<html>
<head>
<meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8">
</head>
<body text="#000000" bgcolor="#FFFFFF">
<p><i><font size="+1"><b>September 3, 2020</b></font></i></p>
[nation of courts]<br>
<b>Mexican Court to Hear Youths' Climate Change Case Against
Government</b><br>
By Reuters, Wire Service Content Sept. 2, 2020<br>
MEXICO CITY (REUTERS) - A Mexican court will later this week hear a
case brought on by 15 young people demanding the government of
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador set out clear policies on
climate change, documents show.<br>
<br>
Lopez Obrador is under increased pressure to help mitigate the
effects of climate change.<br>
The plaintiffs from the state Baja California filed a legal stay of
proceedings, known locally as amparo, before a district court in
administrative matters, several documents related to the case show.<br>
<br>
In it, the youths, aged 17 to 23, demand clearer regulations and
public policies derived from the country's existing General Law on
Climate Change and the Mexican constitution, the documents showed.<br>
<br>
All of the documents, which have not been made public, were provided
by a representative of the plaintiffs.<br>
<br>
The hearing is scheduled for Sept. 4 and comes just days after the
country's environment minister quit.<br>
<br>
"There's no bigger mistake than doing nothing based on a belief that
one can only do little: However small or simple our actions may
seem, they sow what future generations will reap," said Gema Osorio,
one of the plaintiffs, aged 20.<br>
<br>
"My wish is that even if we don't manage to repair the damages, at
least we stop continuing to harm the planet," she said on
Wednesday...<br>
more at -
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-09-02/mexican-court-to-hear-youths-climate-change-case-against-government">https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-09-02/mexican-court-to-hear-youths-climate-change-case-against-government</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[maybe it's all about ethics]<br>
<b>Hoosiers support climate policies -- even if they don't believe
in climate change</b><br>
London Gibson<br>
Indianapolis Star - Sept 2, 2020<br>
- - <br>
"Despite the fact that the problem of climate change is contentious,
the solutions don't really seem to be, or at least are far less
contentious," said Matt Houser, a principal investigator for the
survey. "Not just the majority, but in many cases a strong majority
of Hoosiers want these resilience policies, even policies we specify
would be used to mitigate carbon dioxide emissions."...<br>
- -<br>
more at -
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.indystar.com/story/news/environment/2020/09/02/indiana-university-survey-shows-hoosier-support-climate-policies/5677764002/">https://www.indystar.com/story/news/environment/2020/09/02/indiana-university-survey-shows-hoosier-support-climate-policies/5677764002/</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[coming right up]<br>
<b>Natural disasters must be unusual or deadly to prompt local
climate policy change, study finds</b><br>
August 24, 2020<br>
CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Natural disasters alone are not enough to
motivate local communities to engage in climate change mitigation or
adaptation, a new study from Oregon State University found.<br>
<br>
Rather, policy change in response to extreme weather events appears
to depend on a combination of factors, including fatalities,
sustained media coverage, the unusualness of the event and the
political makeup of the community.<br>
<br>
Climate scientists predict that the frequency and severity of
extreme weather events will only continue to increase in coming
decades. OSU researchers wanted to understand how local communities
are reacting.<br>
<br>
"There's obviously national and state-level climate change policy,
but we're really interested in what goes on at the local level to
adapt to these changes," said lead author Leanne Giordono, a
post-doctoral researcher in OSU's College of Public Health and Human
Sciences. "Local communities are typically the first to respond to
extreme events and disasters. How are they making themselves more
resilient -- for example, how are they adapting to more frequent
flooding or intense heat?"<br>
<br>
For the study, which was funded by the National Science Foundation,
Giordono and co-authors Hilary Boudet of OSU's College of Liberal
Arts and Alexander Gard-Murray at Harvard University examined 15
extreme weather events that occurred around the U.S. between March
2012 and June 2017, and any subsequent local climate policy change.<br>
<br>
These events included flooding, winter weather, extreme heat,
tornadoes, wildfires and a landslide.<br>
<br>
The study, published recently in the journal Policy Sciences, found
there were two "recipes" for local policy change after an extreme
weather event.<br>
<br>
"For both recipes, experiencing a high-impact event -- one with many
deaths or a presidential disaster declaration -- is a necessary
condition for future-oriented policy adoption," Giordono said.<br>
<br>
In addition to a high death toll, the first recipe consisted of
Democrat-leaning communities where there was focused media coverage
of the weather event. These communities moved forward with adopting
policies aimed at adapting in response to future climate change,
such as building emergency preparedness and risk management
capacity. <br>
<br>
The second recipe consisted of Republican-leaning communities with
past experiences of other uncommon weather events. In these locales,
residents often didn't engage directly in conversation about climate
change but still worked on policies meant to prepare their
communities for future disasters.<br>
<br>
In both recipes, policy changes were fairly modest and reactive,
such as building fire breaks, levees or community tornado shelters.
