Climate Conversations

An idea that found fertile soil at Mont Perelin in Switzerland 75 years ago frustrates decision-makers at COP28 in Dubai; " COP28 talks on the cusp of failure with bitter divide over the future of fossil fuels "; " This is what the Arctic’s record-hot summer looked like "; " Climate Commission report makes for awkward reading "; " Climate summit pushback over fos...

Exxon-Mobil was about to acknowledge and celebrate one of its own when " Climate Defiance " protestors ruined the party. COP28 features on " 7:30 Report "; " Jasper to unleash 140km/h winds, dump life-threatening rain "; " ‘I’ll just eat on the way’: A climate activist’s 18-hour sprint through COP28 "; " Refugees use plants to fight malaria & climat...

Rosanna Xia, an environmental reported with the LA Times, was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2020 for an explanatory piece on sea level rise ("The California coast is disappearing under the rising sea) and now she has published the book: " California Against the Sea: Visions for Our Changing Coastline ". Ms Xia is interviewed here by Wade Crowfoot in the Secretary's Speaker Series...

COP28 president, Sultan al Jaber calls for compromise - " COP28: Division on phasing out fossil fuels "; " Heat: Life and Death on a Scorched Planet "; "T he Rise and Rollout of AOC’s Green New Deal " - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (pictured); " Humans have ‘large, negative impact on wildlife,’ researchers find "; " Banning fossil fuels is now a make-or-bre...

The value and worth of COP28 will be determined as to whether or not, attendees can decide on the necessity, and urgency of phasing out fossil fuels. And it was in January this year that the BBC wondered about the appointment of Sultan El Jaber as president of the Dubai event - " COP28: Why has an oil boss been chosen to head climate summit? "; " The disagreement between two climate...

Assistant Professor David Keith (pictured at the Melbourne Energy Institute's Symposium23 on Friday, December 8, mounted a convincing argument about why public transport will never replace, totally, the privately owned motor car. His argument overlooked, I would argue, the fact that the modern mind had been colonized by the individualism promoted and encouraged by capitalistic and neoliberal t...

Andrew Forrest cuts loose - " Andrew Forrest calls for fossil fuel bosses' 'heads on spikes' in extraordinary outburst on sidelines of UN COP28 climate conference "; " How climate disruption turns strategic priorities upside down "; " Secretary Speaker Series - Rosanna Xia "; " Why we need to fight for the “community” in community batteries "; &q...

America's Presidential Climate Envoy, John Kerry (pictured), remains positive about success at COP28 - " John Kerry responds to COP28 president’s claim there’s ‘no science’ behind fossil fuel phase-out "; " Could Australia agree to phasing out fossil fuels? "; " Oil CEO says blaming the energy industry for the climate crisis ‘like blaming farmers for obesity’ "; &...

Former Irish PM, Mary Robinson (pictured), finds herself amid a COP28 furore - " Sultan heading Cop28 climate summit dismisses fossil fuel science in shocking rant at Mary Robinson "; " Cop28 president says there is ‘no science’ behind demands for phase-out of fossil fuels "; " COP28 puts spotlight on state oil giants "; " The world's largest climate conferen...

Australia's Assistant Minister for Health and Aged Care, Ged Kearney, was in Dubai at COP28 to launch Australia's first National Health and Climate Strategy. Underlining the importance of the event was the fact that this was the first time in the history of the COPs that a day had been dedicated to climate and health. And that, of course, didn't go unnoticed by the Professor from the S...

Climate Scientist, Peter Kalmus (pictured) suggests we should be "afraid and angry" - " The Climate Summit Is a Sick Joke. You Should Be Angry and Afraid "; " Australia backs COP28 renewables push as King urges end to climate ‘experiment’ "; " ‘Inheriting a broken planet:’ The twenty-somethings headed for COP28 "; " Farmers race to innovate as climate c...

Climate Summit Approves a New Fund to Help Poor CountriesCOP28 president Sultan al Jaber (pictured) defends his role; " The stark choice facing climate conference: A livable climate or more oil and gas? "; " Extreme weather leaves energy networks vulnerable to ‘hostile actors’, Climate Statement warns "; " ‘Heading towards a very unsafe world’: Vanuatu’s climate change min...

