Posted December 14, 2007
Climate Change | Energy | Environment
U.N. Climate Change Conference: Thinking Beyond Kyoto
Pascual, Carlos
Brookings Institute, December 4, 2007, online edition
The United Nation’s climate talks have begun in Bali with participants from nearly 200 countries. Carlos Pascual, vice president and director of Foreign Policy at Brookings, says the negotiations are aimed at producing a pact that will replace the Kyoto Protocol – which expires in 2012. Carlos Pascual is a Brookings vice president and director of Foreign Policy at
Brookings. Fulltext & Video D1/07-07
A Changing Climate: The Road Ahead for the United States
Stern, Todd; Antholis, William
Washington Quarterly, Winter 2007/2008, v31, #1, pp175-188
"What a difference a decade makes. In December 1997, when sleepless negotiators agreed to the Kyoto Protocol, the Senate was already on record 95-0 against the accord, the American public and media were largely uninterested, and policymakers outside the environmental community paid the issue little heed. Now, the cultural landscape is dotted with cover articles in major magazines, front-page press stories on shrinking polar ice, stronger hurricanes, 100-year storms, disappearing species, and Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth and Nobel Peace Prize." Todd Stern is a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress and a partner
at WilmerHale in Washington, D.C. William Antholis is managing director of the Brookings Institution. Fulltext D2/07-07
The Security Implications of Climate Change
Podesta, John; Ogden, Peter
Washington Quarterly, Winter 2007/2008, v31, #1, pp115-138
"Although some of the emergencies created or worsened by climate change may ultimately be managed by the UN, nations will look to the United States as a first responder in the immediate aftermath of a major natural disaster or humanitarian emergency. The larger and more logistically difficult the operation, the more urgent the appeal will be. The questions of if and how to respond will be recurring ones for the United States, each time raising a difficult set of questions with important national security and foreign policy implications." This article examines current thinking on the nature and magnitude of the threats that global warming may present to the U.S. national security. John Podesta is president and CEO of the Center for American Progress (CAP) in
Washington, D.C., and was Chief of Staff for President Bill Clinton. Peter Ogden is a senior national security analyst at CAP. Fulltext D3/07-07
Global Warming Seen as a Problem That Needs to be Addressed Globally, But Most People Want U.S. to Take the Lead
The Harris Poll, #109, November 7, 2007, online edition
"A large majority of the public believes that global warming is a problem that must be addressed by industrial countries globally. However, a large majority also believes that the United States needs to take the lead when it comes to controlling greenhouse gases and pollution." Fulltext D4/07-07
An Inconvenient Assessment
Mooney, Chris
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, November/December 2007, v63, #6, pp40-47
"Seven years ago, scientists published a pioneering study to help Americans understand the implications of climate change. Here’s why you’ve never heard of it." The author reviews the National Assessment process as a model of how democratic
governments can and should do science-in interaction with their people, in the
service of their people. A key feature of the National Assessment was its
revelation that the consequences of climate change would not be monolithic. Chris Mooney is Washington correspondent for 'Seed' Magazine. Order article D5/07-07
International Cooperation in a Post-Kyoto World
Mignone, Bryan K.
