Doug Cameron (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Just little words, little theories. What does NASA say to grade 5 and 8 kids in the United States? They are down there in the heart of communism, in Minnesota and Arkansas, telling the kids, 'You've got to rebel against climate change'! Even in those areas of the US they are talking about climate change, and one of the questions they ask is: 'Do you know the difference between weather and climate?' I have heard Senator Williams. I have heard Senator Joyce. Obviously, they do not know the difference. They should go to NASA's kiddies class so they can understand the difference between weather and climate. That is long overdue. On their website NASA ask:

Is Earth's Climate Changing?

And they say, 'Yes, the Earth's climate is changing.' They ask:

What Is Causing Earth's Climate to Change?

They say:

Some causes of climate change are natural.

But Senator Williams tries to say that all of it is about nature. NASA go on to say:

Most scientists think that recent warming can't be explained by nature alone. Most scientists say it's very likely that most of the warming since the mid-1900s is due to the burning of coal, oil and gas.

Then they ask:

What Is the Forecast for Earth's Climate?

Remember, this is to the kids at school. It is something that the kids in America are being taught and that the leaders of the coalition do not understand. So let us get them to some basic education, some kiddies school education, on climate change. NASA say:

Climate models predict that Earth's average temperature will keep rising over the next 100 years or so.

They ask, 'What are the impacts?' They say:

Some impacts already are occurring ... sea levels are rising, and snow and ice cover is decreasing. Rainfall patterns and growing seasons are changing.

This is the US's NASA. It is not some green group. It is not any group that is setting about to try to destroy the capitalist economies of the world.

This is NASA. They say the same thing as the CSIRO and they say the same thing as the Bureau of Meteorology: if we do not do something about it we are in real trouble. And what do we get from the coalition? We get denial of climate change. Well, I say we should pass resolutions in this place to send the knuckle-dragging coalition climate change deniers over to NASA to do the kiddies class in climate change. They should do the kiddies class in climate change that NASA has so that they can understand that their analysis is wrong, that their economic arguments are flawed, that we need to deal with climate change now and that there are huge implications in not dealing with climate change—and I think NASA would host them even though it might be more difficult for them to deal with the knuckle-draggers opposite than with some of the kiddies. So those opposite should go and understand the science of climate change.