You guys are really keeping the ECI comms team busy - I feel like we’re updating the website every 5 minutes!!
The Themed Issue of 'Four degrees and beyond: the potential for a global temperature increase of four degrees and its implications' in Philosophical Transactions of The Royal Society A, has received great coverage since its online publication on Monday, with several news media referencing the papers and Mark New appearing on Radio 4. We have also heard from Max and Diana that the four degrees research papers have been mentioned in several side events and even made the front page of the Cancun NGO newsletter ECO, which is great!
Today the side event International Climate Change Symposium: Relevant Research for Mexico, co-organised by ECI along with the University of Arizona and National Institute of Ecology in Mexico, received coverage on the official COP16 website and includes a short video and photographs of the panel.
Go team go!!
I hope the ECI team have now made it to Cancun after the UK flight cancellations, and that the ECI stand is now brimming with research materials. I wish you well for the days ahead and hope that you get time off from your busy schedules to meet alumni and friends for dinner tonight - raise a cocktail glass for me!
Keep up the good work, and keep blogging – it’s really great to read your thoughts on events as they unfold.
Maria Mansfield, ECI
Friday, 3 December 2010
Debating action at the BBC
Yesterday I braved the elements and travelled to the Open University in Milton Keynes, where I took part in recorded debate for the BBC World Service programme 'One Planet'. The subject was 'What is stopping us from taking action on climate change" - a pretty big topic that we had to get through in about 22 minutes!! Although a bit nerve-wracking, I enjoyed meeting the other panellists (Stephan Peake, Bjorn Lomborg and Sunand Prasad) and seeing how radio programme-making operates from the 'inside', which is a lot more frantic than I had anticipated. I think the debate got a little stuck on discussing the individual-level changes required, and not enough emphasis was placed on issues of governance and socio-technical transitions...but it was not a bad chat, all the same!
You can listen to the debate online
Kersty Hobson, Senior Research Fellow into the Social and Cultural Contexts of Environmental Change
You can listen to the debate online
Kersty Hobson, Senior Research Fellow into the Social and Cultural Contexts of Environmental Change
Thursday, 2 December 2010
Preliminary posturings
Perhaps many of you are still snowbound in the UK but it would be nice to hear from some of you who are in Cancun! I arrived last night and today participated in the Oxford off-conference event at the Climate Villa in the real town of Cancun. Cancun is surreal at the best of times - towering modern hotels lined up along the barrier island and a real Mexican town across the lagoon that many tourists do not visit. The COP adds to this by having the formal negotiations many kilometers south of the hotel zone, and the conference center with the side events even further south - and multiple military check points en route.
Arnoldo worked hard to have some of the Oxford delegation present their work to the students and ordinary citizens of Cancun but the events at the Climate Villa are not that well advertised and are a long way from the COP locations. We had a small but interested audience and five of us spoke (me, James Painter, Timmons Roberts, Tracey Osborne and Arnoldo Matus Kramer). We all decided to present in Spanish - some of us a bit rusty - but good diplomacy I hope. It was great to bump into ECI DPhil alum Alex Guerra who has just been appointed director of a new climate change institute in Guatemala.
It hard to find out what is happening with locations so dispersed unless you watch the online news conferences but so far the big news was the Japanese coming out against a second phase of Kyoto and Brazilian head of state canceling his visit because he thinks no progress will be made. Perhaps the ECI dinner tomorrow night will be a chance to compare notes because of the diverse roles of alumni here.
Arnoldo worked hard to have some of the Oxford delegation present their work to the students and ordinary citizens of Cancun but the events at the Climate Villa are not that well advertised and are a long way from the COP locations. We had a small but interested audience and five of us spoke (me, James Painter, Timmons Roberts, Tracey Osborne and Arnoldo Matus Kramer). We all decided to present in Spanish - some of us a bit rusty - but good diplomacy I hope. It was great to bump into ECI DPhil alum Alex Guerra who has just been appointed director of a new climate change institute in Guatemala.
It hard to find out what is happening with locations so dispersed unless you watch the online news conferences but so far the big news was the Japanese coming out against a second phase of Kyoto and Brazilian head of state canceling his visit because he thinks no progress will be made. Perhaps the ECI dinner tomorrow night will be a chance to compare notes because of the diverse roles of alumni here.
Saturday, 27 November 2010
Cancun hopes and fears
I arrive in Cancun on Wednesday, with low expectations but looking forward to seeing friends and participating in several events on climate change and food security on behalf of Oxford based GECAFS (www.gecafs.org). I wish I felt more optimistic that there will be progress because I would so like Mexico to be able to take some credit for success - I have worked on climate change in Mexico and with Mexican colleagues for many years.
