Climate change is a defining issue of our time and there is no time to lose,” proclaimed Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General, during last month’s U.N. Climate Summit. “There is no Plan B because we do not have a Planet B.”
Since you’ve already converted from a gas-guzzling SUV and always BYOB (bring your own bag) to the supermarket, try making these tweaks to your everyday lifestyle. They’ll help the U.N. achieve its goal of keeping the earth’s temperature from rising no more than 2 degrees Celsius by 2100 and, in turn, keep the planet from facing even more disasters like famine, disease and water shortages.
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Tag: Climate Change
The Best Narrator on the Planet Takes on the World’s Most Important Issue
From documentaries about marching penguins to Visa Olympics commercials, Morgan Freeman’s deep, soothing voice has brought gravitas to everything. Now, the famous actor is lending his vocal chops to one of the most pressing issues facing humanity: climate change.
Freeman narrates “What’s Possible,” an inspiring four-minute-long documentary directed by Louie Schwartzberg about how clean energy and worldwide cooperation can be used to solve global warming. Appropriately, the short was shown before world leaders and dignitaries at the recent United Nations Climate Summit in New York.
Amid daunting images of a quickly shrinking coastline and a floor of dying honeybees, the video’s overall message is one of hope. As Freeman says, “We have never faced a crisis this big, but we have never had a better opportunity to solve it. We have everything we need to wake up to a different kind of world.”
Check out the video below, and let’s help save the planet.
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DON’T MISS: Watch What a Climate Change Debate Should Really Look Like
Yet Another Reason to Love Leonardo DiCaprio
After marching with more than 400,000 individuals at the history-making People’s Climate March on the streets of Manhattan, Leonardo DiCaprio urged world leaders at the United Nations Climate Summit to take action.
“As an actor I pretend for a living. I play fictitious characters, often solving fictitious problems,” says the newly-appointed U.N. Messenger of Peace. “I believe mankind has looked at climate change in that same way, as if it were fiction, as if pretending climate change was not real it would somehow make it go away. But I think we all know better than that, now.”
The “Wolf of Wall Street” star isn’t just bringing a little Hollywood pizazz to a room full of suits and politicians. DiCaprio is a noted philanthropist and environmental activist, who started the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation that’s dedicated to protecting the planet.
In his speech, he urged the leaders to enact taxes on carbon emissions, as well as eliminating government subsidies for coal, gas and oil companies. “We need to end the free ride that industrial polluters have been given in the name of a free-market economy, they don’t deserve our tax dollars, they deserve our scrutiny,” he says. “For the economy itself will die if our eco-systems collapse.”
Someone give this man an Oscar already.
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The full transcript:
Thank you, Mr. Secretary-General, your excellencies, ladies and gentleman, and distinguished guests. I’m honored to be here today, I stand before you not as an expert but as a concerned citizen, one of the 400,000 people who marched in the streets of New York on Sunday, and the billions of others around the world who want to solve our climate crisis.
As an actor I pretend for a living. I play fictitious characters often solving fictitious problems.
I believe humankind has looked at Climate Change in that same way: as if it were a fiction, happening to someone else’s planet, as if pretending that Climate Change wasn’t real would somehow make it go away.
But I think we know better than that. Every week
, we’re seeing new and undeniable Climate Events, evidence that accelerated Climate Change is here now. We know that droughts are intensifying, our oceans are warming and acidifying, with methane plumes rising up from beneath the ocean floor. We are seeing extreme weather events, increased temperatures, and the West Antarctic and Greenland ice-sheets melting at unprecedented rates, decades ahead of scientific projections.
None of this is rhetoric, and none of it is hysteria. It is fact. The scientific community knows it, Industry and Governments know it, even the United States military knows it. The Chief of the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Command, Admiral Samuel Locklear, recently said that Climate Change is our single greatest security threat.
My Friends, this body – perhaps more than any other gathering in human history – now faces that difficult task. You can make history…or be vilified by it.
To be clear, this is not about just telling people to change their light bulbs or to buy a hybrid car. This disaster has grown BEYOND the choices that individuals make. This is now about our industries, and governments around the world taking decisive, large-scale action.
I am not a scientist, but I don’t need to be. Because the world’s scientific community has spoken, and they have given us our prognosis, if we do not act together, we will surely perish.
Now is our moment for action.
We need to put a pricetag on carbon emissions, and eliminate government subsidies for coal, gas, and oil companies. We need to end the free ride that industrial polluters have been given in the name of a free-market economy, they don’t deserve our tax dollars, they deserve our scrutiny. For the economy itself will die if our eco-systems collapse.
The good news is that renewable energy is not only achievable but good economic policy. New research shows that by 2050 clean, renewable energy could supply 100% of the world’s energy needs using EXISTING TECHNOLOGIES, and it would create millions of jobs.