Current History, November 2007, v106, #703, pp362-369
"On September 28, 2007, four days after United Nations Secretary General Ban Kimoon implored diplomats to “confront climate change within a global framework . . . that guarantees the highest level of international cooperation,” U.S. President George W. Bush offered a qualified endorsement of this proposition. At a White House–sponsored “climate summit,” he declared that major economies must “lead the world to produce fewer greenhouse gas emissions,” but that they must do so “in a way that does not undermine economic growth.” This article reviews topics of the international climate summit sponsored by the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush,
such as greenhouse gas emission reduction and economic stability. Bryan K. Mignone is nonresident fellow for Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institute. Fulltext D6/07-07
How Not to Repeat the Mistakes of the Kyoto Protocol
Barrett, Scott
YaleGlobal, 14 November 2007, online edition
"Most countries recognize the need for a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. But for any climate treaty to succeed at reducing emissions, all countries – especially the big emitters – must participate. Otherwise, trade leakage will result, as emitting industries concentrate in the nations with the fewest restrictions. For such reasons, the Kyoto Protocol to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change was a failed treaty," suggests the author. Unlike Kyoto, the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer did achieve its goals, limiting ozone-depleting substances, through international cooperation and a carrots-and-sticks approach. Barrett compares the two international treaties – Kyoto and Montreal – and lists the necessary ingredients for a successful climate treaty." Scott Barrett is environmental economist and professor at Johns Hopkins University. Fulltext D7/07-07
Climate Business, Business Climate: Forethought Special Report
Porter, Michael E.; Reinhardt, Forest L. et al.
Harvard Business Review, October 2007, v85, #10, pp22-39
"Climate change is now a fact of political life and is playing a growing role in business competition. Greenhouse gas emissions will be increasingly scrutinized, regulated, and priced. While individual managers can disagree about how immediate and significant the impact of climate change will be, companies need to take action now. In this report leading thinkers from business and academia help readers address climate issues by framing strategy, strengthening security, shaping policy, protecting reputation, and engaging customers, employees, and markets." Michael E. Porter
is the Bishop William Lawrence
University Professor at Harvard University. Forest L. Reinhardt is the John
D. Black Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School. Fulltext D8/07-07
The U.S. Economic Impacts of Climate Change and the Costs of Inaction: Review and Assessment
Ruth, Matthias; Coelho, Dana; Karetnikow, Daria
Center for Integrative Environmental Research (CIER), University of Maryland, Web posted October 16, 2007, online edition, 52p
"Policies aimed at curbing greenhouse gases are misunderstood by many including Congress, often resulting in inaction. This inaction is frequently motivated by the perceived high cost of reducing greenhouse emissions while the cost of not taking action is often ignored or not calculated. This report reviews economic studies and predicts the cost impacts of climate change. The findings are arranged by region and key sectors likely to be effected by climate change are identified." Matthias Ruth is Director of the Center for Integrative Environmental Research and Roy F. Weston Chair for Natural Economics. Dana Coelho and Daria Karetnikow are research assistants at the CIER. Fulltext D9/07-07
Making Carbon Market Work
Victor, David G.; Cullenward, Danny
Scientific American, December 2007, v297, #6, pp70-77
"Without any practical way to force developing nations to control their emissions, the Kyoto signatories reached a compromise known as the clean development mechanism. Under this scheme, international investors could earn carbon credits for funding projects that would cut emissions in a developing nation even though such countries would face no compulsory restriction on their own output of greenhouse gases. The market for clean development mechanism credits has since exploded in size, and the exchanges account for about a third of one percent of the world's greenhouse emissions--around $4.4 billion in annual value." Here, Victor and Cullenward discuss limiting climate change without damaging the world economy. David G. Victor and Danny Cullenward work at Stanford University's Program on
Energy and Sustainable Development (PESD), which is sponsored by BP and the
Electric Power Research Institute. Fulltext D10/07-07
A Climate of Conflict: The Links Between Climate Change, Peace and War
Smith, Dan; Vivekananda, Janani
International Alert, Web posted November 5, 2007, 48p
"The findings for this report are taken from the Fourth Assessment Review of the Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change. The report looks at the social and human consequences of climate change since many of the world’s poorest countries face a double-headed problem of climate change and violent conflict. This report includes twelve recommendations for states and communities to handle climate change and conflict." International Alert is an independent peacebuilding organisation that has worked for over 20 years to lay the foundations for lasting peace and security in communities affected by violent
conflict. Fulltext D11/07-07
Solar Is the Solution
Heckeroth, Steve
Mother Earth News, December 2007/January 2008, #225, pp50-56
"We know that relying on coal, oil and natural gas threatens our future with toxic pollution, global climate change and social unrest caused by diminishing fuel supplies. Instead of relying on unsustainable fossil fuels, we must transform our economy and learn to thrive on the planet s abundant supply of renewable energy. It's time to harness the world's virtually inexhaustible supply of solar energy and start building a brighter future." This article
discusses better living through solar Electricity. Not only is the potential of solar power enormous, we already have the technology to take advantage of it. Contributing editor Steve Heckeroth has built more than two dozen electric
vehicles. He's chair of the American Solar Energy Society's Renewable Fuels and
Transportation Division, and spent the last seven years as director of
building-integrated photovoltaic products for the largest flexible thin-film PV
manufacturer in the world. Fulltext D12/07-07
Who's Fueling Whom?
