[TheClimate.Vote] February3 , 2020 - Daily Global Warming News Digest

[Richard Pauli]

/*February 3, 2020*/

[GM, Porsche, and Audi commercials for new electric models]
*Super Bowl Ads Hyped Electric Cars. But Will Anyone Buy Them?*
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/02/02/climate/super-bowl-ads-electric-car-hummer.html
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GM Hummer https://youtu.be/t6EPPJHaCtw
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Audi https://youtu.be/WvEAklsAAts
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Porsche https://youtu.be/92sXWVxRr0g


[UK Civil Service workers opinion]
*The year ahead: '2020 is an acid test of government's climate 
credibility. What lies ahead cannot be delivered by any single department'*
Written by Chris Stark on 29 January 2020 in Opinion
In our January issue, CSW asks experts to give their thoughts on the new 
government's policy priorities. In this entry, Committee on Climate 
Change chief executive Chris Stark sets out what the government needs to 
do to in 2020 to reduce the risks of climate impacts
https://www.civilserviceworld.com/articles/opinion/year-ahead-%E2%80%982020-acid-test-government%E2%80%99s-climate-credibility-what-lies-ahead-cannot


[New fiction presents the "twin themes of climate protest and 
psychotherapy"]
*Transgression *
by Rosemary Randall (Author)
It's 2009. In the aftermath of the financial crash, critical climate 
talks are heading for meltdown. Nineteen year old Clara Fortune steps 
from adolescence into a life of climate protest. Simultaneously her 
father Thomas breaks one of the sacrosanct boundaries of the 
psychotherapy profession. As Thomas's colleague Esther Dunn struggles 
desperately to dissuade him, her son Felix draws Clara deeper into the 
world of radical climate action. Esther, haunted by the transgressions 
and losses of her own past and distracted by Felix's entanglement with 
both Clara and with increasingly daring protest, finds the situation 
slipping beyond her control.

What does it mean to break the rules? Of nature? Of society? Of one's 
faith? Of one's profession? In a rapidly heating world, this 
psychologically astute tale raises questions for us all.
https://www.amazon.com/Transgression-Rosemary-Randall-ebook/dp/B083F158LK/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_2



[Avian rule change]
*Trump Administration Moves to Relax Rules Against Killing Birds*
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/30/climate/trump-bird-deaths.html


[Book follows young scientists]
Big Thaw reviews
*The Big Thaw: Ancient Carbon, Modern Science and a Race to Save the World*
An intrepid band of scientists chases after carbon lurking beneath 
Arctic permafrost that threatens to destroy the world.

Teaming up with experts from the Woods Hole Research Center, science 
writer [Eric] Scigliano (Seeing the Elephant, 2006, etc.) and 
photographer Linder (Science on Ice, 2011, etc.) tell the bleak true 
story of Arctic regions whose permafrost has trapped deadly carbon. 
("Permafrost soils are rich in carbon--the legacy of the grasslands, 
peatlands, and forests of past epochs, protected by freezing from 
microbial breakdown.") Now, with Earth's temperature rising, these 
greenhouse emissions threaten to unleash untold devastation on the 
planet: "As it thaws, the Arctic's permafrost has the potential to upend 
the lives of people living in seaside condos in Miami, in exurban dream 
houses overlooking scenic wildlands in California...and in flimsy houses 
perched precariously on slippery hillsides in Haiti and on the 
floodplains of Bangladesh." But far from being a despairing portrayal, 
this work celebrates some undergraduate researchers, directed by a group 
of experienced and knowledgeable scientists from Woods Hole, as they 
travel to Arctic regions studying this potential catastrophe with an 
enthusiasm and engagement that prove courageous and inspirational. Here, 
in the Arctic taiga (forests) and tundra, these researchers are depicted 
in their daily investigative pursuits in Scigliano's text--written with 
scientists/debut authors Holmes, Natali, and Schade--and Linder's color 
photographs. The young team members display such a passion and joy in 
their love of science and the exacting and repetitive work of gathering 
important information that they will capture readers' hearts and minds 
through the many beautifully shot images and lucid prose that support 
this illuminating venture. Enhanced by sidebars that skillfully detail 
the lives and backgrounds of the young band and their mentors from Woods 
Hole, this volume is a tribute to the years of amassing compelling 
research into this problem that threatens to release more greenhouse 
emissions than humans will know what to do with. The book demonstrates 
the demanding activity of collecting data that is an antidote to the 
depression and helplessness many feel in the face of climate change. In 
its splendid design, well-written text, and revealing photos of the 
Arctic world and those who probe the impact of thawing permafrost on the 
climate, this book perfectly captures this critical issue and those who 
are meeting the challenge.

