ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the question of why social scientists have been fairly invisible in professional circles as well as in public and policy discussions about global warming. It focuses on two reasons: The first is sociology's legacy of social constructivism and its skepticism of ecological determinism, including climate determinism. The second is the politicization of the climate change debate and a problematic reaction from sociological community. Anthropogenic climate change alters the climatic conditions in historical times and global warming may change climates within the time span of a generation. Unfortunately for the grand narrative of climate, different cultures emerge in similar natural environments and similar cultures in different natural environments. Efforts to protect the climate from society and measures to protect society from the climate both are efforts that have at their core the assumption that social conduct can alter natural processes and that natural processes can have a significant impact on social relations.
