<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
</head>
<body text="#000000" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<i><font size="+1"><b>July 9, 2020</b></font></i><br>
<br>
[msg distilled by Bloomberg]<br>
<b>Coal, Oil, and Gas Don't Burn Themselves</b><b><br>
</b><b>Entrenched systems of power aren't just an impediment to real
action, they're the whole problem...</b><br>
"We're not planting any new flags here from the perspective of
[Black Americans], right? All of this we've known and experienced
and lived. But at least it seems as though there was this awakening
by others."<br>
<br>
The book spends little time in the author's professional domain.
Instead, it lingers on reminiscences, including one about a beloved
Florida State University college professor who provided him with a
useful definition of racism. "Dr. [Bill] Jones' definition was
framed around the idea that racism is steeped in a power imbalance,"
Shepherd writes. "When a certain racial group holds the majority of
political, economic, and societal power, they can explicitly,
implicitly, or systematically discriminate against others or
suppress equality to maintain the balance of power."<br>
In other words, racism is a systemic problem impossible to separate
from the institutions and networks that perpetuate it. So is climate
change, but it isn't talked about that way nearly often enough. The
people who write laws and set policy get up every morning and make
decisions that wave climate change on through, a fact that rarely
factors into scientific reports, policy studies, and popular books
on climate.<br>
<br>
Shepherd's is far from the only book about discrimination to
acknowledge the systemic analogy between racism and climate change,
however. In her book So You Want to Talk About Race, Ijeoma Oluo
uses climate change as an example of a problem that doesn't go away
just from acknowledging it. "While we talk about global warming and
worry about global warming, most of us go about our days the same as
we did before we ever heard the term because it's just easier to
talk than to do. And global warming continues."<br>
<br>
Coal, oil and gas don't burn themselves. Their continued use is the
result of active decision-making, carried out by inertia-bound
institutions whose hold on power depends on maintaining the
unsustainable status quo. Any change in that structure isn't going
to come from technology development, or even market forces. It
requires a political shift<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-07-06/coal-oil-and-gas-don-t-burn-themselves-to-cause-climate-change">https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-07-06/coal-oil-and-gas-don-t-burn-themselves-to-cause-climate-change</a><br>
<p>- - <br>
</p>
[book]<b><br>
</b><b>The Race Awakening of 2020: A 6-Step Guide for Moving Forward
</b><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.amazon.com/Race-Awakening-2020-6-Step-Forward/dp/B08BDR8YHY/">https://www.amazon.com/Race-Awakening-2020-6-Step-Forward/dp/B08BDR8YHY/</a><br>
[*Vote activism*]<b><br>
</b><br>
<b>Postcards to Swing States</b><br>
Help save democracy by hand writing postcards to voters in ten
critical states to increase turnout in November. We send you the
postcards for free. You provide the stamps and mail the cards in
October.<br>
FAQ<br>
Postcards to Swing States is a project of Indivisible Chicago
Alliance, a 501(c)(4) organization, made possible by thousands of
grassroots donors & the generous support of the Progressive
Turnout Project.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://postcardstoswingstates.com/">https://postcardstoswingstates.com/</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[the answer]<br>
<b>Clean energy grids and electric vehicles key to beating climate
change and air pollution</b><br>
by Institute of Physics<br>
- - <br>
"The transportation sector is the largest contributor to CO2
emissions in the United States. Its impact on health and the
environment is also significant. Greenhouse gases and criteria air
pollutants affect different places in different ways. Greenhouse
gases disperse globally, stay in the atmosphere for decades to
centuries, and their effects differ globally, but such an effect
does not depend on where the emissions originate. Criteria
pollutants have much shorter lifespans, and their effects depend on
where the emissions occur."<br>
<br>
The study estimated the life cycle monetized damages from greenhouse
gas emissions and criteria air pollutant emissions for passenger
cars, SUVs, and transit buses in the US. It looked at vehicles
powered by four different fuel types--gasoline, diesel, CNG, and
grid electricity--paired with three vehicle technologies: internal
combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs), hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs),
and battery electric vehicles (BEVs)...<br>
- - <br>
"Even in US regions with relatively clean electricity grids (such as
the west coast and New England), battery electric vehicles can only
partially reduce air pollution damages. Our results highlight the
importance of continually cleaning and decarbonizing electricity
grids, such as with increased amounts of renewable energy
technologies and nuclear power, as well as improving vehicle
efficiency. A clean electricity grid with near-zero emissions not
only benefits the electricity sector and traditional electricity
consumers such as buildings but also becomes increasingly crucial
for a sustainable transportation future."<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://phys.org/news/2020-07-energy-grids-electric-vehicles-key.html">https://phys.org/news/2020-07-energy-grids-electric-vehicles-key.html</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
[An excellent, understanable video summary of global warming]<br>
<b>The Basics of Climate Science | Essentials of Environmental
Science</b><br>
Jul 6, 2020<br>
Hot Mess<br>
Welcome to our new special series about the essentials of
environmental science<br>
<br>
A series on this channel talking about the environment without
focusing on the era-defining change happening to our planet right
now wouldn't make any sense. Climate Change is after all, the hot
mess we all find ourselves in. <br>
<br>
Climate is the long-term, average weather over a particular region.