Giordono referred to these as "instrumental" policy changes.<br>
<br>
"As opposed to being driven by ideology or a shift in thought
process, it's more a means to an end," she said. "'We don't want
anyone else to die from tornadoes, so we build a shelter.' It's not
typically a systemic response to global climate change."<br>
<br>
In their sample, the researchers didn't find any evidence of
mitigation-focused policy response, such as communities passing laws
to limit carbon emissions or require a shift to solar power. And
some communities did not make any policy changes at all in the wake
of extreme weather.<br>
<br>
The researchers suggest that in communities that are ideologically
resistant to talking about climate change, it may be more effective
to frame these policy conversations in other ways, such as people's
commitment to their community or the community's long-term
viability.<br>
<br>
Without specifically examining communities that have not experienced
extreme weather events, the researchers cannot speak to the status
of their policy change, but Giordono said it is a question for
future study.<br>
<br>
"In some ways, it's not surprising that you see communities that
have these really devastating events responding to them," Giordono
said. "What about the vast majority of communities that don't
experience a high-impact event -- is there a way to also spark
interest in those communities?"<br>
<br>
"We don't want people to have to experience these types of disasters
to make changes."<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://today.oregonstate.edu/news/natural-disasters-must-be-unusual-or-deadly-prompt-local-climate-policy-change-study-finds">https://today.oregonstate.edu/news/natural-disasters-must-be-unusual-or-deadly-prompt-local-climate-policy-change-study-finds</a><br>
<p>- -</p>
[source material]<br>
Published: 18 August 2020<br>
<b>Local adaptation policy responses to extreme weather events</b><br>
Leanne Giordono, Hilary Boudet & Alexander Gard-Murray <br>
<b>Abstract</b><br>
<blockquote>At a global level, climate change is expected to result
in more frequent and higher-intensity weather events, with impacts
ranging from inconvenient to catastrophic. The potential for
disasters to act as "focusing events" for policy change, including
adaptation to climate change risk, is well known. Moreover, local
action is an important element of climate change adaptation and
related risk management efforts. As such, there is a good reason
to expect local communities to mobilize in response to disaster
events, both with immediate response and recovery-focused
activities, as well as longer-term preparedness and
adaptation-focused public policy changes. However, scholars also
note that the experience of disaster does not always yield policy
change; indeed, disasters can also result in policy inertia and
failure, perhaps as often or more often than major policy change.
