Harvard's Holdren to be Obama's science adviser, Globe learns
Harvard physicist John P. Holdren (left), a leading authority on global warming and a past president of the nation's largest organization of scientists, will be President-elect Barack Obama's science adviser, the Boston Globe has learned.
A representative from one of the institutions with which Holdren is affiliated told the Globe this afternoon that Obama is expected to announce the appointment Saturday during his weekly radio address.
Holdren, who was an adviser to the Obama campaign, is a professor of environmental policy and director of the Program on Science, Technology, and Public Policy at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and also is director of the Woods Hole Research Center in Falmouth, and a past-president of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Holdren's work has focused on climate change, energy technology and policy, and nuclear proliferation.
"I think if he is appointed he will send a signal to the scientific community, which has been disenchanted in the current administration, that science is very important and will be listened to," said Sheila Jasanoff, a Kennedy School colleague of Holdren's who has written extensively about the role of scientific advice in a democracy.
"To say John is a workaholic doesn’t capture it," she added. "He’s not happy unless he’s doing the work of three people at once."
Earlier this afternoon, Science magazine had reported on its website that there were strong indications of Holdren's appointment. He was supposed to attend a staff meeting this morning at the Kennedy School but instead flew to a meeting in Chicago with the Obama transition team, Science reported.
In August, Holdren published an opinion piece in the Globe chastising skeptics of global warming. "The extent of unfounded skepticism about the disruption of global climate by human-produced greenhouse gases is not just regrettable, it is dangerous," he wrote. "It has delayed -- and continues to delay -- the development of the political consensus that will be needed if society is to embrace remedies commensurate with the challenge."
That political consensus will be at the heart of the mission of Obama's science advisor. The president-elect has clearly stated his intentions to take the issue head-on, saying he would vigorously move ahead with efforts to promote alternative energy sources such as wind and solar and reduce carbon emissions that cause global warming.
AAAS Chief Executive Officer Alan I. Leshner called the apparent appointment "enlightened" in a statement. "John Holdren's expertise spans so many issues of great concern at this point in history -- climate change, energy and energy technology, nuclear proliferation," he said. "He is widely respected in the United States and around the world as a science leader."
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Scary! Prof. Holden is clearly an activist, not a scientist. Obama has only added to the politicization of science that he decries.
How are you going to argue with a Harvard professor about anything? Did you spend years researching this subject?
Hmmm. He has a bachelor's and master's degree from MIT in aeronautics and astronautics and a PhD from Stanford in aeronautics/astronautics and theoretical plasma physics. Sounds like a scientist to me.
Nice try at blaming the politicization of science on real scientists though, Blagogate.
It's not the CO2, stupid! Great - Another alarmist in power, just what we do not need.
There could not have been a better choice than John Holdren for Science Advisor. He is highly respected by the scientific community and is one of the most knowledgeable experts on global warming in the world today. Global warming is the most important global environmental problem we face, and the need to devise sweeping governmental policies to address the problem as soon as possible is paramount.
Great! As one who sat under Holdren's lecture pulpit for a semester, I can attest to his vast knowledge and sharp scientific mindset.
He is also one of these rare sientists who enough to also go tell the world, in lay-men's terms, about how dire the situation is, instead of huddling in the ivory tower like som many other scientists do.
Congratulations to both Obama and Holdren.
Scary! Blagogate is clearly an ideolog, not a scientist. Blagogate has only added to the politicization of science.
"The extent of unfounded skepticism about the disruption of global climate by human-produced greenhouse gases is not just regrettable, it is dangerous,"
For a supposed scientist to make such a statement should mean automatic disqualification for his position. Skepticism is quite founded as many reputable scientists have provided plausible theories explaining global warming via natural phenomena.
Is Obama looking for a "yes man" or an objective adviser that can be objective and reach for scientific truth and facts?
Not as scary as Bush.
"A leading authority on global warming?" That's like being a leading authority on rotary phones. It's not global warming, it's climate change!
"clearly an activist"??? how do you arrive at that conclusion?
what in the article would indicate that holdren is an activist?
...he wrote an Op-Ed piece?
do you know something about Dr holdren that the globe didnt report?
Scary! What will we do with an actual scientist advising an actual, legitimately-elected President? How will we make the adjustment!?
An activist, LOL. That must mean you disagree with him, right? I don't see any associations with "activist" entities there. "Activist" has become nothing but a buzzword to describe anyone who may not enforce the status quo.
