Editor’s Note: This is part one of a two-part series on climate change. Pick up Tuesday’s edition of The Daily to read about the impact of climate change on Oklahoma.

Norman hosted one of more than 5,000 events Saturday designed to pressure governments to enact tough environmental standards at December’s U.N. Conference on Climate Change, said Mary Francis, the organizer of the Norman event.

Norman350 was one of 5,200 such events in 181 nations, crossing every time zone and encompassing 12 languages for the largest coordinated worldwide event in history to raise awareness of climate change, according to the organization’s Web site, 350.org.

“We want [the government leaders] to initiate tough standards,” said Francis. “Every country must get involved in requiring the lowering of our emissions of carbon dioxide. And that will require a focus on environmentally friendly energy sources, such as solar and wind, and other sources other than fuel from ... gasoline and ... oil.”

Norman Mayor Cindy Rosenthal, who was among the several supporters of Norman’s event, spoke about the number of initiatives the city had accomplished in an effort to make Norman more environmentally friendly.

The list of accomplishments included the passing of a bicycle ordinance requiring the inclusion of bike parking accommodations in all new commercial building projects and receiving support from the U.S. Department of Energy to make the city’s wastewater plant more energy- and cost-efficient.

Francis, an OU alumna, said the events were meant to influence attendees of the upcoming U.N. conference in Copenhagen and were not in support of any particular legislation going through Congress.

U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe, R-Tulsa, is one of the most vocal critics of the science behind global warming and related legislation. Matt Dempsey, an Inhofe spokesman, said recent poll results show that fewer people in the U.S. believe global warming is caused by human activity or that it is a serious problem.

“The level of skepticism is on the rise,” said Matt Dempsey, Inhofe spokesman. “And when it comes to talking about solutions, the bills going through Congress would do nothing to prevent climate change.”

Dempsey said Inhofe would be traveling to the conference in Copenhagen in December with a “truth squad” to argue against the scientific validity of global warming.

Rosenthal said she believed the science behind global warming is clear.

“There’s really a very strong consensus in the scientific community about global warming, and I think the debate of whether it’s real or not is more of a political one in terms of public policy and how you respond,” Rosenthal said. “The debate is not a scientific one, in my opinion.”

Francis said corporate lobbying and lack of education lead to politicians disputing the scientific reality of climate change.

“I think it’s a matter of education, and it’s also a matter of following the money,” Francis said. “They have to get re-elected, and these large power brokers are pouring amazing amounts of money into their re-election.”

Kalynn Dean, who attended Saturday’s event in Norman, said switching to alternative energy sources is necessary for the economy of Oklahoma and the U.S. in the long run.

“Whichever side is right, it’s certainly not going to hurt us to use renewable energy,” said Dean, a marketing and economics senior. “[Politicians] have to realize [oil and gas] aren’t renewable and that someday those are going to run out.”

Dean said politicians who oppose climate change legislation and debate its scientific truth are concerned with short-term profits.

“They just aren’t thinking about the world in the long run,” she said. “The people who are lobbying for them are the people that have the money from oil and coal.”

Author and environmental activist Bill McKibben created 350.org, according to the Web site. The organization takes its name from the research of NASA scientist James Hansen, who stated in a 2007 paper that 350 parts per million of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is the safe upper limit to avoid a climate tipping point, the Web site states.

“This is our moment in history,” Francis said. “We come together to defend this planet for the common good.”