 Politics
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Climate Change and Debating Democrats -- Where Do They Stand?
The Democratic Presidential field lost a huge climate change and environmental justice advocate when Senator Corey Booker dropped out of the race yesterday -- second to Jay Inslee, he had the most extensive climate change plan among those who have dropped out.
Of the 6 candidates on the stage tomorrow night, Senator Sanders has the most aggressive plans to address climate change and the environment -- he backs $16 Trillion in federal government spending and the whole of the Green New Deal, whereas Amy Klobuchar has the most modest plans with spending at about $1 Trillion, and the other four are clumped together in the $1.5-3 Trillion range with an alphabet soup of program ideas.
Why This Matters: As the field winnows and the time spent with each candidate on specific issues during debates can expand, it will be interesting to see if climate change gets more air time. After the first two debates, Sierra Club National Political Director Ariel Hayes summed up the dearth of climate discussion well when she said, “You couldn’t make a plate of pasta in the amount of time these two debates just devoted to the gravest existential crisis we face." As a Mom who made a lot of pasta in her day, I (Monica) laughed but had to agree - funny, not funny. CNN Moderators - on Saturday, in our Bright Ideas feature, we suggested a slew of questions on a topic of great interest -- electric vehicles. Get real spending numbers from the candidates and find out how cars stack up against other climate spending and regulatory priorities. And if you insist on talking about health care, could you please ask about curbing health care costs caused by pollution and climate change health-related issues? Fingers crossed.
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 Animals
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Diego the giant Galapagos tortoise. Image: Galapagos National Park
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A Very Sexually Active Galapagos Tortoise Helps Save His Species
There's no summing up CNN's reporting on this story, you have to read for yourself:
"A womanizing tortoise whose rampant sex life may have single-handedly saved his entire species from extinction has retired from his playboy lifestyle, returning to the wild with his mission accomplished."
The playboy in the story is Diego, the giant Galapagos tortoise who, at over 100 years old, has fathered 40% of all tortoises on Espanola Island in the Galapagos through an astoundingly successful captive breeding program.
Why This Matters: Giant Galapagos tortoises can live to be 120 years old and because of human activity were nearly wiped out. In fact, the Galapagos Islands themselves were named after tortoise shells found on the islands and these fascinating animals are a keystone species that help keep the Galapagos ecosystem in balance. Their breeding program is an important success story as we work to protect and enhance biodiversity on our planet.
Go Deeper: As we're nearing Valentines Day, Diego's isn't the only animal love story to make headlines. Get to know these parrot paramours and how their love may have resulted in a new species!
Read more...
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 Weather
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Urban Heat Islands Disproportionately Affect Black Neighborhoods
A new study conducted by Portland State University and the Science Museum of Virginia has revealed that a history of redlining in America has forced African Americans to live in neighborhoods that are much more affected by urban heat waves.
As the authors explained,
"Vulnerable communities—especially those within urban areas in the United States—are disproportionately exposed to extreme heat."
No other category of hazardous weather (not even hurricanes, tornadoes, or flooding) in the United States has caused more fatalities over the last few decades than extreme heat.
Unequal Effects of Urban Heat: The Guardian explained that exposure to extreme heat is unequal: temperatures in different neighborhoods within the same city can vary by 20F.
Why This Matters: Racist policies going back decades (centuries, even) have ensured that minority communities were restricted to living near sources of pollution, floodplains, and hazardous waste sites. Therefore it's tragically not surprising that African Americans are bearing the brunt pollution and emissions caused by white Americans. Experts are expecting more heat-related deaths as climate change brings more extreme heat--it's for this reason that we have to ensure candidates running for office have robust environmental justice plans. Like the sort that Senator Cory Booker called for before he suspended his presidential campaign yesterday.
Read more...
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 Read This
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A typical morning at a fishing harbor in Nagapattinam, India. Image: Karthikeyan Hemalatha
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Could Post Disaster Aid Make Climate Impacts Worse? In India’s Case, Yes.
The deadly Boxing Day tsunami in 2004 killed 230,000 people in 14 countries and in response people across the world donated almost $6.25 billion in relief money. Thousands of fishermen lost their boats. In response, relief funds triggered an unsustainable investment in better boats, higher-tech “ring seine” nets, and that led to overcapacity in fisheries that set off a wave of overfishing that “changed the coastal ecology and the local economy in parts of Southern India forever.”
Worth Your Time: This recent article in the online newsletter about development aid DevEx.com tells the tragic story of how a sudden influx of disaster relief money from the Boxing Day tsunami resulted in the fish catch in Tamil Nadu, a region in southern India, increased by nearly 75% in the 10 years following the tsunami.
Why This Matters: Disaster relief proved to be a tsunami of a different sort — but equally devastating. We have to learn the lessons of previous disasters like this one and ensure that when we rebuild and replace, we do so sustainably.
H/T: To #FriendofthePlanet Tom G for pointing out to us this cautionary tale.
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 Energy
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New Poll Explains Consumer Reluctance To Buy EVs
According to a new Ipsos poll, Americans want to take individual actions to combat climate change, but only 30% were willing to buy an electric vehicle. According to a larger global survey on battery electric vehicles (BEVs), the reasons for the lack of consumer uptake were concerns about the higher cost of BEVs, their limited range, and the lack of charging stations - with the price being the most important factor.
Why This Matters: American consumers were only willing to pay an extra 10% for an electric vehicle. Prices will need to come down further for BEVs to reach that price point. It will take a concerted effort to change this mindset -- with tax incentives and large government fleet purchases to bring down the cost for consumers, more and more visible charging stations, and a well-designed marketing effort by the industry to overcome "range anxiety." What this poll demonstrates is that the change to electric vehicles will take time and be particularly challenging in rural areas where charging stations will be fewer and far between.
Read more...
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 Climate Change
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One Cool Thing: Youth Activists Get Federer to Talk Climate
Youth climate activists (including Greta Thunberg) called out tennis superstar Roger Federer in a big way for his sponsorship deal with Credit Suisse over its links to the fossil fuel industry. Activists like 350.org expressed loans by Credit Suisse to companies investing in fossil fuels were incompatible with action on climate change and urged Federer to "wake up."
In a response Federer said the following:
"I take the impacts and threat of climate change very seriously, particularly as my family and I arrive in Australia amidst devastation from the bush fires,’ read a statement from Federer sent to Reuters. ‘As the father of four young children and a fervent supporter of universal education, I have a great deal of respect and admiration for the youth climate movement, and I am grateful to young climate activists for pushing us all to examine our behaviours and act on innovative solutions.
We owe it to them and ourselves to listen. I appreciate reminders of my responsibility as a private individual, as an athlete and as an entrepreneur, and I’m committed to using this privileged position to dialogue on important issues with my sponsors."
Additionally, Credit Suisse responded by saying it is "seeking to align its loan portfolios with the objectives of the Paris Agreement [to combat climate change] and has recently announced in the context of its global climate strategy that it will no longer invest in new coal-fired power plants." It's not full divestment but hopefully a step in the right direction.
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