Photo/Illutration Greta Thunberg speaks after a march to raise awareness about climate change in Los Angeles on Nov. 1. (AP file photo)

Russian President Vladimir Putin embarrassed himself in full view of the international community 16 years ago.

St. Petersburg was celebrating the 300th anniversary of its founding, and native son Putin had military planes spraying chemicals over rain clouds to ensure perfect weather for festivities.

But the attempt to control weather failed. The sky opened up with a vengeance, and open-air events had to be canceled.

“Even with the latest scientific knowledge, humans can't even control rain clouds,” said Hiroshi Mizutani, 70, a climate change expert who authored “Kiko wo Jinkoteki ni Sosa Suru” (Manipulating climate artificially).

The most urgent task is not to disperse rain clouds, but to reduce carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, according to Mizutani, a former Nihon University professor.

In Hokkaido, a facility for separating and recovering carbon dioxide is set to enter into full-fledged operation as early as the next fiscal year.

Overseas, surprisingly radical countermeasures have been proposed against global warming.

One is to launch colossal plates into space to create shade on Earth. Another calls for blocking sunlight with pulverized fragments of small asteroids. These ideas sound like something out of sci-fi novels.

The reality confronting us is severe. Last year, the level of global carbon dioxide concentration hit an all-time high since record-keeping began.

“Our generation has dumped carbon dioxide on the younger generation, and I feel crushed with guilt,” Mizutani lamented.

I thought of the unforgiving gaze of Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old climate activist who has lashed out against adults around the world for ignoring the climate crisis.

Thunberg is scheduled to attend the 25th U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP25), which starts in Spain on Dec. 2, after sailing across the Atlantic in a yacht.

Japan is the world’s fifth-largest carbon dioxide emitter. It may be difficult to begin recovering carbon dioxide in one leap, but it should be possible to start reducing new emissions.

It is the responsibility of adults to respond to young people’s criticism.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Dec. 2

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.