Collaborating for Climate Change Literacy@CCRAI

"The fact is the 12 hottest years on record have all come in the last 15. Heat waves, droughts,..."

Tue, 12 Feb 2013 22:46:35 -0500

“

The fact is the 12 hottest years on record have all come in the last 15. Heat waves, droughts, wildfires, floods — all are now more frequent and more intense. We can choose to believe that Superstorm Sandy and the most severe drought in decades and the worst wildfires some states have ever seen were all just a freak coincidence.

Or we can choose to believe in the overwhelming judgment of science — and act before it’s too late. …I urge this Congress to get together, (and) pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on a few years ago. But, if Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will. I will direct my Cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take now and in the future to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy.

”

- PRESIDENT OBAMA, remarking on the need to address climate change, during the State of the Union (via inothernews)

motherjones: Extreme weather will drive up food prices and...

Thu, 06 Sep 2012 16:25:17 -0400

motherjones:

Extreme weather will drive up food prices and supercharge world hunger in the next two decades… unless we act fast on climate change.

engagedelectorate: The Arctic Ocean’s vast, frozen expanse of...

Thu, 06 Sep 2012 16:24:29 -0400

engagedelectorate:

The Arctic Ocean’s vast, frozen expanse of ice is rapidly vanishing. On Monday, scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center announced that the extent of sea ice in the Arctic had reached its lowest level since satellite measurements began, breaking the previous record in 2007. That’s particularly striking because the summer melting season still has about two more weeks to go.

Meet 'Oily,' one of the animals rescued from Red Deer River oil spill

Tue, 19 Jun 2012 09:02:31 -0400

Meet 'Oily,' one of the animals rescued from Red Deer River oil spill

climateadaptation: The United Nations has a straight talk...

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 17:07:22 -0400

climateadaptation:

The United Nations has a straight talk tumblr. Really appreciate their posts.

The numbers tell the story. Over the last twenty years, it is conservatively estimated that disasters have killed 1.3 million people, affected 4.4 billion and resulted in economic losses of $2 trillion.

These are staggering numbers when you consider what it means in terms of missed opportunities, shattered lives, lost housing, schools and health facilities destroyed, cultural losses and roads washed away.

More on the Rio+20 Conference

Infographic from the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR)

Oil Companies That Caused Climate Change Now Fear Its Financial Impacts

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 16:58:43 -0400

Oil Companies That Caused Climate Change Now Fear Its Financial Impacts:

uafairbanks:

by Ryan Koronowski, via The Climate Reality Project

We all know oil companies make an amazing amount of money ($33.5 billion in 2012 first quarter profits by the Big Five alone) selling gasoline and other petroleum products to the world. The U.S. government gives billions of our tax dollars back to these companiesevery year. The oil companies spend big to keep the system running this way.

Not a bad system, if you’re a huge fossil fuel corporation. Unfortunately, the oil companies make a product that warms our planet and disrupts our climate, which affects all of us. So what does the fossil fuel industry do? They fund organizations and people that make the case for denial and inaction. So this is an industry that profits from products that science shows will change the climate, then spends money on cover-up.

Actually, though, it gets even stranger. When it comes to protecting their profits, oil companies explicitly acknowledge that climate change poses a threat to their bottom line.

ExxonMobil tells its investors that “rising greenhouse gas emissions pose risks to society and ecosystems that could be significant.” Chevron says on its website: “[T]he use of fossil fuels to meet the world’s energy needs is a contributor to an increase in greenhouse gases … There is a widespread view that this increase is leading to climate change, with adverse effects on the environment.” ConocoPhillips goes further: “ConocoPhillips recognizes that human activity, including the burning of fossil fuels, is contributing to increased concentrations of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere that can lead to adverse changes in global climate.” BP even cites the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change on its website. And Shell urges that “CO2 emissions must be reduced to avoid serious climate change.”

But talk is cheap. Are they doing anything concrete to suggest this isn’t just hot air?

They do when it affects their bottom line. IBM’s Carbon Disclosure Project Report said that “ExxonMobil noted that the company’s ‘operations around the world include remote and offshore areas that present challenges from existing climate extremes and storms. These severe weather events may disrupt supplies or interrupt the operations of ExxonMobil facilities.’” So according to Exxon, climate change could disrupt their business model. It’s easy to see through the rhetoric when giant fossil fuel companies financially react to the risk of disruption and damage from climate change.

