Producers/Hosts: Meredith DeFrancesco & Amy Browne
Topic: The 15th United Nations’ Conference on Climate Change
Guests:
James Hoggan, the co-author (with Richard Littlemore) of “Climate Cover Up: The Crusade to Deny Global Warming”, and head of DeSmogBlog.com;
Janet Redman is a former resident of Hancock County, who is now the Co-Director of the Sustainable Energy & Economy Network at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC.
The 15th United Nations’ Conference on Climate Change, aka COP15, got underway in Copenhagen this week, with representatives from 192 countries, NGO’s, Indigenous People’s groups, scientists, activists, and others, coming together in hopes that an international agreement can be reached to address the climate change crisis.
Smaller countries, poorer countries and islanders, who are already feeling the impacts of climate change more severely—are pitted against giant industrialized nations like the US and China, who are the most responsible— and the most resistant to change.
Earlier today, at a press conference in Copenhagen, a spokesperson for the 43-member Alliance of Small Island States, told a news conference that “100 nations had signed up for a goal of limiting rises in temperatures to 1.5 Celsius above pre-industrial levels.” This would require cuts in greenhouse gas emissions by rich nations, of at least 45 percent from 1990 levels by 2020
In a separate statement issued earlier today, The Group of 77, representing the majority of the world’s developing countries, urged the United States to join the Kyoto Protocol and commit to emission reductions comparable to those of other industrialized nations.
Lumumba Stanislaus Di-Aping, chair of the G-77 stated: “(The)USA is the world’s largest emitter historically and per capita. A reduction of four percent (compared to 1990) will not help save the world. We ask USA to join the Kyoto Protocol and take on commitments comparable to Annex 1 countries (industrialized countries),”
“This is a challenge that President Barack Obama needs to rise to as a Nobel Prize winner and as an advocate of a multilateral global society. We know he is proud to be a part of that community through his family relations in Africa,” He went on to say:
“The American Congress approves billions of dollars in defense budgets. Can you not approve 200 billion to save the world?”
Today on RadioActive we talk with 2 people who will be participating in the COP15 Conference. James Hoggan is the co-author (with Richard Littlemore) of “Climate Cover Up: The Crusade to Deny Global Warming”, and head of DeSmogBlog.com; and Janet Redman is a former resident of Hancock County, who is now the Co-Director of the Sustainable Energy & Economy Network at the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, DC.