Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast Climate Change Briefing Podcast Hosted By Nick Breeze - ClimateGenn

In this Climate Genn episode, I speak with author Michael Dulaney about his new book, Sentinels: When Diseases Spread Between Animals and Humans.

Michael takes us on a journey to meet the animals, citizens and scientists living and working under pressure, as unsustainable practices—such as industrial chicken and beef production—combine with ever more extreme weather events driven by climate change.

As with so many climate and biodiversity topics, the embedded complexity, full of both beauty and tragedy, leaves us scrambling to make sense of the damage done—and the calamity we continue to bring on ourselves.

#ClimateChange #Pandemics #BirdFlu #Zoonosis #IndustrialFarming #BiodiversityLoss #ClimateGenn #SentinelsBook #OneHealth #EcoAnxiety

In this Climate Genn episode I am speaking with climate analyst Genevieve Walker about how we are not preparing for the dangerously extreme climate we have created for ourselves. Genevieve points out that we are continuing to pump out the highest volume of emissions, while incrementally preparing our infrastructure for a climate that we have already said good-bye to.

A note on the terminology. Genevieve uses the terminology of climate science reporting to describe pathways to the future. In particular there is the SSP1, SSP3 and SSP5, where SSP stands for Shared Socioeconomic Pathways. These translate roughly as the following:

“SSP1 – Safer future: Some climate disruption, but many impacts remain manageable.” 

“SSP3 – Divided world: Heat, floods and crop failures become widespread; many communities cannot adapt.”

“SSP5– Fossil‑fuel dominated world where we were not meant to go: Multiple systems fail – major cities, food systems and ecosystems face catastrophic stress.” Remember, that last one is SSP5.

With many of the poorest, most vulnerable people suffering already, it is worth adding that we, in places like northwest Europe, are no where near ready for the dangerous extremes coming our way. Please do share your thoughts in the comments - I do try to read and reply to as much as possible. 

Thank you to all who watch, comment, share and subscribe. It is really appreciated. You can subscribe to see episodes early and support this work.

In this ClimateGenn episode I am speaking with cofounder of the Climate Psychology Alliance (CPA) and author of Paradise Lost, Paul Hoggett. Paul’s book was published in 2023 and is more relevant today than it was a couple of years ago, given the ongoing tragedies and violence we are all being subjected to and forced to respond to. 

"There's that kind of coldness, that cold indifference in the face of inhumanity and suffering is something I think has been a very powerful element in the way in which, for example, oil companies and oil company professionals and executives have functioned."

Paul Hoggett - Author of 'Paradise Lost' 2023

For more information visit: https://genn.cc/a-blank-and-pitiless-stare-confronting-the-inhuman/

Paul refers to the work of the poet WB Yeats, in particular, one poem, ‘The Second Coming’ written in 1919 in the aftermath of the first world war. Given its resonance in the context of our lives today, I have pasted below for those who have not read it:

Turning and turning in the widening gyre
The falcon cannot hear the falconer;
Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold;
Mere anarchy is loosed upon the world,
The blood-dimmed tide is loosed, and everywhere
The ceremony of innocence is drowned;
The best lack all conviction, while the worst
Are full of passionate intensity.
Surely some revelation is at hand;
Surely the Second Coming is at hand.
The Second Coming! Hardly are those words out
When a vast image out of Spiritus Mundi
Troubles my sight: somewhere in sands of the desert
A shape with lion body and the head of a man,
A gaze blank and pitiless as the sun,
Is moving its slow thighs, while all about it
Reel shadows of the indignant desert birds.
The darkness drops again; but now I know
That twenty centuries of stony sleep
Were vexed to nightmare by a rocking cradle,
And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

Source Wikipedia

I definitely recommend Paul’s book, Pandora’s Box too if you want to explore the issues that we discuss in this episode. I have found it fascinating.

W.B. Yeats – The Second Coming

In this final Sustainability in Alentejo episode, I speak with João Barroso, manager of the Wines of Alentejo Sustainability Programme (WASP).  

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We discuss how the programme evolved from a need to respond to worsening climatic conditions, into a solid certification programme to help communicate the measured results of producers who take sustainability seriously.  João also discusses how the programme consciously developed a knowledge-sharing network to accelerate the uptake of best practices.  

Some of these best practices include the use of regenerative farming which, in a drought-prone region like Alentejo, is showing very positive results. The difference here, as João says, is between trying to survive in a desert, or, thriving in a garden of Eden. Either way, viticulture at higher temperatures has to mean working with nature, as Professor Kimberly Nicholas has said earlier in the series.  

The last point, as Dr Gregory Jones mentioned earlier, is about finding ways to expand these best practices beyond the regional level to the national and international levels.  This is where the wine producers and journalists and communicators interface to tell those stories. It seems to me that it is up to all of us to try and decode what is behind the certification labels.  We do this best by telling the stories of contemporary viticulture that respects nature, promotes stewardship of the land, and ultimately inspires trust in consumers that the wine industry is on a sustainable pathway.

In this ClimateGenn Episode, Dr Shaun Fitzgerald OBE, Director of the Centre for Climate Repair in Cambridge, discusses new research to build resilient and scaleable kelp growing platforms, asking the key question of whether kelp forests can capture and store a billion tonnes of carbon?

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As the Centre for Climate Repair forges ahead with its 3 R’s strategy of reducing emissions, removing carbon from the atmosphere and repairing essential climate systems such as the Arctic, Shaun has high hopes for large scale ocean sequestration but does not stop short of stating the need for urgent research into engineering methods for reflecting sunlight away from the Earth.

These are controversial proposals for many people and yet the climate problem keeps getting worse, with many governments only making tiny incremental commitments that maintain the status quo of a fossil fuel driven economy and society.

The truth is, as Professor Kevin Anderson has stated, that if we rely on the current ambition our political leaders, we really “are going to hell in a handcart”.

I am interested to hear feedback from listeners and gauge your thoughts on these kinds of proposals.

In this episode, I am speaking with Luis Patrão, director of enology and viticulture at Coelheiros, a stunning 800 hectare, historic estate, north of Evora, in the centre of Alentejo.

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When I visited the estate, Luis gave me a guided tour to demonstrate how the 600+ hectare cork oak forest, 50 hectares of vines, and the 40 hectare walnut orchard are being transformed into a regenerated resilient, and balanced ecosystem that is simply glorious.

It wasn’t always like this. The estate had more of a focus on hunting, running all the way back to 1467. It was only at the end of the last century, that Coelheiros started to be transformed into what is now a buzz of biodiversity.

Luis explains how their biggest challenge has been small birds and bugs, that eat everything from the plants themselves to the fruit they produce.

Wetland restoration and ending centuries of hunting have seen the return of birds of prey such as eagles and falcons. These in return have driven away the small birds that eat the fruit, and the introduction of bats is proving effective at balancing the bug population.

Luis also talks about the increased use of grapes more suited to the climate. Alicant Bouschet is again a favourite for this purpose, where the berries have proven to be more resilient to heatwaves, as well as having a later ripening period.

A feature of this conversation is that Luis talks about the positive impact this process of ‘working with nature’ has had on the wine quality, which he describes as being “ more pure and with greater richness on the palate”.