One example is Louisiana’s Highway 1, which “connects critical oil and gas resources in booming Port Fourchon to the rest of the nation” and may influence the distribution of up to 18% of U.S. oil and gas supply. It’s crucial to the future success of the fossil fuel industry. The only problem is that it’s sinking. And increasing storm surges due to climate change threaten to cut off access to the port. So who’s stepping in to save LA-1? The LA-1 Coalition, which says “If LA 1 were to be rendered inserviceable due to high water, even for just a few days, this nation’s energy supply would be crippled.” Funders of the LA-1 Coalition include: BP, Chevron, Entergy, Halliburton, Anadarko Petroleum, ConocoPhillips, Marathon Oil, Murphy Oil, Shell, and ExxonMobil. All of these companies are putting their money where the science is – science that says climate change increases the risk of storm surges knocking out a road critical to their bottom line.

As Entergy’s director of climate consulting said, “Clearly we are facing risks from sea level rise, more intense storms, flooding and surge damage.” The company is spending $73.5 million moving and strengthening transmission and distribution lines serving Port Fourchon, Louisiana. Climate Central released a map showing that 328 energy facilities in the U.S. are less than 5 feet above local high tide.

BP is also taking projections about climate impacts beyond the rhetoric on its webpage. Last year, ClimateWire reported: “[BP] has altered the design of oil-drilling platforms in the North Sea to accommodate projected sea level rise and it has improved coastal defenses at its Northstar field in Alaska, where receding sea ice has left shores more vulnerable to erosion from crashing waves”(subscription only). In its 2011 Sustainability Review, BP talks specifics on how it’s adapting to climate change impacts: “…we adapt drainage design practices based on the anticipated frequency and severity of storms.” So the product that causes climate change is also causing the seas to rise, ice to melt, and storms to strengthen. You’re not going to see that on their next TV commercial.

What about the Trans-Alaska oil pipeline? The permafrost on which most of it was built is thawing faster than anticipated, so the supports have to be upgraded. The repair work won’t come cheap. Gunter Weller of the Institute for Arctic Research at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks says “[t]hat increases the price of your gasoline.”

A recent Senate hearing discussed the risks sea level rise and storm surge pose to coastal energy facilities. It’s the elephant in the room. The fossil fuel companies aren’t trying to do what they say needs to be done to solve climate change. Instead, they’re preparing for its impacts, with profits gained from our pockets.

full story

experimentoverde: Fossil Fuels recieve more subsides that clean...

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 15:50:22 -0400

experimentoverde:

Fossil Fuels recieve more subsides that clean energy, 350.org is inviting all of us to ask our leaders in Rio+20 to invest in renewable energy and help to avoid the climete crisis. Rio+20 can be a new start for all of us in a clean and sustainable future.

Go to this link to make a petition: http://act.350.org/sign/make-rio-count/

Los combustibles fósiles tiene más subsidios que las fuentes de energía renovable, 350.org nos invita a hacer una petición anuestros líderes para invertir en energías limpias y ayudar a evitar la crisis climática. Rio+20 puede ser un nuevo comienzo para todos nosotros en un futuro limpio y sustentable.

Pueden ir a este link para hacer una petición: http://act.350.org/sign/make-rio-count/

ked1957: The United States broke the record set back in 1910...

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 15:46:40 -0400

ked1957:

The United States broke the record set back in 1910 for the warmest spring (March/April/May) ever recorded since record keeping began in 1895.

[Which of the Republican non-believers will be the first to have a defining ‘Nixon goes to China’ moment’???]

newshour: This March was the warmest it’s ever been in the...

Wed, 11 Apr 2012 11:22:30 -0400

newshour:

This March was the warmest it’s ever been in the continental U.S.

Here is a day-by-day animation of the daily temperature records tied or broken in March 2012. Over 15,000 records were broken.

Read more

Track new maximum high temperature records from official government recording stations:

Managing the Risks of Extreme Events andDisasters to Advance...

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 16:09:04 -0400

Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and
Disasters to Advance Climate Change
Adaptation (SREX)

What role does climate change play in altering the characteristics and impacts of extreme weather and climate events? What approaches exist for reducing vulnerability and exposure and for managing impacts and disasters associated with extreme events? Scientists discuss the findings of a new international report that brings together, for the first time, expertise in climate science, disaster risk management, and adaptation.

http://www.ipcc-wg2.gov/SREX/

350.org Infographic #ConnecttheDots Recent report released by...

