The Government of the Maldives is getting antsy. While the international community is discussing CO2 reduction targets that fall way short of what’s needed, the Archipelago-State is already dealing with the first signs of sea level rise.
The current proposals on the table would allow concentrations of CO2 to rise to 450 parts per million (ppm), giving us a 50-50 chance of preventing catastrophic climate change. 50-50 doesn’t sound like good odds to gamble the future of human civilization, right? At 450 ppm, temperatures would already be high enough to doom Island Nations like the Maldives. Imagine knowing that your whole country is about to be slowly drowned by the ocean while the countries that caused the problem in the first place discuss ’solutions’ that only help themselves.
The Diver Association of the Maldives is committed to preserving their homes and coral reefs. They joined 350.org – an international movement to reduce CO2 concentrations to 350 ppm and guarantee a stable atmosphere – and shot this fantastic video. Check it out:
On October 24th, the International Day of Climate Action, President Nasheed and his whole cabinet will join the divers and hold an underwater cabinet meeting to show the Maldives’ destiny if the climate negotiations will result in a weak treaty.
Why is this relevant to Funding our Future? Island States aren’t the only places vulnerable to sea level rise. The same CO2 concentration that would doom the Maldives would have a devastating effect on Florida, New York City, New Orleans and the rest of coastal United States. A future where we have to abandon our cities isn’t the future that our generation deserves. We need more than a 50-50 chance, we need 350ppm.
I just got back from Los Angeles where I attended Gov. Schwarzenegger’s Governors’ Global Climate Summit. I must say that I was a little skeptical about how honest the conversations were going to be due to the Governor’s lack of follow-through on major environmental initiatives and the long list of fossil-happy corporate sponsors, but I was wrong in my assumption. I left the summit ecstatic, energized, full of hope, and with a large stack of business cards in my wallet received from inspiring young entrepreneurs, activists and journalists.
After months of delay, progressive champion Senator Kerry (D-MA) finally released the Senate’s response to the House-passed American Clean Energy and Security Act. The senate draft climate bill titled “Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act” is a solid improvement over the house version, but still falls short of what scientists say is necessary to avoid the worst effects of the climate crisis. Unfortunately due to the disproportionate amount of power wielded by polluter-friendly Senators, it looks like this already weak bill is about to get weaker and is all we can get out of this congress.
Sen. Baucus (D-MO) (surprise surprise) is one of those pollution-friendly senators and he wants to take advantage of his chairmanship of the Finance Committee to turn the climate bill into a pork fest for fossil fuel dealers. His initial plan was to use his notoriety gained from successfully brokering a healthcare deal to get his hands on the climate debate as well. Luckily for us his healthcare adventure isn’t going too well so it’s still unclear how much of the final bill Sen. Baucus will put his hands on.
There are plenty other Democratic Senators gearing up to run over the climate bill. They are the usual suspects, the ones with dollar signs in their eyes and their constituents’ interests left on some shelf in the basement gathering dust. Sen. Rockafeller, Sen. Landrieu, Sen. Byrd, Sen. McCaskill, and Sen. Conrad are ready to put up a fight to secure a future for fossil fuels and an end to civilization and everyone else.
Fortunately we also have a good number of Republicans who have expressed interest to break the bounds of politics and work to save the planet. Other than the usual suspects from Maine (Sen. Snow and Sen. Collins), Sen. LeMieux, and Sen. McCain make some of the Democrats less useful. Unfortunately almost every pro-climate bill Republican is also very pro-nuclear, which means we might get a handful of radioactive waste in exchange for a saved planet.
Overall the fight is an uphill one, especially since Democrats both in congress and in the administration simply refuse to play hardball and communicate the urgency of climate action to Americans. In case you missed it, notice that the bill title doesn’t include any reference to the climate crisis (Clean Energy Jobs and American Power Act).