This kind of readiness for the new cycles of hotter and intense climatic conditions mean that Coelheiros is one of the leaders in Alentejo in starting out on the pilgrimage towards a truly sustainable viticulture.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking to Dr Levke Caesar about the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, or AMOC, about what would happen if this vital piece of the climate system either slowed dramatically or even shut down altogether.

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To date the models have been poor anticipators of the speed of localised climate changes. Levke gives an insightful and sincere perspective on the importance of the AMOC as a critical piece of the climate system jigsaw.

In the next episode, we stay in the oceans and speak with Dr Shaun Fitzgerald, Director of the Centre for Climate Repair in Cambridge, about the collaborative effort they are involved with to develop kelp seaweed for both carbon sequestration and the benefit of marine ecosystems and more.

Subscribers via Patreon can also access another episode with Professor Bill McGuire discussing his new book Hothouse Earth and, very shortly, a new interview from my visit to the Monaco Scientific Centre to interview Dr Nathalie Hilmi about the centre's work in ocean research and conservation with corals and whales among other marine ecosystems on the agenda.

Please also check out the Sustainability in Alentejo wine series that I have been posting. The latest episode features an interview with Professor Kimberly Nicholas at the University of Lund about regenerative practices that underscore the critical importance of learning to work with nature rather than against nature.

Thanks for listening to ClimateGenn. Please do like, follow, share, or subscribe if you can. Also, please do leave feedback on episodes.

Animation sources - NASA:

In this interview with climate and wine scientist, Professor Kimberly Nicholas, we discuss the urgency of the climate crisis and the need to scale up mitigation and adaptation in the wine industry and beyond to avoid catastrophic impacts of climate heating.

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Kimberly is originally from Sonoma in California’s wine country and is currently based in Sweden at the University of Lund. She has also recently published a book titled ‘Under The Sky We Make’ highlighting the agency available to all of us to contribute toward a better world. Kimberly also produces a monthly advice column called We Can Fix It sharing thoughts and engaging in broader discussion on this complex subject.

With the lens focussed primarily on wine, we look at the benefits of using a wider range of grape varieties, as well as the growing trend towards regenerative agriculture, to restore soil carbon and build resilience.

To give some context to why there is an emphasis on words like urgency, catastrophe, and resilience, is because the Intergovernmental Panel On Climate Change (IPCC), a scientist-led division of the United Nations, have in 2022 stated that we need to reduce our emissions in developed nations by 10-12% per year, in order to have a 50% chance of holding warming from rising above 1.5ºC global mean average.

Reducing emissions this fast is a colossal task and is why so many people now agree we are in a climate emergency. Action must start now across our society if we are going to stand a chance of succeeding in sustaining a liveable climate.

The world of wine may only be a tiny percentage of global agriculture but it is also a very sensitive crop and widely regarded as a cultural and luxury product. It is also greatly exposed to the risks of a changing climate and is widely seen as a leader in taking the actions required to transition towards true sustainability.

In this episode of Sustainability in Alentejo Wine Series, I am speaking with João Roquette, CEO and Chairman of the Esporão group about the company’s transformation to organic and resilient production.

Esporão is one of the most famous brand names in Portuguese wine and especially in Alentejo. João has played a leading role driving the company’s move towards organic viticulture.

During my visit I saw huge amounts of effort going into researching indigenous varieties for adaptability to the new climate conditions which are extreme today but will rapidly become normal tomorrow.

The extent of this work has made Esporão a phenomenal success. The company owns 623ha of organic vineyards – the biggest ownership in Portugal, representing about 18% of total organic production in the country.

Here João talks us through how the company reoriented itself as a pioneer towards sustainability goals before the WASP programme was established.

He also says, the Alentejo region as a whole should be proudly waving the flag as leaders in Portugal in taking bold environmental action.

In this ClimateGenn episode I speak to Silver Lining Institute Executive Director, Kelly Wanser about the urgent need to invest billions of dollars into expanding our global coverage of climate modelling capacity.

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The worsening risks we face mean climate interventions to cool the planet are back in discussion in the corridors of power. We discuss the hold ups and the necessity for research that could give all of us a clear idea as to whether such schemes should be deployed or not.

We also discuss how engaging the talents of global south scientists beyond the current superficial level could be a game changer in advancing our ability to respond, and to intervene, in order to counter the catastrophic impacts of warming we are seeing accelerating all around us.

Quotes:

“We are in the far end of what looks like a really bad place for climate change.”

“The media is telling us the math doesn’t add up and the situation is getting a little bit frightening.”

On climate interventions: “Looking at the system where it is and the dangers to people… and the dangers to natural systems, ecology and biodiversity, we are now seeing there is more openness in those communities who were extremely opposed to this than they were in the past… and that’s new!”

“Ultimately, in the United States, and we’ll make this call to the rest of the world, we think there needs to be a step function, a real multi-billion dollar increase in investing against our observations and out model improvements. Separate from climate intervention, just to do the problems, we are not investing enough.”

“We quickly need money and this technical access for researchers in the global south if we want to say that their participation is meaningful… I’ll speak bluntly, I think their participation is more superficial than it should be because they don’t have the capacity to actually do the science.”

Excerpts from interview with Kelly Wanser, Exec Director of SilverLining Institute.

During my trip across Alentejo, it was a pleasure to visit the cooperative Adega de Borba. Winemaking in and around Borba has a long pedigree and is even mentioned in ‘Murray’s handbook to Travels in Portugal’, published in 1864, with reference to ‘A considerable quantity of wine is produced at Borba..’

View more at https://genn.cc/alentejo

And so it is to this day with Borba producing around 10 million bottles per year.

The co-op is also renowned for its quality with their very popular Adega de Borba Reserva being a top seller with its iconic label printed on cork.

During my visit I was given a tour of the winery and the cellars by Helena Ferreira, the director in charge of production and quality control. Helena has been implementing an impressive suite of sustainability protocols right across the organisation.

These include training the 300 growers, covering over 2200 hectares of vineyards, to improving energy, water, and waste management. All of this work is to ensure that the one thousand families who rely on Adega de Borba for their living, have confidence that they will be producing wine there in the years and decades yet to come.

This is episode 4 of 8 in a special series on sustainability in Alentejo in Southern Portugal - one of the most vulnerable wine regions in the world.

In this ClimateGenn episode, we are discussing the risk of maladaptation that can seriously undermine our efforts to tackle the climate challenges we know are coming towards us. 

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Dr Lisa Schipper is an Environmental Social Science Research Fellow at the Environmental Change Institute at the University of Oxford whose work focuses on adaptation to climate change in developing countries, looking at factors that include gender, religion, and culture, to understand what drives vulnerability.

As vulnerability and suffering increase, it is critical we are able to engage as many people as possible to help shape the solutions that benefit us all and avoid critical errors that can have long-lasting detrimental effects.

In the next episode, I am speaking with Kelly Wanser from the Silver Lining Institute in Washington about their work in trying to counter near-term Earth system destabilisation by a combination of advanced supercomputer situations and interventions that might include marine cloud brightening.

