Stephen Dartt
Name: Stephen Dartt
Country: USA
What is your background?
I earned a bachelor’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Princeton University and a master’s degree in Chemical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). While at Princeton, I also took every Operations Research (applied statistics) class that was offered. I also received a teaching certificate to teach math and science in public school systems.
After college, I worked for 19 years as a chemical engineer, primarily in the fields of computer and microprocessor-based control systems and applied statistics. I had over a dozen articles published in professional journals.
I spent the next 24 years teaching mathematics, chemistry, physics and applied statistics. I also provided consulting to those needing help in the application of statistics. Additionally, I served as a faculty consultant to the College Board for the AP Statistics exam. Shortly before I retired, I served as the chief editor for a text book (Fast Track To A Five) to assist students in preparing to take the AP statistics exam.
Since when and why are you interested in climate change?
My interest in the myth that humans are causing global climate change actually began in the 20th century when government bodies started passing legislation to ban the use of chlorofluorocarbons to prevent the hole in the ozone layer from increasing in size, even though there was (and still is) no proof that a cause-and-effect relationship exists here. There is only anecdotal evidence. There is not a single study that shows a statistically significant relationship between the release of chlorofluorocarbons and an increase in the size of the ozone layer.
When similar arguments were starting to be applied to the myth that humans are causing global climate change and when the topic became a political matter rather than a scientific one, I started to research the topic in depth and spoke to individuals who had arguments on both sides of the issue. What I have found, is that there is not a single study that shows a cause-and-effect relationship between human activity and global climate change and that there is actually a significant amount of evidence that there is not a relationship. The climate change tsars have only been able to present anecdotal evidence to support their beliefs.
Is climate change a big issue in your country and how do you notice this?
In the United States climate change is a huge issue. It is probably the main issue being pushed by the Democrat party. We have even created the position of Climate Change Tsar. President Biden named John Kerry, someone who has no background or experience in mathematics, science or engineering, to hold that position.
What would climate policy ideally look like in your view?
While the government’s climate-change agenda has no basis in fact, pollution from discharges of some chemicals and other waste can be a big problem. However, these problems tend to be local ones and not global. There are even a few instances where climate has been affected in extremely localized areas. For example, the area around the Three Gorges Dam on the Yangtze River in China, has a perpetual fog 24 hours a day, making it impossible to see anything that is more than 100 feet away. In my view climate policy should focus on solutions to these localized issues (such as we did with catalytic converters on cars to reduce pollution).
What is your motivation to sign the CLINTEL World Climate Declaration?
I have spent years researching so-called climate change and speaking to climate change advocates, and I have found that there is not a single study that shows a statistically significant correlation between human activity and global climate change. All of the evidence is anecdotal. There is no scientific proof that humans are causing global climate change, but there is a lot of evidence that that is not the case. The money that is being wasted on climate-change related activities is staggering.