We cannot claim that we didn't know

Change can happen! We can no longer claim that we didn’t know we were going to have such an impact on the environment. We must keep our eye on the ball, and focus on developing widespread awareness about the impact we (humans) are having on the environment! The USA needs to take its responsibility for its emissions by leading the way in the global community and commit to action in Copenhagen in December. It is our responsibility as citizens to speak up and tell our government that we must make the first significant step to have the greatest effect in this global human rights issue. This needs to be non-partisan. Copenhagen will be a defining moment. It is our responsibility as a generation to change our patterns of consumption and look more broadly at the challenges human kind will face for the sake of our children and children around the world!

October 24th and Climate Action Day

I pause to reflect on the significance of this day... Evidence of our impact on our environment can be found everywhere. It is estimated that 30% of today’s emissions will be in the atmosphere in 2100. The CO2 concentration in our atmosphere is currently 387 ppm and we need to reduce this concentration to 350 ppm in order for our planet to sustain itself. (CO2 concentrations exceeded 350 ppm 19 years ago). It will take a considerable amount of time to reverse the impacts we have already put upon out planet! Our world population which was 6 billion in 1999 is expected to see a 50% increase by 2040. We need to share the earth’s resources equitably and the United States needs to take the lead in climate talks in Copenhagen in December because we are largely responsible for the condition of our environment. Join the world on the 24th and participate in Climate Action Day wherever you are. (In Salt Lake City, come to Library Square between 2-5pm). Help us show the world our commitment to our collective environmental health. There are no political boundaries in this context. We must show the world and ourselves how critical it is to act now. This is the defining moment for our generation and we must believe in the strength of individual participation. Get out there and show your support for such an incredible critical issue. Pass it on. See you there!

Looking at Climate in a Fair and Equitable Way

"Key Points on Climate Justice" is a working paper presented by the Global Humanitarian Forum. Although the entire world population influences the issues surrounding climate change, developed countries have more of a responsibility to take action because we are responsible for a significant amount of the consumption of our natural resources, and need to be held accountable for the pollution we cause. We can no longer take our lifestyles for granted knowing now more than ever before that how we have behaved and how we will behave will significantly impact the entire planet for generations to come. We have this great opportunity to step up in the global community and make changes in a fair and equitable way, with significant environmental consequences if we don’t.

Will it really matter if developed countries look only at their own interests and economics if we let the health of our planet deteriorate to the point of catastrophic climate change? Knowing what we know now, does it sit well that the effects of our actions will most definitely impact innocent people throughout less developed countries the most? It is critical to act now: greater delay leads to greater consequences.

“While every individual should enjoy the fulfillment of their inalienable rights, they also have a certain obligation to ensure the same is true for others…”

I encourage you to read the entire paper: Key Points on Climate Justice

Setting laws to combat Climate Change

As the prospect of congress being capable of passing global warming and energy legislation this year has appeared to be dwindling, the E.P.A. announced that is working towards new rules that will regulate greenhouse gas emissions on power plants and large industrial facilities and these regulations could take effect as early as 2011. Hopefully this can spur on the passage of a climate bill this year.

President Obama has authorized the E.P.A. develop these proposed rules which would impact large power plants the most by requiring them to prove that they have utilized the best available technology to reduce emissions or face penalties. These facilities are responsible for nearly 70 percent of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. This action to combat climate change is a step in the right direction for the United States leading up to the United Nation talks in Copenhagen in December, intended to creating an effective international agreement to address climate change; even if it is accomplished by creating rules instead of through the legislative process.

It is a known fact that our CO2 emissions will have an impact for a long time to come. The efforts we make today to reduce emissions will have a lag time of between 70-100 years to see the results. With that in mind, rules must be seen as part of the solution, but we must not stop there. We as a country have a moral responsibility to step up and lead by example and leave our political divisions behind.