This wondrous and timely work--featuring stunning photos--explores a 
crucial environmental Best Local Book: "The Big Thaw: Ancient Carbon, 
Modern Science and a Race to Save the World," put out by Mountaineers 
Books (Braided River), Eric Scigliano its principal author, details 
climate research in the Arctic. Temperatures are rising at twice the 
global rate, permafrost is thawing, greenhouse gases are being released. 
It is a lucid, warmly written account of chilling developments. problem 
that endangers the planet.
https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/eric-scigliano/the-big-thaw-ancient-carbon-modern-science-and-a-r/ 

https://www.amazon.com/Big-Thaw-Ancient-Carbon-Science/dp/1680512471


[jokes come last on The Hill]
*Jokes are a surprisingly effective way to talk about climate change*
A new study analyzed the power of humor in engaging the public on 
important issues.
By Sophie Yeo
-- There is a growing body of research to suggest that comedy is an 
effective way to ensure that people engage with climate change.
-- Academics have found that good-natured comedy, rather than the more 
downbeat and indignant category of satire, may be the best way to make 
audiences care about the issue.
-- Comedians can find common ground across the political aisle.

Matt Winning isn't an ordinary comedian. He is an environmental 
economist -- he lectures at University College London -- but he also 
writes and performs shows about climate change. His comedy routines have 
caused audiences to break down in tears. Critics love him.

Winning's latest show is called "It's The End Of The World As We Know 
It," which he performed at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland last year. 
Despite his academic background, and despite the seriousness of the 
topic, he believes that comedy is the best way to reach out to a large 
number of people and prompt action when it comes to climate change.

"It elevates the topic," he says. "There's a lot of comedy in my show, 
but occasionally there's a parcel where I make more serious points, and 
I think that's what life is: highs and lows, humorous and dark at the 
same time. That's actually how you can talk meaningfully about this topic."

As climate change gets worse, and the news cycle becomes increasingly 
dominated by stories of wildfires and melting ice, the decline of nature 
and increasingly hot temperatures, it may be difficult to trust that 
levity is an appropriate way to respond to the crisis. Certainly, Greta 
Thunberg has not become the spokesperson of her generation because of 
her wisecracks.

Yet, there is a growing body of research to suggest that comedy is 
actually an effective way to ensure that people engage with climate 
change. Moreover, academics have found that good-natured comedy, rather 
than the more downbeat and indignant category of satire, may be the best 
way to make audiences care about the issue.

While this may be unexpected, it certainly isn't new. Playwrights have 
been using comedy to address serious topics for millennia, says Beth 
Osnes, professor of theatre at the University of Colorado Boulder, who 
is studying the potential of comedy to communicate climate change.

"One of the most famous Greek plays is Lysistrata, in which there was a 
sex strike to stop the Peloponnesian War. There was nothing funny about 
the Peloponnesian War," says Osnes. "Comedy is not something that makes 
things ridiculous -- comedy has a long history of taking on very serious 
corruption and things like that."

    -----------------------
    "Our use of fossil fuels has increased about eight times from the
    middle of the last century – things like coal, oil and gas, which
    was actually the original name of the band Earth, Wind and Fire."

