Capitalist growth and social change — a WW commentary
Deirdre Griswold | workers.org | 2019-12-18
Growth. Atlanta climate crisis protest, Sept. 27. Every day, the price of stocks on Wall Street go up and down depending on the growth of the economy. Growth of mineral extraction, growth of agriculture, growth of manufacturing and especially growth of sales and growth of capital. When growth slows down, . . . | Continue reading Capitalist growth and social change — a WW commentary at Workers.org…
workers.org/2019/12/44941/

Banning Fracking, Five Years Later: New York, Maryland and the Nation?
commondreams.org | 2019-12-17
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commondreams.org/newswire/2019/12/17/banning-fracking-five-years-later-new-york-maryland-and-nation?cd-origin=rss

Huge Climate Victory! Denmark Mandates Global Warming Cure…By Law!
Brett Redmayne-Titley | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-17
Friday, Dec 6, 2019, saw the most important victory to date in the battle against Global Warming. Denmark's "Climate Act" will entirely revamp Denmark's climate policy — by law- and thrust it onto the world's centre stage by showcasing the …
globalresearch.ca/huge-climate-victory-denmark-mandates-global-warming-cure-law/5697730

Democrats' Drilling Bill Insufficient to Meeting Climate Challenge
commondreams.org | 2019-12-17
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commondreams.org/newswire/2019/12/17/democrats-drilling-bill-insufficient-meeting-climate-challenge?cd-origin=rss

COP25 'disappointing' as wealthy nations block several major commitments
Peoples Dispatch | peoplesdispatch.org | 2019-12-17
After exhaustive and grueling negotiations involving nearly 200 nation-states, the 25th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP), held at Madrid, ended up with a deal that has disappointed observers and environmentalists across the globe. The summit, which was supposed to end on Friday was stretched for another two days, as it was hit by several roadblocks, making it the longest ever international negotiation on climate change. The United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has called the conference a "lost opportunity." | As always, poorer Third World nations called on the richer countries to t…
peoplesdispatch.org/2019/12/17/cop25-disappointing-as-wealthy-nations-block-several-major-commitments/

This Is Why the World Is Facing Climate Catastrophe
Ben Ehrenreich | thenation.com | 2019-12-17
This Is Why the World Is Facing Climate Catastrophe…
thenation.com/article/madrid-climate-summit-cop25/

Trump's North America Trade Deal Is Poised to Worsen Climate Change—But Dems Don't Seem To Mind
Rachel M. Cohen | commondreams.org | 2019-12-17
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, Democrat of Massachusetts, speaks about the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, known as the USMCA, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., December 10, 2019. (Photo: SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/pelosi_trade_850_567.jpg …
commondreams.org/views/2019/12/17/trumps-north-america-trade-deal-poised-worsen-climate-change-dems-dont-seem-mind?cd-origin=rss

Northeast States Take Critical Step to Tackling Climate Change, Modernizing Transportation
commondreams.org | 2019-12-17
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commondreams.org/newswire/2019/12/17/northeast-states-take-critical-step-tackling-climate-change-modernizing?cd-origin=rss

Trump's North America Trade Deal Is Poised to Worsen Climate Change
Staff | truthout.org | 2019-12-17
While Congressional Democrats made clear that they would not bring the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) to a vote until it had the backing of the AFL-CIO, support they finally secured last week, Democrats appear comfortable voting on the replacement trade deal that has virtually no support from leading environmental groups. | A House vote could come in the next few days and on…
truthout.org/articles/trumps-north-america-trade-deal-is-poised-to-worsen-climate-change/

Melting Greenland Could Displace 400M People; UN Climate Deal Does Little to Help
Staff | therealnews.com | 2019-12-17
A new study says that Greenland is melting at a pace far faster than previously estimated and could displace 400 million people due to global sea-level rise.
therealnews.com/stories/melting-greenland-could-displace-400m-people-un-climate-deal-does-little-help

Is Growth Passé?
Joseph Stiglitz | commondreams.org | 2019-12-17
There is ample room to change the quality of growth, to reduce its environmental impact significantly. (Photo: via Earth Island Journal) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/economic_growth_root_cause_climate_0.jpg …
commondreams.org/views/2019/12/17/growth-passe?cd-origin=rss

