Thinkers Coming to Pugwash for 60th Anniversary

The threat of nuclear war in 1957 and climate change in 2017

The countdown is on for the 60th anniversary of the world famous Pugwash Thinkers Conference, when a new generation of ‘Thinkers’ will once again fill the iconic lodge on the shore at Eaton Park.

The topic in 1957 centred on the proliferation of nuclear weapons, considered the greatest threat to the world. Today’s thinkers will turn their attention to the newest global threat—climate change.

While the threat of nuclear war is still with us, we have enjoyed 60 years without anyone pushing the proverbial button, though recent sabre rattling in North Korea and Washington should give us pause. But when it comes to real-world danger, climate change seems beyond our control.

Twenty-two thinkers will gather in private, on Friday and Saturday, in the historic Thinkers Lodge, to discuss, debate, and perhaps even argue the dangers and solutions we face from dramatic shifts in climate.

There will be ample time for public participation both before and after the thinkers sessions.

The conference opens Thursday on a number of fronts. There will be public tours of the lodge from 10 am to 3 pm. The Lobster Factory will be open from noon to 5:00 with art displays and exhibits to give expression to weather concerns.

High school students will be treated to an “Arts, Science, and Climate Change” conversation at 1 pm in the Pugwash High gymnasium.

There will be public performances and discussions from the Eaton Park stage from 2:00 till 5:30.

The main event opens at 5:30 at Peace Hall with an official opening, panel presentation and public discussion on empowering local, rural communities in managing the impact of climate change. That is followed by a showing of “Albatross”, a film that demonstrates the hazardous dance for nature in man’s altered environment.

Following the conference, the thinkers invite the public for a Sunday wrap-up at noon in Peace Hall. A panel will offer a distillation of the retreat and its outcomes. They hope to provide the local community with some tangible suggestions for action.

1 comments on article "Thinkers Coming to Pugwash for 60th Anniversary"

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Staff Reporter

The last "Ice Age" occurred during the period from 110,000 to 12,000 years ago. Since that time, there has been a gradual warming trend that produces the wonderful climate we enjoy today.

The problem is that nobody appears to know how long the warming period will last. Since the ice age lasted approximately 100,000 years, perhaps the warm period will last equally long.

Significant to this discussion is the evidence that the arctic was once a forested area with a temperate climate. There is also, apparently, evidence that the Sahara desert was once a tropical rain forest, and evidence that the Antarctic was once a tropical zone.

These three factors would suggest that the discussion on climate change should cast a very wide net, far beyond the hot-topic of man-made changes.

If  the warming period is to last for a thousand lifetimes, perhaps we need to take a different approach than just simply blaming fossil fuels.

Stan Brown

Pugwash, NS

9/25/2017 7:15 PM

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