“These are the numbers that matter. A difficult global transition is happening right now, away from fossil fuels, deforestation, greenhouse-gas pollution and melting ice. It can be measured with precision and clarity. The processes described by this data dashboard are occurring on a planetary scale, and yet our progress can be measured this minute, in… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Climate Change
All we owe to animals It is not enough to conserve species and ecosystems
Aeon – We have an ethical duty to care for each individual animal on earth: “…Australia [has been] on fire. The fires have killed at least 25 humans and more than a billion animals. Animals such as koalas are especially at risk, since their normal response to threats – climbing to the tops of trees… Continue Reading
It’s Time to Stop Making Excuses for Amazon’s Disposable Tech
IFixit: “Amazon doesn’t repair their own products for customers outside their return or warranty periods. The company doesn’t make parts available. Need a new battery for your old but still functional Kindle Paperwhite? That’s too bad, Amazon doesn’t sell them directly (though you can roll the dice on a number of third-party vendors). The same… Continue Reading
Oversight Committee Finds Widespread Ethics Issues at EPA
On January 17, 2020 “Rep. Carolyn B. Maloney, the Chairwoman of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and Rep. Harley Rouda, the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Environment, sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) releasing new information in the Committee’s investigation into the Trump Administration’s use of ethics waivers to allow political appointees… Continue Reading
Where nitrous oxide – greenhouse gas 300-times stronger than CO2 – is being emitted
Quartz: “If something is burning, nitrous oxide is flowing into the atmosphere. Increasingly, the most concentrated nitrous oxide sources come from humans burning fossil fuels and transforming ecosystems. Natural sources, such as Australia’s currently raging wildfires contribute too (if those fires can even be considered “natural”). As a greenhouse gas, it gets less attention than… Continue Reading
Native Species or Invasive? The Distinction Blurs as the World Warms
YaleEnvironment360: “With thousands of species on the move as the climate changes, a growing number of scientists say that the dichotomy between native and alien species has become an outdated concept and that efforts must be made to help migrating species adapt to their new habitats…In recent years, scientists have documented countless species shifting their… Continue Reading
Burning Planet: Climate Fires and Political Flame Wars Rage
“Economic and political polarization will rise this year, as collaboration between world leaders, businesses and policy-makers is needed more than ever to stop severe threats to our climate, environment, public health and technology systems. This points to a clear need for a multistakeholder approach to mitigating risk at a time when the world cannot wait… Continue Reading
Winners of the 2019 Ocean Art Underwater Photo Contest
The Atlantic: “The judging for the eighth annual Ocean Art Underwater Photo Contest, organized by the Underwater Photography Guide, has wrapped up, and the winning images and photographers have been announced. Greg Lecoeur took Best in Show with his image of a crabeater seal in Antarctica. The contest organizers have shared with us some of… Continue Reading
Visual guide to Australia’s bushfires raging across the country
The Guardian – “Bushfires have swept large parts of Australia since October, leaving more than 20 people dead, destroying thousands of homes and devastating wildlife. Unprecedented bushfires continue to ravage south-east Australia, with at least 24 people confirmed dead so far and almost 2,000 homes destroyed. Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from… Continue Reading
In 2030 we ended the climate emergency. Here’s how
The Correspondent – “If words make worlds, then we urgently need to tell a new story about the climate crisis. Here is one vision of what it could look and feel like to radically, collectively take action. Centuries of evidence have shown that storytelling can change the course of history. Our story of the 2020s… Continue Reading
The Most Important Scientist You’ve Never Heard Of
MentalFloos – Michael Rogalski: “For 60 years, American drivers unknowingly poisoned themselves by pumping leaded gasoline into their tanks. Here is the lifelong saga of Clair Patterson—a scientist who helped build the atomic bomb and discovered the true age of the Earth—and how he took on a billion-dollar industry to save humanity from itself…Over the… Continue Reading
The Healing Power of Gardens
Brain Pickings – Oliver Sacks on the Psychological and Physiological Consolations of Nature – “…“After you have exhausted what there is in business, politics, conviviality, love, and so on — have found that none of these finally satisfy, or permanently wear — what remains? Nature remains; to bring out from their torpid recesses, the affinities of… Continue Reading
