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Climate Down in Durban

Alex Smith | 12.12.2011 09:45 | Climate Chaos | Ecology | Sheffield

Spineless politicians have sold out our grand kids future at Durban. Hear Prufal Badwai, Indian analyst on why failure was a better option than the window-dressing we got at the UN COP17 Climate conference. A few clips of new James Hansen at the AGU 2011 in San Francisco. Good call on Durban empty promises by Janet Redman of Institute for Policy Studies. Ends with more carbon science interview with Dr. Michael Raupach, CISRO Australia (the national science agency) re increases in emissions and the path we're on. Radio Ecoshock 111214

Ecoshock 111214 Durban - mp3 14M


Diplomats from all over the world are returning home after a hard-won agreement in Durban, South Africa.

They agreed to do nothing to save our climate from disaster.

Our governments will talk until 2015, and then maybe do something serious about greenhouse gas emissions in 2020. By then, as Radio Ecoshock listeners know, we will be committed to at least 3 and a half degrees Centigrade hotter world in 2100, than our ancestors knew in 1750. It will only get hotter after that.

We're going to hear four reports.

From India, journalist, author and political analyst Praful Bidwai tells Stephen Leahy of IPS - a failure in Durban would be better than what we got. We go outside the spin of Western media. Support independent environment journalism at stephenleahy.net

Then to San Francisco, to hear NASA's Dr. James Hansen at the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union. He describes our unique and dangerous path.

Back to South Africa, where Janet Redman has survived the gruelling Durban conference sessions, to give us the wrap up. What did and didn't happen, along with the American role. Redman is with the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington D.C. She explains the role of the EU, the U.S., Canada, and China at the conference.

We finish up with an interview with Dr. Michael Raupach from Australia's National Science Agency. He's part of the Global Carbon Project which just published the bad news about our "monstrous" increase in emissions.

New science, predictions of doom, and a world in paralysis - it's another Radio Ecoshock show.

Alex Smith
- Homepage: http://www.ecoshock.org