It’s hard to believe the US Presidential Debate between Harris and Trump was only on Tuesday, because it feels like weeks have passed since then. However, are you also wondering why climate change is barely mentioned in any meaningful way in either political campaign? Especially as 99% of Americans have experienced an extreme weather event this year. I mean, surely, it’s time to put it front and centre? Apparently not.
A couple of good articles on this topic
The Next President Will Be a Climate-Disaster President – The Atlantic
Everyone’s heads are in the sand – by Emily Atkin – HEATED
Because, you know, things are getting real….
The farmers in the UK are telling us Climate-induced food shortages could cause civil unrest – Farmers Weekly.
In China, people can’t afford vegetables due to widespread agricultural loss because of extreme weather events. However, another issue not getting any attention is MANY countries rely on Chinese food imports and have not prioritized farmers in their own countries (the Philippines is an example) so China experiencing food shortages is a major global risk – Produce prices soar after extreme weather puts staple crops at major risk: ‘People can hardly afford it’ (thecooldown.com).
Here’s another beauty – there is not enough research being done to understand what climate impacts, (you know, like higher temperatures,) will mean for our ability to survive. Yes, you read that right, we haven’t really looked into that side of things… I’m thinking it should be a bit of a priority, no? Check this out Climate change: potential to end humanity ‘dangerously underexplored’ say experts (cam.ac.uk).
Or from George Monbiot, the green spin is out of control, but guess what? We’re not seeing any outcomes from the investments and that means we are wasting A LOT of time – Out of 1,500 global climate policies, only 63 have really worked. That’s where green spin has got us | George Monbiot | The Guardian
And if Trump gets in, this is what it means, not just for the US, but for the world – Project 2025: The right-wing conspiracy to torpedo global climate action – Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
Some other “highlights” from the US Presidential Debate
John McEntee, who is a former director of White House personnel from the Trump Administration, and a key member of the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 team, has gone viral when he asked the question – “Can someone track down the women Kamala Harris says are bleeding out in parking lots because Roe v. Wade was overturned?” he asks. “Don’t hold your breath.”
The ladies responded, and honestly, how can this go on? It’s barbaric! Project 2025 Staffer’s Viral Video on Abortion Massively Backfires – MeidasTouch News.
The other big viral sensation was, of course, about Haitians eating pets, and while there is a lot of mockery and humour being shared on this, it is also devastating for the Haitian community. And do you know how this started? Here you go, it was a friend of a friend of a friend story. It can’t be verified by anyone, but the man wanting to become President of the United States again is not stopping. Shameful.
I’m with Pete Buttigieg though – this is a Trump strategy. By amplifying the pet-eating conspiracy theory, he’s keeping everyone distracted from what’s really going on.
Let’s get focused on some other areas of the world having a really bad time. Central Europe is facing down the barrel of a catastrophic flooding event, and Typhoon Yagi is still causing massive destruction, this time in Myanmar, and my beloved Thailand.
Across in Africa, in Nigeria, another dam has collapsed, with a million people forced from their homes. The death toll here and in Asia, will only continue to grow.
Some businesses doing good include Patagonia committing to tree-free packaging in an effort to protect forests (nice job and please remember, all packaging, even paper bags are NOT good, with 3.1 billion trees logged every year for packaging), while LEGO is committed to plastic free bricks and its not there yet, but it’s making progress. A business not doing good is Amazon – check out its emissions growth.
A final addition to this section of The Weekend Reads – I am really loving MSNBC’s Lawrence O’Donnell (and trust me, I don’t like US TV networks. Too blingy and flashy for me.) But he’s really calling out the media, and everything else that’s bonkers in the US right now. Check in on him sometimes.
Favorite visual this week
Harsh but fair?
Friend’s content and my own
I published a blog called Seven years to think about the polycrisis, some conclusions – The Digital Conversationalist, because I wanted to capture all I’ve learned about the polycrisis and the conclusions I’ve come to, after spending seven years looking it in the eye. This is a long read, but I hope the urgency of our predicament comes across, as well as the scale of solutions required. Let me know what you think if you read it?
And Climate Courage is back, with David, Richard and I delving into the importance of acceptance, along with our stories of how we got there, and some tips to help anyone ready to get stuck in. We also discussed the reasons why climate change is absent in the political discussion.
Dig into the news
Plenty more to read, listen to or watch, so do click through to the reads at the image below, and a reminder, this platform (elink.io) means the articles go back weeks, so have a scan and read/watch/listen to whatever jumps out at you.
Let me know what caught your attention? Or share with me what has your attention now? There’s a lot going on, which means none of us can cover everything. Besides, it’s always great to get feedback so I know I’m delivering something of value.
Cheers
Andrea
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