After President Biden and the Democrats outperformed expectations in the midterm elections, the Republican party that was loyal to Trump in extreme terms is suddenly saying Trump dragged the party down and blew a big opportunity to control Congress. You will see the scathing rebuke of Trump from GOP operatives to Fox News to Rupert Murdoch’s papers. In this special report, MSNBC’s Ari Melber shows you Trump’s losing streak dating back to 2016 and reports on what the GOP will do now.
For more: https://www.cgtn.com/video Federal and state spending on the America’s 2022 midterm elections set to top 16.7 billion dollars, making it the most expensive midterm election ever. However, massive economic disparities and political divisions remain unsolved. Will changing leaders change the realities? Einar Tangen, our current affairs commentator, tells more. The commentary reflects the author’s opinions and not necessarily those of CGTN.
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EACOP: A crude reality” puts the spotlight on the negative socio-economic and environmental impacts posed by the planned East African Crude Oil Pipeline. The film features the testimonies of communities directly affected by the Total Energies’ mega project as well as activists raising alarm on the threats posed by the pipeline to livelihoods, sensitive ecosystems and the climate. The pipeline, which will run from Hoima in Uganda to Tanga in Tanzania has been the center of controversy globally, following sustained opposition by community members and climate activists.
Climate activists under the Stop EACOP coalition have been unrelenting in calling on financial institutions to distance themselves from the proposed pipeline, resulting in 24 commercial banks and 18 (re)insurers committing to not supporting the project. Learn more about the StopEACOP campaign and how to host a screening of the film on https://www.stopeacop.net/film
Breaking: The Government of Canada has just announced they will finally put people above profits and #TaxBigOil. To learn more visit: http://transitioncanada.ca
A new Oxfam analysis finds the investments of the world’s richest people are emitting 3 million tons a year — more than a million times the average person’s output. The report, titled “Carbon Billionaires,” suggests a wealth tax could help fund urgent climate action in developing countries. The analysis shows “how much power and control a few people have over our economic system and, beyond that, our way of life, our survival as humanity,” says Ashfaq Khalfan, climate justice director at Oxfam America. Khalfan also responds to U.S. Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry’s new carbon offset proposal, which he calls a “distraction” that will delay action on public financing of climate action.
Democracy Now! is in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, where the COP27 U.N. climate conference has entered its second week amid protests against the host government’s repression and world leaders’ inaction on the climate crisis. We speak with Asad Rehman, executive director of War on Want and lead spokesperson for the Climate Justice Coalition, who risked arrest to participate in a climate justice protest along with hundreds of others in Egypt on Saturday. “You can’t have the very people burning the planet sitting here and pretending to be drafting the solutions to it, and that’s exactly what’s happening in these climate negotiations,” says Rehman. He says imprisoned Egyptian British activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah is “part and parcel of our struggle,” as calls to free El-Fattah continue after he sent proof of life in a letter for the first time since beginning a full hunger and water strike last week. We also speak with Nigerian environmentalist Nnimmo Bassey, who says the perception that this is an African COP is “a big misnomer,” as the African delegates feel largely excluded.
For 27 years, the United Nations has held annual gatherings of world leaders to discuss how to combat climate change. Yet progress towards the goal of stopping global warming has been elusive, and this year’s summit is happening against the backdrop of host country Egypt’s record of human rights abuses. Sarah Kaplan, climate reporter for the Washington Post, joins Ali Rogin to discuss.
DW Documentary – Nov 14, 2022
There’s been no proper rainfall in southern Madagascar for seven years. The ground is arid, people are suffering from hunger and thirst. The UN says this is the first hunger crisis directly caused by climate change. But is that really the case?
There’s been no water in the Manambovo river for several months. Locals dig at the sandy riverbed in the hope they’ll find a few drops of water. The government blames the long dry spell on climate change and the UN agrees that this is the main reason for the worsening crisis. But critical voices say the government shares some of the responsibility — despite years of western aid, southern Madagascar is stuck in a rut, with few tarmac roads, hardly any schools and an extremely high birth rate. DW journalist Adrian Kriesch reports on the measures needed right now, as well as the importance of the imminent rainy season.
Around the world, more and more people are developing Parkinson’s disease. Many of those affected have chosen a supposedly healthy life among orchards or vineyards in the countryside. Is the disease related to the use of pesticides?
“I noticed it when I was pruning roses,” says Ulrich Elixmann. His hands simply didn’t function anymore. He saw a doctor, and the diagnosis was a shock: He had Parkinson’s disease. Today he is 60 years old. He takes 13 tablets a day, does gymnastics, occupational therapy and speech therapy. He hopes to slow the disease’s progression, and with it symptoms like a stiffening face and increasing immobility. But the questions continue to gnaw at him: Why Parkinson’s, and why him? And, why are other gardeners and farmers he knows also being affected?
The number of Parkinson’s sufferers has doubled since the 1990s. In Germany alone, about 400,000 people have it. Researchers like Bas Bloem of Radboud University in the Netherlands are calling it a pandemic: They say it is the fastest growing neurological disease in the world, and is mainly caused by environmental factors. Heavily industrialized countries are particularly affected, as numerous chemicals find their way into the environment.
Despite more and more studies showing increased risks among agricultural workers and gardeners, Parkinson’s is not yet considered an occupational disease in Germany. But in France, things are different. Sylvie Berger is from Bordelais, one of Europe’s major wine-growing regions. Particularly high amounts of pesticides are used there, and Sylvie Berger, who worked in viticulture, now suffers from Parkinson’s. If she receives an occupational disability pension, then why not the gardener Ulrich Elixmann from Germany?
Inside Ivory Coast’s hidden gold rush takes a look at the gold mining industry in Ivory Coast. For a long time mining was seen as a dirty alternative to a more wholesome farming lifestyle. But some of the richest gold-mining potential in Africa is luring hundreds of thousands of Ivorians off the land and into the mines.
Welcome to Transition Studies. To prosper for very much longer on the changing Earth humankind will need to move beyond its current fossil-fueled civilization toward one that is sustained on recycled materials and renewable energy. This is not a trivial shift. It will require a major transition in all aspects of our lives.
This weblog explores the transition to a sustainable future on our finite planet. It provides links to current news, key documents from government sources and non-governmental organizations, as well as video documentaries about climate change, environmental ethics and environmental justice concerns.
The links are listed here to be used in whatever manner they may be helpful in public information campaigns, course preparation, teaching, letter-writing, lectures, class presentations, policy discussions, article writing, civic or Congressional hearings and citizen action campaigns, etc. For further information on this blog see: About this weblog. and How to use this weblog.
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