Summary of #68 Dr Matthew M. Wielicki: A climate realist in academia

00:00:00 - 00:45:00

Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki, a climate realist, believes that social media has played a significant role in the attention he has received for advocating against climate catastrophism. He discussed the negative effects of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies on academia and expressed his concerns about DEI within the IPCC, which he believes undermines scientific merit. Dr. Wielicki also expressed concern for the mental toll climate catastrophism is taking on young people and emphasized the importance of open-mindedness in discussing climate change. He criticized the media for fear-mongering, particularly in relation to extreme weather events, and advocated for using technology to solve climate issues rather than enforcing policies that limit people's access to cheap energy.

• 00:00:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew Wielicki, a faculty member at the University of Alabama, discusses his recent appearance on Fox and Friends First, where he explains his decision to leave the university and move to Colorado. He attributes his newfound fame to social media, particularly Twitter and TikTok, where he had been making videos on climate issues and trying to ease people's worries about overblowing the crisis. He also shares his plans to continue interacting with people through media and exploring the long-form interview style of podcasts. His ultimate goal is to reach young people through any media he can to discuss the openness of exchanging ideas and discussing important issues.
• 00:05:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki discusses his experience with using TikTok and how it allowed him to reach a younger audience. He notes that the metrics on TikTok showed he was reaching more young people compared to his Twitter account, but he is currently shadow banned, so his videos don't get many views. Dr. Wielicki also talks about why he recently left academia, citing the rise of liberalism and how it has led to the focus on immutable characteristics like the skin color of an individual. This change in academic culture made him question if this career path was worth sacrificing time with his family. He hopes that more people speaking out against this culture can bring about change and make it easier for people to openly discuss these issues.
• 00:10:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki discusses how diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) have infiltrated academia and science, particularly in STEM departments. He expresses his concern about the outcomes that DEI has had, which are the exact opposite of what the intent is, as people are being alienated and fewer people are collaborating. He believes that science should instead focus on getting to the truth and that the amount of melanin in someone's skin has nothing to do with whether they are a good scientist. Dr. Wielicki also mentions the IPCC and his lack of trust in the organization, as it recruits scientists who fit a certain narrative instead of focusing on scientific merit. He is uncertain about his future plans after leaving his university and is considering starting a business with his father instead of pursuing a career in academia.
• 00:15:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki discusses the issue of climate catastrophism and the lack of opposition to it in the earth science community. Despite many of his colleagues agreeing that the science behind climate change has been overblown, young scientists are afraid to speak up due to potential blacklisting from funding agencies and academic institutions. This frustrates him, as he sees vocal climate alarmists with young children and wonders how they can believe the planet will collapse in the next 8-12 years but still bring a child into the world. Dr. Wielicki believes that scientific integrity is more important than convincing more people to jump on the climate change bandwagon, as the public's trust in science will be eroded if data is manipulated or exaggerated. Though he hopes that more adults speak out against climate catastrophism, he is hesitant due to the backlash he has received from speaking out himself.
• 00:20:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki discusses the mental toll of the climate crisis on young people and how it’s wrong to scare children about climate change to the point where they lose hope for a better future. He shares anecdotes about his female students who said they would never raise a family because they believe there is no future for their kids. Wielicki teaches two courses, Intro to the dynamic Earth and Sustainable Earth, where he gives students all the information about the climate debate and allows them to reach their own conclusions. He also emphasizes the importance of being open-minded and changing one's mind when presented with new evidence, a nuance he believes that is often lacking in the current climate discourse.
• 00:25:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki discusses the overwhelmingly positive feedback he has received from his students regarding his approach to climate change education. While some students have labeled him a climate change denier on Rate My Professor, he includes both sides of the argument and lets students make their own conclusions. Dr. Wielicki has also received positive feedback from colleagues and has been able to approach the topic in a way that does not scare people into changing their behaviors. He shares that his own mental health was impacted while he was a student and how he wonders how much of it was due to the constant narrative of climate change that he was exposed to. Dr. Wielicki also questions the effectiveness of the current approach to climate change and why CO2 keeps rising despite the conversation around it.
• 00:30:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki and the interviewer discuss the negative consequences of climate policies, such as taking away farmland in the Netherlands and blocking fossil fuel projects in Africa, which prevent people from having reliable power access. Dr. Wielicki emphasizes that access to cheap energy plays a crucial role in growing infrastructure, lowering mortality and fertility rates, and lifting people out of poverty. He argues that the idea of providing solar and wind farms to developing countries and integrating them into their electrical grids is absurd, evil, and will keep people suffering for far longer than they should. Dr. Wielicki also shares his willingness to discuss climate issues in the form of discussions rather than debates and highlights that people should not be distilled down to their worst idea or tweet. He emphasizes that if honest discussions free from ad hominem and personal attacks exist, he is open to that. Finally, Dr. Wielicki's main point is that there has been no increase in extreme weather events or natural disasters, despite the average global surface temperature and the atmospheric CO2 concentration rising over the past 22 years, which is why it is unfair to frame climate change as a crisis.
• 00:35:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki discusses the correlation versus causation argument surrounding extreme weather events and climate change. He notes that while some argue that the rise in CO2 is causing the increase in extreme weather events, the data shows no increase in the number of weather disasters in the last 22 years. Looking at past predictions from the IPCC and other sources, Dr. Wielicki argues that using the cost of natural disasters as evidence for their increase is disingenuous, as the increase in cost is due to there being more infrastructure to destroy. Additionally, past data needs to be taken with a grain of salt due to underreporting that occurred before the 90s. Even assuming that all natural disasters were recorded from 1960 to 2022, there was a correlation at the beginning, but no longer exists, disproving causation. The decrease in natural disaster deaths over time, despite the population almost tripling, is a great thing that shows human ingenuity and adaptability.
• 00:40:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew Wielicki explains that instead of prohibiting things, we should use technology to solve our climate problems, just like how catalytic converters were invented to relieve smog in Los Angeles in the 90s. He states that more and more people are being affected by extreme weather events because there are more people on the planet, but the data does not support a dramatic increase in extreme weather. He criticizes the media for pushing a narrative about boiling oceans despite a recent manuscript published in Nature that predicts significant cooling in the northern hemisphere in the next three decades, which houses 90% of the world's population. Dr. Wielicki believes that people will look back at the climate hysteria and realize that they were too smart to be believers, and scientists will blame the media for overblowing their statements.
• 00:45:00 In this section, Dr. Matthew M. Wielicki urges people to objectively look at the data and remove their feelings from the climate change debate. He believes that the media overblows the issue as a way to get clicks, and people need to start thinking about possible solutions to future challenges. Dr. Wielicki is a proponent of nuclear energy, which he believes provides access to cheap energy and helps to tone down the climate change rhetoric.