It's the typical patterns of temperature, precipitation, wind and
how those change seasonally throughout the year. <br>
<br>
But what does that actually mean? Let's take a trip to a few biomes
and compare what climate looks like around the world. We're going to
the tropical rainforest of Brazil, the savanna of Mozambique, the
desert in Saudi Arabia, and the tundra of Canada. <br>
<br>
Welcome to our Learning series about the essentials of environmental
science. We'll have more from this series in the following videos,
so stay tuned!<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy3VK6OYBbU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yy3VK6OYBbU</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p>[Unlimited wealth and where to go - nonfiction discussion]<br>
<b>Billionaire Wilderness</b><br>
Streamed July 7, 2020<br>
Climate One<br>
<br>
What happens when wilderness meets wealth in the most iconic parts
of the country? Teton County, Wyoming, is famous for pristine
outdoors, recreation, ranching, and land stewardship. It also
leads the country in per capita income, with residents averaging a
quarter of a million dollars annually. This massive accrual of
wealth comes with far-reaching consequences for income inequality
and the environment.<br>
<br>
How are public and private land interests competing in the
American West? Can conservation and recreation coalesce in a way
that is inclusive of all communities? Join us for a conversation
with Justin Farrell, associate professor of sociology at the Yale
School of Forestry and Environmental Studies and author of
Billionaire Wilderness: The Ultra-Wealthy and the Remaking of the
American West; Dina Gilio-Whitaker, American Indian studies
lecturer at California State University, San Marcos; and Diane
Regas, president and CEO of The Trust for Public Land.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zaxOpxqpY0">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1zaxOpxqpY0</a>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[Look Squirrel! - from Carbon Brief]<br>
<b>Guest post: How 'discourses of delay' are used to slow climate
action</b><br>
Based on our observations as social scientists studying climate
change, we identified 12 discourses of climate delay. We found that
many of them shared common features and could be grouped into four
overarching strategies: "redirect responsibility"; "push
non-transformative solutions"; "emphasise the downsides"; and
"surrender". Our figure below summarises these strategies.<br>
- -<br>
A final category of discourses argue for simply surrendering to
climate change. Society cannot change, according to this discourse,
and if it could, it would be too late anyway.<br>
<br>
Whereas all other discourses appear to suggest that mitigation is
possible - albeit not necessarily desirable - "surrender" discourses
challenge the fundamental notion that mitigation would work,
potentially creating a sense of fear and resignation.<br>
<br>
The end effect is that, once again, policies that could be rapidly
implemented and have been successful in many countries - such as
public transportation investment, coal phase outs, or building
retrofits - are downplayed or overlooked...<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-how-discourses-of-delay-are-used-to-slow-climate-action">https://www.carbonbrief.org/guest-post-how-discourses-of-delay-are-used-to-slow-climate-action</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[be ready for the long voyage]<br>
<b>There's no quick fix for climate change</b><br>
Scientists looked for a 'shortcut' and didn't find one<br>
By Justine Calma - Jul 7, 2020<br>
<br>
It could take decades before cuts to greenhouse gases actually
affect global temperatures, according to a new study. 2035 is
probably the earliest that scientists could see a statistically
significant change in temperature -- and that's only if humans take
dramatic action to combat climate change.<br>
<br>
Specifically, 2035 is the year we might expect to see results if we
switch from business-as-usual pollution to an ambitious path that
limits global warming to under 2 degrees Celsius -- the target laid
out in the Paris climate agreement. The world isn't on track to meet
that goal, so we might not see the fruits of our labor until even
later. That means policymakers need to be ready for the long haul,
and we're all going to need to be patient while we wait for the
changes we make now to take effect.<br>
<br>
"I foresee this kind of train wreck coming where we make all this
effort, and we have nothing to show for it," says lead author of the
study, Bjørn Samset. "This will take time."<br>
<br>
It will be time well spent if we manage to cut emissions -- even if
we have to wait to see results. Humans have so far warmed up the
planet by about 1 degree Celsius. That's already come with more
devastating superstorms and wildfires and has forced people from
Louisiana to Papua New Guinea to abandon their homes as rising sea
levels flood their lands. Even keeping the planet to the 2 degree
goal would result in the near annihilation of the world's coral
reefs. Taking into consideration all of the commitments from world
leaders to work together on climate change, we're currently
careening toward global warming of about 3 degrees Celsius above
preindustrial levels.<br>
<br>
To avoid burnout and keep aspirations high when it comes to tackling
