--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When it comes to global warming, coal is…" description: "\"When it comes to global warming, coal is the gorilla in the room.\" — Jeff Goodell" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/jeff-goodell-8272_climate_when-it-comes-to-global-warming-coal-is_745125.png" --- # When it comes to global warming, coal is the gorilla in… ![“When it comes to global warming, coal is the gorilla in the room.” quote by Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/jeff-goodell-8272_climate_when-it-comes-to-global-warming-coal-is_745125.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/jeff-goodell-8272_climate_when-it-comes-to-global-warming-coal-is_745125.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0be/jeff-goodell-8272_climate_when-it-comes-to-global-warming-coal-is_745125.png) > “When it comes to global warming, coal is the gorilla in the room.” [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It labels coal as the obvious, ignored problem in climate change discussions. **In simple terms:** Coal is the glaring, ignored issue in climate change. Key Takeaway Address the dominant source of emissions. Themes environment energy policy Mood urgent critical Type analysis call-to-action When to use this quote - policy making - energy transition - public debate Key Concepts climate science economics Questions to Reflect On - Why is coal overlooked? - What alternatives can replace coal? A Different Perspective May simplify complex energy landscape. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Climate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climate/) [Coal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coal/) [Coal Gorilla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coal-gorilla-5808921/) [Global](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/global/) [Global warming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/global-warming/) [Gorilla](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gorilla/) [Gorillas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/gorillas/) [Rooms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/rooms/) [Warming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warming/) [Warming Coal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/warming-coal-5808922/) ## Related quotes > [That's right. Uh-huh. Uh-huh," Nick said arrogantly. 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Medicare, that is the gorilla in the room, and you've got to put all of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-biden/social-security-s-not-the-hard-one-to-solve-medicare-that-is-the/) [Joe Biden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-biden/) > [Stupefaction overrode all other emotion when I saw this creature on the lookout, lying in wait for the game. For it was an ape,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-boulle/stupefaction-overrode-all-other-emotion-when-i-saw-this-creature-on/) [Pierre Boulle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-boulle/) > [I feel more comfortable with gorillas than people. 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That is the thing that can swamp the boat fiscally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kent-conrad/we-ve-got-to-have-major-health-care-reform-because-that-is-the-800/) [Kent Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kent-conrad/) > [I have no patience whatever with these gorilla damnifications of humanity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-carlyle/i-have-no-patience-whatever-with-these-gorilla-damnifications-of/) [Thomas Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-carlyle/) > [It will be a killer, and a chiller, and a thriller, when I get the gorilla in Manila.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-ali/it-will-be-a-killer-and-a-chiller-and-a-thriller-when-i-get-the/) [Muhammad Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-ali/) > [I have no friends. The more you learn about the dignity of the gorilla, the more you want to avoid people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dian-fossey/i-have-no-friends-the-more-you-learn-about-the-dignity-of-the-gorilla/) [Dian Fossey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dian-fossey/) ## More by Jeff Goodell > [One thing you can say about nuclear power: the people who believe it is the silver bullet for America's energy problems never give up.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/one-thing-you-can-say-about-nuclear-power-the-people-who-believe-it/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [The biggest tab the public picks up for fossil fuels has to do with what economists call 'external costs,' like the health effects of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/the-biggest-tab-the-public-picks-up-for-fossil-fuels-has-to-do-with/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [To understand how quickly we're cooking the planet, we need good data. To have good data, we need good satellites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/to-understand-how-quickly-we-re-cooking-the-planet-we-need-good-data/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [Australia is the only island continent on the planet, which means that changes caused by planet-warming pollution - warmer seas, which can drive stronger…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/australia-is-the-only-island-continent-on-the-planet-which-means-that/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [In the world of energy politics, the sudden vanishing of the word 'coal' is a remarkable and unprecedented event.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/in-the-world-of-energy-politics-the-sudden-vanishing-of-the-word-coal/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [The end of coal in Appalachia doesn't mean that America is running out of coal (there's plenty left in Wyoming). But it should end…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-goodell/the-end-of-coal-in-appalachia-doesn-t-mean-that-america-is-running/) [Jeff Goodell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-goodell/) > [You think the weather is weird now? Just wait. 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