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Alaska Native Village Votes to Relocate in the Face of Rising Sea Levels

by Myrna Posted on August 18, 2016

“I waited until the last hour to vote.” Shishmaref, Alaska, is built on a narrow spit along the Bering Sea Coast. It’s under threat from increasing erosion, disappearing ice, and thawing permafrost. Gary Braasch/ZUMA This story was originally published by Grist. The coastal village of Shishmaref, Alaska, voted Tuedsay to relocate due to climate change-induced rising sea levels, according to city council secretary Donna Burr. The community is home to about 600 people, most of whom are Inupiat Inuit, and welcomed votes from tribal and non-tribal residents alike. This isn’t the first time the village has voted to relocate. In 2002, residents chose to leave for the mainland, but a lack of federal funds made that impossible. The U.S. Department of the Interior has made $8 million available for all tribes seeking relocation — that’s far short of the estimated $200 million the village needs to move. A lot of residents, like 25-year-old Tiffany Magby, are too young to really remember the 2002 vote. Magby says she’s heard talk of relocation almost her entire life and that the vote was difficult for her. “I waited until the last hour to vote,” Magby says. “I have a 3-year-old son, and am worried about what it means for his upbringing.” Magby voted to stay, because she doesn’t want her son to lose access to traditional values outside of Shishmaref. She says she didn’t know how most people voted, because most were quiet about the decision, pondering their vote until the last minute. The vote still needs to be certified, but the unofficial ballot results are 89-to-78, according to Burr. Burr says that that due to a lack of state and federal funding, the village will have to figure out a creative process to relocate. “It’s not going to happen in our lifetimes,” Burr says. “We just want to take the right steps forward for our children.” Originally from:   Alaska Native Village Votes to Relocate in the Face of Rising Sea Levels ; ; ;

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Alaska Native Village Votes to Relocate in the Face of Rising Sea Levels

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Wanna See What Happens When You Rely on the Fossil Fuel Sector and Slash Taxes?

by Myrna Posted on March 9, 2016

Check out Louisiana. Andrew Cline/Shutterstock The state of Louisiana has fallen on hard times, and its situation offers some hard lessons. First, don’t let a right-wing ideologue cut your budget to the bone. Second, don’t hang your whole economy on fossil fuel extraction. The Washington Post reports on the state’s budget crisis: Already, the state of Louisiana had gutted university spending and depleted its rainy-day funds. It had cut 30,000 employees and furloughed others. It had slashed the number of child services staffers … And then, the state’s new governor, John Bel Edwards (D), came on TV and said the worst was yet to come. … Despite all the cuts of the previous years, the nation’s second-poorest state still needed nearly $3 billion — almost $650 per person — just to maintain its regular services over the next 16 months. … A few universities will shut down and declare bankruptcy. Graduations will be canceled. Students will lose scholarships. Select hospitals will close. Patients will lose funding for treatment of disabilities. Some reports of child abuse will go uninvestigated. For eight years, under former Gov. Bobby Jindal (R-La.), Louisiana slashed taxes and played tricks to fill budget holes. Jindal claimed that the tax cuts he pushed through would promote miraculous economic growth and make up for the lost revenue. That didn’t work, of course, just as it didn’t work on a national level under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. Read the rest at Grist. See more here –  Wanna See What Happens When You Rely on the Fossil Fuel Sector and Slash Taxes? ; ; ;

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Wanna See What Happens When You Rely on the Fossil Fuel Sector and Slash Taxes?

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Science Has Found a Brilliant New Use for Your Kitchen Scraps

