A Conversation With Dr. James Hansen – The Earth Island Institute
The approach that Copenhagen is using to specify goals for emission reductions and then to allow offsets to accomplish much of that reduction is really a fake. For the general public, it actually makes sense to move more rapidly beyond fossil fuels. If world leaders won’t act, civil resistance may have to be an option.
US Military Budget Only Partially Corrected For Dangerous Climate Change
It is highly doubtful that Pentagon planning will take the crucial step of resizing its overall portfolio of security dollars to fit the enlarged importance they are assigning to this new threat of dangerous climate change.
Countdown to Copenhagen – Contemplating the Possibility of Failure
The United Nations is planning a form of diplomatic shock therapy for world leaders this week in the hope of injecting badly needed urgency into negotiations for a climate change treaty that, it is now widely acknowledged, are dangerously adrift.
James Hansen Advises the Canadian Government to Say “No” to the Alberta Tar Sands
At Stephen Harper’s meeting with Barack Obama, close attention should be paid to any special treatment he attempts to gain for Canada’s tar sands, the country’s fastest growing source of greenhouse gas emissions, and a problematic industry linked to serious environmental degradation and human health issues.
Indecision at Copenhagen Climate Talks in Copenhagen This December Could Cause a “Global Health Catastrophe”
Failure to agree a new UN climate deal in December will bring a “global health catastrophe”, say 18 of the world’s professional medical organisations.
Writing in The Lancet and the British Medical Journal, they urge doctors to “take a lead” on the climate issue.
Capitalism: A Love Story
Michael Moore’s new film “Capitalism: A Love Story” will open October 2 in the U.S. This film will explore the root causes of the global economic meltdown and take a comical look at the corporate and political shenanigans that culminated in what Moore has described as “the biggest robbery in the history of this country” — the massive transfer of U.S. taxpayer money to private financial institutions.
The Urgency to Address Global Climate Change: Possible Implications for New Directions of Climate Change Ethics
Dr. John Lemons writes “I wish to be clear that I am not faulting those involved in the ethics of global climate change in their traditional focus of studies or influence with policy makers and decision¬–makers. Indeed, the work of such ethicists is never finished because each time a new climate change issue arises it introduces new questions for analyses. And, make no mistake that I believe ethicists have contributed greatly to a deeper understanding of the problems and prospects of global climate change. Simply put, my recommendation is that global climate change ethicists continue looking at proposed climate change policies and arguments through an ethical “lens” while, because of the urgency of taking action to combat global climate change, at the same time devoting new serious attention to examining when nonviolent civil disobedience is ethically justified.”
Arctic at warmest levels in 2,000 years or more
Arctic temperatures in the 1990s reached their warmest level of any decade in at least 2,000 years, new research indicates. The study, which incorporates geologic records and computer simulations, provides new evidence that the Arctic would be cooling if not for greenhouse gas emissions that are overpowering natural climate patterns.
George Monbiot: Wherever temperatures peak, that is more or less where they will stay. There is no going back
Governments’ hopes about the trajectory of temperature change are ill-founded. Most, including the UK’s, are working on the assumption that we can overshoot the desired targets for temperature and atmospheric concentrations of CO2, then watch them settle back later. What this paper shows is that wherever temperatures peak, that is more or less where they will stay. There is no going back.
Increased Interest in ‘Artificial Trees’ for Removal of Carbon from Atmosphere
Many climate scientists calculate that the world has only a few decades to reduce emissions before there is so much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere that a dangerous rise in global temperature is inevitable. The authors of this report say that geo-engineering of the type they propose should be used on a short-term basis to buy the world time, but in the long term it is vital to reduce emissions.