Conniff, Richard
Smithsonian, November 2007, v38, #8, pp109-116
"Over the past few years, biofuels have acquired an almost magical appeal for
environmentalists and investors alike. This new energy source (actually as old
as the first wood-fueled campfire) promises to relieve global warming and win
back America's energy independence: instead of burning fossil fuels such as coal
or oil, which fill the atmosphere with the carbon packed away during thousands
of years of plant and animal growth, the idea is to extract energy only from
recent harvests... Of course, biofuels also produce carbon dioxide, which is the major cause of
global warming." This article summarizes the limitations of Biofuels and discusses why the "Biofuels movement could run out of gas." Richard Conniff, a longtime contributor to the magazine, is a 2007 Guggenheim
Fellow. Fulltext D13/07-07
Can the World Wean Itself from Fossil Fuels?
Hultman, Nathan E.
Current History, November 2007, v106, #703, pp376-384
"Given that roughly 60 percent of the world's greenhouse gases are released from the burning of fossil fuels, it might seem difficult both to ensure energy security and to avoid dangerous interference with the climate without, meanwhile, stealing the promise of economic growth from the world's poor." This article discusses the effect of addressing greenhouse gas emissions on the global energy system. Nathan E. Hulman is assistant professor of science, technology, and international affairs, Georgetown University. Order article D14/07-07
Competitive Nuclear Energy Investment: Avoiding Past Policy Mistakes
Spencer, Jack
The Heritage Foundation, Backgrounder #2086, November 17, 2007, online edition, 8p
"Nuclear power is a proven, safe, affordable, and environmentally friendly alternative to fossil fuels. It can generate massive quantities of electricity with almost no atmospheric emissions and can offset America's growing dependence on foreign energy sources [...] However, the commercial nuclear energy industry in the U.S. is no longer thriving. Investors hesitate to embrace nuclear power fully, despite significant regulatory relief and economic incentives." This paper reviews how overregulation "largely destroyed the nuclear industry" and why it remains an obstacle to investment in the industry. Jack Spencer is the Research Fellow in Nuclear Energy at the Heritage Foundation's Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies. Fulltext D15/07-07
Nuclear Power in a Warming World
Gronlund, Lisbeth; Lochbaum, David; Lyman, Edwin
Union of Concerned Scientists, December 2007, online edition, 82p
Global warming demands a profound transformation in the ways we generate and use energy. Because nuclear power results in few global warming emissions, an increased number of nuclear power plants could help reduce global warming — but could also increase the threats nuclear power
poses to our safety and security. This report assesses these risks and proposes concrete ways to minimize them. Lisbeth Gronlund is co-director and senior scientist of the UCS Global Security Program. David Lochbaum is director of the nuclear safety project in the UCS Global Security Program. Edwin Lyman is a senior staff scientist in the UCS Global Security Program. Fulltext D16/07-07
The Volatility in Global Oil Prices
Verrastro, Frank
Center for Strategic & International Studies (CSIS), Critical Questions Series, December 7, 2007, online edition, 2p
"Global oil prices have more than tripled since 2003, and volatility has become the rule rather than the exception. Between September and December 2007, future prices for West Texas Intermediate (WTI), a sweet marker crude, ranged from $70 to just under $100 per barrel. Yet in the past two weeks, prices have again receded to below $89 per barrel." Frank Verrastro is senior fellow and director of the CSIS Energy Program. Fulltext D17/07-07
The Ripple Effect: Biofuels, Food Security, and the Environment
Rosamond L. Naylor; Adam J. Liska, et al.