by Myrna Posted on March 9, 2016

Turns out, dumping compost on grasslands can do a surprising amount for the planet. Steve Russell/The Toronto Star/ZUMA When John Wick and his wife, Peggy Rathmann, bought their 540-acre ranch in 1998, it was in bad shape. Located in California’s Marin County, a windswept region northwest of San Francisco Bay, the land had been worn down by overgrazing; the grass was gone and the soil was degraded. Neither Wick nor Rathmann knew how to fix it because the couple didn’t have any ranching experience—Wick worked in construction management, and Rathmann wrote children’s classics like 10 Minutes till Bedtime and Good Night, Gorilla. So Wick consulted his friend Jeffrey Creque, a rangeland ecology expert. Creque helped Wick repair the soil by bringing back some grass—which gave the two an idea: They knew that in addition to enriching the soil, healthy grass, through photosynthesis, could remove carbon from the atmosphere. So was there a way, they wondered, to grow more grass on Wick’s land and slow global warming at the same time? The theory made sense: Carbon that is absorbed by grass can be stored for hundreds of years in the grass’ roots and surrounding soil—a much better spot for it than in the air, where it warms the planet in the form of carbon dioxide. Carbon-enriched soil, in turn, feeds grass so it can grow taller and suck down even more carbon. In rangelands, this cycle takes place on a massive scale: Between the grass and the soil, a third of the world’s carbon is stored in these expanses. But tilling and overgrazing unleash that carbon. These practices also cause topsoil erosion, which compounds the problem by making it hard for grass to grow. To make matters worse, rangelands are often home to cows, and manure releases methane and nitrous oxide gases into the atmosphere. In fact, livestock are responsible for nearly one-fifth of the globe’s overall greenhouse gas emissions. Read the rest at Mother Jones. Originally posted here –  Science Has Found a Brilliant New Use for Your Kitchen Scraps ; ; ;

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Science Has Found a Brilliant New Use for Your Kitchen Scraps

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We’ll Always Have Paris

by ShelliHollars Posted on March 9, 2016

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Marie Kondo’s The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up Summary – Ant Hive Media

Made for those who find themselves drowning in clutter, The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo is a must have. What makes this book special is that it delivers a whole new approach called the KonMari method when decluttering, arranging and storing items at home. Author, Marie Kondo, is a Japanese cleaning […]

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The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up – Marie Kondo

This New York Times best-selling guide to decluttering your home from Japanese cleaning consultant Marie Kondo takes readers step-by-step through her revolutionary KonMari Method for simplifying, organizing, and storing. Despite constant efforts to declutter your home, do papers still accumulate like snowdrifts and clothes pile up like a tangled mess of noodles? Japanese cleaning consultant […]

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Spark Joy – Marie Kondo

Japanese decluttering guru Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up  has revolutionized homes—and lives—across the world. Now, Kondo presents an illustrated guide to her acclaimed KonMari Method, with step-by-step folding illustrations for everything from shirts to socks, plus drawings of perfectly organized drawers and closets. She also provides advice on frequently asked questions, such as whether to […]

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Marley & Me – John Grogan

The heartwarming and unforgettable story of a family and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life. Now with photos and new material

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How to Raise the Perfect Dog – Cesar Millan & Melissa Jo Peltier

From the bestselling author and star of National Geographic Channel's Dog Whisperer , the only resource you’ll need for raising a happy, healthy dog. For the millions of people every year who consider bringing a puppy into their lives–as well as those who have already brought a dog home–Cesar Millan, the preeminent dog behavior expert, […]

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The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up – Instaread

The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo | Key Takeaways, Analysis & Review  Preview : The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing (2011) by Marie Kondo helps readers discard unnecessary items, reorganize their possessions, and properly store items in a home. The procedures Kondo developed for organization […]

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White Dwarf Issue 110: 5th March 2016 (Tablet Edition) – White Dwarf

So, here we are – an insidious alien cult has been uncovered, and White Dwarf 110 is here to drag it kicking and screaming out into the light. We’ve got a special feature on the Genestealer Cults – what are they? How does a whole world fall thrall to such terrifying alien monstrosities? – plus […]

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Trident K9 Warriors – Mike Ritland & Gary Brozek

As Seen on “60 Minutes”! As a Navy SEAL during a combat deployment in Iraq, Mike Ritland saw a military working dog in action and instantly knew he'd found his true calling. Ritland started his own company training and supplying dogs for the SEAL teams, U.S. Government, and Department of Defense. He knew that fewer […]

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The Art of Raising a Puppy (Revised Edition) – Monks of New Skete

For more than thirty years the Monks of New Skete have been among America's most trusted authorities on dog training, canine behavior, and the animal/human bond. In their two now-classic bestsellers, How to be Your Dog's Best Friend and The Art of Raising a Puppy, the Monks draw on their experience as long-time breeders of […]

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White Dwarf Issue 109: 27th February 2016 (Tablet Edition) – White Dwarf

Suffer not the alien to live! White Dwarf 109 arrives with news of a stunning new boxed game – Deathwatch Overkill, pitting the Space Marines of the Deathwatch against – wait for it – the insidious alien threat of a Genestealer Cult! Yes, that’s right, long before the arrival of the hive fleets, the Genestealers […]

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We’ll Always Have Paris

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Clinton and Sanders Just Weighed In on an Old Battle in the Fight for Reproductive Rights

by JeniferGopinko Posted on February 11, 2016

Mother Jones

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Both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have repeatedly emphasized the importance of protecting women’s reproductive rights, but mostly they’ve focused on domestic policy. Now, looking overseas, they say the United States should change the regulation of foreign aid for abortions.

