On this day fifty two years ago, a workshop on the Greenhouse Efect takes place in Uppsala, Sweden….
The amount of carbon dioxide in the air was roughly 330ppm. As of 2026 it is 428ppm, but check here for daily measures.
The broader context was that warnings about carbon dioxide build-up were rare, but not unheard of, by the late 1960s in Europe (I am hampered by a partial lack of language skills – I have written and spoken Portuguese, some French and Danish, but that’s it).
The specific context was that the Swedes probably had a reasonable grasp, thanks to their “environmental turn” in the late 1960s. Olof Palme, Prime Minister, was briefed on the problem in 1974 by German meteorologist Herman Flohn. (LINK).
What I think we can learn from this is that we have known, for two generations. We have failed to act.
What happened next. We failed!!
What do you think? Does this pass the ‘so what?’ threshold? Have I got facts wrong? Interpretation wrong? Please do comment on this post, unless you are a denialist, obvs.
References
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Also on this day:
March 29, 1979 – Health impacts of carbon dioxide discussed…
March 29, 1993 – C02 Disposal symposium takes place in Oxford
March 29, 1995 – “a transparent attempt to promote the Australian coal industry”
March 29, 1995- Kuwaiti scientist says if global warming happening, it’s not fossil fuels. #MRDA