Funny but Sad Truth about Climate Change Denial

There is a 97% consensus from scientists worldwide that anthropogenic climate change is happening. 

David Mitchell humorously highlights the difference between normal people and climate change deniers. Yet why then do climate change deniers still have power? Their arguments are based on misrepresentation, unfounded theories and disproportionate media coverage. They should have been laughed at and forgotten, yet they haven't. And what is so wrong with fighting for a better, greener world anyway?

Dana Nuccitelli argues that conservative media coverage is to blame: Fox News found to be a major driving force behind global warming denial

I'd love to know your thoughts on the issue.

A Victim of Climate Change

A heart-breaking image to see. A beautiful noble creature broken due to the affects of climate change.

We are responsible for this harrowing image. It's our responsibility to try to prevent it from happening again ...and again.

From The Guardian:

Dr Ian Stirling, now at Polar Bears International, said the bear had been in apparently good health when it was examined by scientists in April in southern Svalbard. It was found dead three months later in northern Svalbard, far from its normal range. Stirling said most of the fjords in Svalbard did not freeze normally last winter, driving the bear further afield in the hunt for food. From his lying position in death, Stirling said, the bear appears to simply have starved and died where he dropped, having been reduced to little more than skin and bone. Arctic sea ice fell to its lowest recorded level in 2012, which scientists say is due to global warming.

You can help the rainforests and orang-utans this Easter

Palm oil has become the most used vegetable oil globally. It is used in a wide range of products, from use in cooking to chocolate and shampoo. It is easy and cheap to grow and therefore has become a major source of income for companies in countries such as Indonesia. As a result even more rainforest is being cut down, not only is this contributing to global warming, it's destroying the homes of many endangered species. Once rainforest is cut down, it cannot be replaced so these animals are losing their homes forever, ultimately resulting in extinction. No amount of palm oil should be able to justify this.

Sir Terry Pratchett presents the plight of the noble orang-utan, due to palm oil and rainforest destruction, in the very moving and enlightening programme Facing Extinction. I highly recommend you watch it. It has motivated me to do something, so I hope it can motivate you too.

When buying chocolate this Easter, and in the future, consider buying chocolate that hasn't been made with palm oil. If the demand for palm oil isn't there further rainforest will not be cut down to make room for palm trees. The list below outlines chocolate that does contain palm oil. Go here for a list of palm oil free chocolate.

Let's work together to protect the rainforests to combat climate change and protect the beautiful orang-utan.

We are killing nature...It is time we stopped

If you only do one meaningful thing today, make sure it is to watch this video. Everyone should watch this. It is heartbreaking but it truly shows the horrors we have brought to this world, the damage and pain we are causing but cannot see. We cannot continue to be this blind....

(Watch on full screen because I can't get it to fit the page)



If this cannot make us open our eyes, then nothing will. It is time to change.

Vote for Nature ... Help Farmers to Protect Wildlife

The European Union has to decide every seven years what to spend its money on.  A large part of this budget goes towards agriculture. This is a key area for promoting sustainability and protecting biodiversity. However, only a very small amount ends up contributing to nature friendly farming methods that will help the countryside to remain full of wildlife. One of my greatest joys in life is horse riding through the country, surrounded by animals of all kinds. To think that these animals may be harmed or killed due to a lack of funding and understanding from farmers, many of which are keen to protect wildlife, is upsetting. These animals have a right to life in the countryside and a right to food and habitats as much as we do so we should be helping to protect them. This funding is also one of the few sources that protects nature conservation sites in the UK.

Due to the current economic climate securing funding is a challenge. The RSPB are fighting to save the funds that support farmers who work to make space for nature as well as food production. We have to work together with nature as, after all, we are part of it ourselves. Help the RSPB by signing the petition to tell David Cameron to fight for nature.





If we don't work to protect nature then who will?

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What's so wrong with fighting for a better, greener world?

Another picture post to get you thinking :)

Consumerism isn't making us any happier so why do we do it, especially when it's so harmful?

Just because we can't see the damage we're doing, doesn't mean it isn't there

The issue with trying to 'fix' environmental problems with technology

Why it is important to have a mult-disciplinary approach, particularly with regards to the environment.

This is what I don't understand about climate change deniers

Is the environment a national security issue? Surely fighting for clean energy and sustainability  makes more sense than fighting each other over fossil fuels?

I just find this one amusing!

So what do YOU think about these?

Land Grabs ... A Poverty and Environmental Issue

How would you feel if a foreign company claimed your home, your land and your livelihood as theirs and then sold it off? You would not be able to do anything about it or have any say. Your rights count for nothing, you are not even seen to have rights. No home, no money, no source of food and likely to have a large family depending on you, what would you do? This happens to thousands of people everyday, in third world countries, it needs to be stopped.

Oxfam are campaigning against Land Grabbing and I have been involved in this campaign with my local Falmouth Oxfam group. Oxfam have been claiming land and well known landmarks across the UK to raise awareness and encourage everyone to help their battle against land grabbing.

Our 'Sand Grab' at Gyllyngvase Beach in Falmouth

Governments, food exporters, tourism providers, Wall Street speculators and many more have seized land of all kinds and sizes for various resources in many poor countries including Honduras, Indonesia, Liberia and Sudan. Most of the investors are using this stolen land to export food back to rich countries. Others have used it to reach biofuel targets in the developed world. These companies are making the hunger and poverty issues we are already struggling to deal with much worse.

Land grabbing could also be a huge environmental problem. These large companies, as well as some of them using the land for mining and likely deforestation, are using the land to grow crops to export. But this is in a very unsustainable way, using large areas to grow just one crop with the use of pesticides and fertilisers. As a result in these harsh delicate environments, within a few years the land is ruined and no longer usable. Then these companies, no doubt, will seek to steal more farm land that is yet to be ruined, therefore, continuing the land grab process. It has been suggested that farming in this way is contributing to climate change and that the farming on small areas of land done by local people is sustainable and actually able to work against climate change. Vandana Shiva, Indian environmentalist and writer, discusses this in the video below. Definitely worth a watch and I agree with Shiva's suggestions. This video is actually focusing on geo-engineering, however, it considers similar issues to that of land grabbing and unsustainable farming by large foreign companies, especially in India.

 

The World Bank has begun to listen to Oxfam, however, we still need more support to bring it to an end.

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