Daily Archives: April 22, 2021

2021-04-22: News Headlines

Tina Landis (2021-04-22). We can solve the climate crisis! liberationnews.org Climate change is unfolding at an increasingly rapid rate with more severe droughts, storms, wildfires and floods impacting the globe. Yet, the capitalists continue to plunder the planet.

Juan Cole (2021-04-22). A big Effing Deal: On Eve of Climate Summit, news that Biden will cut US C02 Emissions 50% by 2030. juancole.com Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) — ( Matthew Daly at the Associated Press reports that President Biden will announce at Thursday's virtual international Climate Summit that the US will commit to reducing its annual carbon dioxide emissions by half of the 2005 peak by 2030. Joe Biden famously used an expletive to describe the passage of …

John Bachtell (2021-04-22). Ambitious Earth Day target: Biden announces 50% emissions cut. peoplesworld.org President Joe Biden announced an ambitious goal to reduce U.S. greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) in response to the looming climate crisis on Thursday morning. With the goal, GHG emissions are to be reduced by 50% of the 2005 level by the year 2030. Environmentalists, scientists, labor leaders, and many elected officials and businesses enthusiastically greeted …

Staff (2021-04-22). Biden Opens Climate Summit With Pledge to Cut US Emissions in Half by 2030. truthout.org President Joe Biden on Thursday has pledged to cut carbon emissions from the U.S. to half of what they were in 2005 by the end of this decade. His announcement came on the first day of a virtual climate summit hosted by Biden. | "I've talked to the experts and I see the potential for a more prosperous and equitable future,"

Staff (2021-04-22). A Grim Season Looms — But Regenerative Agriculture Could Offer Hope. truthout.org This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. | When Alexis Koefoed's farm burned for the first time in 2008, she and her husband, who made a living raising pasture-grazing chickens at the time, lost 1,000 baby chicks and a brand-new barn. "I thought there could never be anything worse than this experience, until it happened three more times," she said. | That first time, an arsonist was to blame. But parts of the farm, in Vaca…

Staff (2021-04-22). 72-Year-Old Fisher Hunger Strikes to Press Biden to Revive Crude Oil Export Ban. truthout.org This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. | Seventy-two-year-old, fourth-generation retired shrimper Diane Wilson has been without food for 16 days. Her 1995 red Chevy, nicknamed "Rosie," has become a mobile campsite, and each morning she posts up on a causeway at the waterfront of Texas's Lavaca Bay, expending just enough energy to switch out a sign displaying the number of days she's been on hunger strike an…

Staff (2021-04-22). Noam Chomsky and Robert Pollin: Green New Deal Is Essential for Human Survival. truthout.org This story is part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story. | Earth Day has been celebrated since 1970, an era which marks the beginning of the modern environmental movement, with concerns built primarily around air and water pollution. Of course, the state of the environment has shifted dramatically since then, and while environmental policy has changed a lot in the United States over the past 50 years, biodiversity is in great…

Staff (2021-04-22). Decolonization or Extinction: Indigenous Red Deal Lays Out Plan to Save the Earth. democracynow.org On Earth Day, we speak with two of the more than two dozen Indigenous authors of a new book that looks at the history of resistance against colonialism and capitalism and lays out a vision for the future to address the climate crisis. "The Red Deal: Indigenous Action to Save Our Earth" details the centuries of Indigenous resistance that created the movement at Standing Rock against the Dakota Access pipeline and what movements centering justice for Indigenous people must look like. The book offers a "people's program to prevent extinction," says Melanie Yazzie, assistant professor of Native American studies and A…

The Canary (2021-04-22). Don't know your net zero from your NDCs? This climate jargon buster could help. thecanary.co World leaders are under pressure to take action on climate change — but what exactly is it they are talking about? Here are some of the commonly used climate terms and what they mean. | — Greenhouse gases | These are gases that trap some of the heat from the sun in the atmosphere and keep the the planet warm enough for life to thrive. | Concentrations of these gases, which include carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide, have increased at a rapid rate in recent years. | — Greenhouse gas or carbon emissions | This is the release of greenhouse gases, particularly carbon dioxide, into the atmosph…

The Canary (2021-04-22). Extinction Rebellion activists smash windows of HSBC's London headquarters. thecanary.co Climate change activists said they smashed the windows of HSBC's London headquarters over its links to the fossil fuel industry. | Nine women from Extinction Rebellion (XR) and the political party Burning Pink targeted the Canary Wharf building on Thursday morning, using hammers and chisels to break the glass. | They then placed stickers on the windows reading " £80 billion into fossil fuels in the last 5 years" and waited for police to arrive, XR said. | The Metropolitan Police said its officers were called to Canada Square shortly after 7am to reports of protesters causing "criminal damage to a building".