Climate Change Accounting: The Failure of COP25
Binoy Kampmark | counterpunch.org | 2019-12-17
Prior to the UN Convention on Climate Change talks held in Madrid, the sense that tradition would assert itself was hard to buck. Weariness and frustration came in the wake of initial high minded optimism. Delegates spent an extra two days and nights attempting to reach a deal covering carbon reduction measures before the Glasgow…
counterpunch.org/2019/12/17/climate-change-accounting-the-failure-of-cop25/

Troop "Reduction" in Afghanistan!
W.J. Astore | globalresearch.ca | 2019-12-17
Trump was elected president in 2016 partly because he railed against America's wasteful wars. So, what did his advisers talk him into? A mini-surge of troops to Afghanistan. I still recall the odd news of Trump being shown photos of …
globalresearch.ca/troop-reduction-afghanistan/5698025

"The Science is Screaming!"
H. Patricia Hynes | zcomm.org | 2019-12-17
Climate Crisis after Disappointing COP 25…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/the-science-is-screaming-2/

US, Australia, and More Snub Calls for Climate Action at COP25
telesurenglish.net | 2019-12-16
The United Nations climate summit taking place in Madrid concluded Sunday with great disappointment over shortcomings in other areas of the final text approve by negotiators. | RELATED: | 'COP 25 Has Been of No Use' Fridays for Future Movement Says | Representatives signed off on a text asking countries to boost their commitments to reducing greenhouse gases in 2020 but other topics, such as carbon market regulation, went unresolved as the COP25 concluded two days over schedule.
telesurenglish.net/news/US-Australia-and-More-Snub-Calls-for-Climate-Action-at-COP25-20191216-0019.html

Millions Wasted on Charter Schools
Jeff Bryant | progressive.org | 2019-12-16
The Network for Public Education calls the findings in its recent report "nothing short of a national scandal."
progressive.org/op-eds/millions-wasted-on-charter-schools-bryant-191216/

Bolivia's New US-Backed Interim Gov't Wastes No Time Privatizing Economy
Alan Macleod | mintpressnews.com | 2019-12-16
It has been barely one month since the administration of Jeanine Añez seized power in a military coup in Bolivia, but it has wasted no time in attempting to transform the economy and society. Its latest move is aimed at privatizing the country's economy. A government spokesperson confirmed the fears of many, claiming that "I believe the government should reduce its own size" and a protagonistic role should be given to private enterprises. In case that was not clear enough, he emphasized, "Yes, I'm talking a…
mintpressnews.com/bolivia-interim-government-privatizing-economy/263529/

COP25 Was a Failure, But Activists' Collective Organizing at the Talks Was Unprecedented
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-16
The COP25 United Nations climate summit ended in failure Sunday, after negotiators failed to agree to a deal that would limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels — a key goal of the Paris Agreement. Scores of civil society groups condemned governments in the European Union, Australia, Canada and the U.S. for a deal that requires far less action than needed to avert catastrophic climate change. Indigenous leaders and environmentalists blasted the United Nations for marginalizing civil society groups over two weeks of negotiations at the climate summit, while welcoming polluters.
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/16/cop25_failure_asad_rehman_tasneem_essop

An important opportunity lost as COP25 ends in compromise, but Guterres declares 'we must not give up'
news.un.org | 2019-12-15
Negotiations at the COP25 UN climate conference in Madrid finally ended on Sunday, wrapping up an event which saw much progress made by the private sector, and by national, regional and local governments. However, there was widespread disappointment that no overall consensus was reached on increased climate ambition.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/12/1053561

COP25 Was Moved to Spain to Conceal Chilean Government's Human Rights Violations
Staff | therealnews.com | 2019-12-13
The concept of "loss and damage" and carbon markets are a sticking point at the UN's climate summit, and protests are continuing in Chile, the original site of the talks. Oxfam's Nafkote Dabi and Gary Hughes of Biofuelwatch discuss the realities of COP25.
therealnews.com/stories/cop25-spain-chile-human-rights-violations