This study poses two key research questions. First, we ask to what
degree policy change occurs in communities impacted by an extreme
weather event. Second, we seek to understand the conditions that
lead to adaptation-oriented policy adoption in response to an
extreme weather event. Our results suggest two main recipes for
future-oriented policy adoption in the wake of an extreme weather
event. For both recipes, a high-impact event is a necessary
condition for future-oriented policy adoption. In the first recipe
for change, policy adoption occurs in Democratic communities with
highly focused media attention. The second, less expected recipe
for change involves Republican communities that have experienced
other uncommon weather events in the recent past. We use a
comparative case approach with 15 cases and fuzzy set qualitative
comparative analysis methods. Our approach adds to the existing
literature on policy change and local adaptation by selecting a
mid-N range of cases where extreme weather events have the
potential to act as focusing events, thereby sidestepping
selection on the dependent variable. Our approach also takes
advantage of a novel method for measuring attention, the latent
Dirichlet allocation approach.<br>
</blockquote>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11077-020-09401-3">https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11077-020-09401-3</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[read write]<br>
<b>Literary figures join Extinction Rebellion campaign against
thinktanks</b><br>
Jessica Murray - 2 Sep 2020 <br>
Margaret Atwood among those supporting Writers Rebel group set to
protest in London<br>
A number of famous novelists, poets and playwrights including
Margaret Atwood and Zadie Smith have lent their support to an
Extinction Rebellion campaign against the political influence of
rightwing thinktanks fighting against climate action.<br>
<br>
On Wednesday evening the Writers Rebel group will demonstrate
outside 55 Tufton Street in London, a venue known to host meetings
of thinktanks and lobbying outfits linked to climate science denial
and the oil industry.<br>
These include the the Global Warming Policy Foundation, the most
prominent climate sceptic group in the UK, and free market thinktank
the Centre for Policy Studies, whose deputy chair is Sir Graham
Brady, chair of the influential 1922 Committee of backbench
Conservative MPs.<br>
<br>
A group of 20 high-profile writers will attend the event, including
White Teeth author Zadie Smith, who said: "The heroes of this
historical moment are climate activists: they are trying to save us
all - primarily from ourselves. Anything the rest of us can do to
acknowledge, support or further their work, we should try to do."<br>
<br>
She will be speaking at the event, while The Handmaid's Tale author
Atwood lent her support via video message. "Climate change due to
human activity is not a theory, it is not an opinion, it is a fact,"
she said. "Denial of this fact in the interests of big money will
lead to our extinction as a species."<br>
<br>
Other attendees will include writer and activist George Monbiot, and
Sir Mark Rylance, actor and first artistic director of Shakespeare's
Globe Theatre.<br>
<br>
At the launch of the campaign last week, writer and actor Stephen
Fry said people had a duty to "expose the lies" of climate change
denial.<br>
<br>
"It's sickening how much money is being spent on thinktanks and
professional lobbyists to spread confusion, lies and doubt on the
subject of man-made climate change and its horribly real threat," he
said.<br>
<br>
"These people and their huge corporations funding them are utilising
exactly the same playbook that big tobacco used to sow doubt and
confusion over the clear scientific evidence that emerged about
smoking."<br>
<br>
The demonstration is being organised in conjunction with with the
nascent Extinction Rebellion group Money Rebellion, which will
target the finance industry for its inaction on the climate
emergency.<br>
Gail Bradbrook, co-founder of Extinction Rebellion, said: "The
current economic system we have is killing life on earth and we
desperately need a grown up conversation about something different.<br>
<br>
"Bodies like [thinktank] the Institute of Economic Affairs won't
reveal their funders and yet are often given airtime to advocate for
free market fundamentalism, as if it is a law of nature.<br>
<br>
"We want a citizens' assembly to rewire our economic system so that
it stops harming and starts repairing the damage done."<br>
<br>
The event is taking place as part of XR's 10-day protest to demand
government action on the climate crisis, during which dozens have
already been arrested.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/sep/02/literary-figures-join-extinction-rebellion-campaign-against-thinktanks">https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/sep/02/literary-figures-join-extinction-rebellion-campaign-against-thinktanks</a><br>
<p>- - <br>
</p>