Juan Cole (2021-04-22). On Eve of Climate Summit, Biden will cut US C02 Emissions 50% by 2030. zcomm.org With the Biden plan, we'll be putting on significantly less "weight" every year, and the carbon sink of the oceans will then allow us to "lose" a lot of carbon weight…

_____ (2021-04-22). We Can Solve The Climate Crisis! popularresistance.org Climate change is unfolding at an increasingly rapid rate with more severe droughts, storms, wildfires and floods impacting the globe. Yet, the capitalists continue to plunder the planet and extract fossil fuels, destroying ecosystems and increasing warming. The 2018 UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report warned that we have 12 years to avert runaway catastrophe. That call to action becomes more urgent by the day while the majority of governments globally take limited actions that fail to meet the urgency of the crisis. | The very system of capitalism itself is the cause of climate change with the Gl…

DoD News (2021-04-22). Commander Says Africa Too Important For US To Ignore. eurasiareview.com By Jim Garamone | Africa is a fascinating continent of tremendous possibilities but also tremendous dangers, and the U.S. ignores the nations of Africa at its own peril, the commander of the U.S. Africa Command said during an interview. | "China and Russia don't ignore Africa, and that alone should say something," Army Gen. Stephen J. Townsend said. | Africa has 13 of the 25 fastest growing economies in the world, Townsend said. In a time of climate change, Afri…

Dominic Kailash Nath Waughray* (2021-04-22). Earth Day 2021: A Turning Point For Climate Action — OpEd. eurasiareview.com Earth Day 2021 marks a historic moment for action on climate change. Today, at President Biden's unprecedented Leaders Summit on Climate, he put forward an ambitious national commitment from the US to help the world tackle the climate crisis — to halve greenhouse gas emissions from the country by 2030 compared to 2005. | Combined with existing commitments to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 from the EU, the UK and other major G20 economies including Japan and the Republic of Korea, as well as a commitment from President Xi to peak China's carbon emissions by 2030 and achieve carbon-neutral growth by 20…

MISES (2021-04-22). Polarization In Washington Is Forcing Politicians To Decentralize — OpEd. eurasiareview.com By José Niño* | Can political polarization be used for good? | The average political commentator often argues that unity is the highest virtue for any polity. Polarization is constantly lamented and is perceived as a sign of a deteriorating political environment. In fairness, a polarized political climate is not exactly hospitable toward productive political discourse. Against the backdrop of a divided culture, politics tends to to devolve into performance art and cheap renditions of political theater. | At the same time, polarization is not the end of the world. As a matter of fact, polarization in Washington…

Kristalina Georgieva* (2021-04-22). IMF Managing Director's Intervention At Leaders Summit On Climate: Investing In Climate Solutions — Speech. eurasiareview.com Mr. President, | Special Envoy Kerry, | Secretary Yellen, | At the IMF we look at climate change as central in our work on macroeconomic and financial stability, growth and employment. It presents huge risks to the functioning of our economies and offers incredible opportunities for transformative investments and green jobs. | Let me focus on three areas where the right policies can make a significant difference in accelerating the transition to the new climate economy. | First, a robust price on carbon: it provides a critical market signal to producers and consumers in all sectors of the economy. It has prove…

US President Joe Biden (2021-04-22). President Biden At The Virtual Leaders Summit On Climate Opening Session — Transcript. eurasiareview.com Thank you, Madam Vice President. | Good morning to all of our colleagues around the world — the world leaders who are taking part in this summit. I thank you. You know, your leadership on this issue is a statement to the people of your nation and to the people of every nation, especially our young people, that we're ready to meet this moment. And meeting this moment is about more than preserving our planet; it's also about providing a better future for all of us. | That's why, when people talk about climate, I think jobs. Within our climate response lies an extraordinary engine of job creation and econom…

Pip Hinman (2021-04-22). Beware of king tides — the result of human induced climate change. greenleft.org.au King tides and climate change have become survival issues for the world's coastal cities, writes Rob Pyne.

news.un (2021-04-22). The planet's on 'red alert' UN chief warns leaders at President Biden's climate summit. news.un.org World leaders must act now and put the planet on a green path because "we are at the verge of the abyss", UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Thursday in his address to the virtual climate summit convened by United States President Joseph Biden.

news.un (2021-04-22). First Person: 'Youth won't stay silent' says Madagascar climate activist. news.un.org Young people around the world "won't stay silent" about the global climate crisis according to a youth activist from Madagascar.