Politicization of science has been raised to the level of an art by the Bush Administration. The ONLY acceptable standard of performance for the past 8 years has been adherence to Bush policy, up to and including editing vast portions of reports to erase all mention of any data in disagreement with said policies.
It is refreshing to have qualified professionals in charge for a change, instead of the usual chorus of yes-men. An economist in charge of economic issues, a scientist in charge of science issues, etc... my god, what a concept!
I understand it's a lot for people to get their heads around after 8 years of zero-qualification hiring but try not to get too scared.
This guy has an agenda and will do more harm than good. Obama appears to have been suckered by Al Gore.
I was thinking the exact same thing Blagogate!!
Maybe now global warming will finally come to an end, so we won't get anymore snow in Texas and New Orleans
finally!!!!!
"It's not the CO2, stupid! Great - Another alarmist in power, just what we do not need."
I'm sorry, but do you actually have any authoritative say on this? Probably not...
It's simple really. CO2 is an insulator (this can be tested in a laboratory). Humans have pumped out billions of tons of CO2 every year for the past 40+ years and continues to increase every year. So, the more CO2 in the atmosphere, the more heat is prevented from radiating into space. So, how is global warming/climate change not human induced and not caused by CO2?
Debate on global warming, excuse me it's getting cooler, I mean climate change, is not tolerated.
Maybe he can make it warmer here tomorrow.
Is Harvard physicist John P. Holdren a man-made global warming alarmist or is he an expert on the warming and cooling of our planet?
If he is a man-made global warming alarmist then it is mentally ill, a liar, and a fraud.
It's pretty simple. Those who think that Holdren is a good choice is smart, the rest are dumb. You had your chance for 8 years with the 'tard in offce, now move over and let the big boys play. A bunch of rabble-rousers the lot of you. Please fade away, haven't you done enough damage with you misguidedness?
If global warming is the most important issue in the world today, then let us hear him explain why we are having to deal with so many winter storms? The people who lost power last week and again this weekend would like to hear makes the melting of the arctic ocean affect them more than the increase snow and ice here.
Fran... you sound like a fruit loop.
Hard cap and trade/carbon tax regime here we come! Despite the steadily increasing chorus of opposition to the entire AGW hypothesis. It's junk science and it is being rammed down our throats by people who want to rape the productive capacity and wealth of this nation.
I've seen a fair amount of econometric modeling of what this is going to mean for our economy. The carbon tax is going to take away about 1 to 3 percent of GDP growth. Typically, when the U.S. economy comes out of a recession GDP runs 3 to 5%, which means that we are only going to get 1 to 3% GDP growth. It will be an anemic recovery that will not absorb the enormous job losses from this recession. Our utility bills are going to skyrocket and it's going to cost us a lot more to fill our cars.
Say welcome back to the 1970's. I hope the kids who voted for this guy learn the Carter lesson we got.
If there is global warming, and there probably is, it has little if anything to do with human activity. Only 12,000 years ago there was glacial ice two miles (10,560 feet) thick in Acadia National Park in Bar Harbor, Maine, only 200 miles or so north of Boston. That two miles of ice has completely melted in these 12,000 years, although mankind has been burning carbon-based fuel in any meaningful quantity for less than 200 years. Global warming is a fact. Mankind's contributions to it, however, are only a theory.
We need to look at the big picture, even bigger than our own personal opinions on "global warming". Increasing our understanding of Earth's climate and its variability is tremendously important as it would likely increase our ability to predict devastating events like floods and droughts, thereby improving quality of life and our economy, among many other things. With improved research efforts through increased funding, we will enhance useful knowledge and hopefully answer questions about "global warming" along the way. Perhaps we should invest more in science an technology. Isn't that how the U.S. became the most powerful country in the world after all? Well respected scientists like Holdren have strong and authoritative voices because they recognize the importance of science and not because they are activists.
This whole global warming thing is the province of nutcakes. It is impossible to measure the earths's temperature. It is far too complex. In addition, the margin of error introduced by the means of measurement is larger than the so-called change. The earth's climate fluctuates naturally, and without our help. It always has and always will.
Incidentally, termites contribute about ten times as much CO2 to our atmosphere as humans. So if we are serious about CO2 reduction, we should begin a termite extinction program. By the way, I am a retired professor of physics.
Holdren is a scientist...
So what....?
He is an Astrophysicist not a climate scientist.
Appointing him in relation to so called Climate change on the basis of his quilification, is the equivilant of going to a Gynacologist to get a dental check up.
Mark my words,
Obama has made his first serious blunder..
This blogger might want to review your comment before posting it.
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