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 13:31:16 -0400

350.org Infographic #ConnecttheDots

Recent report released by the IPCC explores the connection between climate change and extreme weather.

A new campaign for 350.org aims to #ConnecttheDots on climate...

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 13:23:17 -0400

A new campaign for 350.org aims to #ConnecttheDots on climate change.

In places from drought-stricken Mongolia to flood-stricken Thailand, from fire-ravaged Australia to Himalayan communities threatened by glacial melt, we will hold rallies reminding everyone what has happened in our neighborhoods. And at each of those rallies, from Kenya to Canada, from Vietnam to Vermont, someone will be holding a…dot. A huge black dot on a white banner, a “dot” of people holding hands, encircling a field where crops have dried up, a dot made of fabric and the picture taken from above — you get the idea. We’ll share those images the world around, to put a human face on climate change–we’ll hold up a mirror to the planet and force people to come face to face with the ravages of climate change.

Can media campaigns like this be effective in promoting action...

Fri, 30 Mar 2012 12:18:30 -0400

Can media campaigns like this be effective in promoting action to address climate change?

Who is most likely to be affected by a changing climate - it won’t be this generations’ parents….

Moms against Climate Change

obon: Oceans cover over two-thirds of the planet’s surface and...

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 17:03:23 -0400

obon:

Oceans cover over two-thirds of the planet’s surface and represent a vital natural resource bank. Yet, they are facing serious threats - from overfishing to pollution that, if left unchecked, could threaten the stability of the ecosystem. This infographic shows us why oceans are important and the threats they face.

Where in the world is climate change most likely going to affect...

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 16:01:06 -0400

Where in the world is climate change most likely going to affect communities abilities to feed themselves?

Which areas have already been hard hit?

Graphic: World Food Program

Communications Climate Change Science How does one take a...

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:15:18 -0400

Communications Climate Change Science

How does one take a subject as complex as climate change and explain it in a way the broader public can understand?

Could infographics do the job? How would you design your own climate change infographic?

Climate Change and Communications Why is it important for kids...

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:15:15 -0400

Climate Change and Communications

Why is it important for kids to speak out on climate change? How could this video have made a greater impact?

Video Link

The Yale Forum on Climate Change

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:15:10 -0400

The Yale Forum on Climate Change:

The Yale Forum on Climate Change & The Media is an online publication and forum to foster dialogue on climate change among scientists, journalists, policymakers, and the public. The Yale Forum is an initiative of the Yale Project on Climate Change Communication, directed by Dr. Anthony Leiserowitz of the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Rachel Pike: The science behind a climate headline In 4...

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:15:06 -0400

Rachel Pike: The science behind a climate headline

In 4 minutes, atmospheric chemist Rachel Pike provides a glimpse of the massive scientific effort behind the bold headlines on climate change, with her team — one of thousands who contributed — taking a risky flight over the rainforest in pursuit of data on a key molecule - TEDX

Climate Change in the Media

Mon, 26 Mar 2012 13:15:02 -0400

Collaborating for Climate Change Literacy@CCRAI

"The fact is the 12 hottest years on record have all come in the last 15. Heat waves, droughts,..."

motherjones: Extreme weather will drive up food prices and...

engagedelectorate: The Arctic Ocean’s vast, frozen expanse of...

Meet 'Oily,' one of the animals rescued from Red Deer River oil spill

climateadaptation: The United Nations has a straight talk...

Oil Companies That Caused Climate Change Now Fear Its Financial Impacts

experimentoverde: Fossil Fuels recieve more subsides that clean...

ked1957: The United States broke the record set back in 1910...

newshour: This March was the warmest it’s ever been in the...

Managing the Risks of Extreme Events andDisasters to Advance...

Managing the Risks of Extreme Events andDisasters to Advance Climate ChangeAdaptation (SREX)

350.org Infographic #ConnecttheDots Recent report released by...

A new campaign for 350.org aims to #ConnecttheDots on climate...

Can media campaigns like this be effective in promoting action...

obon: Oceans cover over two-thirds of the planet’s surface and...

Where in the world is climate change most likely going to affect...

Communications Climate Change Science How does one take a...

Climate Change and Communications Why is it important for kids...

The Yale Forum on Climate Change

Rachel Pike: The science behind a climate headline In 4...

Climate Change in the Media

Managing the Risks of Extreme Events and
Disasters to Advance Climate Change
Adaptation (SREX)