Harpreet Kaur Paul (2021-04-22). The UK claims to be a world leader in fighting climate change. It's wrong. zcomm.org At home, the UK outsources its responsibility to decarbonise, and abroad it fails its historic responsibility to mitigate carbon emissions…

Brett Wilkins (2021-04-22). 101 Nobel Laureates Urge World Leaders to 'Keep Fossil Fuels in the Ground'. zcomm.org "Fossil fuels are the greatest contributor to climate change. Allowing the continued expansion of this industry is unconscionable."

David Treuer (2021-04-22). How to Kill the Oil Hydra—and Other Lessons From the Fight Against Keystone XL. thenation.com How to Kill the Oil Hydra—and Other Lessons From the Fight Against Keystone XL…

Peoples Dispatch (2021-04-22). Progressives condemn Japan's decision to release contaminated water from Fukushima nuclear plant. peoplesdispatch.org The incumbent conservative government in Japan led by Yoshihide Suga has decided to release contaminated water from the damaged Fukushima nuclear reactors into the Pacific ocean…

Stan Cox (2021-04-21). Earth Abuse and the Next Pandemic. counterpunch.org Humanity's transgression of ecological limits has caused widespread damage, including a climate emergency, catastrophic loss of biodiversity, and extensive degradation of soils around the world. Earth abuse is also at the root of the Covid-19 pandemic and the grim likelihood that new pathogens will continue to emerge from other animal species to infect humans.

Robert Hunziker (2021-04-21). The Doomsday Glacier Lives up to its Billing. dissidentvoice.org Earth.com The 21st century serves as an inflection point of acceleration of climate instability caused by human-generated greenhouse gases, as CO2 emissions increase well beyond the rate of the prior century. It's also a defining timeline of an astonishing ice mass loss rate of 500% more than the last decade of the previous century. Throughout …

VINS (2021-04-21). Unexpected Environmental Consequences of COVID-19. projectcensored.org Due to COVID-19, recycling programs in many bigger cities have ceased. Because the recycling process is hands-on and involves multiple processing steps, many recycling centers have either shutdown or significantly reduced operations to avoid cross-contamination cases. But with pollution already being one of the most pressing public concerns of this century, reductions in recycling are deeply problematic. | Unfortunately, recycling programs are not the only ecologically-friendly options that have been disrupted by COVID-19, as Bloomberg News reported in March 2020. Companies such as Starbucks have stopped acceptin…

Tim Whitehouse (2021-04-21). Reversing Scientific Integrity's Race to the Bottom. commondreams.org From COVID-19 to climate change, and toxic chemicals to endangered species, the health of this nation and our ecosystem depends on scientists being able to "think, research, and speak freely" in both Democratic and Republican administrations. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/mask_1.jpg

news.un (2021-04-21). Ocean benefits increasingly undermined by human activity, UN assessment reveals. news.un.org Greater understanding of the ocean is essential if the world is to recover better from the COVID-19 pandemic and achieve agreed targets on sustainable development and climate action, UN Secretary-General António Guterres said on Wednesday in launching a major study on what he called "the life support system of our planet."

Thomas Stephens (2021-04-21). Borders of Racial Capitalism: Never Let a Good Crisis Go to Waste. counterpunch.org Isn't This a Time! Pardon beginning with jargon. Under racial capitalist social and power relations, stated policy intentions are inverted relative to social outcomes, and pandemic inequality reigns with a deadly life of its own. This is the rotten fruit of a poisoned neoliberal model of the relationship between the state and finance. We should

Imani Countess (2021-04-21). Racial Justice Is a Global Issue. commondreams.org From the pandemic to climate change to police violence, today's crises require global collaboration on a scale never seen before. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/blm_8.jpg

Ed Rampell (2021-04-21). Greta Thunberg's Quest to 'Listen to the Science'. progressive.org This stirring series about the Swedish campaigner against global warming is guaranteed to raise your temperature.

Colin Todhunter (2021-04-21). Dystopian Vision for Agrifood Must Not Succeed. counterpunch.org We are currently seeing an acceleration of the corporate consolidation of the entire global agrifood chain. The high-tech/data conglomerates, including Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook and Google, have joined traditional agribusiness giants, such as Corteva, Bayer, Cargill and Syngenta, in a quest to impose a certain type of agriculture and food production on the world. The Bill and