Thanks for listening to ClimateGenn - you can support this work and get episodes earlier by becoming a Patron backer and you can also subscribe for free on YouTube and all major podcast channels.

In this Alentejo Wines episode, I am speaking to Iain Richardson, from the wine estate, Mouchão.

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Mouchão is a great example of an integrated estate in Alentejo where different flora and fauna are interwoven to create the whole.

The Sobreiro, or cork oak trees, are an integral part of the history of this region and yet, as Iain tells us, climate is one of the drivers that is causing a substantial die-off against which he and his team are fighting.

For reference, the Arroba, mentioned in this recording is actually a measure used for weighing cork, equivalent to 15 kilograms.

The story of Mouchao is one that really marries the past with the present in terms of identifying the moment where history and tradition are faced with the need for non-linear responses in order to achieve sustainability.

It is the story that really connects the glass of wine, or jug of olive oil, to the seemingly infinite physical and chemical interactions within the biosphere.

It is also the great human challenge to adapt to these changes, regenerate our soils, and build resilience while learning to live in a different world.

This feeds back into the importance of what programmes like WASP can achieve when they provide the framework for measuring change and disseminating knowledge.

“The world is as delicate and as complicated as a spider’s web, and like a spider’s web, if you touch one thread, you send shudders running through all the other threads that make up the web. But we’re not just touching the web, we’re tearing great holes in it . . .” Gerald Durrell, 'Catch me A Colobus' 1972.Important Links For This episode:https://durrell.org – find out more about the Durrell Wildlife Conservation TrustOrder 'Myself & other Animals' – https://amzn.to/3KtSePjVisit the main page for this interview on https://genn.ccSign The national Emergency Briefing Letter To Prime Minister Kier Starmer – https://www.nebriefing.org/The quote is from his earlier book, Catch Me A Colobus, published in 1972. Although it stayed with me, I didn’t comprehend it’s true depth and meaning until many years later, by which time Gerry was long gone and his nightmare visions of what we are doing to this planet are more advanced. For a bit of disclosure, I am related to Gerry Durrell via my grandmother, Margo Durrell, as satirised in his books, including My Family & Other Animals. This new posthumous autobiography provides a vivid flashback to the animal obsessed boy, riddled with curiosity and affection for the natural world. However, in this new book, Myself & Other Animals, a serious Gerry also emerges– reflective, at moments melancholy and deeply enraged by the destruction we humans are inflicting on the Earth. Despite his writing these texts in the 1980’s and early 90’s, his commentary is as fresh and relevant today as it would have been then. That’s not to say there is nothing to do – if anything there is far more to do. In this conversation with Lee, we traverse many topics including Gerry’s inner world, his enormous empathy for all living beings, including people, and of course, the fabulous work today of the Durrell Trust, that has worked with over 100 critically endangered species in captive breeding programmes and has rewilding projects going on all over the world, including a young project underway in Scotland.

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In this ClimateGenn episode, I speak with Lieutenant General Norman Seip, the President of the American Security Project, about the urgency for the US Senate to stop playing dice with the global climate and vote through policy that will steer America back on course to being a nation worthy of respect. Ever since President George Bush Senior declared the American Way of Life is not up for negotiation, the United States has stood in the way of global efforts to limit the impacts of climate destruction.   

We are now unnecessarily gambling our collective futures away because US politicians put wealth and ideology above the endless warnings of climate scientists, ecologists, among many others now screaming for change to avert disaster.  It is late in the day and we are all now at risk from business as usual policy and investment that prolongs the use of fossil fuels. Changing now could avert some suffering and, as we discuss here, the United States must grow up and face its responsibility as the world's largest emitter.

Get episodes early by supporting via Patreon: https://patreon.com/genncc full transcript at https://Genn.cc

Nick Breeze, Dr Greg V Jones

In the second episode of the Alentejo climate and sustainability series, I'm speaking with winemaker and climate scientist Dr. Greg Jones, who has co-authored climate and wine research papers looking at the vulnerability of certain regions to climate change. One, in particular, that is relevant to this series titled 'Climate Change & Global Wine Quality', published in 2005 states, "Other regions currently with warmer growing seasons, i.e. southern Portugal may become too warm for the existing varieties grown there and hot climate maturity regions may become too warm to produce high-quality wines of any type." 

A couple of factors that are important in responding to this deduction are as follows. Mitigation is still essential. Every one of us, every business, every wine business, must play a part in the decarbonisation of human systems. Doing so is a collective responsibility that runs all the way through the wine business, from the vineyards, to how wine is communicated and consumed. But this alone is not enough wine producers have to go further in building resilience, regenerating soils, and ecosystems. This is as much about stewardship as it is about survival. 

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the IPCC recently released a report that states adaptation is critical, because climate impacts due to human-caused global warming, are now unavoidable. Here, Dr. Jones outlines some of the impacts we can expect in regions such as Alentejo, which are among the world's most vulnerable to heat increases and drought conditions. He also gives us his view on why regional certification programs such as the Wines of Alentejo Sustainability Programme play a crucial role in the sharing of knowledge, as well as providing the framework by which actions and progress can be measured. This second episode represents a broader view before we zoom in and meet the producers in Alentejo and hear their fascinating stories about the actions they are taking to boost resilience and protect the quality and reputation of the region.

In this ClimateGenn episode I speak with Fossil Free London activist Nuri Syed Corser about their focussed activism targeting the biggest polluters operating in the UK’s capital.

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At a time when the UK is reeling from extreme heatwaves, the government are holding back on renewable energy projects and backing fossil fuel investments that will please their backers and make the climate problem much, much worse. They are also using the Russian invasion of Ukraine as an excuse to increase coal, oil and gas extraction across the British Isles.

Activist groups like Fossil Free London help to highlight who the polluters are and bring public attention to their careless and destructive activities. As has been said in previous interviews, the activists and civil society groups are more inline with what the science tells us we need to do than the policymakers entrusted to protect us. This has to stop.

Thanks for listening to Climate Genn. In the next episode I am speaking with a retired US General Norman Seip who is now President of the American Security Project and who agrees with me that as much as Climate Change is a US National Security Threat, US climate policy is itself a security threat to the rest of the world.

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Thanks.

As Part of the Climate Genn podcast, I am publishing concurrently with my normal interviews, a series within a series every week for the next 8 weeks called Sustainability & Wine in Alentejo, Portugal’s largest and most climate vulnerable region. This series is part of a larger project commissioned by the Wines of Alentejo Sustainability Programme with whom I have been collaborating for the past year.

Find out more at https://genn.cc

Alentejo Episodes to be released 1 per week for 8 weeks:

EP. 1 Sustainability & Wine in Alentejo An Introduction - Alentejo, a climate-vulnerable region

EP. 2 Dr Greg Jones - we need regional schemes that build into broader framework at a global level

EP. 3 Herdade do Mouchão, Iain Richardson - 600 mature cork oak trees a year lost, it was tragic!