This is not a partisan debate; it is a human one. Clean air and water, and a livable climate are inalienable human rights. And solving this crisis is not a question of politics. It is our moral obligation – if, admittedly, a daunting one…
We only get one planet. Humankind must become accountable on a massive scale for the wanton destruction of our collective home. Protecting our future on this planet depends on the conscious evolution of our species.
This is the most urgent of times, and the most urgent of messages.
Honored delegates, leaders of the world, I pretend for a living.
But you do not. The people made their voices heard on Sunday around the world and the momentum will not stop. And now it’s YOUR turn, the time to answer the greatest challenge of our existence on this planet… is now.
I beg you to face it with courage. And honesty. Thank you.
DON’T MISS: Watch What a Climate Change Debate Should Really Look Like
While Her Peers Stand Idle, This Teen Activist Fights for the Earth
Kelsey Juliana is proof that you’re never too young or too busy to save the planet.
The 18-year-old environmentalist activist is a co-plaintiff for the Oregon TRUST (a nonprofit fighting climate change for future generations), who is suing the state of Oregon “to take a more aggressive stance against the carbon emissions warming the earth and destroying the environment.” It’s a cause she’s been fighting for since the tender age of 15.
The impressive teen — who is also walking across America to bring awareness to global warming — recently sat down with journalist Bill Moyers on his show. The host marveled that when most kids her age are reading “The Hunger Games,” this young lady is delving into legal briefs about public doctrine.
During a poignant portion of the interview at the 4:30 mark below, Moyers asks, “Do some of your friends in high school think you’re weird [for your activism]?”
Juliana responds, “No. They seem to all support me but not join me, which is almost worse than not supporting me, you know, because they get it. And they don’t do anything.”
MORE: What Happens When a 13-Year-Old Girl Takes on an Oil Company?
What she says is completely true. Thanks to the proliferation of smart phones and social media, America’s youth is probably more informed about worldly issues than ever (just think of the virality of #BringBackOurGirls or the ALS #IceBucketChallenge). And while using a hashtag to promote a cause certainly helps, ultimately, actions speak much louder.
With warmer temperatures, rising sea levels and toxic air, we cannot afford to stand idle. Especially, the people who will be inheriting the earth.
As Juliana says, “I think that’s so important that people my age really get [that] into their heads. As a younger person, I have everything to gain from taking action and everything to lose from not… It’s important that youth are the ones who are standing up because of the fact that we do have so much to lose.”
DON’T MISS: When it Comes to the Planet, Children (Not the Government) Really Are the Future
The Rooftop Decoration That Could Cut Your Energy Costs
The White Roof Project does one, simple thing: It coats buildings’ roofs with a paint-like, white, reflective coating. Traditional roofing materials (like black tar), convert sunlight to heat — dramatically raising the interior temperatures and increasing cooling costs. Coating a roof white reflects the sunlight, drastically reducing its temperature and that of the building’s interior and surrounding environment. Building roofs with interior temperature in mind is not a new idea; sod-thatched roofs in Europe, for instance, have been around for centuries. But in recent years, people have turned their attention to roof modification as a way to potentially reduce man-made climate change. White Roof Project founder Juan Carlos and board member Heather James first heard of the potential for white coatings at a Sierra Club meeting. After organizing just one painting event, which attracted more than 100 volunteers, they formed the nonprofit. The White Roof Project focuses on buildings with low-income residents — coating them for free using private donations and teams of volunteers. One challenge, says volunteer Geoff Brock, is that since it’s the tenants — not the building owners themselves — that are usually the beneficiaries of reduce cooling costs, it takes a forward-looking landlord to get behind the idea. But as environmental and energy awareness grows, more people are realizing that sometimes it is the simple solutions that can create the most tangible change.
Meet 3 Young Innovators Who Could Make The World Cooler — Literally
Miles Barr wields the power of invisibility and draws energy from the sun. George Ban-Weiss can make the temperature drop in an entire city. And Emily Cole harnesses light to transform matter.
The three 30-somethings aren’t members of Marvel’s latest squad of superheroes. They’re part of a different high-powered team: MIT’s 35 Innovators Under 35.
Every year, MIT Technology Review Magazine picks 35 young problem-solvers to feature on its list, which includes scientists, inventors or entrepreneurs working on groundbreaking tech advancements in fields such as medicine, computers, data mining and robotics.
At least three of the members of this year’s list — Barr, Ban-Weiss and Cole — are working on new ideas that could help fight global climate change.
INVISIBLE MAN
Miles Barr, a 30-year-old entrepreneur, wants to turn every cell-phone screen into a solar panel without anyone noticing the difference.
He’s the cofounder of a company called Ubiquitous Energy, which is developing transparent — effectively invisible — solar panels. The technology’s implications for mobile devices are potentially transformative. No more battery-life worries: Every time you use your phone or tablet outside, it would be drawing power from the sun.