[Margaret Attwood speaks on video + transcript]<br>
<b>Margaret Atwood | Writers Rebel | Extinction Rebellion UK</b><br>
Sep 2, 2020<br>
<br>
<b>Transcript</b><br>
<blockquote>Hello my name is Margaret Atwood, I'm a writer<br>
I've been writing about planet damage since the 1980s.<br>
Time is now running out faster and faster.<br>
Climate change due to human activity is not a theory.<br>
It is not an opinion. It is a fact.<br>
Denial of this fact, in the interests of big money will lead to
our extinction as a species.<br>
If the oceans die so will we.<br>
They make 60 to 80 percent of the oxygen that we breathe. <br>
Politicians must now face up to facts.<br>
it's not too late, but it's almost too late.<br>
I'm old, so I will most likely not live to see the worst effects
of inaction -<br>
- but you will <br>
please act now for your own sakes <br>
it's in your hands<br>
good luck<br>
</blockquote>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCGO-HTuMhM">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCGO-HTuMhM</a><br>
<p>- - <br>
</p>
[More writers]<br>
<b>Writers Rebel extinction rebellion</b><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://writersrebel.com/">https://writersrebel.com/</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<br>
[long practiced in the US]<br>
<b>Climate change: Power companies 'hindering' move to green energy</b><br>
By Matt McGrath<br>
Environment correspondent<br>
1 September 2020<br>
New research suggests that power companies are dragging their feet
when it comes to embracing green energy sources such as wind and
solar.<br>
<br>
Only one in 10 energy suppliers globally has prioritised renewables
over fossil fuels, the study finds.<br>
<br>
Even those that are spending on greener energy are continuing to
invest in carbon heavy coal and natural gas.<br>
<br>
The lead researcher says the slow uptake undermines global efforts
to tackle climate change.<br>
<br>
Bread price may rise after dire UK wheat harvest<br>
How the UK contributes to global deforestation<br>
What Greta Thunberg did with her year off school<br>
New UK law to curb deforestation in supply chains<br>
In countries like the UK and across Europe, renewable energy has
taken a significant share of the <br>
- -<br>
"So it's not greenwashing. It is just that this parallel investment
in gas dilutes the shift to renewables. That's the key issue."<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-53951754">https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-53951754</a>
<p>- -</p>
[Nature Energy - source]<br>
<b>A global analysis of the progress and failure of electric
utilities to adapt their portfolios of power-generation assets to
the energy transition</b><br>
Galina Alova <br>
Published: 31 August 2020<br>
<b>Abstract</b><br>
The penetration of low-carbon technologies in power generation has
challenged fossil-fuel-focused electric utilities. While the extant,
predominantly qualitative, literature highlights diversification
into renewables among possible adaptation strategies, comprehensive
quantitative understanding of utilities' portfolio decarbonization
has been missing. This study bridges this gap, systematically
quantifying the transitions of over 3,000 utilities worldwide from
fossil-fuelled capacity to renewables over the past two decades. It
applies a machine-learning-based clustering algorithm to a
historical global asset-level dataset, distilling four
macro-behaviours and sub-patterns within them. Three-quarters of the
utilities did not expand their portfolios. Of the remaining
companies, a handful grew coal ahead of other assets, while half
favoured gas and the rest prioritized renewables growth. Strikingly,
60% of the renewables-prioritizing utilities had not ceased
concurrently expanding their fossil-fuel portfolio, compared to 15%
reducing it. These findings point to electricity system inertia and
the utility-driven risk of carbon lock-in and asset stranding...<br>
- -<br>
In view of these findings, it is unsurprising that the utilities
continue to dominate global FF-based electricity generation, holding
over 70% of operating coal and gas capacity in 2018. A large share
of these assets is far from its retirement age, with a third being
added in the last ten years4; and unless retired early and resulting
in asset stranding, these power plants are here to stay for decades,
leading to carbon lock-in.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41560-020-00686-5">https://www.nature.com/articles/s41560-020-00686-5</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
[excellent WBUR NPR audio report]<br>
<b>28 Trillion Ton Ice Melt Spells Danger For Sea Level Rise,
Climate Change</b><br>
A total of 28 trillion tons of ice has disappeared from the Earth's
surface since 1994, according to the results of a study that shocked
the U.K. researchers who conducted it.<br>
<br>
This report fulfills the worst-case scenario that was predicted by
the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change 30 years ago.
