It’s Getting Hot In Here

The World Youth Forum in advance of the G8 Summit has just concluded; it was an amazing weekend for sharing best practices, planning for future campaigns and taking action on the spot. Organized by the Japan Youth G8 Project, A SEED Japan, and the Japanese Youth Ecology League, the summit brought together close to 250 youth - over 200 from across Japan and about 20 from overseas.

The conference was held in order to provide youth input into the upcoming G8 Meeting on climate change. The negotiations are anticipated to reinforce false solutions of CCS and all together ignore the need for mid-term targets, so the young people here felt it was essential to make our voices heard and encourage bold leadership. The statement adopted at the conference included calls of banning construction dirty energy facilities, supporting green employment, and recognizing human rights, but the most relevant point was:

In order to avoid dangerous and irreversible effects of climate change we urge the G8 to set a goal of stabilizing CO2 concentration at 350 ppm in order to avoid a global temperature increase of 2Cº above preindustrial levels. To achieve the above long-term target, it is critical that the G8 leads the world to reduce greenhouse gas emission by at least 40% of 1990 level by 2020. We demand Japan and G8 countries take us to a strong post 2012 agreement in 2009 under the UN Climate Process.

The statement was presented by an international panel of youth at a roundtable discussion with representatives of the Japanese Ministry of Environment and Foreign Affairs and it will be taken with the youth to the actual summit to be included in their actions and protests. Continue reading ‘Int’l Youth Conference Tells G8 To Stop Messing Around’

In December of 2006, hundreds of young people converged in Nairobi, Kenya for the annual climate negotiations, COP12. We came with high hopes, but despite being based in a city adversely impacted by climate change, the plight of the African continent was overlooked, and the diplomats accomplished very little. As everyone packed their bags for trips into Masai Mara, the conference became dubbed by climate justice activists as “the climate safari.”

But many of us youth did not run off immediately, because we had met some incredible youth from the Kibera slums, one of the largest slums in the world, and they had graciously offered to take us on a tour of their community. We were shown around their homes and our eyes were opened to the realities of poverty - a world without running water or consistent electricity, where on average people made less than $1 a day, and that is now home to many Sudanese refugees. But we were also exposed to one of the most incredible organizations I have ever met - the Kibera Community Youth Project (KYCP).

This organization embodies what our movement is about: empowering young people to emerge as agents of change, taking action within their communities for the improvement of all. They train young people to assemble solar panels and distribute them around the community, allowing people to operate appliances even if their electricity is cut-off. And the panels provide a self-sustaining source of income for the organizations’ other programs. They have encouraged young people to express themselves through creative channels, setting up recording studios for young local artists to record songs of social change. And they have used community theatre to reduce the stigma of HIV/AIDS in Kibera. KYCP is truly making a difference. And right now, as Nairobi is gripped with post-election violence, they need our help. Please read below an email from KCYP’s Director Fredrick Ouko, and help our brother and sisters in Kenya out by making a contribution at KYCP.net Continue reading ‘Kenyan Youth Take on Violence, Poverty, and Global Warming - Need a Little Support!’

The Conference of the Parties (COP) is about to reconvene after a 4hr break. The new text prepared by the president of the COP sets a roadmap for a comprehensive climate agreement to avoid dangerous climate change. But there is one major omission: targets. As we prepare to open negotiations on the new text, the United States and Canada have managed to block and remove any references to concrete targets and time lines for emission reductions. The US and Canada, immune to science and morality, will try to leave with as little as they can. At 8:45am in Bali, Indonesia, history has yet to be written.

On the third day of negotiations in Bali, the U.S. Youth Delegation will confront the U.S. State Department Delegation and expose the conflicts between their lofty rhetoric and discouraging reports that the U.S. is scheming to prevent meaningful international action on climate change.In a Senate Hearing prior to the Bali Conference, Under Secretary of State, and head of the U.S. Delegation, Paula Dobrianksy said that “we will work with our partners to launch a new phase in climate diplomacy. We seek a ‘Bali Roadmap’ that will advance negotiations under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and develop a post-2012 framework that effectively addresses climate change and strengthens our energy security.”

But according to Der Spiegel, a reputable German newspaper, the only “working with partners” that the U.S. is engaged in is scheming with India and China to act as scapegoats for them, by setting them up to insist that they will not accept any binding emissions reduction targets, and thus divide the world and create an easy “excuse” for a continuing lack of action.

