Originally published in Italian in La Verita; Many thanks to Franco Battaglia for the interview and to La Verita. Thanks also for the translation to LS.
FRANCO BATTAGLIA, Interview with Michelle Stirling
As soon as you meet her, you cannot but fall in love with her. I’m talking of Michelle Stirling, very gentle, with lady-like manners, whose eyes reveal an uncommon kindness. Michelle is the Communications Manager for Friends of Science Society. I heard of her when I watched an on-line video she distributed, “World Declaration on Climate” promoted by international scientists associated with Clintel (Climate Intelligence). I have contributed to the original draft of the “Declaration” and offered my help in providing Italian subtitles to her video.
Q: Michelle, you had an eclectic career in the journalism world before becoming Communication Director for Friends of Science. Please tell us about Friends of Science.
Michelle: It’s a small non-profit organization created in 2002 in Calgary, Canada, by a group of scientist, engineers and businesspeople. At the time they were worried about climate-related statements (presumed scientific) supporting the Kyoto Protocol (somewhat like today’s Paris Accord) and the economic impact resulting from cuts in emissions. Canada is among the top ten exporters of oil, natural gas and coal, has a huge agricultural production, feeding a large part of the world! Friends of Science founders thought it would have been enough to publish a few reports, written more with the feet on the ground than with the head in the air, and the politicians would have chosen the direction of common sense. Instead, after 21 years of activity, we cannot see any trace of common sense from any direction, except in common people’s opinion: politicians and media appear to be deaf and blind. But we don’t give up; even if we received the defamatory label of “deniers” we continue to produce scientific and easy-to-understand material which is offered for free. We have our own website – www.friendsofscience.org and a bilingual site directed to the very young- www.climatechange101.ca People can join us and receive our bimonthly updates. Any interested person could also contribute to our cause which we believe is correct; if we don’t want the climate tyranny ideology to prevail without challenge.
Q: How did you meet Friends Of Science?
Michelle: In 2008 I was writing op-ed articles on Alberta bituminous oil sands. These are natural deposits of oil trapped in sands making up most of Canada’s oil reserves, the third largest in the world. At that time foreign-funded ENGOs and interest groups were engaged in a commercial trade war against Alberta (aka “Tar Sands Campaign). The methods were unethical: they started financing environmental groups and created senseless alarms. One of these angles was about the climate. For a short time I had worked at Alberta Environment, and I knew all about the “tar” sands, but not so much about the climate. A former broadcasting colleague of mine, Luther Haave, suggested I contact Friends Of Science Society whose members knew all about about the climate science. In short, I became their communication consultant. This is my 11th year of work. A crazy adventure.
Q: Why crazy?
Michelle: Initially Friends of Science only wanted some major media coverage: I thought it would have been relatively simple, but I was wrong. Climate press releases didn’t proceed like all others: very few media reported our releases. With time I learnt the media had been absorbed by the climatic movement. In some instances, like in Canada today, the media is simply too narrow-minded, while we try to have a more realistic vision of a climate based more on the science, or facts, than ideology. In Canada it’s practically impossible to obtain a media coverage for our version of the insights and facts. Luckily the social media channels have opened the doors to communicate directly with people.
Q: Did you have a big success with your Clintel video?
Michelle: Yes. In 2019 when Clintel declared the “World Declaration on Climate” and sent a letter to the UN Secretary General asserting that over 500 scientists said there was no climate emergency (today there are over 1,500 CLINTEL signatories), I re-sent the news to about 500 agencies: none picked it up! I was furious. So, I decided to read the letter in front of the telecamera in a video that would have reached at least our followers, at that time about 15,000. Suddenly we started receiving phone calls and e-mails from all over the world from people that wanted a link to Clintel’s “World Declaration on Climate.” People had watched the video. It had gone viral on Facebook. BBC Radio had even contacted me for an interview, but at the last moment they cancelled (no wonder). We suddenly realized the video had been viewed about 300,000 times. It was then that you (Franco) offered to provide subtitles in Italian. We continued to increase the number of displays, but when they reached 700,000 Facebook pulled the video. Now nobody can display it on Facebook, with penalties of demonetization or other limitations. But now the climate fraud has been exposed and the world is asking questions on what was considered an unquestionable dogma.
Q: Have you always been a professional presenter?
Michelle: No, I spent my whole career working behind the scenes: I call myself ‘The Accidental Spokesperson.’ Friends of Science scientists tend to be a bit shy in front of a telecamera and their explanations are often too technical for common people like me. When I started working for Friends of Science, I had completed a video for their 10th anniversary and was told we needed a voice over. Since we had no money to hire someone, our Producer/Director said to me “Why don’t you do it”? Since then I have made more videos, especially some for children: we want to calm them down and make them stop fearing the end of the world.
Q: On Twitter on June 21, 2018, Greta Thunberg said that, according to some climatologists, if the use of fossil fuels was not stopped, humanity would become extinct within five years. That is in a few hours time. Is science inspiring you?
Michelle: No. In reality it’s the tyrannical nature of the climate movement. Before working with Friends of Science I produced a series of historic documentaries. As a history lover I understood that the tyrannical side of the climate movement represents a danger for all humanity. Consider that once, a Canadian environmental group tried to have us fined and imprisoned because we produced a poster saying “The sun is the main driver of climate change. Not you. Not CO2”. One of our accusers was Stephen Lewis, leader of human rights, former Canadian ambassador, and ex leader of the Canadian New Democratic Party.
Stephen Lewis hosted the first climate conference held in Canada in 1988. More on that here. See “Climate Alert” newsletter linked within: https://blog.friendsofscience.org/2016/05/03/national-observer-and-desmogblog-attempt-to-rewrite-history-in-attack-on-exxon/
When will common sense ever make a comeback??