Barr also envisions larger-scale applications, like replacing entire windows with power-generating, transparent solar panels. The technology could mean less reliance on energy from fossil fuels, meaning less pollution overall.
SILVER SURFER
George Ban-Weiss, a 33-year-old professor in the University of Southern California’s school of engineering, came up with a simple idea to cool down Los Angeles: Paint roofs silver.
Black roofs soak up rays from the sun, making buildings hotter and heating up the air. Cool roofs — ones that reflect sunlight rather than absorb it — can make a measurable difference in the temperature in a city.
After Ban-Weiss presented his findings on cool roofs to the mayor of Los Angeles, the city passed a law requiring cool roofs for all new or refurbished roofs on residential buildings. It’s a change that could mean people in L.A. will have to run their air conditioners a little less, and the city will feel even cooler.
WONDER WOMAN
Excess carbon dioxide is making the planet hotter. But the harmful gas could be put to good use: making plastics, so says Emily Cole. The 31-year-old is the chief science officer at a company called Liquid Light, which is working on ways to convert CO2 into more useful chemicals.
Cole has helped develop technology that uses light to trigger reactions converting carbon dioxide into over 30 different chemicals. Liquid Light is focusing on ethylene glycol, which is used in plastics manufacturing, as it’s first commercial product.
Click here to meet the rest of MIT’s 35 Innovators Under 35.
MORE: These 10 States Are Leading the Way in Solar Power. What’s Their Secret?
This Small Change Could Create 47,000 Jobs and Cut 2.5 Million Tons of CO2 Emissions in Los Angeles
Green solutions and green jobs are a hot topic in this country. Not only can the green industry make our planet healthier, but it can bring employment opportunities to repressed areas as well.
But the question remains how to turn this into a reality. Which is why California took the initiative and conducted a study on how to help Los Angeles County adjust to climate change and to help both the public and policymakers make educated decisions and preparations about it.
The Los Angeles Solar and Efficiency Report (LASER) is the brainchild of the Environmental Defense Fund and the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation. Data that was collected includes information on current environmental health risks, temperature increases and areas susceptible to climate change.
Armed with this knowledge, communities can now pinpoint areas and projects in which to invest to increase renewable energy jobs and decrease electrical bills.
The research team used a data driven mapping tool to show the county’s renewable energy potential. Focusing on rooftop solar energy generation and energy efficient measures, the map details where the county is currently — and where it could be with a few simple adjustments.
Currently, Los Angeles County only uses two percent of its solar power potential. However, by increasing that number to just 10 percent, theoretically, the county could create 47,000 jobs and reduce their CO2 emissions by 2.5 million tons. Not bad, huh?
The report also focuses on providing solutions for vulnerable areas, which right now, numbers about 3.7 million people, or 38 percent of the country.
According to Colleen Callahan, the head researcher of the report and deputy director of the UCLA Luskin Center for Innovation, the report is being released at the perfect time. “The project is timely because with new state funding sources becoming available, LASER can help inform how the region invests resources to address pressing environmental challenges while providing job opportunities in its most impacted communities,” Callahan told EcoWatch.
And with the White House calling for states to become more environmentally aware, the LASER report is a leading example and has received praise from the administration for its work.
As it should, because of the information it gives to policymakers, helping them make smart investments. After all, doing something wise with greenbacks can grow some major green results.
MORE: 5 Inspiring Green Initiatives Moving America Towards a Bright Future
Could Olive Trees Save California’s Drought-Stricken Farmers?
The olive branch — a timeless Greek symbol of peace — could now signal a new beginning for drought-stricken California. All but completely built for total dryness, these trees are mighty impressive and may just save America’s biggest agriculture state, according to Grist.
With small, waxy leaves and the ability to sense drought and go dormant during rain-free times, olive trees are the perfect crop for California’s future – a future that soon enough, may not be able to support the crops currently growing.
That’s because California’s drought is very real — and goes far beyond a simple slowdown in rainfall. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, Governor Jerry Brown has called for residents to voluntarily reduce water use by 20 percent, and a recently passed law makes wasting water illegal.
READ MORE: How Fog Could Solve California’s Drought
“[Farmers] are coming to the stark realization that, no matter what they do, there won’t be enough water to keep their trees alive,” Peter Fimrite of the San Francisco Gate writes.
Which is where olive trees come in.
Dan Flynn, executive director of the UC Davis Olive Center, told Grist that “there’s 10 times more California-grown olive oil than we had 10 years ago,” meaning an oil boom — olive oil, that is — already has legs and is off and running. That’s because the California climate is becoming nearly identical to the native habitat of olive trees: the Mediterranean. This makes them incredibly easy to farm, as they are significantly more sustainable than the almond tree, which, in many cases, they will displace.
