I'm in a Bellona Foundation session with the authors of three new climate books Science as a Contact Sport: Inside the Battle to Save Earth's Climate, by Stephen Schneider, my friend and former Stanford colleague, about his decades of work to move climate change onto the political agenda and keep it there, against skeptics and …
Category: COP 15
United Nations – Climate Change Conference – Dec 07 – Dec 18 2009
IPCC press briefing
I managed to get into the press briefing. RK Pachauri, the IPCC chair, led off, pointing out that the IPCC has 21 years of experience now and its process has stood the test of time. IPCC reports peer reviewed twice, and chapter authors are required to respond to all comments, and to justify their responses. …
Group on Earth Observations plans carbon monitoring system at 1 km resolution
I am sitting in a presentation from the Group on Earth Observations. The presenter has just described a carbon cycle monitoring system that would reach a 1 km resolution by 2025 — which would allow direct detection of violations of an eventual carbon treaty. I find this a bit difficult to imagine, but I'm willing …
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50,000 Demonstrators Expected for Today’s Protest March in Copenhagen
“I would rather see no deal at all than a watered-down version that doesn’t help anyone,” fellow U of M delegate Ahmed Tawfik told Keith Schneider of Circle of Blue and Climate Action Network. Ahmed isn’t alone. Only half way through the conference, already many people are beginning to fear that the bureaucratic powers-at-be won’t …
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"Climategate" — not: IPCC press briefing today at noon
Today at noon the IPCC will hold a press briefing that will attempt a pre-emptive strike against last week's calls from 28 US Senators for an "investigation" into the leaked CRU emails. Whoever did it, the email leak appears to have been calculated to provoke exactly this kind of response, much as the furor over …
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Financing the beast
It's my first full day at the COP after arriving here on a 13 hour journey yesterday. Although a little jet-lagged and sleep deprived, I've started to get into the swing of things here. The conversations range from the fascinating to the frustrating, but the sheer level of energy is electrifying! The first session I …
COP 15: Starting at Development and Climate Days
Today, I attended the first of four “Development and Climate Days” at COP 15. Formerly the “Development and Adaptation Days”, the name has been changed to reflect a growing appreciation for the connection between mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions and adaptation to inevitable environmental changes in the developing world. The Days feature panel discussions and …
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Biodiesel
Back when gas prices peaked many people began to talk about the possibility of using biodiesel as a form of fuel. At the COP15 conference there has been many mentions of biodiesel as a part of the renewable energy solution for the 21st century. Being interested in biology and chemistry the idea of powering some …
Geoengineering – it is an option?
Today and yesterday there have been a number of side events that have discussed, in some way or another, the prospects of geoengineering in the future. A portion of these talks have focused on the geoengineering options that are currently thought to be viable in the future, including carbon dioxide removal (artificial trees), solar radiation …
Hopelesshagen?
This is a conference regarding solutions to the global issue of carbon consumption and pollution but there are as many issues discussed as people here! Every organization has an agenda and associated opinions in hopes of influencing those who do not believe the same and securing support from those who do share beliefs. I have …
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