Recently the UN sponsored intergovernmental panel on climate change (IPCC) issued a major report describing the dangers we face if we don’t take drastic action to limit the emission of greenhouse gases. The report did not pull any punches and described the potential significant disruption to all our lives if immediate action is not taken.

Strangely, on the Sunday following that report, there was almost no coverage in any newspaper. I believe that in America, the report similarly received little ongoing coverage.

So there is an obvious question. Faced with impeding disaster, why are we not paying more attention. Indeed why are the young not more angry with the older generation for potentially leaving them a huge mess to clean up later.

Perhaps we don’t believe the science. Sadly, the science is absolutely clear and unambiguous. Scientists from around the world produced the IPCC report which was based on thousands of articles and pieces of research.

Perhaps we don’t think that it will affect us. Think again. According to World Atlas, the UK is one of the 12 countries most at risk from rising sea levels. But that is not all, we will have more frequent violent weather systems, more flooding, more heat stress and species loss. We will likely be affected by food price rises and the migration of peoples whose homes have become uninhabitable

Perhaps we think other countries should do more. But we created a lot of the greenhouse gases that currently are still in the atmosphere. Should we not be providing leadership in reducing future emissions? And if we don't, why should we expect others to do so?

Perhaps we think that we will come up with some invention in the future that can capture greenhouse gases. Again, this is a fair point but are you going to bet your future on an invention which has not yet been developed?

It may be that we are just too busy. This is absolutely understandable; particularly if you are a young person seeking to find a job and affordable accommodation. However, surely our political leaders, opinion makers, TV commentators and newspaper editors should give it a higher profile.

My forecast is that at some time in the near future the penny will drop for all of us and there will be a huge surge in desire to do ‘something’. Hopefully when that happens it will not be too late. One thing for sure, it will be a lot more expensive.