As COP25 goes into the night, Guterres calls for more climate ambition
news.un.org | 2019-12-13
With national delegations thrashing out an outcome agreement at the UN COP25 climate change conference in Madrid, the UN chief has called on countries to be more ambitious, side strongly with science, and commit to stronger action.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/12/1053521

COP25: Developing Countries Charge Ahead with Bold Climate Plans as Rich Countries Drag Their Feet
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-13
As this year's United Nations climate summit wraps up in Madrid, Spain, many activists, scientists, indigenous and grassroots climate leaders say that rich countries most responsible for the climate emergency have spent the talks dialing back ambition and blocking progress. This comes as deadly droughts, flooding, cyclones and wildfires rage around the world. This week, more than 70 developing countries have announced they will accelerate their climate plans, and 72 countries have signed onto goals to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. But major emitters Australia, China, India, Brazil and Saudi Arabia have…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/13/cop25_developing_countries_charge_ahead_with

Climate Refugees: Climate-Fueled Drought, Sea Level Rise, Storms & Fires Displace Millions Worldwide
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-13
A new report reveals how long-term disasters, including sea level rise and desertification, and short-term disasters, such as storms and fires, are especially threatening to people living in the Global South and island nations. We speak with the co-author of a new study that finds the climate crisis is already leading to a massive increase in the number of refugees being displaced around the world. Hossein Ayazi is a policy analyst with the Global Justice Program at the Othering & Belonging Institute at the University of California, Berkeley. We're also joined at the U.N. Climate Summit in Madrid by Saleemul Huq,…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/13/climate_refugees_climate_fueled_drought_sea

Greta Thunberg at COP25: 'There Is no Sense of Urgency'
Staff | therealnews.com | 2019-12-12
Climate activist Greta Thunberg, whom Time Magazine just named "Person of the Year," spoke to delegates at the COP25 climate conference in Madrid.
therealnews.com/stories/greta-thunberg-cop25-there-is-no-sense-of-urgency

'Embrace the transformation' to a carbon-neutral world by 2050, UN chief tells COP25
news.un.org | 2019-12-12
With millions of workers increasingly affected by the climate crisis the route to securing livelihoods in the future lies in a wholesale transformation of how we power the planet and manage our resources, the UN chief said on Thursday, at a COP25 climate action event focused on greener jobs.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2019/12/1053331

A New Report Finds Massive Waste and Abuse in Federally Funded Charter Schools
Jeff Bryant | progressive.org | 2019-12-12
During the eight years that these federal grants were available, $504,517,391–28 percent of the total amount given out–went to charter schools that never opened or that have already closed.
progressive.org/public-school-shakedown/new-report-waste-abuse-charter-bryants-191212/

Marshall Islands Climate Activist Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner Shares a Poem for Survival as Sea Levels Rise
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-12
Located in the central Pacific Ocean between Hawaii and the Philippines, the Marshall Islands are one of the world's lowest-lying island nations and declared a national climate crisis emergency in October. "We're looking at changing the entire physical landscape of our island so we can stay above water," says Marshall Islands poet and climate activist Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner. She joins us to describe the impact on her country and read her newest poem.
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/12/marshall_islands_cop25_kathy_jetnil_kijiner

Greta Thunberg Slams COP25, Says Response to Climate Crisis Is "Clever Accounting and Creative PR"
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-12
At the U.N. climate summit in Madrid, 16-year-old Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg addressed world leaders Wednesday, hours after she was named Time magazine's Person of the Year. Thunberg came to the talks after a trip to meet with climate leaders across North America in anticipation of the scheduled climate conference in Santiago, Chile, before the talks were abruptly moved to the Spanish capital. In her address, Thunberg warned that the planet's carbon budget is down to just eight years, and urged bold action. "I still believe that the biggest danger is not inaction. The real danger is when politicians…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/12/greta_thunberg_speech_cop_time_magazine

