Al Gore and U.N. Panel Win Nobel Peace Prize

Former vice president Al Gore and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize today. The Nobel committee said the shared award is "for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change."

The award is worth $1.5 million and will be split equally between the two winners. According to the NY Times, Gore said, "My wife, Tipper, and I will donate 100 percent of the proceeds of the award to the Alliance for Climate Protection, a bipartisan non-profit organization that is devoted to changing public opinion in the U.S. and around the world about the urgency of solving the climate crisis."

Additionally, the Nobel Committee tried to explain that it wanted to make a statement about climate change, rather than U.S. politics. And while Gore hasn't discussed his future political plans, many people have urged him to run for president - and having a Nobel Peace Prize under his belt might only help with his credentials. The NY Times has a feature on the ups and downs of Gore's career.

IPCC Chairman R.K. Pachauri, who is based in New Delhi, India, released a statement, saying, "I would like to pay tribute to the scientific community, who are the winners of this award. The experts and scientists are the backbone of the IPCC and they provide the knowledge, which has contributed to the success of the IPCC." He also thanked governments who support and facilitate the IPCC.

The full press release from the Nobel Committee, after the jump:

Top photograph of Al Gore taken in 2006 by Francois Mori/AP; bottom photograph of R.K. Pachauri and his family by AP

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has decided that the Nobel Peace Prize for 2007 is to be shared, in two equal parts, between the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and Albert Arnold (Al) Gore Jr. for their efforts to build up and disseminate greater knowledge about man-made climate change, and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such change.
Indications of changes in the earth's future climate must be treated with the utmost seriousness, and with the precautionary principle uppermost in our minds. Extensive climate changes may alter and threaten the living conditions of much of mankind. They may induce large-scale migration and lead to greater competition for the earth's resources. Such changes will place particularly heavy burdens on the world's most vulnerable countries. There may be increased danger of violent conflicts and wars, within and between states.

Through the scientific reports it has issued over the past two decades, the IPCC has created an ever-broader informed consensus about the connection between human activities and global warming. Thousands of scientists and officials from over one hundred countries have collaborated to achieve greater certainty as to the scale of the warming. Whereas in the 1980s global warming seemed to be merely an interesting hypothesis, the 1990s produced firmer evidence in its support. In the last few years, the connections have become even clearer and the consequences still more apparent.

Al Gore has for a long time been one of the world's leading environmentalist politicians. He became aware at an early stage of the climatic challenges the world is facing. His strong commitment, reflected in political activity, lectures, films and books, has strengthened the struggle against climate change. He is probably the single individual who has done most to create greater worldwide understanding of the measures that need to be adopted.

By awarding the Nobel Peace Prize for 2007 to the IPCC and Al Gore, the Norwegian Nobel Committee is seeking to contribute to a sharper focus on the processes and decisions that appear to be necessary to protect the world’s future climate, and thereby to reduce the threat to the security of mankind. Action is necessary now, before climate change moves beyond man’s control.

Contact the author of this article or email tips@gothamist.com with further questions, comments or tips.

By Jen Chung in News on October 12, 2007 8:08 AM

Comments [rss]

guest

To republicans: we'll see what happens in the next elections, morons.

You think it is all "accomplished"... not even in your bank accounts! You bitch now that have "the power", when are you gonna make it, ah?

Greedy bastards, peace is a hoax acording to your "wit".

Oh how easy to despise republicans!

guest

@48

whats the matter 48, did you not have sex with your mother last night? because you are left wing dingbat you sound like a total asswipe

glennQNYC

A far-left organization applauding a leftist, promoting a leftist agenda IMO... Wow, I'm surprised (not).

guest

to the very tough #47:

Yeah!

let's skin all other living creatures, including other humans -in war for example-to buy a big house with 10 SUVs and a woman with giagantig boobs, while we preach that is all a gift from the lord!

The right wing of the USA is sooooo wanderful!

The bigger the dick or the gun the brighter the idea! So stone age!