The 1973 Helms amendment blocks the use of foreign aid for women who were raped in conflict zones or developing countries and seeking an abortion. The amendment states, “No foreign assistance funds may be used to pay for the performance of abortions as a method of family planning or to motivate or coerce any person to practice abortions.” The Hyde amendment, which was passed three years after the Helms amendment, prohibits federal funding from being used for elective abortions—abortions that are not because of incest, rape, or life endangerment.

According to the Huffington Post, Clinton promised to change the Helms amendment and create an exception for rape, incest, and protecting the life of the mother. Sanders said he would use executive action to repeal the Helms amendment altogether.

“Sen. Sanders is opposed to the Helms amendment,” Arianna Jones, his deputy communications director, told the Huffington Post. “As president, he will sign an executive order to allow for U.S. foreign aid to pay for abortions in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the woman is at risk. He will also work with Congress to permanently repeal both the Hyde and Helms amendments.”

Clinton was asked about the Helms amendment during her Iowa campaign, where she said she thinks rape is being used increasingly as a war weapon.

“I do think we have to take a look at this for conflict zones,” Clinton said at the town hall, responding to a question from an audience member. “And if the United States government, because of very strong feelings against it, maintains our prohibition, then we are going to have to work through nonprofit groups and work with other countries to…provide the support and medical care that a lot of these women need.”

A Clinton campaign spokeswoman wrote in an email to the Huffington Post that Clinton would “fix” the Helms amendment: “The systematic use of rape as a tool of war is a tactic of vicious militias and insurgent and terrorist groups around the world. She saw first-hand as Secretary of State the suffering of survivors of sexual violence in armed conflict during her visit to Goma in 2009. She believes we should help women who have been raped in conflict get the care that they need.”

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Clinton and Sanders Just Weighed In on an Old Battle in the Fight for Reproductive Rights

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2015 Was by Far the Hottest Year on Record

by Myrna Posted on January 20, 2016

Global warming is real. Scientific Visualization Studio/Goddard Space Flight Center 2015 was almost certainly the hottest year since we began keeping records, according to data released today by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. In a press release Wednesday, NASA stated that it was 94 percent confident that last year was the warmest since 1880. Here’s a chart from NOAA: NOAA/NASA “Record warmth was spread throughout the world,” said Thomas Karl, director of NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information. “Ten of 12 months were records. That’s the first time we’ve seen that.” NASA/NOAA Shattered global temperature records are becoming increasingly commonplace, thanks to climate change; with today’s announcement, all five of the hottest years on record have occurred in the last decade. But the amount by which 2015 shattered the previous record, in 2014, was itself a record, scientists said. That’s due in part to this year’s El Niño, characterized by exceptionally high temperatures in the Pacific Ocean. NASA/NOAA But Gavin Schmidt, director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies, said the effects of El Niño only really appeared in the last few months of the year, and that 2015 likely would have been a record year regardless. “2015 was warm right from the beginning; it didn’t start with El Niño,” he said. “The reason this is such a record is because of the long-term trend, and there is no evidence that trend has slowed or paused over the last two decades.” NASA/NOAA Schmidt added that El Niño is likely to persist into 2016, which means we could be in for a record-breaking year yet again. Credit:   2015 Was by Far the Hottest Year on Record ; ; ;

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2015 Was by Far the Hottest Year on Record

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The Ugly Truth Lurking Behind the Climate Talks

by Myrna Posted on December 11, 2015

As a climate deal nears, power players want accountability (just not for themselves). US Secretary of State John Kerry and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon meet on the sidelines of the Paris climate negotiations. Mandel Ngan/Pool/AP LE BOURGET, France—When I meet new people here, the first question I usually get is a variation on, “Are these your first climate talks?” What they want to know is if I’m an expert like them—if I know the jargon, the unwritten rules, the backstories of who’s been fighting who since Kyoto ’97. The answer is, yes, these are my first talks. And that’s made for some humbling learning curves (look, “ADP” and “informal informal” aren’t exactly self-defining terms). But the good part is that I got to come here with the outsider’s perspective of someone who’s spent more time covering disaster, social upheaval, and response, particularly in Haiti, the country ranked as the third-most affected by climate change so far. In other words, I’ve seen a few things—things that leave me with a question right at the center of what is likely to be the major battle in the final stage of these talks. I think everyone gets the importance of money and power at these negotiations by now. The operating assumption is that rich countries who’ve benefited most from carbon emissions will pay something to alleviate the effects of global warming on the poor, while helping the new major polluters, such as India, get off carbon before they burn us past the point of no return. Read the rest at The New Republic. Link:  The Ugly Truth Lurking Behind the Climate Talks ; ; ;

