By RENEE HETHERINGTON

During a week when the world leaders met at the United Nations to discuss the importance of taking action on climate change, Stephen Harper once again walked away from the table. If Harper was a private citizen, it would be his right as an individual to flaunt his disdain for the process. As our prime minister, such behaviour is completely unacceptable as it signals the world that Canada is sadly missing in action on this singularly important debate.

In March of this year I was in Copenhagen as one of hundreds of scientists presenting and discussing new research on climate change. A summary of the findings from that conference has been compiled for the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December, when policy makers will forge a new international agreement to replace the Kyoto Accord.

While at the March meeting, I was approached by a scientist who asked “What is with Canada? You used to be a world leader on climate change initiatives and now you’re not. What’s with Canada?”

As I prepare to present a keynote address at a geological conference in Morocco next week, I am steeling myself for similar questions, as the world continues to puzzle over Canada’s reluctance to take climate change seriously.

Back in 1993, when the population of the planet was little more than 4 billion people, scientists recognized the causal relationship between population growth, resource demand and damage to Earth’s ecosystems that would inflict a large future price on humanity and lead to greater subsequent human tragedy.

The population is now 6.75 billion and growing. We recognize that human activity is a driving force behind present and future climate change. Yet, energy consumption continues to increase and technologies that degrade the environment thrive.

Why is change so difficult in the face of behaviours we know will cause future devastation? In his book called Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed, Jared Diamond observes that even when societies perceive a problem they frequently fail to solve it because of “rational behaviour” — behaviour that is in an individual’s best interest. The motivation for immediate personal profit outweighs anticipated long-term losses spread over a large population.

In 1998, 37 industrialized countries, including the United Kingdom and the European community, signed the Kyoto Protocol.

All agreed to binding targets to reduce their overall emissions of greenhouse gases “by at least five per cent below 1990 in the commitment period 2008 to 2012.” Most targets were not met. One reason is because it is difficult to get governments to focus on long-range planning when their political life is based on short-term objectives. Further, those who are generating most of the emissions are feeling few of the consequences – thus far.

This leaves some leaders in developed countries in a state of denial.

In his address to the World Bank Group’s Energy Week on March 31, 2009, Executive Secretary to the United Nations, Yvo de Boer stated, “Copenhagen 2009 will be the moment in history in which humanity has the opportunity to rise to the challenge and deal decisively with climate change.”

As one of the leading per capita emitters of CO2 Canada should be stepping up our efforts, implementing made-in-Canada solutions and sharing our technology and expertise with developing nations.

It is the responsibility of our prime minister to take Canadians’ concerns over climate change seriously, to show leadership. Yet, Stephen Harper is running from the challenge; he remains motivated by short-term political profits. Distressingly, he has turned his leadership responsibilities into a doughnut shop joke.

The writer is a climate change scientist and Saanich-Gulf Islands Liberal candidate in the next federal election.