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Climate crisis – getting beyond politics

Mainstream environmentalists often oppose nuclear power and genetically modified crops

Letters to the Editor. Illustration: Paul Scott
The Irish Times - Letters to the Editor.
Fri Nov 29 2024 - 00:06

A chara, – Further to “Climate change and even tethered bottle caps have got sucked into the culture wars” (Karen Ciesielski, Climate, Opinion, November 28th), the culture war weaponisation of climate change is a disappointing trend, but it is not all the fault of the “right”.

Climate change politics has long been lumped in not only with other environmental issues, but also with socially progressive and economically left-wing ideologies.

While such ideologies have their own merits, they also have little or nothing to do with climate change. Mainstream environmentalists, for example, often oppose nuclear power and genetically modified crops, two important tools in fighting climate change.

If we’re serious about fighting climate change, we should be making the case across the political aisle and embracing conservative and right-wing converts to the cause. We should also be willing to look at climate change in isolation from other environmental issues.

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It is a near-existential issue for humanity and should be tackled in an apolitical way. – Is mise,

DONNCHA LENIHAN,

North Strand,

Dublin 3.