Ph.D., Adam Rupper, Ph.D., Byron Adams, Ph.D., Matthew Bekker, Ph.D., Eric Christiansen, Ph.D., and
Michael Dorais, Ph.D.
6
“Climate Change and Utah: The Scientific Consensus,” September 2007, Executive Summary, p.1.
(Authored by Jim Steenburgh, Ph.D. (Chair, Department of Meteorology, University of Utah), David
Bowling, Ph.D., (Department of Biology, University of Utah), Tim Garrett, Ph.D. (Department of
Meteorology, University of Utah), Rob Gillies, Ph.D. (Utah Climate Center, Utah State University), John
Horel, Ph.D. (Department of Meteorology, University of Utah), Randy Julander (Snow Survey Supervisor,
Natural Resources Conservation Service), David Long, Ph.D. (Director, Brigham Young University Center
for Remote Sensing), Thomas Reichler, Ph.D. (Department of Meteorology, University of Utah).
recently reported that Massachusetts earned $50 million from its
participation in the cap and trade program under the Regional Greenhouse
Gas Initiative.7
Instead of the sort of informed, innovative leadership found in some
other states and cities,8 as well as several nations, including China,9 many of
Utah’s legislators deny the obvious and refuse to be part of the solution to
our climate crisis.
Have they bothered to read the detailed study commissioned by the
Park City Foundation, entitled “Climate Change in Park City: An
Assessment of Climate, Snowpack, and Economic Impacts?” If they did,
they would find that climate change is threatening Utah’s entire ski industry,
resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs and hundreds of millions in
revenues.10

7
“Massachusetts Earned $50 Million from Cap+Trade in 2009,” http://cleantechnica.com/tag/cap-and-
trade/
8
See, e.g. Michael Northrop, “A clean energy gold rush,” The Miami Herald, February 11, 2010 (“[T]he
clean energy market will be worth $2 trillion in 10 years – the biggest economic development opportunity
ever quantified – and it’s up for grabs. Those who will cash in . . . will be countries with smart policies.”)
9
See, e.g., “China and the US – This house believes that China is showing more leadership than America in
the fight against climate change,” http://economist.com/debate/days/view/417. See also Northrop, supra
(“China . . . has moved swiftly to create goals and policies to capture market share, announcing recently
that it will generate 15 percent of its energy from renewable sources by 2020, and that it intends to become
the world’s largest exporter of clean energy technologies. China is also mobilizing hundreds of billions of
dollars using pricing policy to seize control of these markets. It’s working. Five years ago China
essentially had no presence in wind or solar manufacturing. Today, China is the largest maker of wind
turbines and solar panels.”)
10
“Climate Change in Park City: An Assessment of Climate, Snowpack, and Economic Impacts,”
September 29, 2009 (Stratus Consulting Inc.) (“The ski tourism industry in Utah is an important part of the
regional economy, generating an estimated 19,323 jobs and $416,936,054 in total earnings of Utah’s
workers in the 2005-06 ski season. . . [C]limate change impacts to snowpack at Utah ski resorts can have a
significant impact on the regional economy in the future. . . Park City’s climate will change substantially as
a result of increased atmospheric GHG concentrations. Temperatures are predicted to rise and precipitation
amount, timing, intensity are predicted to change. As a result, total snowpack and snow coverage will be
reduced, the ski season will be shorter, and less of Park City Mountain Resort will be skiable. . . [P]rojected
decreases in snowpack will have severe economic consequences for the region. By 2030, the estimated
decrease in snowpack is estimated to result in $120 million in lost output. . . . By 2050, the potential
impacts range from $160.4 million in lost output, $27.2 million in lost earnings, and 1,520 lost jobs (low
emissions scenario) to $392.3 million in lost output, $66.6 million in lost earnings, and 3,717 lost jobs
(high emissions scenario).”)
 Those who fail to act, in Utah and elsewhere throughout our nation,
are harming our children and later generations, as well as undermining our
nation’s security, as described in a Pentagon-commissioned study, which
concluded that climate change could pose a greater threat to our national
security than terrorism.11
This is a call for each of us to demand informed, responsible action at
every level of government, in the business community, and in each of our
individual lives – and for each of us to act consistently with our deepest
moral obligations to avoid preventable suffering for others, including later
generations.
There is no greater moral imperative at this time in human history
than to do all we can to reduce the accumulating carbon blanket in our
atmosphere. Let us each do all we can – and no longer allow those who hold
elective office to betray our sacred roles as stewards for the future.
Let us hearken to the words of Alfred Russel Wallace in 1903:
It has been the consideration of our wonderful atmosphere in its
various relations to human life, and to all life, which has compelled
me to this cry for the children and for outraged humanity . . . Let
everything give way to this. . . Vote for no one who says ‘it can’t be
done’. Vote only for those who declare ‘It shall be done’.

Alfred Russel Wallace, Man’s Place in the Universe

11
Peter Schwartz and Doug Randall, “An Abrupt Climate Change Scenario and Its Implications for United
States National Security” (October 2003)