U.S. Youth will meet with the State Department Delegation in just a few short hours to remind them of the global consensus for a Bali Breakthrough that can safeguard the fate of future generations. With Australia ratifying Kyoto and growing support for action in the American public, the U.S. is increasingly isolated and out of touch.

Flood Under Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky’s Inbox with messages of solidarity, so that they can’t forget that their positions represent the past and that WE represent the future!

On December 3, representatives from over 180 countries are meeting at the UN Climate Change Conference in Bali to make critical decisions about our future. If we want to avoid dangerous climate change, they must start planning for a post-2012 climate agreement NOW. Please take a minute to send a message to YOUR government!

Avaaz.org, in partnership with SustainUS, Greenpeace Solar Generation, CYCC, and AYCC, is calling for youth around the world to join the global movement and send a message to their governments. Are you concerned? Do you know what needs to happen to stop climate change? So, share your vision of safe world with those who will be deciding on your future in Bali!

This morning Catherine Guathier, 18, a member of the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition addressed the United Nations at a high-level forum on climate change. The forum, titled “The Future in Our Hands: Addressing the Leadership Challenge of Climate Change,” brought ministers from over 150 countries, and 80 heads of state, making the meeting the highest level UN meeting on climate to date.

Catherine wrote the speech with Carl Tomacruz, a Phillipino student who works with Greenpeace Solar Generation. They challenged the Presidents and Prime Ministers in attendance to show true leadership.

“Today, when you take the floor, commit to addressing this urgent threat and put yourselves on the right road to a strong mandate in Bali.”

Joining Catherine on the stage were the likes of Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon, the chair of the IPCC, Mayor of Delhi, and the one and only, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

The Secretary General called the meeting to shore up support for an upcoming pivotal round of international climate negotiations in Bali, Indonesia.

In regards to meetings like APEC and the upcoming Major Emitters Meeting, Catherine nailed it on the head: “There are spin doctors in certain capitals that will try to convince you otherwise with their ‘diplomatic breakthroughs,’ ‘bridges’ and ‘complementary processes.’ But there is only one road to a safe climate and it leads to Bali.”

See a video of the speech, using Real Player here, or read the transcript here.

Last Friday, negotiators from 158 countries agreed to rough emission reduction targets for industrialized countries to strive for. Since the U.S. has not ratified the Kyoto Protocol, the U.S. was not a part of the agreement.

The negotiators convened in Vienna for an intersessional meeting of the UNFCCC to discuss an international agreement to replace the Kyoto Protocol when it expires in 2012. The final agreement was for industrialized countries to strive to reduce emission their emissions 25-40% below 1990 levels by 2020.  It was a compromise between developing countries and the European Union, which were pushing for ambitious targets and Canada, Japan and Russia, who were not in favor of setting emission reduction targets at all. The goal is non-binding, yet considered to be a positive step towards the major annual climate negotiations that will take place in December in Bali.

In the lead up to Bali, there are a number of major international conferences on climate to look out for. This weekend, an APEC (Asian Pacific Economic Co-operation) summit will look to tackle the issue, but many expect more hot air from Australian Prime Minister Howard and Bush. Take a picture of yourself and join Avaaz’s photo petition, to remind officials that we need bold binding targets and not more “voluntary” or “aspirational” goals.

Last weekend Iowa native Dr. James Hansen of NASA’s Goddard Institute made a homecoming trip to the Hawkeye state to join the March to ReEnergize Iowa and deliver the keynote address at the final rally. See the complete transcript of his speech here and read about the rally in the Des Moines Register.

Dr. Hansen echoed his call for a moratorium on coal and increased youth participation in the preservation of our future. The It’s Getting Hot In Here community generated a list of questions that were delivered to Dr. Hansen and his responses are included below. Please be sure to leave your thoughts and responses in the comments section.
1) In the span of your career, public opinion on global warming has shifted dramatically, have we reached the tipping point necessary to effectively combat it?

That is unclear. Although there has been a recent widespread increase in awareness, it comes at just the same time as an energy crunch due to a booming global economy (especially emergence of China) that is causing a sudden surge of increased coal use. If this is not nipped in the bud, we could lose the ball game.

2) In one of your recent email dispatches, you made a bold statement by calling for a moratorium on coal without carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) technology. Does the attention and recognition paid to CCS technology divert money and energy from clean energy and efficiency technologies?

