I think this post might signal the birth of a new all-consuming blogging obsession -- climate change in general and specifically how the realities of climate change play out in the Canadian context, especially as it relates to public policy.
With the COP21 climate talks coming up in Paris, this seems like as good a time as any to focus more carefully and closely on what is probably the most defining issue of our times.
Not that this is the first time I've blogged about climate change. I've kept track of the issues fairly closely over the years and that has spilled into the blog, mostly in the form of the occasional book review such as:
- Love in the Time of Climate Change by Brian Adams
- The Cartoon Guide to Climate Change by Grady Klein and Yoram Bauman
- Climate Changed: A Personal Journey through the Science by Philippe Squarzoni
- This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs the Climate by Naomi Klein
- Who We Are: Reflections on My Life and Canada by Elizabeth May
- Bold Scientists: Dispatches From The Battle For Honest Science by Michael Riordan
- How to fake a moon landing: Exposing the myths of science denial by Darryl Cunningham
- Keystone XL: Down the Line by Steven Mufson
- Cooler smarter: Practical steps for low carbon living by The Union of Concerned Scientists
- Deep Water: As Polar Ice Melts, Scientists Debate How High Our Oceans Will Rise by Daniel Grossman
- Green Metropolis: Why Living Smaller, Living Closer, and Driving Less Are the Keys to Sustainability by David Owen
- The Story of Stuff: How Our Obsession with Stuff Is Trashing the Planet, Our Communities, and Our Health-and a Vision for Change by Annie Leonard
- Why Your World Is About to Get a Whole Lot Smaller: Oil and the End of Globalization by Jeff Rubin
- Raising Steaks: The Life and Times of American Beef by Betty Fussell
- Food Matters: A Guide to Conscious Eating with More Than 75 Recipes by Mark Bittman
And even a post on Climate Change Fiction, which has turned out to be one of my most popular ever. Not to mention that items on climate change have turned up in my Around the Web posts a number of times such as here and here.
And of course, one of the driving forces for my Canadian War on Science mega-obsession series of posts was the Harper government's shameful record on climate change.
Needless to say, my purpose here isn't to cheer on the Trudeau government in whatever it decides to do, though obviously they will very likely do better than the previous government. Holding them to account to failures and bad decisions and perhaps pointing the way to better policies is just as much my mission here.
So here goes. A fairly selective series of readings about climate change, Canada and COP21. With more to come.
- 2014.03.05. Pentagon Calls Climate Change Impacts "Threat Multipliers," Could Enable Terrorism
- 2014.03.05. Water, Drought, Climate Change, and Conflict in Syria
- 2014.10.14. Pentagon Report: U.S. Military Considers Climate Change a 'Threat Multiplier' That Could Exacerbate Terrorism
- 2014.10.21. Harper Named World's 'Worst Climate Villain' After Damning Report
- 2015.01.07. Climate change study says most of Canada's oil reserves should be left underground
- 2015.01.07. Why leaving fossil fuels in the ground is good for everyone
- 2015.01.07. Leave fossil fuels buried to prevent climate change, study urges
- 2015.01.07. Oil sands must remain largely unexploited to meet climate target, study finds
- 2015.01.07. How Much Fuel We Need To Leave Buried To Beat Climate Change
- 2015.01.07. Where in the World Are the Fossil Fuels That Cannot Be Burned to Restrain Global Warming?
- 2015.01.08. The geographical distribution of fossil fuels unused when limiting global warming to 2 °C
- 2015.01.19. Looking ahead to the COP 21 climate summit in Paris
- 2015.02.09. Canada is going to the polls, you won’t believe what this might mean for climate change
- 2015.03.02. Climate Change Helped Spark Syrian War, Study Says
- 2015.03.31. Canada Will Miss Its Climate Target And We’ll All Miss Out
- 2015.06.xx. Is a Lack of Water to Blame for the Conflict in Syria?
- 2015.06.10. Pope’s call for action on climate change has shifted US views
- 2015.06.18. The 5 Most Important Points of Pope Francis’s Climate Change Encyclical
- 2015.06.18. Pope Francis Urges Climate-Change Action in Encyclical
- 2015.06.21. Exegesis of Pope Francis’s encyclical call for action on climate change
- 2015.07.08. UN Security Council Meeting on Climate Change as a Threat Multiplier for Global Security
- 2015.08.07. Linda McQuaig says oilsands 'may have to be left in the ground'
- 2015.08.09. Linda McQuaig is right: Leave the oil in the soil
- 2015.08.09. NDP candidate Linda McQuaig's comment on oilsands stirs up hornet's nest
- 2015.08.09. NDP candidate under fire for saying ‘oilsands oil may have to stay in the ground’ to meet climate change targets
- 2015.08.11. Harper and Trudeau attack NDP candidate McQuaig for stating a scientific fact
- 2015.08.12. Most tar sands oil will stay in the ground, and Harper knows it
- 2015.08.12. On Linda McQuaig's comments, Carbon budgets, and keeping oil sands “in the ground”
- 2015.08.21. Boreal forest being driven to tipping point by climate change, study finds
- 2015.08.24. Yes, some oil will have to stay in the ground
- 2015.08.25. Pentagon Issues Scary Climate Security Report, as Russia Lays Claim to Vast Arctic Territory
- 2015.09.07. How Climate Change is Behind the Surge of Migrants to Europe
- 2015.09.15. [Leap] Manifesto backed by prominent NDP supporters released ahead of election
- 2015.09.17. The Leap Manifesto isn't radical. It's a way out of Canada's head-in-the-sand politics
- 2015.09.23. As a scientist, is the pope dodging the biggest contributor to climate change?