EP. 4 Adega de Borba, Helena Ferriera - 1000 families depend on this business

EP. 5 Herdade do Esporão, João Roquette - Leaders In Portugal

EP. 6 Professor Kimberly Nicholas, Working With Nature

EP. 7 Herdade de Coelheiros, Luis Patrão - If we don’t adapt we are finished

EP. 8 Wines of Alentejo Sustainability Programme (WASP) João Barroso

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking to climate psychologist and Deputy Director and theme lead for the Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformation (CAST Centre) Dr Stuart Capstick from Cardiff University about why scientists who research aspects of climate change are deciding to protest in public, and in some cases getting arrested.

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We discuss the role of scientists in society as a group that have for many years played a key role in informing policy - but what happens when policymakers are not listening and the consequences mean risking the lives and well beings of citizens, which of course, includes their own family and friends.

Stuart is a researcher looking at many aspects of civil disobedience and the publics response to it and has a lot to say that implies to me that more and more people with positions of authority are saying that is enough is enough - the risks to our own existence are now too high.

In the next episode I speak with Nuri Syed Corser from Fossil Free London, a group of activists specifically targeting the fossil fuel industry, their backers and enablers, by, for example, disrupting shareholder events and other tactics.

Thanks for listening to ClimateGenn - you can subscribe on Youtube and all major podcast channels as well as access podcasts early by becoming a Patreon backer.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with Sunny Morgan in South Africa about the Debt for Climate Campaign that is calling for the global north to cancel the debts of the global south, which are both crippling the economies in developing nations and financing huge fossil fuel projects that we desperately need to get rid of.

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Sunny outlines how these institutions work with corporations to lock in hugely destructive projects that are destroying natural ecology, trashing the climate, and ruining people's lives.

This is a system of corruption that must be stopped as part of the just transition to a fairer and cleaner world. There simply is no place for what equates to a contemporary form of colonialism and the campaign will be making its case at the G7 meeting later this month in Germany and again at COP27 in Egypt in November. Check out their website at debtforclimate.org

Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn. You can watch, listen and subscribe on Youtube and all podcast channels. To get episodes early and also access additional content relating to the future we are facing, you can subscribe via Patreon which also supports this project.

Thank you.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with the theologian, environmentalist and philosopher, and author of over 50 books, Dr John B Cobb, about his efforts to bring into being a Living Earth Movement.

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The Living Earth Movement asks us all to look at how we can reshape humanity to act as part of the ecosphere and not against it. A major part of John’s mission is to call on the US and China to stop competing and start working together as leaders in the change we need to end the destruction of our planet.

John implores all of us as individuals to think about the way we live and not take anything for granted, especially now that we are committed to devastating impacts from the ecological destruction we are bringing on ourselves.

The Living Earth Movement (livingearthmovement.eco) was founded in February, this year at the same time that John turned 97 years old, clearly demonstrating that it is never too late to take action to strive for a better world for all ecology.

Action and activism are hot topics at the moment and in the next episode I am speaking Sunny Morgan in South Africa about a new campaign called Cancel The Debt - a call from thousands of activists in the global south demanding the global north cancel the very debts that are preventing them rising out of poverty and accelerating a green transition.

Thank you for listening. Please subscribe and share on Youtube, or any major podcast channel. If you want to access episodes early, and gain access to unseen interviews, please consider becoming a member on Patreon where more climate emergency interviews and insights will be posted in the months to come.

Thank you.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with professor Kevin Anderson from the Tyndall Centre at Manchester University.

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This is a longer interview with many, I believe, crucial points for consideration.

We discuss our current usage of the available carbon budget for 1.5ºCelsius at just under 1% per month.

Also the dangerous and foolish behaviour of UK Secretary of State for Energy, Kwasi Kwarteng, in trying to reclassify natural gas (methane), as a green gas in order to increase investment.

Download the Phase-Out Paper being discussed: https://www.research.manchester.ac.uk/portal/files/213256008/Tyndall_Production_Phaseout_Report_final_text_3_.pdf

Kevin Anderson Quotes:

“Practically and morally, we are obliged to help [poorer nations] leapfrog over their fossil fuel period.”

“Every month we are using just under 1% of the carbon budget.”

“Senior academics are the new climate skeptics in my view!”

“Natural gas - Methane is a transition fuel… to 4ºC”

“We all paint a picture that fits with our world view but as we reassess that world view repeatedly, eventually it doesn’t sit with our world view.”

“It is disturbing and interesting in the law that we will protect things that are causing incredible damage and we will prosecute things that are trying to stop that incredible damage being caused.”

“Particularly academics, we are paid to be honest and direct about our research and we will sweeten the pill, hugely sweeten the pill in public and I think that is deeply arrogant, of often very decent people, fast we think the public can’t deal with it”

“The policymakers are simply not up to the job.”

In March, Kevin and colleagues at the Tyndall Centre released a research paper titled: Phaseout Pathways for Fossil Fuel Production within Paris-compliant Carbon Budgets. I begin by asking Kevin to clarify the critical points of this paper as he can do this much more clearly than I can!

Please do comment and send feedback. You can support this channel on Patreon to access interviews earlier and with extra content.

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In this ClimateGenn episode, I am introducing Alentejo in Southern Portugal, declared in 2005 as one of the most climate-vulnerable wine regions in the world. The Alentejo region has been seeing temperatures rise and drought conditions intensify as rain patterns become more erratic and extreme.

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In June I will be releasing a series of 9 recordings from my visit and interviews with producers and members of the Wines of Alentejo Sustainability Programme, looking at how they are responding to the emergent climate challenges.

In the next ClimateGenn episode out this week, I am speaking with Professor Kevin Anderson about his recent research paper on phasing out fossil fuels to stay within the 1.5ºC obligation that governments set in Paris in 2015. This is a detailed conversation where Kevin talks about our current predicament being ‘The worst of both worlds with dire consequences and less carbon budget available to transition to clean energy’.

What follows is the narration of the typescript of my overall response to the presentation given in London by the Wines of Alentejo producers.

The current heatwave in India and Pakistan sets the scene for this ClimateGenn episode, speaking with Climate Crisis Advisory Group Chair, Professor Sir David King about their new report on what we must do to have the best chance of averting climate and ecological collapse.

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Sir David makes it very clear that nobody will escape these impacts as the climate emergency worsens and what we are seeing in India continues to spread around the world.

Sir David emphasises the need for solidarity and pulling together to meet the challenges at the global level. He also highlights that wealthier countries must pay-up on adaptation costs for vulnerable and poorer nations.

As someone with first hand experience of the climate negotiations, Sir David points the finger at the United States for its lack of global leadership on appropriate climate action at the political level.

Activism around the world is stepping up as people realise the failures of governments to take appropriate action. Even the UN Secretary General is calling out the failures of world leaders, declaring that activists are rational actors compared to those entrusted with power.

Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn. To get episodes early as well as unpublished archive material, you can support the channel via Patreon or become a member on Youtube. You can also subscribe for free on Youtube, or all major podcast channels.

Thank you.

