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Sea Change Radio’s new Co-Host Kelsey Flynn and Bill Baue speak with Erik Assadourian and Gary Gardner, senior researchers at the Worldwatch Institute, about the new book, State of the World 2010: Transforming Cultures from Consumerism to Sustainability.
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At the G-20 Summit addressing the global financial crisis this weekend, the government leaders of the world’s largest economies essentially twiddled their thumbs, punting on setting ambitious goals until April 2009 — when the Barack Obama Administration, which is dedicated to addressing the financial crisis and the climate crisis, is in office. Before the Summit, Worldwatch Institute Senior Researchers Michael Renner and Gary Gardner proposed that the G-20 enact a Global Green Deal, evocative of FDR’s new deal but more audacious in scope and vision. CWR co-hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue speak with Renner about the proposal’s 5 strategies, including transitioning to a renewable energy economy, launching an efficiency revolution, and investing in green infrastructure.
And speaking of green infrastructure, Deutsche Asset Management issued a report calling for the establishment of a “green” National Infrastructure Bank. Bill Baue speaks with Deutsche Climate Change Investment Research Director Bruce Kahn about the report, a followup on the Investing in Climate Change 2009: Necessity and Opportunity in Turbulent Times report CWR covered recently.
“Building a Green Economy: It’s Time for the G20 to Focus on a Global Green Deal”
Report: Green Jobs: Towards decent work in a sustainable, low-carbon world
CWR News Analysis: Listen
News Sources:
—Pew Research Center on the People and the Environment “A Deeper Partisan Divide Over Global Warming”
—Schwarzenegger Blames Global Warming for Elongated Fire Season
—BBC: “Emissions up in developed nations”
—NY Times: “Pollution Has Leveled Off, but the Figures Have Holes”
—Pam Solo: “Saving Detroit from itself”
—Marketplace: “Obama meant it about C02”
CWR ViewPoint: Listen
The Top BENNY Award for 2008, given to activist campaigns holding corporations accountable by the Business Ethics Network (BEN), went to the Clean Up Ecuador campaign for bringing Chevron to justice for decades of pollution in the Amazon. The campaign is led by the Amazon Defense Coalition and Amazon Watch. Mitch Anderson of Amazon Watch has our commentary today, produced in partnership with BEN.
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Plan A — the business-as-usual, free-market, capitalist economy — is clearly breaking down, causing meltdowns of global markets AND polar icecaps. Time for Plan B. That’s the title of the book by Earth Policy Institute Founding President Lester Brown, published five years ago. In it, he proposes an alternative economic model for “Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble,” according to the subtitle. An updated version 2.0 came out two years ago, and earlier this year, Brown unveiled Plan B 3.0, this time subtitled “Mobilizing to Save Civilization.”
Worldwatch Institute State of the World reports, which include a chapter on “Investing for Sustainability” by CWR co-host Bill Baue.
CWR Headlines:
—The Global Financial Blues Could Be Good for Going Green — or Not
—A Carbon Tax Would Cut Emissions Better Than Cap-and-Trade
—Shade-Grown Coffee Could Soften the Blow of Climate Change