And you expect any public recognition of your moronic powers?!

guest

WOW so many leftist assholes posting so many loving words about the tree huger Gore.

guest

Isn't that guy in the new tv show "Cavemen"?

guest

The "embrace it" is exactly what Inconvenient Truth is trying to convey. But not in a "nothing is happening way" but in a "lets discuss what might happen if we don't act" way.

Global warming as a theory is not saying that is never happened before. But that the rate of warming is more transcendent and acute for our civilization.

The reason Global Warming is a problem is because the population of the planet now days is very different from what it was thousands of years ago. SO the risk for the human population is HUGE!

It is not about the planet dying...is about civilization having a HUGE obstacle in terms of distribution of natural resources: humans might face the consequences of not being able to adapt. The planet will continue freezing and unfreezing regardless of humans.

Taking simplistic views against global warming does not show wit...just simplism.

guest

If Arafat didn't deserve his prize, does that mean Rabin & Peres' are also undeserved?

guest

Climate change is not a myth. Human caused climate change is the myth.

Earth's climate has dramatically changed over and over during it's history. We've had jungles covering the planet, and we've had massive ice ages with glaciers covering huge portions of the planet.

Climate change is as natural as the changing of the seasons in temperate regions.

Stop worrying and embrace it.

matthew gannon

I'll note, for the record, that guest 35 replied to me with an insult.

As for the so-called climate change ''myth'', even FoxNews is now reporting it as fact.

Mr. Ailes must get it now.

Elderta

You know, before responding to any of the right wingers, I should have just posted this from the blog, "Sadly, No!"
A Prediction

Posted at 19:32 by Gavin M.

Without looking at what the right-wing yammerers have been up to today, I’m going to predict that Al Gore’s Nobel Prize means that the Nobel is always already a liberal travesty that is shameful and sucks and is bad, and that it has for years untold been an embarrassment unto civilization that should be utterly denounced for its hateful and demented anti-Americanism. Supporting examples: Jimmy Carter, Arafat/Peres/Rabin (without mentioning Peres and Rabin)."
Yep, that's what I should have done...sorry about that.

guest

#38: missing the point!!!

The threat is not climate change but its consecuences on current populations: duh.

Rise in planetary temeperture > destruction of ecosystems> destruction of farmland > pests > famine > desease > war> dead for humans.

But I guess we'll have Renaissance again...Haha

Rocknrope

On a separate note, I'm glad to see they have hipster t-shirts available in New Delhi.

guest

Manmade Global Warming is a myth. The earth has normally been much warmer... the areas where civilization took root, like Mesopotamia, Egypt, Turkey (Hittites), were much warmer, more lush, very green, and a different climate than today.

The time during the Medevial Warm Period led to the Renaissance.

The earth entered a mini ice age during the late 1600s to 1700s, and is only now getting back to it's normal warm climate.

Man made Global Warming is a myth!!!

And that Indian guy looks like Sanjaya 20 years from now.

Jeanne Wilcox

i noticed that this thread is a lot less depressing and infuriating if one just clicks "hide guest comments"

guest

[21] Actually, there's always Jimmy Carter. Lousy president, but a good man. He deserved the Nobel he got in 2002. I think it's a foregone conclusion that no Bush (George H.W., George W., Jeb, Jenna, Laura, etc.) or Bush crony will ever come close to even being nominated for a Nobel.

guest

#34 you are clearly an idiot!

matthew gannon

Guest 29 - Gore had little impact on Clinton's policy as he was regularly marginalized by Hillary (STB Clinton 44). Gore and Hillary constantly bickered.

Gore clearly would have been superior to W. as president. We'd be safer today. I believe 9/11 would not have happened if Gore was president in 2001.

Elderta

right, #29... I think I hear Rush calling your name (or at least Marc Maron from "Morning Sedition" days and the sheeple). you think gore wasn't forced to 'turn a blind eye to china?' was he the actual president at the time? like #31 said, he's certainly made up for his sins, don't you think? or wait... do you think? that's probably the better question.