Activist Clare Farrell’s current framing of the climate crisis– on confronting political paralysis and urging radical collaboration between grassroots movements for a just, democratic response to rising global threats.Hansen In Helsinki (including Clare farrell's interview): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2abyXGvELI

Main website with transcript: https://genn.cc/clare-farrell-interview/This episode, with Extinction rebellion cofounder, Clare Farrell, was recorded in late October at the ATLAS25 conference in Helsinki, following Dr James Hansen’s keynote and their subsequent discussion. A link to that recording is in the notes.Hansen placed great emphasis on the role of aerosols in masking extra heating from global warming and how recent spikes in the earth’s temperature are linked to a reduction in aerosols over the oceans. He also stressed the need for more research on solar geoengineering citing evidence for how historic volcanic eruptions, not only cooled the planet by reflecting the suns energy back to space but also stimulated carbon sinks creating a greater uptake of carbon dioxide.Here Clare reflects Hansen’s findings as well as on a range of issues emphasising the need for humility in facing the enormity and complexity of the climate crisis. She also stressed the dangers of arrogance or over simplistic binary thinking.

In this ClimateGenn episode I speak with Dr Delton Chen, the originator of the ‘Chen Paper’ concept made famous by Kim Stanley Robinson in his book, Ministry For The Future.  Delton is an engineer by training but has take almost a decade out to study economics to see if his Carbon Reward Coin concept, the idea of a reward for mitigating carbon, could provide the missing link needed to rebalance the human economy.  

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The Global Reward Coin would be backed by central banks around the world in order to provide stability and a mechanism to account for what he calls, The Living Systems Economy.  

By making a comparative analysis of this concept with other economic proposals, Delton asserts that de-growth and circular economy proposals are inadequate to solve the climate emergency when placed in the context of the current paradigm of human civilisation.  Please do comment or send feedback as I will be interested to hear what people think. 

Also, thank you for listening and subscribing. If you do want to support this work then please share the episode on whatever available channel, or you can back it on Patreon.

Thanks.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with Dr Paul Behrens about how the global food system is vulnerable to the domino effects that arise from conflict, climate impacts and other pressures.

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Over 70% of land use on the planet is given over to animal agriculture and vast amounts of plant-based crops are being used to feed that livestock, we are emitting vastly more carbon than we need and leaving ourselves wide open for uncomfortable and unaffordable shocks.

Paul talks about the changes that we can and should make in order to build resilience and make the food system actually work for all.

Emerging science is showing that we are now vulnerable to multiple extreme events in bread baskets around the world happening at the same time.

With 10% of the world’s population already struggling to feed itself, is now the time for us all to take the action required causing a social tipping point that, for a change, moves in our favour?

Thanks for listening to ClimateGenn. In the next episode, I speak with Dr Delton Chen. Dr Chen is the creator of the Global Carbon Reward coin, a concept made famous in Kim Stanley Robinson’s climate fiction novel, Ministry For The Future.

Through the creation of the Living Systems Economy, Chen believes he has a winning formula to finance the restoration of the biosphere, including tackling ecological breakdown and reducing atmospheric carbon.

You can subscribe via any podcast channel, plus Youtube, and if you want to support this work you can also back it via my Patreon page.

Thank you.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking to authors, podcasters, and activists, Sam Moore and Alex Roberts whose recently published book, The Rise Of Ecofascism, explores the characteristics of past, present, and potentially future ‘ecofascism’.

The risks posed to society from extreme politics on the right and the left has been rising in recent years. Even in the last week or so, a cache of information was leaked via the Anonymous hacking group linking Putin’s regime to the financing of far right-wing groups across Europe.

More evidence of the rise in far-right and fascist groups is seen in places like the UK, France, Italy, or Hungary, where political ground can become an objective.

Sam and Alex’s work aims to be a pragmatic guide to identify these tendencies and emerging ideas in order to be able to stop them from rising into dominant movements, which as they evidence in the book, never deliver on the grand promises they make.

They also provide a long history of how the far-right have developed relationships to nature that recur in history and are also echoed today in political narratives around climate denialism and delays in ridding ourselves of the fossil fuel era that is destroying the world as we know it.

Thank you for listening to the ClimateGenn series. In the next episode I am speaking with Dr Paul Behrens on the risks of food system shocks arising from the Ukraine crisis and how this is a signal of how vulnerable our overall food system is in a worsening climate and ecological crisis.

Please do subscribe on any podcast channel or back ClimateGenn via Patreon to get episodes early.

In this ClimateGenn episode I am speaking with Research Director of the Breakthrough National Centre for Climate Restoration in Melbourne, David Spratt, about assessing climate risk and why incremental tweaks to reduce emissions are failing us.

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We also discuss IPCC forecasts, political failure, and how change is possible but it requires a huge mobilisation of resources, coupled with public and political participation and leadership of the Zelensky variety.

The clock is ticking, parts of the system are tipping, whether you call it: code-red, an emergency, or blah blah blah, no one is immune from the cascade of climate impacts that we will face if we continue to do nothing to avert the growing threat of climate change this decade and into the future.

Thanks for listening to ClimateGenn, especially at a time when there is so much violence and the threat of escalation of war.

The pain that this is causing so many is inextricably linked to corruption and fossil fuels that extend well beyond Putin’s regime. I would very much like to express solidarity with the Ukrainian people, as well as with Russians who are standing up to the regime.

https://www.breakthroughonline.org.au/

http://www.climatecodered.org/

In this ClimateGenn special episode, I publishing my first interview with Dr Jim Hansen who was at the time Director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies. This was recorded in 2012 at the European Geophysical Union, the annual conference that takes place every year in Vienna.

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In recent weeks I have exchanged emails again with Dr Hansen to discuss his recent work that has a working title of ‘The Big Climate Short’. Hopefully this will be recorded once his latest work is submitted for publication.

What strikes me about this decade old interview is that the language is so clear and the warnings regarding urgent action are in the timeframe of the next 1-1.5years. He even states the danger of waiting a decade to what would be 2022.

Hansen made international news in the late 80’s when he testified to US Congress about the need to change our energy system and reduce atmospheric greenhouse gases. He is straight pragmatic speaker who has consistently issued warnings that have been ignored despite the rising cost inflicted by such ignorance.

Here he gives very clear definitions of what tipping points are and the danger of crossing them. He discusses the challenges that scientists face in communicating these problems.

He also highlights evidenced strategies that could have significantly dealt with them at the time but with each passing year create an ever growing challenge.

We are now where we are. The recent IPCC report talks about the closing window of opportunity to act. Coming at a time of extreme chaos and suffering in Europe, it is hard to see how we will navigate the coming weeks, months and years.

How we deal with our own fear and concern regarding these issues is very important. War is obviously not the answer and neither is any sense of nihilism. Being able to focus on the problems and act with a broader sense of community is far more rewarding.

In the next episode I am speaking to climate and policy analyst, David Spratt, Research Director at the Breakthrough National Centre for Climate Restoration in Melbourne, Australia.

We will be discussing a range of subjects including the accelerating rate of impacts, what climate models don’t tell us, as well as the tipping point risks we can’t see or measure and that may already have been crossed.

Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn. I have many more episodes to produce so please do subscribe. Thank you to all who are supporting the channel via Patreon. You can also drop me a note or comment on my website genn.cc and I will always try to respond.

Thank you.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with Eden Project founder, Sir Tim Smit about the stories that need to be told to create the future we want to have.

