Political Cortex: Brain Food for the Body Politic

Gore in Oslo to Accept Nobel Peace Prize

OSLO, Norway (AP) — Former Vice President Al Gore skipped the traditional airport motorcade and took public transportation when he arrived Friday in Oslo to accept the Nobel Peace Prize he shared for his campaign against global warming.

Gore will accept the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize he shared with the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change at a ceremony in the Norwegian capital on Monday.

Upon arriving in Oslo, Gore urged countries meeting at a climate conference in Bali, Indonesia, "to promptly produce a strong mandate." The governments hope to finish drafting a new climate treaty by 2009, with a current target of 2012 for ratification.

Gore said he hoped they would move the date for a successor to the Kyoto treaty ahead by two years "so we don't have to wait until 2012" to have a tougher climate agreement in place.

Before his arrival with his wife, Tipper, Gore told his hosts that he would not need the traditional motorcade from the airport, preferring to take the high-speed and environmentally friendly airport train, and then walking to his downtown Oslo hotel.

"I use public transport when I can. It isn't always possible," Gore told The Associated Press while walking to his hotel. He said the train was much faster than a limousine, but that it was also a symbol of efforts to reduce pollution in hopes of slowing climate change.

"It is a gesture. It is also one of the changes we are all going to have to be doing anyway," Gore said about the need to change travel habits.

Gore has campaigned worldwide to draw attention to climate change, which led to the Oscar-winning documentary "An Inconvenient Truth." He shared the peace prize with a U.N. panel of scientists who reported on climate change since 1990.

Nobel peace prize committee secretary Geir Lundestad acted as tour guide for the Gores. At one point, Lundestad pointed out the Nobel Peace Prize banners lining both sides of the street.

Gore and Rajendra Pachauri, who arrives Saturday to represent the climate panel, will accept their Nobel medals and diplomas at a ceremony Monday, followed by a parade and banquet. The annual Nobel Peace Prize concert is Tuesday.

On Wednesday, Gore and Pachauri will leave for Germany and then fly to the climate meeting in Bali.

To some, Al Gore receiving this prize is a surprise, but not to me. After supporting him for all of these years and seeing the passion in him for this planet it is only logical to me that he would receive this honor for his work to enlighten the world to the global catastrophe that awaits us unless we act now.

After thirty years of warnings... After thirty years of perseverence... After thirty years of speaking out, the world has finally caught up to Al Gore. It will be very emotional to see this good man receive this honor because it is more than just a medal. It is a symbol of a lifetime of conviction and perseverence, and I couldn't be happier for him.

My one hope is that through it can come great changes for this planet in time to keep that catastrophe from becoming a full fledged reality. And that means an effective treaty by 2010 with the involvement of all nations including the U.S., China, and India, with an emphasis on mitigation and adaptation that is equitable to the circumstances of the countries involved with the primary emphasis on progress and peace.

I have never felt as strongly as I do now that this is our moment as a species. And I also have never felt as strongly as I do now that Al Gore is the man who was meant to lead this new " sustainable revolution." That is why watching him receive this prize on Monday will be so emotional and rewarding. After all the brickwalls and political efforts to keep us in the dark the truth has prevailed.

And we now have much work to do in light of that truth as the effects of this crisis are already being felt globally. However, I am still hopeful that we can come together in time to do what needs to be done, and Al Gore has been for sure a great inspiration in that hope.

Congratulations, Nobel Laureate Gore, with much love and respect. And also to the IPCC, whose groundbreaking research and reporting have given the world the insight it now needs to face the greatest challenge of our lives.

Al Gore's Nobel Lecture

Mr. Gore's Nobel lecture will take place on December 10 at 1PM in Norway, Norway time, which is about 7AM in the U.S. This link will lead you to the live webcast.