"We Want People Power Solutions": Activists Ousted from COP25 for Protesting Corporations at Summit
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-12
Inside the halls of the U.N. climate summit, hundreds of activists gathered Wednesday to demand rich countries step up their efforts to finance climate action. The protest began just as Democracy Now! was finishing our live broadcast, and we spoke to some of the people there from around the world, including Rita Iyke-Uwaka of Friends of the Earth Nigeria; Angela Valenzuela of Fridays for Future in Santiago, Chile; Sandra Tukup of CONFENIAE (Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of the Ecuadorian Amazon); Amalen Sathananthar of Artivist Network; Brandon Wu of ActionAid USA; and Nina Gualinga, an indigenous lea…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/12/cop25_protesters_forced_out_of_summit

Uganda's First Fridays for Future Climate Striker, Vanessa Nakate, Joins COP25 Protests in Madrid
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-12
As we broadcast from the U.N. climate summit in Madrid, Spain, we speak with climate activist Vanessa Nakate, who was Uganda's first Fridays for Future climate striker. "I wanted to do something that would cause change to the lives of the people in my community and my country," she says. "My country heavily depends on agriculture, therefore most of the people depend on agriculture. If our farms are destroyed by floods, if the farms are destroyed by droughts and crop production is less, that means that the price of food is going to go high. So it will only be the most privileged who will be able to buy food."
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/12/cop25_vanessa_nakate_uganda

Chicago students take to the streets for the Climate Strike
Aviva Levine | liberationnews.org | 2019-12-11
"Planet over profits!"
liberationnews.org/chicago-students-take-to-the-streets-for-the-climate-strike/

"Shame!" Indigenous Leaders & Delegates from Global South Stage Dramatic Protest at COP25 in Madrid
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-11
Democracy Now! was broadcasting live from the United Nations climate summit in Madrid, Spain, when hundreds of climate advocates and people's movements at the U.N. climate action summit staged a protest inside the conference venue. As the demonstration unfolds, we speak with Tom Goldtooth, executive director of the Indigenous Environmental Network; Karin Nansen, chair of Friends of the Earth International; Nigerian climate activist Nnimmo Bassey with Health of Mother Earth Foundation; and indigenous climate activist Daiara Tukano from Brazil.
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/11/cop25_walkout_indigenous_leaders_global_south

"The Most Extreme Fires We've Ever Seen": Record Climate-Fueled Wildfires Engulf Australia in Smoke
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-11
As world leaders gather to address the climate crisis in Madrid, massive wildfires have engulfed Australia in flames and smoke. More than 100 climate-fueled blazes have killed at least six people and pushed air quality levels in Sydney to 12 times hazardous levels. Thousands braved extreme air pollution Wednesday to protest the government's climate inaction outside Sydney Town Hall. As Democracy Now! broadcasts live from inside the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Madrid, Spain, we speak with Australian environmental scientist Bill Hare, director of Climate Analytics and a coordinator of the Climate Ac…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/11/australia_wildfires_2019_climate_change

Billionaire Presidential Hopeful Mike Bloomberg Addresses Press at COP25 But Won't Take Questions
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-11
Former New York mayor and 2020 presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg spoke at the U.N. climate summit Tuesday, saying he came to the climate talks because "no one from the White House" was there. The event was billed as a media opportunity, but Bloomberg refused to answer questions from the press. Bloomberg entered the presidential race in November and has since spent tens of millions of dollars of his own money on the race. Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman followed Bloomberg through the conference venue, asking how he would address issues of inequality and whether his strategy to win the presidency was to outs…
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/11/mike_bloomberg_cop25_amy_goodman

Sarasota students join global climate strike
Bryan Ellis | liberationnews.org | 2019-12-10
On Friday, 50 students and community members gathered at the Unconditional Surrender statue by Sarasota's bayfront to urge action on the global climate crisis.
liberationnews.org/sarasota-students-join-global-climate-strike/

Milwaukee: People's Climate Coalition marches on Wells Fargo, Chase Bank
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-12-10
Milwaukee, WI — Several hundred people gathered on the morning of December 6 in downtown Milwaukee at Zeidler Park to demand that the big banks like Wells Fargo, Chase and other corporations divest from the fossil fuel industry. | Several classrooms worth of children from local public schools attended the event in support of a safe and livable planet for their futures. The People's Climate Coalition, consisting of local climate justice groups, put out the call and organized the event. | All representatives from the coalition and its allies were given an opportunity to speak. Each highlighted in different wa…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/12/9/milwaukee-people-s-climate-coalition-marches-wells-fargo-chase-bank