Last night, at a Thanksgiving dinner in Tucson I had the chance to see Cape Farewell voyager and writer Gretel Ehrlich whose latest book - The Empire of Ice - documents the changes in the Arctic and impact on its indigenous peoples. Gretel is very pessimistic about the fate of the Arctic if we do not respond to climate change. We spent some time talking about American politics and the prospects for action on climate change, with Neal Conan (of NPR) urging us to take seriously the anger of those who voted for tea party and republican climate deniers in the recent election. Our host, someone whose family has ranched in the American West for decades, suggested we appeal to the personal inter generational concerns of American families but then that doesn't help when with the recession millions of people are unemployed and angry and are worried about today and not tomorrow.
On Monday the special issue of Phil Trans that Mark New and I edited with Tyndall's Kevin Anderson will come out with its focus on the world at 4 degrees C. It is a reminder of what we will face if we don't make progress in Cancun.
Cancun itself is vulnerable to climate change as ECI DPhil Arnoldo Matus Kramer is documenting in his dissertation in regard to risks of sea level rise and hurricanes. I hope that some of you attending Cancun get a chance to visit outside the hotel zone and see the amazing archaeological sites (such as Tulum or Chichen Itza) which are also reminders of what happens when society faces multiple stresses. The collapse of Mayan civilization in the Yucatan peninsula being a classic example of the intersection of increasing consumption, soil depletion and drought.
Diana Liverman
(former director of ECI and now co-director of the Institute of Environment at the University of Arizona and senior research fellow in ECI)
Last night, at a Thanksgiving dinner in Tucson I had the chance to see Cape Farewell voyager and writer Gretel Ehrlich whose latest book - The Empire of Ice - documents the changes in the Arctic and impact on its indigenous peoples. Gretel is very pessimistic about the fate of the Arctic if we do not respond to climate change. We spent some time talking about American politics and the prospects for action on climate change, with Neal Conan (of NPR) urging us to take seriously the anger of those who voted for tea party and republican climate deniers in the recent election. Our host, someone whose family has ranched in the American West for decades, suggested we appeal to the personal inter generational concerns of American families but then that doesn't help when with the recession millions of people are unemployed and angry and are worried about today and not tomorrow.
On Monday the special issue of Phil Trans that Mark New and I edited with Tyndall's Kevin Anderson will come out with its focus on the world at 4 degrees C. It is a reminder of what we will face if we don't make progress in Cancun.
Cancun itself is vulnerable to climate change as ECI DPhil Arnoldo Matus Kramer is documenting in his dissertation in regard to risks of sea level rise and hurricanes. I hope that some of you attending Cancun get a chance to visit outside the hotel zone and see the amazing archaeological sites (such as Tulum or Chichen Itza) which are also reminders of what happens when society faces multiple stresses. The collapse of Mayan civilization in the Yucatan peninsula being a classic example of the intersection of increasing consumption, soil depletion and drought.
Diana Liverman
(former director of ECI and now co-director of the Institute of Environment at the University of Arizona and senior research fellow in ECI)
Friday, 26 November 2010
What a difference a year makes. Before Copenhagen, there was a tremendous sense of excitement and anticipation. Remember the slogan ‘Hopenhagen’? But President Felipe Calderon of Mexico, the new executive secretary of the UNFCCC Christiana Figueres, and just about every Western government official is downplaying the chances of any major advance at Cancun. Seems like Cancan’t.
Just compare the numbers of heads of state meant to be attending. Copenhagen had around 120. When I spoke this week to the Mexican foreign ministry, they were expecting around 20. Many of those are from Latin America and the Caribbean - there to offer some Latin solidarity to Mexico towards the end of the summit.
And the media? As our recent Reuters Institute study showed, about 4,000 journalists attended Copenhagen from 119 countries. We don’t know of a political event where more journalists were present. It wasn’t just the Western press who were there. Brazil and China both had more than 100 journalists there. http://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/publications/risj-challenges/summoned-by-science.html
This time, the UNFCCC says half that figure has registered, but many are coming just for the last few days. The BBC, Washington Post and New York Times are all scaling back their coverage compared to Copenhagen. http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/from_copenhagen_to_cancun.php?page=al
There is bound to be less drama and excitement. But there is one consolation – the temperature in Cancun is around 27C at the moment. That’s got to be better than queuing (fruitlessly at times) in sub-zero temperatures in Copenhagen.
James Painter is the author of’ Summoned by Science’, a study of how the international media reported the Copenhagen summit. He will be at Cancun working for the BBC website, bbcmundo.com.
Just compare the numbers of heads of state meant to be attending. Copenhagen had around 120. When I spoke this week to the Mexican foreign ministry, they were expecting around 20. Many of those are from Latin America and the Caribbean - there to offer some Latin solidarity to Mexico towards the end of the summit.