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Sir Tim sees the now as a moment of great revolution that is emerging from what he calls the new green enlightenment. With world leaders of low-calibre and backward thinking, it is right to ask from whence will these great game-changers emerge?

If you have just got your head around exponential climate change then why not have a go at exponential biosphere healing? With 20th century style aggression erupting in Europe, it will take a leap of great faith and hope to keep the lantern burning in these dark dystopian times.

Some key quotes:

i. “I am at a real sea change with Eden."

ii. “A very rapid reappraisal is necessary of the whole world of science, of scientific research, the way it is funded…”

iii. “Our disrespect for biology has led to many of the pickles we are now in.”

iv. “I think we are living at a time of great revolution… in twenty years time we will be looking at this as the start of a new green enlightenment.”

v. “I know many many top business people who feel they would not like to do anything other than have a shower after they have been with many bankers!”

vi. “I have met very few leaders who are champions of citizenship. They see leadership as being about being decisive!”

Vii. “I see us a shop window on a future that is still ours to make!”

Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn where we explore the reality of what to do, and how to come to terms with such a severely changing world. You can support this work via https://patreon.com/genncc or by subscribing on any major podcast channel and Youtube. Please also consider sharing any episodes of interest.

In this episode of ClimateGenn I am speaking with Dr Minnie Go about her recent book ‘Rethinking Community Resilience’ looking in detail at how the city of New Orleans emerged from the destruction of Hurricane Katrina.

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Minnie’s work looks at how the dynamics between civic groups and governing bodies can determine very different outcomes.

Distrust of government by those most impacted communities meant they worked hard and fast to repair the damage to the same standards experienced before Katrina hit.

A better-informed approach would have looked at what was necessary to protect them against future impacts that the science tells us are increasing in power and frequency.

Minnie’s work gives us insight into how civic groups and communities are likely to become more resilient based on the characteristics and efficacy of regional government.

In the next episode, I am speaking to Sir Tim Smit, who created the Eden Project in Cornwall, UK just over 20 years ago.

Sir Tim discusses how the Eden Project has developed and become a shop window for initiatives that are going to be key to our survival in the coming years as climate closes in.

Thanks for listening to ClimateGenn - please do consider supporting the series via Patreon and/or following on any of the podcast channels or Youtube. Feedback is always welcome too so don’t hesitate to get in touch. I will try my best to respond.

In this episode of ClimateGenn I am speaking to Dr Paul Behrens about the complexity of population, consumption and climate change.

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In his book, ‘The Best of Times, The Worst of Times’ Paul addresses population, presenting both a pessimistic potential outcome, and also a more hopeful outcome based on a set of choices that we, especially those of us in wealthier high emitting countries, can make to improve the chances for a better future.

One big barrier to a better future is the growing narrative that stokes fears about migration. The propagating of these myths falls under the title of econativism, a term that Paul both defines and discusses in some detail.

Population and migration are critical and controversial issues and when placed in the context of continually rising emissions and consequent impacts, they stress the need for reflection on how we value our own life and the lives of all those around us.

In the next episode I am speaking to Dr Min Hee Go in South Korea about her recent book ‘Rethinking Community Resilience’ that looks at the politics of disaster recovery in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans.

Minnie’s research highlights the necessity to not just build back from catastrophe but also how we must ensure community resilience, as the frequency and extremity of these events increase.

Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn. You can follow this series on all major podcast channels, on Youtube, on my website at GENN.cc and you can follow and support on Patreon.

Please do subscribe on https://genn.cc and be sure to comment or send me your feedback by email. You can also support this series via https://patreon.com/genncc.  

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking to author and chief scientist at the Nature Conservancy, Professor Katharine Hayhoe about how her recent book ‘Saving Us’ addresses issues relating to personal agency.   

2022 has advanced out of the gate with threats of war, massive volcanic eruptions, economic and political upheavals, conspiracy theories, and the worsening accelerating degradation of the biosphere upon which we are all entirely reliant.  

Awareness is growing and people from all walks of life are awakening to the need for emergency action. It now feels like we are simply being held back by an adherence by the few to the value systems and aspirations of the last century.  

Thank you for listening to ClimateGenn, we have a programme of interviews for this year looking at the multi-faceted problem of rebalancing life in the biosphere.  Please do subscribe and be sure to comment or send me your feedback by email. 

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In this ClimateGenn episode, I speak to Dr Ye Tao at Harvard University who is head of the Mirrors for Earth Energy Rebalancing (MEER).

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Addressing climate threats

With global agriculture across the world at high risk from rising temperatures and associated impacts, Ye’s team are proposing increasing the Earth’s reflectivity in order to reduce the temperature within the biosphere.

In this interview we go into some detail about how it works, resource requirements, where it would be deployed and the pathway to scaling up.

Social response is critical

Ye also highlights the need for more understanding of psychology in order to be able to align the growing numbers of people around the world who are realising that our future is in a perilous state.

By bringing people together, putting our wellbeing and safety before profit and extractive endeavours, only then do we really stand a chance of seeing these grand ideas tested and eventually deployed.

So much to lose, all to play for

A special thank you this week to Marion Troia who sent in a transcript of my last interview with Dr Tero Mustenon. This is interview received terrific feedback and resonated with a great many people, not least myself, so I am really grateful for this support.

Thank you to all my new Patrons who are supporting this series and to everyone for listening, commenting and getting in touch.

In this Climate.Genn Episode I am speaking with Baroness Natalie Bennett about her book ‘Change Everything’. Natalie makes a fascinating case as to why the centre of politics can no longer deal with the critical challenges we collectively face, from the economic to the social and environmental – we are living in a moment of both energising and frightening changes!In Change Everything Natalie details her Green Philosophy to rethink, repair and rebuild society.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking Dr Tero Mustonen who is based within the Arctic Circle about the enormous changes happening there today and that are going to cascade across the globe impacting every one of us.

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Tero works with indigenous peoples inside the Arctic Circle and beyond, utilising what is called Traditional Knowledge Systems that include the linguistic, cultural and natural environments that are complex and holistic.

These ancient ways of understanding the world also hold the key to solving many of our systemic problems and yet they are being extinguished, along with the broad swathe of life on Earth.

This is all a result of centuries of extraction and consumption, that underpin our contemporary experience of living in developed nations.

Despite Tero’s despairing message, he also suggests a pathway to planetary repair through rewinding and by deepening our custodial relationship with nature.

Thank you for listening. Please do subscribe if you want to stay up-to-date. You can also support ClimateGenn via Patreon and please do leave feedback which I am always interested to receive.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking with author Tom Rosenstiel about his new political thriller, The Days To Come. Tom has switched hats from journalist to fiction writer, possessing a depth of insight into how both disciplines interact with the public and our experience of reality?

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The Days To Come is a thriller with a climate change theme that touches on many of the complex factors that can either accelerate or undermine our progress in tackling the climate crisis.

In this interview we discuss how the book intersects with contemporary reality and also how fiction and journalism contribute to shaping the narrative we internalise that helps us for envision the future.

