Good afternoon from Copenhagen
For those lucky enough to still have valid badges in Copenhagen, they're being treated to a front row seat of a look at frustration, futility, and overall confusion as the UN Climate Change conference winds down. And though good or bad, the next few days are going to make it all worth the price of admission.
A lot of big names made news the last few days with the biggest name of all set to take part in the talks on Friday. That's when President Obama will touch down in Copenhagen, bringing his message of hope and optimism to an arena that has already heard the fat lady sing her main set and two encores.
But nevertheless, the next few days will set the tone for what's next. We've already heard Al Gore call for an overtime period in the form of a summit in July - to finish a climate treaty. And no matter how many activists walk away from Copenhagen or turn off their COP 15 Twitter feed in anger and frustration, we hope everyone remembers that the energy put forth the last few weeks is energy that will be needed to be channeled very soon to set the stage for the next fight. With that, here are a few things of note from the last few days.
As mentioned earlier, delegate from Friends of the Earth International were turned away at the Bella Center on Tuesday having been told their badges were no longer valid. As you can imagine, this caused quite a raucous - check out the video HERE.
For some good news from Copenhagen, The New York Times reports that, "negotiators have all but completed a sweeping deal that would compensate countries for preserving forests, and in some cases, other natural landscapes like peat soils, swamps and fields that play a crucial role in curbing climate change." If this gets signed, which it is expected to, it could be the most significant achievement of the Copenhagen talks. Though not ideal because of the use of carbon credits that richer countries will be able to use to cancel out emissions, it's a significant agreement that will help preserve means to absorb carbon from the atmosphere. Read more HERE.
We briefly mentioned some of the big names that have been speaking, and it's worth pointing out that the London press is hardly impressed with arguably one of the biggest names of all. Running a very unflattering photo and the headline, "Inconvenient truth for Al Gore as his North Pole sums don't add up," the London Times criticized The Goracle for a gaffe he made in one of his speeches in Copenhagen. In a speech, Gore mentioned that there was a 75 percent chance that the entire north polar ice cap could be completely ice-free within five to seven years - a headline that made the rounds on Tuesday. However, the scientist who he was quoting said, “It’s unclear to me how this figure was arrived at." Facts are facts and this one appears to be wrong, but what's interesting is the way the foreign press seems to interpret Gore by almost discrediting his lifelong devotion to environmental justice and insinuating his "climate change fame" is due only to his narrating of "An Inconvenient Truth." Read the Times' piece HERE.
Interesting to note that Gov. Chris Gregoire traveled to Copenhagen for her commendable work on climate change. Luckily for us, she sat down with Grist for a brief interview.
Grist: The climate conversation has been so focused on the economic pain that it’s going to cause to people. Who’s responsible for changing that message?
Gregoire: Well over $3 billion—a large portion of our health care costs—are directly attributable to air quality and climate change related issues. We’ve had natural disasters [as a result of global warming], and the human costs and the financial costs to clean up after those national disasters have been huge. So when people say how much is it going to cost to change, I say, “How much is it going to cost to fail to change?”
There is no question in my mind, cost-benefit analysis, the failure to change will cost us far more, not just in economics, but in human lives and the tragedies that we’re seeing in these national disasters. So, again, it’s time to step up and do the right thing. Full interview HERE.
Spin Control mentioned she was oblivious to the protests which Americans have become accustomed to seeing via sensationalized media coverage. Even activists on the front lines have described it as a police state with violent outbursts. “It’s sad that’s the representations we’re left with. I have not seen any of the disruptions,” Gregoire said in a telephone press conference. Full post from Jim Camden HERE.