- 2015.09.24. Pope's climate push is 'raving nonsense' without population control, says top US scientist
- 2015.09.27. Is David Keith’s climate solution genius or madness?
- 2015.09.29. Climate Justice Movement Highlights Women as 'Key' to Climate Solutions
- 2015.10.06. The Canadian Election and the Global Climate Crisis
- 2015.10.12. NATO: Climate Change Poses Significant Threat Multipliers
- 2015.10.13. Einstein easier to understand than IPCC's climate-change language, study says
- 2015.10.26. Extreme heatwaves could push Gulf climate beyond human endurance, study shows
- 2015.10.27. No, Climate Change Won’t Make the Persian Gulf “Uninhabitable”
- 2015.11.xx. Canada’s Role at COP21
- 2015.11.02. Oil and Gas Industry Publicly Supports Climate Action While Secretly Subverting Process, New Analysis Shows
- 2015.11.04. Canada Now Has a Minister of Environment AND Climate Change
- 2015.11.04. Hillary Clinton: Climate change has contributed to refugee crises, including Syria
- 2015.11.05. Canada's New Climate Change Minister 'Excited' To Tackle Emissions. Is this For Real?!
- 2015.11.05. Middle East may be uninhabitable this century due to deadly heat, study finds
- 2015.11.08. Persian Gulf temperatures may be at the edge of human tolerance in 30 years
- 2015.11.10. Trudeau government continues to refuse to commit to climate action specifics
- 2015.11.10. Fossil Fuel Industry’s Bad Behaviour in Spotlight During Run-up to Paris Climate Negotiations
- 2015.11.12. Entire Liberal cabinet responsible for climate-change agenda: Dion
- 2015.11.12. Meet the Climate Scientists Travelling by Bike and Foot from the Poles to Paris
- 2015.11.13. Minister of Environment and Climate Change Ministerial Mandate Letter
- 2015.11.15. Why Climate Change and Terrorism Are Connected
- 2015.11.19. Canada has consistently failed to deliver, but it’s not too late for us to make a major contribution at the climate summit in Paris.
- 2015.11.20. The First Thing Canada Can Do in Paris is Admit Why UN Climate Talks Have Failed for Two Decades
- 2015.11.22. Alberta’s Climate Plan: Game Changed
- 2015.11.22. Alberta's climate change strategy targets carbon, coal, emissions
- 2015.11.22. Reaction to Alberta’s ‘ambitious’ climate change plan
- 2015.11.23. COP21: What is Canada’s role?
- 2015.11.23. What Prince Charles gets wrong – and right – about climate change and conflict in Syria
- 2015.11.23. Unlikely source bolsters Canada's pledge for climate action
- 2015.11.24. ‘It’s a New Day’: Why Environmentalists Need to Change Their Strategy Under Trudeau Government
- 2015.11.24. Canada’s message at COP21
- 2015.11.26. Is the Paris climate conference part of the solution or part of the problem?
- 2015.11.26. Pope Francis Warns Against Special Interests Derailing Climate Talks
- 2015.11.26. Pope, in Africa, says failure of climate summit would be catastrophic
- 2015.11.26. Canada can help make the Paris climate agreement a strong one
- 2015.11.27. Energy and environmental economist on Alberta’s new climate strategy
- 2015.11.27. Alberta’s carbon tax plan ‘one more reason why the Western Canadian oilfield is going to slowly die’
- 2015.11.27. Canadians back bold climate-change action, poll finds
- 2015.11.27. Canada backs U.S., saying carbon-reduction targets shouldn't be legally binding
- 2015.11.28. Justin Trudeau optimistic heading into Paris climate change talks
- 2015.11.28. COP21: Pope's adviser urges Catholics to join climate marches
- 2015.11.28. Alberta’s new carbon direction is just, and just in time
- 2015.11.28. Three pillars of a sustainable Canadian energy infrastructure
- 2015.11.28. Trudeau to press India on climate change in Paris
- 2015.11.28. It's adapt or die for Canada's energy sector
- 2015.11.28. Canada should re-ratify Kyoto, says Elizabeth May
- 2015.11.28. Rachel Notley will sell a 'different' Alberta at climate change talks
- 2015.11.28. Premier prepared to show world a different Alberta at Paris climate change conference
- 2015.11.29. Climate change a low priority for most Canadians: Ipsos poll
- 2015.11.29. Pope Talks to Africa About Poverty, Climate, Greed
- 2015.11.29. Is climate change really to blame for Syria’s civil war?
- 2015.11.29. How Canada can move beyond empty promises in Paris
As usual, if I've made any errors of if I'm missing anything significant, please let me know in the comments.
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Could you explain to me the term 'global warming potential'?
In the context of co2 specifically.
Like in complete the sentence "Co2 has x amount of global warming potential."
I'm looking for the definition of x quantitatively and qualitatively.
Thank you in advance.