In the next episode I am speaking with indigenous Sámi scholar Dr Tero Mustonen, who is based in the Finnish Arctic, about the climate changes that threaten his communities existence and by extension, our own.

We will also discuss what we can do to try and reverse the extreme nature of change in these critical and vulnerable regions of the world.

Thank you for listening. Please do subscribe, comment or send feedback because I do read as much as I can and try to respond where possible.

Thank you.

In this ClimateGenn episode, I am speaking to professor Peter Wadhams from the University of Cambridge about his recent research for a book he is writing on the viability of greenhouse gas removal from the atmosphere.  

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Some of these proposals are also referred to as negative emissions technologies, or ‘nets’  and are widely included in national emissions reduction plans despite none being proven at scale today.  We discuss the viability of various proposed techniques including tree planting, bioenergy capture and storage as well as direct air capture and ocean proposals including farming kelp and the use of diatoms for large-scale sequestration.  In the last segment we discuss the risks posed by Arctic methane releases and two proposed techniques for dealing with a potential methane emergency, whereby multiple   billions of tonnes of the potent greenhouse gas are released at once.   These are controversial proposals despite policymakers assuming they will work in the future. The danger of these suppositions is compounded by the fact that many research projects are embryonic and underfunded.   Thank you for listening. 

In the next episode, I speak with author Professor Tom Rosenstiel about his new political thriller, The Days To Come. In this interview, we discuss fiction writing and journalism and how these both intersect with reality to shape our world.  You can subscribe on all major podcast channels or Youtube and you can also support my work via https://Patreon.com/genncc Visit https://genn.cc for more information.  Thanks for listening.

Political elites in the UK have never looked more out of touch than they do today. Despite this, in Scotland, we see a Climate Citizens Assembly that is working with experts to come up with ideas for achieving a lower carbon, cleaner and fairer society.

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In this episode, I am speaking with the Secretariat of the Scottish Climate Assembly, Susie Townend, who has overseen the creation of the first report to the Scottish Parliament guided by experts but very much created by ordinary folks from across the country.

The Scottish Parliament is reviewing the report submitted by the assembly and will respond with feedback by the end of this year.

Given the Scottish government’s positive signals given during COP26 in Glasgow, on their commitment to Loss and Damage funding for vulnerable nations, there is some confidence that they are taking the assembly’s input seriously.

This kind of informed approach, places empathy, justice, and inclusion at the heart of the policymaking process. It also acknowledges that involving citizens increases momentum towards shaping a world we actually want to live in.

Thank you for listening. This whole project is now under the name of ClimateGenn and the archive of work can be seen at genn.cc. You can support this work via patreon.com/genncc - you can also subscribe on Youtube and all of the main podcasts & social media channels.

In this ClimateGenn podcast episode, I am speaking to Dr Saleemul Huq about the true outcome of COP26 highlighting how the UK Presidency abandoned the world's most vulnerable nations in order to tow the line of the USA.

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Saleem also makes it clear that 1.1ºC, where we are today, is the new 1.5ºC - climate impacts are here and they are devastating lives and also taking lives. We must stop thinking about climate action in the future tense and start taking action in the present before it is truly too late to adapt to what we now know is coming.

Once highly regarded as a nation that wielded great strength in diplomacy, COP26 will be remembered for the British government's disastrous inability to manage events of global importance.

As we move away from Glasgow the threat of extreme impacts grows all the time around us and in response we commit to increasing greenhouse gas emissions that are driving us off the cliff. The pledges made cannot be trusted on the basis that previous pledges have been broken.

If as Saleem says, the rich countries continue to bully the poorer nations while consuming the remaining carbon budgets, then our own moral integrity is what is in question. At what point do we say 'no more'?

Thank you for listening to the ClimateGenn podcast - you can catch up with my work on my website at genn.cc or support it via Patreon.com/genncc.

In this episode, recorded in Glasgow, I speak to Dr Paul Behrens from Leiden University about how, regardless of what choices we make, humanity is now committed to passing through the eye of the metaphorical needle.

What we can expect on the other side may well be in our gift to decide but with each strike of the clock, the forecasts for humanity get bleaker.

In his new book, ‘The Best of Times, The Worst of Times’, Paul presents realistic outcomes based on the best case and worst-case scenarios. As he says, the worst case does not necessarily mean a 4ºC world. Tragedy can come long before this and in many parts of the world, it already has. To illustrate this point further, I have put an excerpt of Sir David King speaking about why we must take climate repair seriously, at the end of this podcast.

I am planning to catch up again with Paul in the near future to record a population special, based on his research that is also profiled in the book. These are important perspectives worth grasping in an ever more complex and treacherous world.

Thanks for listening to this COP notes mini-series. In the next episode, I will be speaking to Dr Saleemul Huq as we look forward from the wreckage of COP26.

I will also be publishing my interview with Scottish Climate Assembly Secretariat, Susie Townend. Susie has overseen the creation of the Climate Assembly report to the Scottish parliament that is currently in review. This is an exciting insight into how citizens, experts and policymakers could shape a fairer, more equitable, landscape for change.

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In this special podcast edition, I have combined the two interviews with Sir David King and Professor Kevin Anderson to create a wrap-up commentary on the COP that I think is insightful and multifaceted.

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Both interviewees come with a wealth of insight and experience and whether you agree or disagree with what they say, there is no doubt that both scientists force us to think deeply about the way forward from this crisis point in the human journey.

Both speakers also touch on common themes about how we think of the COP process and what a successful or failed COP actually looks like. If the politics is failing then what are the positive aspects that we should keep or even exponentiate?

Hopefully, guidance towards those answers emerges from these interactions.

Thank you for listening. We are nearing the end of COP26 specific content. I have one more interview to upload with Dr Paul Behrens where we discuss some of the themes in his fascinating new book, ‘Best of Times, Worst of Times’. I am also scheduling another call with Dr Behrens to discuss his fascinating chapter on population dynamics as they apply to the Earth’s carrying capacity.

If you enjoy this series then please consider joining via patreon.com/genncc - where more subscriber-only content will be published.

Welcome to the shortened edit of the Adaptation panel that I moderated during COP26 in Glasgow with Pooran Desai.

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On the panel we had Professor Alice Hill and Professor Sir David King, as well Namibian ‘Fridays 4 Future’ Activist Jakapita Kandanga, as well as Professor Kevin Anderson.

In this session we are focussed largely on the UK, USA and Namibia and delve into the complexity of social change, education, building resilience in our cities and how the global middle classes have an obligation to consume less and lead by example as millions more are lifted out of poverty.

Other subjects such as greenhouse gas removal, electrification and the role of nuclear also enter the discussion.

We were very grateful to such an engaged audience and to the panel and partners who made this happen. The unedited film version is on my Youtube Channel at Nick Breeze ClimateGenn.

There are two more COP26 focussed podcasts to upload in the next couple of days which I think offer unique insights. I will also be recording the next round of forward looking interviews with special guests starting this week.

Please do subscribe on all the main channels including Youtube where these can be watched. You can also support my work via Patreon or subscribe at genn.cc.

