I have spent a lifetime observing and recording the natural world. Since the Second World War, I have watched the accelerating impact of human activities on this world. The impacts have mostly been negative and, in an increasing number of cases, devastating. E. F. Schumacher said "the real problems facing this planet are not economical or technical, they are philosophical." We need a swift shift in our philosophy. The Kyoto Protocol would be a good start.

The Kyoto accord is the only global strategy to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions and address one of the greatest challenges of the 21st century. Despite polls that show overwhelming public support for this agreement, Canada still hasn't officially adopted it.

Instead, many of our political leaders are paralyzed by hollow economic arguments. They talk about creating new loopholes such as "clean energy credits," and are swayed by the "do nothing" rhetoric spewing from polluting industry lobby groups.

What's missing from the climate change debate on Parliament Hill is a thoughtful reflection on the bigger picture. Kyoto is about jobs, the economy, targets, rules, regulations and reductions, but it is much more than that. Kyoto is really about protecting Earth.

When we burn vast and unregulated amounts of fossil fuels, we're altering the chemical composition of the atmosphere. And when we alter the atmosphere, we're tampering with the planet's ability to support the intricate balance of life.

Many plants and animals face extinction as a result of global warming. Drastic changes in habitats will mean that some species will not be able to migrate quickly enough to survive. Scientists are already reporting serious changes in the polar bear population in the Canadian Arctic. Warmer Arctic weather patterns are causing earlier ice breakup and are affecting the feeding habits of the bears.

The habitat of migratory shorebirds, including the endangered piping plover, may be threatened as sea levels rise and tidal flats shrink in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island. Frequent forest fires are expected to increase across Canada. Boreal forests are expected to shrink, and warmer waters could affect the migration and spawning of Pacific salmon.

Climate change is also expected to cause more droughts, floods, heat waves, severe storms and worse urban smog. Faced with this clear scientific evidence and growing public concern, the world's industrialized countries agreed in 1992 to start reducing greenhouse-gas emissions and gave birth to the protocol in 1997.

Five years later, other countries have adopted the accord, including the European Union and Japan. Even Russia is moving toward ratification. Canada seems content to do nothing but argue and debate the costs, while our emissions continue to grow. But how can we assign a dollar value to life itself?

It is essential that Canada begin confronting the problem. Of course there will be a discouragingly long lag time for global warming to be reduced, but that is no reason to delay. And that's not the point. The solutions are here -- from increased energy efficiency to new technologies to cleaner fuels.

This is the best reason to start now. Our spending priorities, subsidies and taxation will change for the better. We will begin a new and progressive economy. In other words, our thinking will change.

Albert Einstein said, "We cannot solve the problems of today with the same thinking that gave us those problems in the first place." By adopting this agreement, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien will show he has a sense of responsibility beyond his lifetime to the future generations of Canadians.
Robert Bateman is an internationally renowned artist and naturalist.