Join the Climate Emergency Forum along with special guests Dr. James Hansen and Dan Galpern, as the Global Warming in the Pipeline paper is presented at a COP28 Press conference as part of a specially prepared video message followed by a discussion on the policy implications.
This video was recorded on December 3rd, 2023, and published on December 28th, 2023.
In this session of the Climate Emergency Forum, attendees were informed that Dr. James Hansen, the intended panelist, couldn’t attend in person, but a specially prepared video message was available. Regina Valdez, from the Climate Emergency Forum, introduced Dan Galpern, Dr. Hansen’s longtime legal and policy advisor, who discussed the urgency of addressing global warming. Dr. Hansen’s video message emphasized the significant increase in Earth’s energy imbalance, linking it to reduced aerosol cooling due to regulations on sulfur emissions from ships. He highlighted the implications, predicting a 1.5-degree Celsius warming within the decade and emphasized the need for political action, a rising carbon fee, and global cooperation.
Dan Galpern then expanded on Dr. Hansen’s message, calling for a complete phase-out of fossil fuel production and utilization. He stressed the inadequacy of mere emission reductions and the importance of rapidly decarbonizing major nations, emphasizing the need for an orderly phase-out of fossil fuel reliance and increased research into climate interventions. During the Q&A session, an audience member raised concerns about the underlying capitalist system and its impact on efficient energy production, to which Galpern responded by advocating for fair pricing of fossil fuels and acknowledging the challenges of transitioning to an entirely new economic system.
The discussion also touched on climate justice, recognizing the differentiated responsibilities of nations outlined in the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the need for increased funding to address loss and damage, especially for less developed countries. Overall, the session highlighted the pressing need for immediate and transformative action to address climate change, both in terms of reducing emissions and adapting to the unavoidable impacts.
Dr. James E. Hansen - is the former Director of the NASA Goddard Institute of Space Studies and current Director of Climate Science, Awareness and Solutions, a program of the Earth Institute at Columbia University. Dr. Hansen is the principal author or co-author of numerous papers on the subject of climate change and Earth’s energy imbalance. He is best known for his testimony on climate change to congressional committees in the 1980s that helped raise broad awareness of the global warming issue.
Dan Galpern - is founder, executive director, and general counsel to Climate Protection & Restoration Initiative, a US nonprofit organization. He has served as legal and policy adviser to climate scientist Dr. James Hansen since 2011. Prior to the law, Dan worked for 20 years as a public interest analyst and advocate for human rights and global security.
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, COP28 Team Lead for FacingFuture.Earth and the Climate Emergency Forum.
We’d like to acknowledge these two organizations without which our attendance at COP28 would not have been possible.
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