After filming the Greenland interview on the Denamrk pavilion in the Blue Zone at COP26, we recorded this short segment on Jason's view on how Denmark, his adopted country, is doing on their climate pledges. Follow my work in more detail at https://genn.cc or support my work (and stay up to date on https://patron.com/genncc

In this miniseries of podcasts, I am uploading a selection of the recordings that I took from COP26 starting with this one with 3 ice scientists, Professor Jonathan Bamber, Professor Jason Box, and Professor Matthias Huss.

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The Cryosphere pavilion in the blue zone at the COP provided the context I needed to be able to understand whether the word ‘Ambition’ truly correlated to the safety of the citizens that negotiators were tasked to defend.

It worth noting that we are now decades into the COP process that aims to prevent a catastrophe on Earth but the process itself appears to be broken. The COP where the scientists discuss climate and ecological threats is a solar system away from the jargon in the surrounding rooms that eventually formed the Glasgow Pact.

In the next episode, I will upload the audio of the Adapt Now Panel session that I moderated with guests Professor Alice Hill, Professor Sir David King, Professor Kevin Anderson, as well as special guest, youth activist from Namibia, Jakapita Kandanga. This session was co-hosted by Pooran Desai OBE from One Planet.

Thank you for listening to Shaping The Future - please subscribe or follow my work on genn.cc - all the links and socials are in the notes.

In this climategenn episode, I am speaking with journalist-and-author, Andy Neather, about his new book: Rooted In Change – The Stories Behind Sustainable Wine, co authored with Master of Wine, Jane Masters. The authors set out to document the challenges facing all aspects of wine production from the vineyard to the glass.

Order 'Rooted In Change'

Wine makes up an estimated 0.3% of agriculture globally and yet despite this tiny proportion, it is a beverage that humans have been making for thousands of years– serving sometimes with food, or as a ceremonial drink, or, in times more extreme, as a source of calories for French soldiers in the 1st World War trenches. 

Today vineyard around the world– from France to Australia or Chile to China– are at risk from worsening impacts of climate change – in that sense, this 0.3% of agriculture is as vulnerable as much of the other 99.7% of agriculture that underpins our global food supply. As Professor Paul Behrens said in the previous episode, 30-40% of inflation on food in the UK is due to climate change.

A decade ago in Champagne, a wine producer told me harvest dates shifted forward in the late 1980s due to warming. Polar researchers I'd interviewed earlier noted Arctic sea ice decline accelerated in the same decade. Both independent observations confirmed the same reality: our world is heating up.

This new book, Rooted In Change, gives us a glimpse of the global response of the wine industry to save it self while acting responsibly as stewards of both land and atmosphere.

In this episode of Shaping The Future, I am inside the COP attending talks and speaking mainly to scientists but also half listening to the pledges and commitments being made. What is striking is the sense of foreboding from people who have followed these negotiations for many years.

Contents:

00:00 Intro by Nick Breeze

01:00 John Kerry speaking to C40 mayors

01:23 Professor Richard Bamba (excerpt)

02:09 Kevin Anderson discussing ‘inside the cop’

The noise of the globetrotting political class presents an image of absolute urgency and seemingly sincere desire to do something about it, however, the pledges being put forth, not only fall short of the level of action the science says we need, it also is non-binding.

‘Mission' accomplished?

History has shown us that what is said at COP stays at COP. The fanfare and celebrations that many are seeking at the end may well and UK Prime Minister Johnson may well get his opportunity to smirk at the cameras and declare his mission accomplished.

Ironically, the word ‘mission’ is attached to lots of initiatives in the climate action sphere but perhaps submission is a more worthy moniker, as the much-vaunted ambition slumps into a commitment that will see ice sheets and glaciers succumb to rising temperatures in the atmosphere and the oceans.

Eyes & ears on the science

More interviews discussing the science will follow and serve as a brief intro into the reality that we are facing. If we don’t radically change direction then society will enter a phase of chaos and collapse in the face of destabilised weather and rapidly rising seas. What this may look like has been widely speculated and everyone has their own version of the nightmare to contemplate.

Who possesses the agency to act?

This being the case, now is the time to question the direction that our leaders and the powerful in society are taking us. Failure is not assured and the angry voices of people outside the COP are starting to be heard.

Currently, the politicians and the powerful control the narrative and possess the agency of divination but is anyone truly listening anymore? We have heard for decades, the promises that are founded on urgency and deception.

The agency that has been taken away from people in terms of a top down ruling of society, with people clambering up the greasy pole to wag their fingers at those below, has now had its day.

Every one of us is in a position to contemplate the agency that we possess in our daily lives and in the communities we inhabit. It is essential now that we use that agency in whatever way we see fit to raise the level of real action to a point where apocalyptic visions of the near-future can be consigned to fiction.

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In this episode of Shaping The Future, I am speaking to professor Rupert Read on the eve of his trial that has since taken place resulting in a guilty verdict and a very modest fine handed down.

Links: Live Event 8 Nov '21 in Glasgow https://youtu.be/ItixWfasssk - Patreon: https://patreon.com/genncc My site: https://genn.cc

Here we discuss the role of disinformation organisations like the Global Warming Policy Foundation who have spent the last decade denying the threat that climate change poses to ordinary people.

As we head to COP26 Glasgow, many politicians, let alone climate scientists are calling this summit: 'a last chance to save the future of humanity'. Despite this, pundits and mainstream media outlets such as The Economist are warning us to prepare for disappointment.

This should come as no surprise, thus confirming the successful work of climate denialism over the last decades. The job ahead is too unpalatable for policymakers to sell to civilians despite the growing eco-anxiety among us all.

From Sunday I will be reporting from the COP speaking to many people who I have interviewed for this podcast and many more. We will also be live-streaming an event on the 8th of November titled Adapt Now - on my Youtube Channel, so please do join us.

I have 2 more interviews to present very shortly but time is making it hard to turn these around but I’ll do my best.

Thanks for listening to all these interviews and sharing your feedback which I always try to read. You can subscribe on Youtube or any major podcast channel. You can also support my work via Patreon.

In the run-up to COP26 we face a new onslaught of mainstream media coverage of how this conference will decide the fate of humanity. The truth is that even the best outcome being sought by policymakers is far short of what the science tells us is needed to stabilise the global climate.

Since the Rio Earth Summit in 1992, where the accelerating decline of planetary systems was acknowledged and leaders expressed the need for change, nothing has been achieved to stop the catastrophic circumstances that we are facing today.

In this episode of Shaping The Future I am speaking with Professor Kevin Anderson about his (and colleagues) new paper to be published on the 17th October titled, Three Decades of Climate Mitigation: Why Haven’t We Bent the Global Emissions Curve?

In this analysis also emerges potential opportunities that could shift the locus of where we are in entrenched greed by a powerful few, towards a better prepared and resilient future for the majority of us.

In the next episode, I am speaking with Jakapita Nanganda on her struggle to oppose oil drilling and the contamination and destruction of forests in Namibia, and the struggles her family is confronting in the face of severe drought. Jakapita will be traveling to COP26 as part of Fridays For Future International to demand a brighter future for her generation.

You can subscribe to Shaping The Future on all major podcast channels and Youtube and you can also support my work via Patreon. Please visit GENN.cc for more information.