Young people need this bill to pass so we can set up a system to start mandating climate reductions, but we need to work harder to make sure that anti-climate politicians are held accountable at the next elections. Talking to each other just isn’t enough anymore. It’s time to talk to our parents, our employers, our friend’s parents and any other older person you meet. Tell them why you and the rest of your generation needs to get a climate bill passed. Only when more people recognize the urgncy will we be able to actually get a decent climate bill through our broken political system.
On November 4th 2008, young people propelled President Obama to victory with a clear mandate to advance a progressive agenda. Unfortunately things have not been going as well as we would have hoped. Right wing bullies, led by the deranged Glenn Beck, have been relentlessly pushing Obama and congressional Democrats around like kids in a playground. From delaying health care reform to the recent resignations of key progressives in the administration, our new found hopes are rapidly reverting to distant dreams.
It is time for President Obama to start dealing with the bullies who are threatening to take him down. Unfortunately, it seems like he does not yet know how to do this, despite having been an avid comic book reader (and thus a likely victim of bullies) and having sharpened his political mind in Chicago. As someone who has been pushed around a good amount as a kid and having done some pushing around myself, here are some pointers for how President Obama (hereon little Obama) can avoid losing more ground to the likes of Glenn Beck (hereon big bad Beck).
On their first day back to work after an eventful summer, Senators were greeted by 40 climate activists eager to demonstrate what clean energy jobs look like. Smack in the middle of the Hart Senate Office building the 40 activists built miniature windmills and made mechanical noises until interrupted by the Capitol Police. At that point, a 50 ft banner dropped demanding that the Senators “Get to Work” for “Green Jobs Now”. This protest was organized by a coalition of climate organizations including the Energy Action Coalition, Avaaz.org, the Chesapeake Climate Action Network and Campus Progress.
“As the Senate reconvenes today, too many Americans are out of work and getting sick from our current dirty energy systems. We must act now,” said Pete Griffin, Campaign Director for Energy Action Coalition. “This historic youth movement fighting for jobs and clean energy is getting larger every day and the action, or inaction, of the Senators walking through those doors today will influence how young people mobilize next year as 36 of them make bids for reelection.”
Mirroring the upsurge in climate organizing happening throughout the nation, this action launched a new season of inside-the-beltway activity around climate legislation. The Senate is set to discuss a climate bill around the end of the month and they can be sure to be greeted by young people in hard hats demanding that they stick to the science and keep the world’s most vulnerable nations in mind.
“We can’t wait any longer,” said Kim Huynh with the Avaaz Climate Action Factory. “The world’s leading climate scientists have said we have only a few years to act, and meaningful action is going to require global participation. World leaders are meeting in Denmark in December to craft an international climate-change agreement, and the outcome hinges on whether the U.S. Senate will pass climate legislation this fall.”
Getting a climate bill passed before Copenhagen is possibly our last chance to prove to the international community that we are serious about tackling the climate crisis, but it can’t just be any bill. The proposal that passed the house this spring falls short of what scientists are saying is necessary and don’t do enough to invest in clean energy jobs and innovation. We still have time to improve on it in the Senate, but it will take many more voices from constituents throughout the nation demanding an end to the nigthmarish climate crisis and more investments in clean energy jobs.
Our two banner droppers were detained by the Capitol police. One of the banner droppers who was arrested could use your help to pay for he legal fees, would you help a fellow climate organizer out? Please donate to support this amazing volunteer
Senators are coming back to Washington D.C. on September 8th, what do you think they’ll do? Will they pass bold healthcare reform to help Americans get the care that they need? Will they pass a bold climate bill to lift the threat of the climate crisis and create millions of green jobs? The answer to these questions is entirely dependent on whether we all get loud and organized in demanding that the progressive priorities young people voted for in November are fulfilled. Here are a couple of things you can do on climate and healthcare to remind your Senators that just because they are back in the beltway they are still accountable to the youth vote:
Get It Done Healthcare Actions
Young people’s voices have been thuroughly ignored in the healthcare debate. Now that the summer is almost over, it’s time to remind our representatives that we are the least insured segment of the population and that we need healthcare reform.