    "The reason that Leo [DiCaprio] hates climate change so much is
    because the only reason he got famous in the first place was due to
    an iceberg, so he's trying to save those." --Matt Winning
    -----------------------

Rather than just theorizing about the role that comedy might play in 
communicating climate change, Osnes has helped establish a stand-up 
comedy course for students, most of whom were majoring in Environmental 
Studies and who had found themselves depressed by their course of study. 
The event is called "Drawdown, Act Up!," and is part of a wider 
university program called "Inside The Greenhouse," which explores 
creative ways to talk about climate change.

Following the performances, which took place at Rocky Mountain National 
Park, Osnes and her colleagues surveyed the students about their 
experiences and published the results in the journal Comedy Studies. 
They found that 90 percent of students felt more hopeful about climate 
change when engaging with the subject in a fun or joyful manner, and 
that 83 percent felt that their commitment to climate change action was 
consequently more sustainable.

By giving students a positive outlet for their emotions and making 
conversation around climate change an enjoyable experience, Osnes hopes 
that young activists are more likely to stay engaged with the topic, 
rather than failing to deal with their negative emotions and ultimately 
burning out.

"We found that it really helps young people process negative emotions 
around climate change," Osnes observes. "What can help sustain 
commitment to climate action is the infusion of fun into the process of 
engagement. If we're doing something that matches our values and aligns 
with our passions and it's fun, the likelihood that we're going to come 
back again and again is very high."

A crucial part of this experiment was that the comedy was explicitly 
good-natured, rather than satirical in nature -- in other words, the 
humor arises from techniques like word play, innuendo and exaggeration, 
rather than a pointed attack intended to shame or expose a target. This 
finding was echoed in another recent study by Chris Skurka, an assistant 
professor in media studies at Penn State University.

Skurka carried out his study by editing a clip of Jimmy Kimmel 
discussing climate change and Sarah Palin in four ways: one kept only 
the informational content, another kept only the humor, one kept only 
the indignation, and one -- the satirical version, and the one which was 
closest to the original -- which kept both the humor and the 
indignation. While Skarka started his research expecting that satire 
would be an effective means to communicate climate change humorously 
without undermining the seriousness of the topic, he actually found that 
the satirical version was the least effective of the four clips.

"What we suspect might be going on is that it is possible for Kimmel to 
use humor to talk about climate change, but when he also expresses 
contempt or hostility, he may inadvertently come off as abrasive. If 
he's just humorous about the issue, he may be able to spark young 
people's interest," says Skurka.

He also discovered that Republicans were less likely to be amused by 
Kimmel's mockery of Sarah Palin than Democrats, providing evidence of 
what most people already know from personal experience: that comedy is 
funny until you become the butt of the joke. More surprising was that 
the gap between political parties shrank during the humor-free segment. 
"It is possible for late-night comedians to talk about climate change 
and even promote Republicans' perception of climate change risk -- so 
long as they skip jokes targeting climate deniers and/or big 
corporations along the way," the paper concludes.

In other words, jokes about climate change can be funny. But for the 
most laughs and the widest impact, the Jimmy Kimmels of this world must 
crack the right jokes to the right people.
Published on Jan 29, 2020
https://thehill.com/changing-america/sustainability/climate-change/480364-the-most-effective-jokes-on-climate-change
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[Here are some videos of Matt's work]
http://www.mattwinning.com/videos-and-photos


[Activism for old folks]
*Column: Inspired by Greta Thunberg, this 101-year-old takes a stand 
against climate change*
"I am 101 years old and live in an assisted living facility," Sachs 
wrote, saying that she was inspired by Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg's 
activism on climate change.

"There is not much we seniors can do to help," Sachs wrote. "However, I 
have thought perhaps we could observe one meatless day a week in our 
dining room. The proposal has met with remarkable acceptance by our 
residents."..
more - 
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-02-01/retirement-home-seniors-fight-climate-change


[Young new radical woman has video channel]
*Climate Barbarism*
Jan 31, 2020
Mexie
Support the show! Become a Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=5385111
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdKTS__iIJA


[Digging back into the internet news archive]
*On this day in the history of global warming - February 3, 2011 *
President Obama discusses his administration's clean energy efforts at 
Penn State University.
http://youtu.be/yUE0hjtiiSM

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