Colin Todhunter (2021-04-21). Gates Unhinged: Dystopian Vision for Agrifood Must Not Succeed. dissidentvoice.org We are currently seeing an acceleration of the corporate consolidation of the entire global agrifood chain. The high-tech/data conglomerates, including Amazon, Microsoft, Facebook and Google, have joined traditional agribusiness giants, such as Corteva, Bayer, Cargill and Syngenta, in a quest to impose a certain type of agriculture and food production on the world. The Bill …

teleSUR (2021-04-21). 100+ Organizations Address World Leaders Before Climate Summit. telesurenglish.net In a firm message to the world leaders days before a landmark international climate summit, global social movements, organizations and parties remind of the radical shift in priorities and policies necessary to prevent climate castrophe and socio-economic disaster for the peoples of the global South. | Here, teleSUR English reproduces in full their open letter: | "It is common knowledge that we are at a decisive moment for human survival and for the biodiversity of our planet. There is a serious environmental and public health crisis, caused by crimes committed continuously by the greed for profit. The resear…

_____ (2021-04-21). Despite Climate Commitments, Health Concerns, States Approve Fuel Tanks. popularresistance.org Magali Sanchez-Hall, usually in motion, pauses for a moment on the sidewalk to gaze through a chain-link fence at the massive new construction project: tanks shaped like giant tuna fish cans that will store crude oil. | The Los Angeles refinery has been her troublesome neighbor for a quarter of a century, but she finds this latest turn particularly perplexing. | "Right now, we are supposed to be moving to clean energy," she says. | Sanchez-Hall, 50, raised her children here before getting a master's degree in public policy. When Tesoro, now Marathon Petroleum Corp., first proposed the new tanks in 2016, she oppos…

teleSUR (2021-04-21). Celebrities Criticize Bolsonaro Ahead of US Climate Summit. telesurenglish.net On the eve of Thursday's U.S.-organized climate summit, President Joe Biden received letters from governors, politicians, artists, and intellectuals reminding the White House of the disastrous role Brazil's President Jair Bolsonaro has played in protecting globally important ecosystems. | RELATED: | In one of the letters, 23 Brazilian governors emphasize that fight against deforestation should be the starting point for r…

ecns.cn (2021-04-21). Climate action 'a must' to ensure sustainable living: Boao Forum chairman. ecns.cn Climate action and carbon neutral initiatives "are no longer an option but a must" for the world to ensure sustainable living as we enjoy today, Ban Ki-moon, chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA), said Tuesday.

Agostino Petroni, Sandali Handagama (2021-04-21). Climate Change and Capitalism Are Forcing Chilean Farmers to Abandon Their Land. thenation.com Climate Change and Capitalism Are Forcing Chilean Farmers to Abandon Their Land…

Zoà´ Carpenter (2021-04-21). Climate Change Will Force Us to Rethink Migration and Asylum. thenation.com Climate Change Will Force Us to Rethink Migration and Asylum…

Eurasia Review (2021-04-21). Using Floodwaters To Weather Droughts. eurasiareview.com Floodwaters are not what most people consider a blessing. But they could help remedy California's increasingly parched groundwater systems, according to a new Stanford-led study. The research, published in Science Advances, develops a framework to calculate future floodwater volumes under a changing climate and identifies areas where investments in California's aging water infrastructure could amplify groundwater recharge. As the state grapples with more intense storms and droughts, stowing away floodwaters would not only reduce flood risks but also build more water reserves for drier times. | "This is the fir…

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2021-04-21). 'Not Enough!' Climate Activists Disappointed With New EU Emissions Deal on Eve of Biden Summit. commondreams.org "This deal shows that Europe's climate action is all smoke and mirrors," said a Greenpeace E.U. campaigner. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/gettyimages-12318098471.jpg

Brett Wilkins, staff writer (2021-04-21). 'The Clock Is Ticking': 300,000+ Tell Biden to Act Boldly Ahead of Climate Summit. commondreams.org "We can no longer afford any further fossil fuel extraction, infrastructure, or false climate solutions that continue to prioritize profits over people." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/climate_clock_2000x1047.jpg

ecns.cn (2021-04-21). ROK says to join IAEA monitoring team for Fukushima wastewater release. ecns.cn South Korea will make sure to participate in an international monitoring team led by the UN nuclear watchdog for Japan's planned release of nuclear polluted water from its wrecked Fukushima nuclear power plant, Yonhap reported, citing the country's foreign ministry.

_____ (2021-04-21). Water Protector Steve Martinez Released From Grand Jury Detention. popularresistance.org Bismarck, ND — On March 3, Steve Martinez was jailed at the Burleigh County Detention Center after refusing to testify before a secret federal grand jury investigating 2016 protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. | Martinez is now finally free as of April 12, according to a statement posed to social media by the 'Support Steve Martinez' campaign. | Martinez has served over 60 in days in federal detention. He was previously been jailed for most of February 2021 for refusing to testify, but was briefly released after a judge found the magistrate who ordered him detained did not have the authority to do s…

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