climate change, scientists and policymakers will need to be
realistic about what's ahead. The first line of the new study,
published today in the journal Nature Communications, reads: "This
paper is about managing our expectations."<br>
<br>
The study looks at the effects of cutting down on carbon dioxide,
black carbon, and methane emissions. Carbon dioxide is the toughest
greenhouse gas to tackle because so much of the world economy still
relies on burning fossil fuels.<br>
<br>
Methane (a more potent greenhouse that comes from agriculture and
natural gas production) and black carbon (a big component of soot)
are, in theory, easier to cut back. Using climate models and
statistical analysis, Samset and his colleagues wanted to know
whether addressing these other pollutants might lead to faster
results. Their analysis isolated the effects that reducing methane
and black carbon might have. They found that temperatures might
respond quicker to axing these pollutants, but it wouldn't have as
big of an effect in the long term as pushing down our carbon
emissions. The best bet is to tackle all three at once.<br>
<br>
<b>"IS THERE A SHORTCUT?"</b><br>
"We kind of break this apart and try to see, is there a shortcut? Is
there anything we can do to give people the impression that things
are having an effect? And unfortunately, the answer is no," says
Samset. "There's no quick fix to this."<br>
<br>
Part of the problem is that carbon dioxide can persist in the
atmosphere for hundreds of years after being released by burning
coal, oil, and gas. Natural variations in climate can also delay the
impact that cutting down greenhouse gases has on global
temperatures.<br>
<br>
"There is this fundamental misunderstanding of the climate system by
non climate scientists trying to use trends on a 10 year time scale
for climate change, when [with] climate change a 100 or 200-year
timescale is relevant," explains Natalie Mahowald, a climate
scientist at Cornell University who was not involved in the study.<br>
<br>
"All our hard work today, we will not be able to see for 20 or 30
years -- this is the crux of the problem," Mahowald says. "Humans
have a really hard time doing something for future generations."<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.theverge.com/21315822/climate-change-global-temperature-study-decades-fix">https://www.theverge.com/21315822/climate-change-global-temperature-study-decades-fix</a><br>
<br>
<br>
[Digging back into the internet news archive]<br>
<font size="+1"><b>On this day in the history of global warming -
July 9, 1992 </b></font><br>
<p>Democratic presidential candidate Bill Clinton selects Tennessee
Senator Al Gore as his running mate.<br>
</p>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/10/us/1992-campaign-democrats-clinton-selects-senator-gore-tennessee-running-mate.html">http://www.nytimes.com/1992/07/10/us/1992-campaign-democrats-clinton-selects-senator-gore-tennessee-running-mate.html</a><br>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.c-span.org/video/?26971-1/clinton-vice-presidential-announcement">http://www.c-span.org/video/?26971-1/clinton-vice-presidential-announcement</a><br>
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------/<br>
<br>
/Archive of Daily Global Warming News <a
class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E"
href="https://pairlist10.pair.net/pipermail/theclimate.vote/2017-October/date.html"><https://pairlist10.pair.net/pipermail/theclimate.vote/2017-October/date.html></a>
/<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://pairlist10.pair.net/pipermail/theclimate.vote">https://pairlist10.pair.net/pipermail/theclimate.vote</a><br>
<br>
/To receive daily mailings - click to Subscribe <a
class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E"
href="mailto:subscribe@theClimate.Vote?subject=Click%20SEND%20to%20process%20your%20request"><mailto:subscribe@theClimate.Vote?subject=Click%20SEND%20to%20process%20your%20request></a>
to news digest./<br>
<br>
*** Privacy and Security:*This is a text-only mailing that carries
no images which may originate from remote servers. Text-only
messages provide greater privacy to the receiver and sender.<br>
By regulation, the .VOTE top-level domain must be used for
democratic and election purposes and cannot be used for commercial
purposes.<br>
To subscribe, email: <a class="moz-txt-link-abbreviated"
href="mailto:contact@theclimate.vote">contact@theclimate.vote</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E"
href="mailto:contact@theclimate.vote"><mailto:contact@theclimate.vote></a>
with subject subscribe, To Unsubscribe, subject: unsubscribe<br>
Also you may subscribe/unsubscribe at <a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://pairlist10.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/theclimate.vote">https://pairlist10.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/theclimate.vote</a><br>
Links and headlines assembled and curated by Richard Pauli for <a
class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://TheClimate.Vote">http://TheClimate.Vote</a>
<a class="moz-txt-link-rfc2396E" href="http://TheClimate.Vote/"><http://TheClimate.Vote/></a>
delivering succinct information for citizens and responsible
governments of all levels. List membership is confidential and
records are scrupulously restricted to this mailing list.<br>
<br>
<br>
</body>
</html>