Climate Emergency Solutions
and Their Obstacles

Join Dr. Peter Carter, Paul Beckwith and Regina Valdez as they discuss the more exciting part of the Climate Emergency which are ‘solutions.’ The discussion will touch on many solutions along with some of the underlying psychological, sociological, and political obstacles to their implementation. The video was recorded on February 19, 2021 so the cold snap that occurred in Texas is included as part of the discussion. This is a republished version of a video originally published on March 13, 2021.

The solution topics covered are as follows:

• The importance of fresh water and ways to reduce water run off in large cities with the use of Bio-Swales.
• The analogy of the three-legged stool is used to discuss solutions for climate change comprising Mitigation, Adaptation and Climate Restoration.
• Many people live in cities and so there are many meaningful intervention opportunities.
• The temperature amplification effects in cities, especially northern cities relative to the Global Average Temperature rise is highlighted.
• The need to look at all of the available solutions.
• The need to adopt a different mindset. The need to build a more resilient society and the importance of educating the population regarding the urgency of the emergency as a way of mobilizing the general public towards taking action.
• Bill Gate’s interview on 60 minutes is brought up along with the need for zero carbon verses carbon neutral solutions with the key word being ‘Conversion.’ The ability to completely convert fossil fuel energy to non-combustion clean renewable energy sources. Less is not enough. More efficient is not enough. There must be a ‘conversion’ from our polluting goods and processes to non-polluting goods and processes.
• Highlighting industrial food production as well as industrial energy production as a source of the problem with CO2 emissions. This leads to a recognition for the need to adopt a plant based diet.

A discussion about the psychological, sociological, and political obstacles to solutions:

• How to go from knowing a way, be it solutions, to enacting the will of the population to get on with implementing them.
• Peter’s three C’s comprising Compassion, Cooperation and Conversion.
• How our political leaders are leading us over a cliff to oblivion.

Links:

• Bioswale
• The Climate Reality Project
• IPCC - Fifth Assessment Report
• The Economics of Climate Change – The Stern Review by Nicholas Stern

Panelists:

• Dr. Peter Carter - MD, Expert IPCC Reviewer and the director of the Climate Emergency Institute

• Paul Beckwith - Climate Systems Scientist. Professor at the University of Ottawa’s Paleoclimatology Laboratory as well as at Carleton University

• Regina Valdez - Program Director, Climate Reality Project, NYC. GreenFaith Fellow and LEED Green Associate

Video Production:

• Charles Gregoire – Climate Reality Leader, Electrical Engineer, Webmaster and IT prime for FacingFuture.Earth and the Climate Emergency Forum

• Heidi Brault - Climate Reality Leader, BA(Psychology), Library & Information Technician Diploma - Video production and website assistant - Organizer and convener, Metadata technician, COP26 Team Lead for FacingFuture.Earth and the Climate Emergency Forum.

Attributions:

Background Music:

• Title: Through the City II
• Author: Crowander
• Source: crowander.com

Image and Video:

• Image and Video Attributions