On Sept. 8th the Senate will return from Summer Recess and release its version of a clean energy jobs bill. This is our chance to welcome back our Senators and tell them to “Get to Work!” Let’s create some clean energy jobs on the Hill!
Join this creative demonstration on Capitol Hill to show the Senate what clean energy jobs look like. We need dozens of people to form a “clean energy assembly line”, wear costumes and green hard hats, deliver props to Senators, and have fun! Will you join us?
Yes, your Senator is leaving your state, but you still have access to their local offices. Take a field trip over there dressed up in nurse outfits or wearing arm slings and demand healthcare reform.
Hosta PowerShift Campaign Kick-off Event
In the coming weeks the Power Shift movement will begin to take new life. Innovative new actions, state-wide rallies and the introduction of new online and mobile tools are all in the works, but we need your leadership to make it happen. That’s why we are inviting you to start using a groundbreaking new organizing tool we are unveiling today to help you create a local Campaign Kick-off Event.
Just because the summer is almost over doesn’t mean that we will stop pushing for progressive change. Now is the time to take action in your community!
The American Petroleum Institute, the oil industry’s pet dog in Washington D.C., was throughly inspired by the success of Big Pharma and Insurance companies in popularizing lies about healthcare and decided to organize it’s own set of astroturfing events throughuot the nation. ‘Energy-Citizens’ is what they called them and they encouraged all of their lsits to run and attend. The first of these events happened in Houston a couple of days ago and Public Citizen organizers went to check it out. See for yourself how ’spontaneous’ and ‘grassrootsy’ these events were:
Not only was the event exclusive to oil company employees, but when our friends managed to sneak in with a camera, they revealed that most people in there had no idea or were highly misinformed about what they were brought there for:
In a summer rife with industry scandals and lies, we must make sure that our government doesn’t balk. Here is the list of other scheduled ‘Energy Citizen’ events. If you see one in your hometown, why don’t you pay them a visit?
21-Aug
Lima, OH
Veterans’ Memorial and Civic Center
11:30 am
21-Aug
Farmington, NM
Convention Center at McGee Park
11:30 am
22-Aug
Atlanta, GA
Marriott Century Center
11:30 am
25-Aug
Elkhart, IN
RV Hall of Fame
11:00 am
25-Aug
Greeley, CO
Island Grove Regional Park
TBD
25-Aug
Nashville, TN
Wild Horse Saloon
11:30 am
27-Aug
Bismarck, ND
National Center of Energy Excellence at Bismarck State College
When I say “energy efficiency”, what comes to mind? I’m sure that you aren’t thinking about the most cost-effective way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions! Despite the lack of attention it receives from major environmental organizations, energy efficiency is by far the most promising approach to climate mitigation as shown by a new report from a business consulting firm and by the upsurge in student activism aimed at reducing their communities’ energy bills.
Last month, the McKinsey consulting firm released a report highlighting the immense potential for energy efficiency to quickly and cost-effectively reduce our carbon footprint. In it they highlighted that energy efficiency alone could easily reduce our energy use 23% by 2020. These are targeted investments that pay for themselves (referred to as NPV-Positive in the report) and provide an immense gain to our economy once you add in (and these cost saving-factors are not included in the report) the side benefits associate with job creation, improved air quality and health of residents, increased productivity, and, of course, weakening the climate crisis. Check out this graph summarizing their findings. The width of the columns indicates how many Gigatons of CO2 could be saved a year by implementing the measure and their vertical height indicated the incremental cost per ton of CO2 saved (from a previousMcKinsey report). You will see that most energy efficiency investments will have a strong payback, whereas other forms of energy improvements are somewhat costly (check out how expensive Coal plants with Carbon Capture and Sequestration, the coal industry’s ’solution’ to the climate crisis, are).
These are not abstract and hard to reach improvements, they are happening every day, mostly in buildings and institution with the available capital and know-how to tap into this incredible resource. Fortunately, there are many young people out there working hard to bridge the gap between these money, energy, and air quality saving measures and everyday people who don’t traditionally have access to them.
