As project managers, we normally think of core values as beliefs that are very important to an organization. As Oxford’s Dictionary puts it, a core value is “a principle or belief that a person or organization views as being of central importance”.
...and this is a theme we’ve discussed many times in this blog and on EarthPM – the need for projects to connect to the core values of their organization, using that connectivity to drive motivation for project team members, because if they know that their project work connects to project success, which connects to organizational success – it provides a sort of golden thread.
This post is not, however, about that type of core value.
Well, it is – but only tangentially. This post is about the literal values determined by scientists when they take core samples of the thawing Arctic tundra, to better understand the effects of climate change on the tundra, and – unfortunately – vice versa.
You see, based on recent research highlighted in this article from the most recent issue of Scientific American, there is a bit of a spiraling effect here. Record warm temperatures are thawing the Arctic tundra’s permafrost, which allows the decomposition of plant and animal remains in the warming soil, which in turn is potentially allowing almost 1,500 billion metric tons of organic carbon to be released into the Earth’s atmosphere. That’s almost twice as much carbon as that which already exists in the atmosphere. And it’s not just carbon – it’s methane, which is much more powerful as a greenhouse gas.
In other words, climate change has opened the door to accelerating climate change, which…which causes more climate change, which accelerates... well, you get the picture.
In the article, author Ted Schuur discusses the scientific research project, which involves taking core samples, and recording significant amounts of data to better understand this dangerous scenario. In fact, there is something called The Global Terrestrial Network for Permafrost – and it is loaded with the data taken from tundra core samples in the Arctic. Below is a short video explaining their work:
The Permafrost Carbon Network started in 2011 and their main objectives are to synthesize existing research about permafrost carbon and climate in a format that can be assimilated by biospheric and climate models, and that will contribute to future assessments of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Their site contains research and maps of the core samples which indicate that this problem is serious and needs further study.
The point of this post is to remind us as project managers that there are project risks, and there are overarching risks (both threats and opportunities). In this case, we see a massive overarching risk of not just climate change, but accelerated climate change – a nasty feedback loop, if you will – that we should understand. The research projects being undertaken by these scientists is important. Already, the research is yielding answers. The question as to what percentage of the carbon pool will be released by thawing permafrost has been answered, using the data and expert judgment of the Permafrost Carbon Network: it’s 10 percent plus or minus 5 percent. This is 130 to 160 billion metric tons of additional carbon entering the atmosphere, similar to the amount of carbon released worldwide thus far by deforestation and other land-use changes. It will make climate change happen even faster than scientists project from human activities alone.
What can we do as project managers? I return to the primary definition of core values. Most of your organizations include sustainability, including ecological sustainability in their core values. Make sure your projects are connected to those core values. Your project includes and outcome. That outcome will have an ecological impact. Have you thought about that impact - the steady-state impact? Or are you focused only on the handover of the product of the project? We hope it's the former. Every change you make is significant, especially put in the context of this accelerated view of climate change. If your project can produce an outcome that is even slightly less impactful to the environment, it’s almost like a ‘matching donation’ program – the effect could be considered even larger, based on what this research shows us.
So please – learn more about this issue by visiting the links we’ve embedded, and consider that ‘golden thread’ when you set the ground rules and objectives of your project. Connect them to your organization’s core values!