Alexa Stuart (pictured) was key to organizing the People's Blockade of the coal port at Newcastle in New South Wales. For Alexa, the three-day event that successfully halted shipping at the world's biggest coal port was something of a party with music, dancing, and laughter. Yet, it made a serious point about coal and its connection to the world's climate crisis. COP28 has started in t...

Australian Greens Leader, Adam Brandt, attends Newcastle Rising Tide coal protest and dumps on Labor Government - watch on "T he Drum "; " Australian cricket captain Pat Cummins on challenging conventional wisdom "; " Scientists show direct link between polluting companies and wildfires in North America "; " Do wind turbines kill birds? "; " Newcastle P...

Melbourne's David Spratt (pictured), who co-authored the prescient 2008 book, " Climate Code Red ", has questioned the value of the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP) about to begin in the United Arab Emirates. David and a former international oil, gas and coal industry executive, chair of the Australian Coal Association and CEO of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, Ian...

Professor Mark Howden (pictured) from the Australian National University discusses the Australian Government's emissions claims - " Australia inches closer to emissions targe t"; " Global greenhouse gas emissions could fall in 2024 if clean tech trends continue "; " A trade war could kill the climate effort. But it doesn’t have to happen. "; " Taylor Swift’s...

Professor Lesley Hughes has academically moved from ants to the atmosphere as she discusses in this interview - " ‘Hope has to be a strategy’: the scientist who refused to let the climate warmongers win "; Sultan Al Jaber (pictured) - " COP28 president 'cautiously optimistic' on success of key climate conference "; " UN Climate Change Conference - United Arab Emira...

Nathan Thanki (pictured) from the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty was one of three guests at the recent online event organized by the War on Want entitled: " COP28 and the fight for climate justice ". " ‘The antidote to despair is action’: Lesley Hughes on motivation through a climate crisis "; " The Wararack is a coalition formed to regenerate Mount Alexander Shire &...

Alexa Stuart (pictured) is an organizer with the Newcastle-based " Rising Tide " and so is presently busy beyond belief setting up the "people's blockade" - an act of civil disobedience in which the group and its supporters plan to disrupt (stop) the arrival and departure of coal ships from the Newcastle harbour, the largest coal port in the world, for 30 hours. What's...

The executive director of the War on Want , Asad Rehman (pictured), hosted an online event -"COP28 and the fight for climate justice". Asad's three guests were impressive, but his summing up of the climate crisis, what we need to do and how we should behave is worth a listen. He's a thoughtful man. One of the guests discussed the UK's " Climate Justice Coalition" ,...

Listen as a retired Australian climate scientist, Graeme Pearman (pictured) , wonders about where he went wrong - " ‘Where did I go wrong?’ The scientist who tried to raise the climate alarm "; " How to Talk About Climate Change at Thanksgiving Dinner "; " Billionaires are out of touch and much too powerful. The planet is in trouble "; " Richest 1% account for mo...

Nirvana Talukder (pictured) was just 12 years old when she first went to the streets to protest about the climate crisis - now she's a leader: " Ditching school to save the planet "; " Earth passed a feared global warming milestone Friday, at least briefly "; " Research shows subsidies and discounts for two-wheeled EVs can drive active transport "; " French g...

Bill McKibben, probably the world's pre-eminent climate activist, was a recent guest on a Canary Media webinar: " How LNG exports threaten our clean energy future "; " After-school meetings, recycled signs: School climate strike returns to Melbourne "; " Horse Trading: Senate stoush less about Penny Wong’s Sea Dumping bill than Matt Canavan’s renewables inquiry ";...

Dr Jan Kabátek (pictured) from the Melbourne Institute at the University of Melbourne happily climbs on his soapbox to talk about how we could enjoy massive, and important energy savings by making just the smallest of changes to computer systems. Dr Kabátek was among the guests at the recent 2023 Economic and Social Outlook Conference held at Melbourne's Crown Casino. You can learn more about...

Barbara Albert (pictured) explained to Shepparton business people what they needed to do to set their enterprises up to survive and thrive in a climate-changed world. The co-CEO of ⁠100% Renewables⁠ talked about the challenges and the simple steps people needed to take to stay abreast of this new and quickly unfolding world. Being a business enthusiast, she talked about the wonderful opportunities...