Scientists from Leeds and Edinburgh universities and University
College London predict that by the end of this century, sea level
could rise by more than 3 feet..<br>
- -<br>
At this point, it's unrealistic to think we will be able to cool the
planet back down, but what we can do is slow down the rate at which
the Earth continues to warm, Shepherd says. Hopefully, we can do so
at a rate slow enough to allow us to adapt.<br>
<br>
"We're living in a time when ice is melting everywhere on the
planet, and now we've got 20 or 30 solid years of satellite
measurements," he says. "It's really impossible for people to deny
that that's happening."<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2020/09/01/28-trillion-ton-ice-melt">https://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2020/09/01/28-trillion-ton-ice-melt</a><br>
<p>- - <br>
</p>
[source material]<br>
<b>Estimating global mean sea-level rise and its uncertainties by
2100 and 2300 from an expert survey</b><b><br>
</b><b>Abstract</b><br>
Sea-level rise projections and knowledge of their uncertainties are
vital to make informed mitigation and adaptation decisions. To
elicit projections from members of the scientific community
regarding future global mean sea-level (GMSL) rise, we repeated a
survey originally conducted five years ago. Under Representative
Concentration Pathway (RCP) 2.6, 106 experts projected a likely
(central 66% probability) GMSL rise of 0.30-0.65 m by 2100, and
0.54-2.15 m by 2300, relative to 1986-2005. Under RCP 8.5, the same
experts projected a likely GMSL rise of 0.63-1.32 m by 2100, and
1.67-5.61 m by 2300. Expert projections for 2100 are similar to
those from the original survey, although the projection for 2300 has
extended tails and is higher than the original survey. Experts give
a likelihood of 42% (original survey) and 45% (current survey) that
under the high-emissions scenario GMSL rise will exceed the upper
bound (0.98 m) of the likely range estimated by the Fifth Assessment
Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which is
considered to have an exceedance likelihood of 17%. Responses to
open-ended questions suggest that the increases in upper-end
estimates and uncertainties arose from recent influential studies
about the impact of marine ice cliff instability on the meltwater
contribution to GMSL rise from the Antarctic Ice Sheet...<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.nature.com/articles/s41612-020-0121-5">https://www.nature.com/articles/s41612-020-0121-5</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[peak is Sept 10th]<br>
<b>Wednesday Morning Tropical Update: Hurricane Nana expected to
form this week</b><br>
Sep 2, 2020<br>
WWLTV<br>
Tropical Storm Nana developed in the western Caribbean and is well
on it's way to becoming a hurricane prior to landfall in Honduras or
Belize on Thursday. Tropical Storm Omar, though upgraded this
afternoon, remains very disorganized off the East coast and
regardless of development, is not a threat to land. <br>
<br>
Elsewhere, there are two waves the NHC is monitoring. One with a low
chance for development between the Islands and the west coast of
Africa and a wave about to emerge off Africa with a medium percent
chance for development in the next 3 to 5 days. As I said, this is
certainly not a surprise and all we can do is take the season one
day at a time. And at this time, there are no immediate threats to
Louisiana or the Gulf of Mexico.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_kqzgdNoRU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_kqzgdNoRU</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
[video explanation]<br>
<b>Return of Very Rapid, Record Setting Greenland Ice Sheet Loss as
Detected by GRACE-FO Satellites</b><br>
Aug 28, 2020<br>
Paul Beckwith<br>
A brand spanking new paper (Sasgen et al.) analyzed data from
Gravity Recovery And Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO)
satellites launched 3 years ago. Key finding: for 2019, the
Greenland Ice Sheet lost a net equivalent of 1 million tonnes of ice
per minute (7 Olympic size swimming pools per second). This 532 GT
(billions of tonnes) year loss was the worst in centuries (even
millennia) more than doubled the average loss per year between
2003-2019 of 255 GT; in fact July melt alone was around this yearly
average. Persistent Jet Stream blocking over Greenland caused this
new and alarming record.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vxloe_yJOo">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vxloe_yJOo</a><br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
[facing biggest threat - video]<br>
<b>UCLA Launches Climate Change Health Center</b><br>
This is a threat to our planet and everyone one it, Dr. Jonathan
Felding says. Patrick Healy reported on NBC4 News on Wednesday,
Sept. 2, 2020.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.nbclosangeles.com/on-air/ucla-launches-climate-change-health-center/2422643/">https://www.nbclosangeles.com/on-air/ucla-launches-climate-change-health-center/2422643/</a><br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><br>
</p>
[Digging back into the internet news archive]<br>
<font size="+1"><b>On this day in the history of global warming -
September 3, 2008 </b></font><br>
<p>In his address to the Republican National Convention in St. Paul,
Minnesota, former Maryland Lieutenant Governor Michael Steele
blows off concerns about climate change by proclaiming: "Drill,
baby, drill!"<br>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/09/03/steele-gives-gop-delegates-new-cheer-drill-baby-drill/tab/article/">http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/09/03/steele-gives-gop-delegates-new-cheer-drill-baby-drill/tab/article/</a>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdSsOnVWhic">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VdSsOnVWhic</a>
/-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------/<br>
</p>
<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 mailing is text-only. It does not
carry images or attachments which may originate from remote
servers. A text-only message can 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. Messages have no tracking software.<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>