New Climate Model Predicts Alarming Levels of Global Heating
Staff | therealnews.com | 2019-12-10
Dr. Neil Swart of the Canadian Center for Climate Modelling & Analysis says a new model predicts nearly 8 ∞C of heating by 2100 in a high emissions scenario.
therealnews.com/stories/new-climate-model-predicts-alarming-level-of-global-heating

The Case for a Green New Deal
Naomi Klein | zcomm.org | 2019-12-10
Interview on the case for a Green New Deal that tackles the causes and impacts of climate change while confronting racial and economic inequality…
zcomm.org/zvideo/the-case-for-a-green-new-deal/

"Listen to Mother Earth": Indigenous Youth Leaders at COP25 in Madrid Protest Fossil Fuel Extraction
Staff | democracynow.org | 2019-12-10
"Our movements must be bigger than recycling and braver than holding signs," said Rose Whipple, a member of the Santee Dakota and Ho-Chunk, and youth delegate with SustainUS, who joined a panel of youth climate activists at the United Nations climate summit in Madrid, Spain. Indigenous peoples from Canada and the United States are at the summit, speaking out against extraction, new pipeline projects and the environmental devastation of their territories, and calling for movements to center the rights of indigenous peoples.
www.democracynow.org/2019/12/10/listen_to_mother_earth_indigenous_youth

Real climate action requires cutting coal exports
pip.hinman | greenleft.org.au | 2019-12-10
climate emergency Zane AlcornIssue 1248 Australia coal exports Adani Carmichael coal mineDecember 10, 2019On December 9, Labor leader Anthony Albanese reaffirmed his party's support f…
greenleft.org.au/content/real-climate-action-requires-cutting-coal-exports

Arizona educators, progressives confront ALEC summit and Betsy DeVos
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2019-12-09
Tucson, AZ – On December 4, a coalition of union educators, immigrant rights, police crimes, and climate change activists confronted the agenda of corporations like UPS and energy industry giants and billionaires like Charles Koch and Sheldon Achelson. At its height the crowd numbered around 200 with signs reading: "ALEC: Oligarchy in progress" and "Privatization, criminalization, incarceration, climate change, imperialism: #ALECisBehindIt." | The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a notorious organization of hardcore conservatives, was holding its States and Nation Policy Summit in Arizona. ALEC hoste…
www.fightbacknews.org/2019/12/8/arizona-educators-progressives-confront-alec-summit-and-betsy-devos

Climate Change Fuels Hellfire in the City of Angels
Staff | therealnews.com | 2019-12-09
California's fire season isn't over yet, but megafire events have already taken a major toll on the state and its inhabitants, forcing the evacuation of tens of thousands of people. Warm, dry climate change conditions have made housing in LA's "Wildland-Urban Interface" dangerous.
therealnews.com/stories/climate-change-fuels-hellfire-in-los-angeles

goodman climate refugees teaser
James Goodman | progressive.org | 2019-12-06
Climate change, pollution, and violence drive people to the U.S. border, even with no promise of a path to citizenship.
progressive.org/dispatches/fleeing-not-migrating-goodman-191206/

The answer to the climate crisis is obvious: ban climate protests
Fred_F | greenleft.org.au | 2019-11-29
environment Carlo SandsIssue 1247 Australia Carlo's CornerNovember 29, 2019As Australia burns amid record-breaking temperatures and ongoing drought, and report a…
greenleft.org.au/content/answer-climate-crisis-obvious-ban-climate-protests

School climate strikers sit down outside Liberal HQ
Fred_F | greenleft.org.au | 2019-11-29
Climate Zebedee ParkesIssue 1247 Australia School Strike 4 Climate SydneyNovember 29, 2019School climate strikers sat down in front of the Liberal Party's Sydney headquarters on November 29, as par…
greenleft.org.au/content/school-climate-strikers-sit-down-outside-liberal-hq