Coming in on to work on the train this morning, I read in my free morning paper - you know, the one that ends up clogging up the bottom of escalators - that tomorrow is Earth Day. Oooh goodie, I thought to myself, some action is going to be taken, some messages are going to be communicated, maybe some good will come of this.

So I went onto the web to find out more….and found, well not much at all. From what I can see, Earth Day is big in a few countries - America above all - but not very many at all. Once again, an event that, by name at least, could have global consequences, is going to pass of unnoticed by most people in most countries.

This doesn’t mean there’s no point to what’s happening. Every action by an individual, a town, a city, or a country, is a step forward. I just find it frustrating that, as we are all concerned by the problem, we seem unable to ALL get together to address it.

So how can we organise one, global event, however simple? Answers on a stamped addressed envelope please. Or on this blog, of course!

Al Gore has been in the news even more than usual of late.

A UK school governor (and, incidentally, a member of a political group) went to court to try to stop copies of ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ being used in schools throughout the UK as a teaching aid, as he considered it inaccurate and politically biased. At the second time of asking, a judge ruled that the film could still be distributed, as long as the accompanying notes are modified to take into account “nine significant errors” in the film.

And then today, more significantly, Mr Gore was jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize along with the UN Climate change panel, in recognition of his work to raise awareness on climate change.

For many, the jury has always been out on Gore. There have been lots of comments of him using climate change to make money, to further his political career, etc. Many have accused him of scaremongering and using incorrect facts based on inaccurate research. In short, he is not universally acclaimed for his work, and some actively disagree with what he has done and is doing, and complain about the co2 emissions he generates, jetting around the world to give speeches for which he is allegedly paid huge amounts of money.

I for one am more than happy to put my full support behind him and to say that I totally agree with the Nobel Prize committee. The biggest battle that we have today in the battle to reduce CO2 emissions is communication. As I have mentioned previously, human beings are naturally fickle, and need a real slap in the face before they understand that there actually is a problem. Since many of us remain immune to the effects of climate change (if a little bit warmer than we should be for the 12th october), it is more difficult for us to comprehend exactly what is waiting for us if we don’t take action and right now.

Al Gore has used his contacts and his powerful position to communicate on a level that very few people can. Globally, via an oscar-winning film, and in presentations given all over the world. I reckon that there are many people today who know about Al Gore and his mission to fight global warming, but that don’t even know that he was once the next president of the  USA!

Ok, so his facts aren’t perfect, although some of the 9 points highlighted by the judge are themselves pretty nit-picky in my opinion. But at least he’s trying, he’s out there, and he has undoubtedly had a dramatic effect on global awareness. Yes, it is possible that he will turn round any day now and say ‘actually, I think I will run for President’, and he will probably get in too, Nobel Prize and all, and many people will attack him saying that he just used ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ to make money and win the Presidency.  But he will still have made sure that millions more people now know about the importance of taking action to reduce CO2 emissions, and he will undoubtedly continue the fight.

So many congratulations Mr Gore, and long may you continue the good work. If, one day, this little site could be visited by 1/10th of the people who have watched your film or seen you speak, I would be a very happy person, and would think that maybe Reduce Your CO2 is also fulfilling the invaluable role of telling the world to take action now and not tomorrow.