And the media? As our recent Reuters Institute study showed, about 4,000 journalists attended Copenhagen from 119 countries. We don’t know of a political event where more journalists were present. It wasn’t just the Western press who were there. Brazil and China both had more than 100 journalists there. http://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/publications/risj-challenges/summoned-by-science.html
This time, the UNFCCC says half that figure has registered, but many are coming just for the last few days. The BBC, Washington Post and New York Times are all scaling back their coverage compared to Copenhagen. http://www.cjr.org/the_observatory/from_copenhagen_to_cancun.php?page=al
There is bound to be less drama and excitement. But there is one consolation – the temperature in Cancun is around 27C at the moment. That’s got to be better than queuing (fruitlessly at times) in sub-zero temperatures in Copenhagen.
James Painter is the author of’ Summoned by Science’, a study of how the international media reported the Copenhagen summit. He will be at Cancun working for the BBC website, bbcmundo.com.
Wednesday, 3 November 2010
UPDATE - The ECI blog is all set for your comments on Cancun 2010!
ECI alumni, affiliates, staff and students will be updating this blog as the negotiations are in progress.
COP16 takes place from 29 November - 10 December 2010.
COP16 takes place from 29 November - 10 December 2010.
Wednesday, 23 December 2009
Copenhagen conundrum: time to talk social vision?
In our minds Copenhagen has confirmed the inability of our political leaders to rise above backward looking self-interest and lead us towards a vision of a better world. Perhaps we need to change the way the climate change issue is framed.
In 2004 we responded to newspaper headlines claiming that climate change would cause "1 million species to go extinct by 2050” with the argument that sensationalist reporting of science risks tuning people off and undermines the credibility of scientists (Link for papers). Each year we debate with our students the merits of ‘over-egging’ science in media reporting and the related issue of fear-based messaging.
The arguments for and against are finely balanced. Overall we’ve moved to the view that headlines of impending doom help push an issue up the political agenda and attract people’s attention. However, we also argue that doomsday messages of future catastrophe and social collapse do little to bring about meaningful and lasting social change. This is because most people are focused on the everyday and block out (or worse dismiss) issues that are distant or beyond their control. A recent study by Saffron O'Niel and Sophie Nicholson-Cole in Science Communication link supports this premise and argues for more research on how to promote a 'deeper personal concern and lifestyle engagement with climate change'.
Maybe the lesson from Copenhagen is that fear-based messaging can bring politicians to the table but struggles to create the atmosphere for a solution. When faced with a serious problem we instinctively look after our own. Perhaps in order to move forward, we need to finds ways to articulate future visions for society that frame low-carbon futures as something we'd all aspire to because they hold the prospect of better and more fulfilling lives for ourselves, our children and others. In short we need to balance the ‘hurt to avoid bigger hurt’, narrative with a ‘building for a better future’ narrative.
To do this we should look to broaden the diversity of actors actively debating climate change of solutions. We need to move beyond the climate scientists-NGO-activist-bureaucratic nexus and their deployment of anxiety to mobilize and legitimate political action. Instead, we need to encourage and look to scholars from other disciplines - from psychology, philosophy, sociology and politics - to enter the fray and along with artists, writers, film-makers, religious leaders to engage publics in discussions on visions for low-carbon societies that we’d all want to be part of.
In 2004 we responded to newspaper headlines claiming that climate change would cause "1 million species to go extinct by 2050” with the argument that sensationalist reporting of science risks tuning people off and undermines the credibility of scientists (Link for papers). Each year we debate with our students the merits of ‘over-egging’ science in media reporting and the related issue of fear-based messaging.
The arguments for and against are finely balanced. Overall we’ve moved to the view that headlines of impending doom help push an issue up the political agenda and attract people’s attention. However, we also argue that doomsday messages of future catastrophe and social collapse do little to bring about meaningful and lasting social change. This is because most people are focused on the everyday and block out (or worse dismiss) issues that are distant or beyond their control. A recent study by Saffron O'Niel and Sophie Nicholson-Cole in Science Communication link supports this premise and argues for more research on how to promote a 'deeper personal concern and lifestyle engagement with climate change'.
Maybe the lesson from Copenhagen is that fear-based messaging can bring politicians to the table but struggles to create the atmosphere for a solution. When faced with a serious problem we instinctively look after our own. Perhaps in order to move forward, we need to finds ways to articulate future visions for society that frame low-carbon futures as something we'd all aspire to because they hold the prospect of better and more fulfilling lives for ourselves, our children and others. In short we need to balance the ‘hurt to avoid bigger hurt’, narrative with a ‘building for a better future’ narrative.
To do this we should look to broaden the diversity of actors actively debating climate change of solutions. We need to move beyond the climate scientists-NGO-activist-bureaucratic nexus and their deployment of anxiety to mobilize and legitimate political action. Instead, we need to encourage and look to scholars from other disciplines - from psychology, philosophy, sociology and politics - to enter the fray and along with artists, writers, film-makers, religious leaders to engage publics in discussions on visions for low-carbon societies that we’d all want to be part of.
Paul Jepson and Richard Ladle, from http://www.21stcenturyconservation.blogspot.com/
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