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CATEGORY:  ENVIRONMENT (CLIMATE) — 05.FEB.2015

Biodiversity for a Livable Climate / Radio EcoShock

The Planetary Peril in the IPCC's Lowest-Common-Denominator Science — Thomas Goreau's doctorate is in biogeochemistry. He's an expert in areas such as coral reef science and global climate change. Two of the main points Goreau makes are that the IPCC's window of focus is much too narrow—most of the worst climate effects will be beyond its 100-year window—and its conclusions are so "lowest common denominator" that they are greatly underestimating both the data trends and coming impacts. He also says that the "350" goal is far too high—if we accept even that currently politically unattainable goal, we are doomed to a temperature increase of 17-20 degrees C. Goreau says atmospheric CO2 levels need to be rolled back to 260 ppm. He says the essential solution—mostly ignored by global leaders—is to put carbon back in the soil using practices such as biochar.
Watch  |  Download/listen   24:07

GP comment:  Watch if you can—lots of good graphs. Tip o' the hat to Radio EcoShock for pointing out the Biodiversity for a Livable Climate conference videos.

Original Show Pub Date: Nov.2014 ~~ Original title: Thomas Goreau - The Down-to-Earth Solution to Global Warming: How Soil Carbon Sequestration Works

CATEGORY:  ENVIRONMENT — 18.JAN.2015

Living on Earth

Climate and the Collapse of Western Civilization — Science historians Naomi Oreskes of Harvard and Erik Conway of CalTech have taken current climate science and extrapolated it into an apocalyptic new science fiction book, The Collapse of Western Civilization—A View From the Future. Oreskes discusses how democracy, the free market, and science are all failing to protect our future.
Go to page  |  Download/listen   16:28

GP comment:  This dance doesn't include much climate apocalypso, but Oreskes ably lays out the inside-the-envelope view on climate status and action. In reality, any progress made on transitioning out of fossil fuels will come too slowly to make a difference in our future climate. But it will make a difference in many other environmental areas, so it's still worth doing.

Original Show Pub Date: 16.Jan.2015

CATEGORY:  EMPIRE, ENVIRONMENT (CLIMATE) — 18.NOV.2014

Making Contact

This Changes Everything (Or Not) — Naomi Klein argues that while it's too late to stop climate change, we can still take action to save our civilization. But it’s going to take radical steps that will transform the way humans interact with the world. Klein offers her vision of how we can foster a global movement to counter climate change.
Go to page  |  Download/listen   30:00

GP comment:  This is worth listening to because Klein does correctly identify several culprits in the current ecocidal ruling system—the financier class, excessive military spending, corporate hegemony, and the fossil-fuel-friendly political system—as barriers to doing anything real about climate change. But she's got it backwards: The climate crisis is not the threat that will unite people against those elite forces. Instead, uniting the masses to take back power from the elites and reestablish a fair economic system should be the stated political goal. That is Job 1, and trying to superimpose a divisive issue like climate on top of it is brainless.

Original Show Pub Date: 29.Oct.2014

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