Shades Of Green

Your opinions on global warming provided one of the most thought-provoking responses to the Kentucky Living survey reported in last month�s magazine.

What makes the results fascinating is they can be read in different ways.

One way shows 9 out of 10 readers of Kentucky Living believe the world�s climate is warming.

But you can�t stop there. You have to think harder to get it right.

A closer analysis shows that half of you say global warming is serious enough that we should change the way we live to slow the trend.

But nearly as many, 4 of every 10, believe climate change occurs naturally and lifestyle changes wouldn�t make much difference. And one of every 10 feels warnings of global warming are hogwash.

What�s a magazine editor to do? Especially when the magazine is published by consumer-owned utilities. If I ignore the issue, half of you will consider me an enemy of the planet. If I warn of global warming consequences, 10 percent of you will think I�m supporting unfounded environmental extremism. Politicians and policy makers share that dilemma over this controversial and emotional issue.

Electric co-op leaders are facing the issue head-on. They have the expertise to know what science and engineering tells us about the effects of electric utilities. There�s no one, single answer, but you can find part of the solution described in The Future of Electricity column. Many of Kentucky�s electric co-ops offer their members the ability to buy renewable energy. You don�t have to, but you can. The column, �Green Power in the Bluegrass,� describes the different types of renewable energy available in our state.

Much of the rest of this magazine deals with a solution to a problem even bigger than global warming.

That would be the problem of answering the whole range of difficult questions facing our society, when opinions differ so widely.

The solution is education.

February is our annual college preview issue. This month, you�ll find articles about people who are learning innovative thinking, high school students taking advanced courses, and experts in choosing what to study in college.

I believe someone quoted in this magazine will help us solve global warming.