“To move ahead we need a recognition that this is an issue of rights and justice, that this is an issue that involves countries which have to reduce their emissions, countries who must be given the right to development. It is also an issue that countries with the right to development must develop differently. We do not want to first pollute and then clean up. So, we need money, we need technology, to be able to do things differently. That’s the only deal that is possible for an effective deal, a meaningful deal, on climate change.”
–Sunita Narain, Indian environmentalist and director general of the Centre for Science and Environment
Most major issues remain unresolved at the U.N. climate summit in Doha as negotiators enter the final stretch of the two-week summit. While the Doha talks involve nations working toward a pact to limit greenhouse gases starting in 2020, many say the world cannot wait that long. The United States has come under intense criticism at the summit from environmentalists and smaller nations who say President Obama has failed to meet his stated commitments to tackle global warming. We’re joined by Kumi Naidoo, executive director of Greenpeace International; and Samantha Smith, head of the World Wildlife Fund’s Global Climate and Energy Initiative.
“We should not have called it Hurricane Sandy. We should have called it Hurricane Exxon,” says climate activist Bill McKibben. In the aftermath of a superstorm, Americans are finally making the connection between the changing weather and our fossil fuel addiction. McKibben took a break from his “Do the Math” tour, which calls on universities and other organizations to divest from the fossil fuel industry, to discuss the pressing structural changes we need to slow our warming planet.
The Human Race may very well die out – and no one is talking about it. The fact that we’ve now gone through three Presidential and Vice-Presidential debates – and not once has global climate change been brought up – should be, to paraphrase Thomas Jefferson, an “Alarm bell in the night” for all of us. Especially because this last September was the hottest September ever recorded in the civilized history of the human race. Not only that – this last September produced the smallest amount of Arctic ice ever recorded in the civilized history of the human race.
Our planet is rapidly changing – scientists across the world are freaking out – farmers are getting hysterical and, in many countries, committing suicide in mass numbers – and yet our two Presidential candidates are fighting about who’s going to pump more carbon pollution into the atmosphere: That would have been the perfect time for Candy Crowley to chime in an say – “Hey, guys what about the climate change crisis that’s being worsened by all of this drilling?” But she didn’t – and then Romney bashed the President over not approving the Keystone XL pipeline…Actually the President DID approve the Keystone pipeline – at least a large portion of it – and he’ll likely approve the rest if he wins a second term.
ClimateProgress.org Editor Joe Romm talks to Current TV’s Michael Shure about how the issue of climate change is missing in the presidential campaign, pointing out that President Obama could attack Mitt Romney for opposing a wind energy tax credit.
“It would be great if a member of the media actually asked even one question on what most of us think is the story of the century: which is that we are in the process of ruining this liveable climate of ours.
A group of Democratic donors have announced they will withhold some of their financial support from President Obama’s re-election campaign for not speaking out more about climate change. The group of roughly 100 political donors say Obama should directly address mocking by Republican rival Mitt Romney on climate change last week during his acceptance speech in Tampa. President Obama is also being urged to use his acceptance speech tonight to reaffirm his 2008 campaign promise to aggressively tackle climate change. We’re joined by Betsy Taylor, political consultant and president of Breakthrough Strategies & Solutions. She is working with the donors who are threatening to withhold support.
In what could be the “smoking gun” proving the planet is rapidly changing as a result of climate change – sea ice in the Arctic Ocean is now sitting at its lowest recorded level ever – breaking a previous record set in 2007.