In the early 1970s, Stott and his wife, a historian and biographer, lived in Thailand and he was carrying out field research at Kalasin. He has two daughters. He has written academic papers and books on chalk grassland, on the vegetation and archaeology of Thailand, on ecology and biogeography, on fire ecology on lichens and mosses, on tropical rain forest and on the construction of environmental knowledge. He is currently chairman of The Anglo-Thai Society, UK. He is no longer a member of the Scientific Alliance because he deems it important to be academically independent of all organisations, industry, and green groups.
Media
He writes for the press, especially for The Times, and broadcasts regularly on BBC radio and television on subjects including biogeography, extinction, climatology, and ecology. He hosts a website based on Bruno Latour's 'A Parliament of Things'. Stott is often on Talksport with James Whale talking about Global Warming in his regular evening show. He appeared on "The Great Global Warming Swindle" on Channel 4. In June 2008 he was a guest on Private Passions, the biographical music discussion programme on BBC Radio 3.
Published works
Royal Siamese Maps: War and Trade in Nineteenth Century Thailand, for H.R.H. Princess Sirindhorn
He has also published four books of recorder music for children and recorder consorts, and he used to conduct an Early Music Consort called 'Pifaresca'. His Sinfonia Concertante for Clarinet in B flat is available for download, along with other compositions, and the full orchestral score from Finale Showcase.
Views
Global warming
Stott regards himself as a Humeian 'mitigated sceptic' on the subject of global warming. He has not published scholarly articles in the field of climate change, although he has published books on the subject. Also, he has researched on the construction of environmental knowledge, including global warming as a Barthesian myth, for over thirty years. Stott has been critical of terms like 'climate sceptic' and 'climate-change denier'; he believes in a distinction between the science of climate change and what he asserts is the Barthesian myth of global warming, saying, Stott is also critical of organizations like the IPCC. His attitude to climate change is best summed up in a central passage from a letter published in The Daily Telegraph :
Energy policy
Stott's "alternative Charter for a sound energy policy" begins with we need are strong economies that can adapt to climate change and he proposes that the Kyoto Protocol be dropped because of "ts ‘command-and-control’ economics which have no chance of working in the face of world economic growth, especially in the developing world.". He believes that the Kyoto Protocol is moribund politically . Stott is concerned that the UK is failing to address its core energy needs, which must involve a mix of clean coal, gas, and probably nuclear power. Stott also encourages development of energy infrastructure in the developing world. He sees the alleviation of energy poverty, along with the need for clean water, as two of the most urgent world issues He regards most renewables as helpful, but only marginal to the core requirements of an advanced society.
Deforestation in the Amazon
Stott contested the research of a report in 2001 that predicted that by 2020 the forest would be 42% deforested. Stott teamed up with Patrick Moore in 2000 and made several appearances deposing deforestation research. This is in opposition to the accepted view that e.g. the Amazon rain forest has been in existence for at least 55 million years.