Environment, November 2007, v49, #9, pp30-43
"The rising popularity of crop-based biofuels is causing the global energy and agriculture markets to become increasingly interrelated. As the two industries compete for the same cropland, strained natural resources and the threat of rising prices have implications for the environment and food-insecure people around the world." Rosamond L. Naylor is the director of Stanford University’s Program on Food Security and the Environment (FSE). Adam J. Liska is a postdoctoral fellow at the Center for Energy Science Research at the University of Nebraska. Fulltext D18/07-07
Big Melt Meets Big Empty: Rethinking the Implications of Climate Change and Peak Oil
Heinberg, Richard
Global Public Media, MuseLetter, #187, November 2007, online edition
The author argues that "the developing world, led by China, now has a bargaining chip that in effect amounts to a “global suicide pact” -– they will not reduce their emissions until the West agrees to reduce theirs proportionately to the developing world’s increased emissions. However, Heinberg notes that carbon-trading fails to take into account the fact that global oil production is peaking and may soon decline, followed by natural gas and coal in the not-too-distant future; if fuel is in scarce supply, no one will be interested in carbon-trading caps. What he believes is essential is for the industrialized West to set an example and acknowledge the necessity to make fundamental changes in its energy, transportation and agricultural systems. He writes that “ultimately, power holders must be convinced that such policies, if obnoxious to them now, will be far less destructive to their interests than a complete breakdown of society and biosphere." Richard Heinberg is a Core Faculty member of New College of California where he teaches a program on 'Culture, Ecology and Sustainable Community,' and a Research Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute. Fulltext D19/07-07
Disappearing Species
Arrandale, Tom
CQ Researcher, November 30, 2007, v14, #42, pp985-1008
"The polar bear may vanish as global warming melts Arctic ice. India's tigers and Africa's gorillas are also at severe risk, and thousands of other valuable animals, plants and insects are disappearing as tropical rain forests around the world are cut down. Twelve percent of birds, one-fifth of mammals and nearly a third of amphibians that have been assessed so far have been found to be imperiled. Many biologists conclude that humans are setting off a mass extinction that's exterminating 30,000 species a year -- possibly as much as 10,000 times faster than natural evolution. Now honeybees have mysteriously gone missing from American farms, while coral reefs are dwindling and deep-sea fisheries are depleted. Many scientists fear that Earth faces an irreversible biological catastrophe even more severe than climate change, and that conservation efforts could be too late to preserve much of the planet's irreplaceable biodiversity." Tom Arrandale, a freelance writer in Livingston, Mont., reports on environmental, natural resource and wildlife issues. Order article D20/07-07
Welcome to Green-Collar America: Does the Future of the American Middle Class Lie in Sustainable Business?
Belli, Brita
E Magazine, November/December 2007, v18, #6, pp26-31
"While the traditional economic outlook is bleak, the green economy is taking shape, bringing with it the promise of well-paying manufacturing jobs; of management and sales opportunities with huge growth potential and lots of niche positions for enterprising students and job seekers looking for alternative careers." [...] Of course, as savvy marketers have realized, the conscious consumer behind many of the fastest-growing green businesses, from eco-travel to organic food to hybrid cars and Fair Trade coffee, are as seduced by the comfort and social status of these items as by their reduced carbon footprint." This article argues that the new "green collar" economy could restore a rapidly disintegrating American middle class. Brita Belli is Managing Editor at E Magazine. Fulltext D21/07-07
|
