VARIOUS: Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change win the Nobel Peace Prize

Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change win the Nobel Peace Prize. Former U.S. Vice President Al Gore and the U.N. climate panel won the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday (October 12) for their part in galvanising international action against global warming before it "moves beyond man's control". The award appeared to be a snub to President George W. Bush, who has doubted the science of global warming and rejected caps on emissions of gases believed to cause it, but the White House said it was happy for the winners and praised their work. Gore, who lost narrowly to Bush in the 2000 presidential election, and the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change were chosen to share the 1.5 million U.S. dollars (USD) prize from a near record field of 181 candidates. The Nobel Committee said the award was made because of their efforts to draw attention to mankind's impact on the climate and measures needed to address it before rising temperatures bring droughts, floods and rising seas. "Action is necessary now, before climate change moves beyond man's control," the committee said. Gore has lectured extensively on the threat of global warming and last year starred in his own Oscar-winning documentary film "An Inconvenient Truth" to warn of the dangers and urge action against it. The citation also warned of the increased danger of conflicts if not enough is done to address global warming, blamed by many scientists on emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. Gore, 59, said he was deeply honoured and would donate his share of the prize money to the Alliance for Climate Protection, a bipartisan non-profit organisation. Several hours after the award was announced in Oslo, Gore faced reporters in palo Alto, California. "We have to quickly find a way to change the world's consciousness about exactly what we're facing," he said. "For my part, I will be doing everything I can to try to understand how to best use the honour and recognition of this award as a way of speeding up the change in awareness and the change in urgency. It truly is a planetary emergency and we have to respond quickly," Gore said. "I'm going back to work right now. This is just the beginning," Gore added, before leaving the room and taking no questions. That left unanswered a question on the minds of many in the United States after his Nobel win: would Gore, a Democrat who narrowly lost the 2000 presidential election to George W. Bush, jump in to join a crowded Democratic field of candidates ahead of the November 2008 presidential election. Gore has made it known he is not interested, although some Democratic activists are campaigning for him to get into the race, and the Nobel award on Friday further fuelled their hopes. IPCC chairman Rajendra Pachauri said he was overwhelmed but felt the prize belonged to the entire scientific community. "This award is for the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), for the entire scientific community, who have worked very hard to bring this organisation to the level of credibility and excellence that it represents. I also thank the governments of the world who are involved in decision making in the IPCC, and have provided all the support and have facilitated the work of the IPCC," Pachauri said in New Delhi. The IPCC groups 2,500 researchers from more than 130 nations and issued reports this year blaming human activities for climate change ranging from more heat waves to floods. It was set up in 1988 by the United Nations to help guide governments. U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on Friday (October 12, 2007) said Al Gore's Nobel Peace Prize win reaffirms the urgency and significance that the international community attaches to global w "This says there is an unprecedented momentum in the world to take necessary action," Ban said in an interview with Reuters. He paid tribute to Gore "as a good example of how civil societies and individuals can made a difference in raising awareness (on) this important global challenge." Ban said the combined work of the U.N. body and the former U.S. vice president will send a credible message to nations meeting to discuss climate change in December in Bali, Indonesia. The threat to the environment posed by global warming has been been questioned by some conservatives in the United States and manufacturers worldwide. The award seemed to be an affront to U.S. President George W. Bush, who has doubted the science of global warming and rejected caps on emissions of gases believed to cause it. The committee gave the peace award to Gore and the U.N. panel for raising awareness about an environmental issue that could have harmful consequences worldwide if is not addressed. Climate change -- linked to droughts, floods and rising seas -- could threaten living conditions across the world, prompt mass migrations and increase the risk of wars. The scope of the prize established by the 1895 will of Swedish philanthropist and inventor of dynamite Alfred Nobel has expanded over the decades from its roots in peacemaking and disarmament to human rights from the 1960s, to work for the environment and the fight against poverty. The Nobel prize is worth 10 million Swedish crowns ($1.54 million) and will be handed out in Oslo on Dec. 10.

ITN Source | October 13, 2007

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