Former Vice President Al Gore and the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change have been awarded this year's Nobel Peace Prize.
Jonathan Overpeck, a lead author on one of the IPCC's reports on global warming, says winning the prize further legitimizes climate change studies, especially as an issue of global security.
Despite the increased recognition of human's role in global climate change, Overpeck says there are many people who continue to downplay the harmful effects of the rise temperatures.
The Nobel Peace Prize, he says, is another big step toward illustrating how significant the issue really is.
Overpeck, a professor at the University of Arizona, says he is honored to share the Nobel Prize with Gore. He says the former vice president is a rare politician who knows the science of climate change.
Overpeck talks to Alex Cohen about winning the prize.
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