It certainly should not. CCS technology is still somewhat of a mirage. As of yet there is no “clean coal” in reality, and commercial availability is probably at least 10 years away with current efforts. If a requirement is placed that coal can only be used if it is truly clean, that will cause a sudden stop in any increased use of coal. Efficiency and renewable energies are likely to be the big winners from such a constraint, at least for a decade and perhaps forever. CCS may be so expensive that it will cause a big change in the attractiveness of coal. Coal is presently very cheap, partly because it is often subsidized and because it almost never has to pay for the environmental damage it does, including mercury pollution of lakes and oceans.

3) What role do you see for youth in bringing forth a moratorium on coal?

The damages of dirty coal will be visited mainly on the youth of today and on the unborn. This is true especially for the climate changes that will be put “into the pipeline” to appear in future decades, but also for effects of water pollution such as brain damage due to mercury in fish, and the mess that is left behind on bull-dozed mountains.

4) What was the major issue on campuses when you were a student? Were you involved?

The Vietnam war. I was a post-doc by the time students really got heated up. They took over buildings on the Columbia University campus. No, I was not involved. It doesn’t fit my personality, I prefer working on science problems. I have had to force myself to get involved in the present case. It seems to me that the most useful thing that I can do is try to contribute to the court cases against inefficient vehicles and coal-fired power plants.

5) If we remove subsidies from carbon-intensive energy sources and manage to put a price on carbon, won’t CCS coal be priced out of the market?

Perhaps, but only if there are alternatives, much of which would probably be energy efficiency. Much more than half of the energy that we use is wasted. So if coal is priced out, that would be great. Imagine the cleaner atmosphere and ocean, and all the good high tech jobs that would be needed to replace that energy source. There are a lot of jobs associated with energy efficiency, as well as renewable energies.

6) Do you think CCS Coal technology will be essential for a low-carbon future for countries like China? Is it problematic, practically, ethically and scientifically, to transfer this technology to China when it is basically untested here?

It will surely be tested here and elsewhere. It can be tested there, as well as here. It is not like this is a dangerous technology that is going to explode and kill people.

7) In light of the fact that the impacts of fossil fuel use extend beyond the greenhouse effect, to what extent should we address the life cycle costs, such as mountain top removal mining and exploitation of impacted communities when confronting global warming?

Absolutely, it is very important to look at the life cycle costs, especially for things such as ethanol. Germany is finding that the huge subsidies they gave coal are now coming back to haunt them. Some villages are sinking a few feet — there are tens of billions of dollars of future costs due to land subsidence. These costs will be born by today’s youth, and the unborn.

Traditional media has failed to reach youth with the message that fighting coal is necessary to preserve our future, what do you think is the role for new media.

Well, one problem is that the media always focuses on today. It shortchanges the young and future generations. I don’t know how to fix that.

Students at Carleton College in Northfield, MN recently launched a website to contribute to a community discussion about a proposed ethanol plant in nearby Bridgewater Township.

www.OurEthanolDebate.com is filled with basic ethanol information and discussion of the environmental, economic and political issues under consideration within the community and throughout the country. The website is chock-full of multimedia, including video interviews and podcasts with local farmers, citizen activists and professors.

“We’re a part of this community, too,” explains Elizabeth Webb ’09 (Waterville, Maine), “and we think it’s important that all of us in the greater Northfield community understand the complexities around building this plant and participate in the ensuing dialogue.”

Continue reading ‘Carleton Students Create Website Over Proposed Ethanol Plant’

The LCV’s Heat is On Blog is reporting that a bipartisan group of South Carolina legislators issued an open letter to the Democratic Presidential Nominees asking them to address energy and the climate crisis in the first presidental debate.

In the wake of polls that show that a majority of South Carolina primary voters support taking action now to curb global warming, over two-thirds of the state house and 21 state senators called on the presidential nominees to make this a focus of their discussion on Thursday night at South Carolina State University!

“Hopefully, Thursday night will be a starting point,” 22-year-old Rep. Bakari Sellers, D-Denmark, the Palmetto State’s youngest legislator, said at the Statehouse Tuesday.

Sellers said the debate in Orangeburg will be an opportunity for candidates “to emerge from the pack” by discussing climate change and the nation’s energy policies.

This young representative clearly demonstrates that the US population is ready for No More Hot Air. And Tom Friedman has jumped on the bandwagon too, calling for a “Green Debate” to focus on climate change, energy and the environment.