Isn’t it clear? ‘Clean Coal’ is the process of taking the CO2 and making it disappear somewhere! As John Hodgman from the Daily Show would say: Climate change? Solved!
* Disclaimer, this post refers to ‘Clean Coal’ based on definition #345 – Carbon Capture and Sequestration. To read more about the thousands of different meanings that the term ‘Clean Coal’ can conveniently have depending on what’s convenient for the coal industry, check out this post.
*UPDATE* The second round of the Cash For Clunkers program ended this Monday at 8:00 PM. Once again, the program ran out of money ahead of schedule due to its extreme popularity. If you didn’t manage to trade in your gas-guzzler this time, don’t worry! You’ll probably get another chance next year since the Detroit 3 have been lagging behind international auto companies in commercializing electric vehicles. In the meantime, consider riding your bicycle and learning how to use your local public transit. It’ll be healthier for you, your community, and your planet.
Just before leaving for recess, the U.S. Senate approved additional funding for Cash for Clunkers - the government program to incentivize (pay) people to trade in their old cars for new slightly more efficient ones. This widely successful program dramatically improved car sales and was credited with reducing domestic CO2 emissions by 700,000 tons, saving consumers over $216 million a year in gasoline costs, and protecting American manufacturing jobs.
The biggest success of the program wasn’t the small reduction in carbon emissions and oil use, but that it proved that consumers demand more fuel efficient cars. Even though the minimum fuel efficiency gain needed to receive a rebate for trading in your old car was a meager 1 MPG increase for light trucks and 4 MPG for passenger cars, the average clunkers brought in were almost 10 MPG more than the cars they replaced. Now, because American auto companies have been in denial about the need for more efficient options, over half of sales were foreign cars, and all of the top 10 trade-in models are made by the Detroit Three.
Cash for Clunkers’ victory allowed for consumer’s voices to be heard and set the stage for Senators Bingaman (D-NM), Snowe (R-ME), Lugar (R-IN) and Kerry (D-MA) to introduce legislation to take the program to its next logical step. The Efficient Vehicle Leadership Act of 2009 (S. 1620) would use the current CAFE level as a baseline to establish a feebaterewarding consumers who purchase more efficient vehicles and charging more for gas guzzlers. This legislation will move us from Cash for Clunkers’ expensive, short-term, and environmentally negligible stimulus to a long-term strategy to modernize America’s auto fleet to meet our planetary challenges. The feebate is structured to give the Detroit 3 enough time to catch up with the rest of the world and put the decision in the consumer’s hands: it’s a win-win situation.
Due to its success in stimulating the economy, it is hard to find people openly critical of Cash for Clunkers, but there are some serious and structural short-comings that should be discussed more openly among the progressive community in order to take the next step towards a truly clean energy economy. As the Onion eloquently puts it:
Funding our Future is a campaign to pass a progressive federal budget for 2010 and ensure that our nation.s key economic choices invest in our education, spark reform of our health care system, and address climate change through cap and trade and clean energy investments. Click here for more info.
The Government of the Maldives is getting antsy. While the international community is discussing CO2 reduction targets that fall way short of what’s needed, the Archipelago-State is already dealing with the first signs of sea level rise.
On their first day back to work after an eventful summer, Senators were greeted by 40 climate activists eager to demonstrate what clean energy jobs look like. Smack in the middle of the Hart Senate Office building the 40 activists built miniature windmills and made mechanical noises until interrupted by the Capitol Police. At that point, a 50 ft banner dropped demanding that the Senators “Get to Work” for “Green Jobs Now”. This protest was organized by a coalition of climate organizations including the Energy Action Coalition, 
“We can’t wait any longer,” said Kim Huynh with the Avaaz Climate Action Factory. “The world’s leading climate scientists have said we have only a few years to act, and meaningful action is going to require global participation. World leaders are meeting in Denmark in December to craft an international climate-change agreement, and the outcome hinges on whether the U.S. Senate will pass climate legislation this fall.” 