Especially with the advent of almond milk, that nut has been in high demand. Almond trees require a lot of water, though, which makes them bad crops for the new California.
Health fanatics shouldn’t worry, though, as olive oil has been shown to be extremely good for you. Another plus is that an increased domestic supply could make for olive oil that’s both higher in quality and better tasting.
So what does all this mean?
We get tastier olive oil and become healthier as a country in the process? Yes. Most importantly, however, is that California can continue on as an agricultural powerhouse even as the climate changes.
This olive branch is bringing peace. Peace of mind, that is, that we don’t have to give up in the face of drought.
DON’T MISS: The Silver Lining To California’s Terrible Drought
5 Inspiring Green Initiatives Moving America Towards a Bright Future
Stranded polar bears. Rising sea levels. Extreme weather. By now you know the devastating impacts of climate change, and it’s pretty easy to get disheartened by it.
Fortunately, there are some pretty smart cookies here in America who have come up with positive solutions that might change how you feel about our warming planet. Perhaps, you might even feel inspired to take action yourself.
Recyclebank has ranked the 10 most inspiring sustainable innovations happening from coast to coast. We’ve picked five of our favorite projects, but you should really head on over to EcoWatch for the whole list. (The polar bears will thank you!)
MORE: Can I Recycle This? 5 Things You Should Always Recycle (and 5 Things You Shouldn’t)
1. Organic food in La Farge, Wis.
We’ve already told you how the food industry is a big environmental nightmare in so many different ways. But at Organic Valley (aka the biggest organic farm co-op in the country) food and farmers are truly treated with respect. Its 45,000 square-foot barn (constructed from locally-sourced materials, naturally) sells sustainable food and hosts workshops and exhibits to help educate the entire community. As the company boasts on their website: “The central mission of our cooperative is to support rural communities by protecting the health of the family farm — working toward both economic and environmental sustainability.”
2. Xeriscaping in Denver
This form of water-wise landscaping might sound unfamiliar to you, but here’s why it’s important: Drought. For water-pinched states in the southwest, xeriscaping is not only a beautiful alternative to water-intensive lawns, it conserves much more water, too. As EcoWatch reports, Denver’s water board has put up free downloadable instructions so you can remodel your own yard.
3. Green building in Chicago
As we’ve mentioned before, it literally takes a lot of energy to go to work. The EPA found that commercial buildings in Chicago are responsible for 70 percent of the city’s carbon emissions. But in an effort to reduce its carbon footprint, Chicago has a Green Permit Program that promotes, expedites and reduces the cost of green architecture. In fact, the Windy City has the most LEED-certified projects in the U.S. at 295.
4. Alternative transportation in Portland, Ore.
Light rail, streetcar, bus, biking, smart cars. If there’s one place you want to be without a smog-emitting automobile, it’s probably Portland. Thanks to the Portland Bureau of Transportation and the Bicycle Transportation Alliance, it’s one of the most bike-friendly cities in the country.
5. Wind Energy in Corpus Christi, Texas
Back in 2002, Texas deregulated its electricity market, which meant that consumers could pick their own energy provider. That’s when Corpus Christi decided to pave the way for wind power. The city is now home to the county’s first on-port wind farm that ships wind turbines to all other states. By using the power of all-natural wind, Texas now saves more than 8.1 billion gallons of water and avoids 22 million metric tons of CO2 emissions each year.
DON’T MISS: Watch What a Climate Change Debate Should Really Look Like
While Our Actions Sometimes Say Otherwise, This New Survey Reveals That We Really Do Care About the Earth
What do you care about more, the environment or your bottom line? As it turns out, Mother Nature is finally trumping bank account balances for most Americans.
A recent survey by the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor found that Americans care (or at least say they do) more about the environment than energy affordability. In the past, many studies have asked about this subject by posing it as a trade off — a would you rather, in a sense, pitting dollars and cents over birds and bees.
This time around, the research team led by John DeCicco went about it quite differently. By clearly inquiring about the importance of energy cost and environmental impact separately from each other made respondents show their true beliefs, untainted by how they feel about the other.
By asking respondents how they feel about environmental impact, DeCicco was able to show that “roughly 60 percent of respondents said they worried a ‘great deal’ or ‘fair amount’” about it, according to Fast Company. This even held true across multiple income levels.
What’s so groundbreaking about these results? They show that caring about the environment is a natural and popular opinion, which should put more people in support of individual and communal environmental efforts. A similar study was done in October 2013, with results coming in about even, which was impressive at the time, but this newer study shows a great trend in our collective thinking.
So whether it be oil spills or hurricanes or just hotter summer days, Americans seem to be caring more about the place around them. Which is certainly good news for the planet.
MORE: Inspiring the Next Generation of Energy Conservationists