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The Ugly Truth Lurking Behind the Climate Talks

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The Island of Nauru Could Live or Die at the Hands of COP21

by Myrna Posted on December 11, 2015

Over the years, this tiny Pacific island has been devastated by war, phosphate mining, and now climate change. Years of strip-mining have left three-quarters of Nauru’s land useless. Sosrodjojo/JiwaFoto/ZUMA You’ve probably never heard of Nauru. But you might want to learn its name. It may not be around much longer. Nauru is a speck in the South Pacific. It’s the tiniest island nation and the third smallest nation in the world. At roughly 8 square miles and with just over 10,000 residents, Nauru isn’t exactly a political heavyweight on the world stage. But Nauru is sinking, drying out, and generally in peril due to the ever-accelerating effects of climate change. And it may spark a debate at the Paris climate talks currently underway about what to do with populations on the verge of becoming climate refugees with literally nowhere to go. Nauru is not your typical drowning-island scenario. What used to be a Pacific island oasis is now, by many accounts, a physical example of how quickly paradise can be destroyed. In the early 1900s, a German company began strip-mining the interior of the island for phosphate, the main component of agricultural fertilizer. Then came Japan, which occupied the country during World War II, and continued the phosphate mining. The U.S. bombed Japan’s airstrip on Nauru in 1943, preventing food supplies from entering the island. Less than a year later, Japan deported 1,200 Nauruans to work as forced laborers on a nearby island—only 737 of them survived the ordeal to be repatriated after the war just three years later. After the war, Australia took control of the country, and phosphate mining resumed as an Australian enterprise, before mining rights were transferred to Nauru when the nation became independent in 1968. Read the rest at Newsweek. More:   The Island of Nauru Could Live or Die at the Hands of COP21 ; ; ;

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The Island of Nauru Could Live or Die at the Hands of COP21

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Climate Change Deniers Try to Derail the Paris Talks

by Myrna Posted on December 8, 2015

The GOP is making its presence felt at the conference. Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP LE BOURGET, France—Monday began what’s supposed to be the final week of the climate talks, the one where top-level negotiators hammer out an accord to stop the deadly march of global warming. To troll this momentous event, the climate change deniers at the Heartland Institute came all the way from Chicago to stage a “counter-conference” at a central Paris venue called, seriously, the Hotel California. I don’t know much about what happened on that dark desert highway, in part because journalists with the climate advocacy site DeSmogBlog were kicked out before the session began. Heartland’s Jim Lakely told me DeSmogBlog engaged in “overt advocacy.” Kyla Mandel, one of the two bloggers booted, responded that he’s probably referring to them having told other journalists that Heartland has received funding from ExxonMobil. (Lakely didn’t elaborate.) A few reporters briefly noted the “counter-conference” and moved on, which is the attention it deserved. While there are intense arguments about how to address climate change, there is no real debate among scientists about the core facts: Human contributions to the greenhouse effect are making the Earth hotter, which is bad for life. We can already see it happening, and pretty much the only people still clinging to denial live in well-off, English-speaking countries, primarily the United States. Which is probably why the denial event drew such a paltry crowd—organizers say a multiple of 20—compared to the thousands at anti-carbon emissions protests in the city and tens of thousands at the 196-party United Nations conference here. And yet, at the real conference on Monday, it became clear that there are important reasons not to ignore that small, well-funded American faction entirely. For all the worldwide agreement on global warming, this week’s negotiators are hashing out the thorny issues of what should be done, by whom and when. Big fights include who will pay for existing and future damage and how to make sure that countries live up to all the promises they’ve made and will make this week. Read the rest at The New Republic. Read article here:  Climate Change Deniers Try to Derail the Paris Talks ; ; ;

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Climate Change Deniers Try to Derail the Paris Talks

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Obama’s New Climate Change Message: There’s Hope

by Myrna Posted on November 30, 2015

The president’s Paris speech shows how much has changed since Copenhagen. Drop of Light/Shutterstock President Barack Obama has laid years of groundwork in order to be able to say these words in front of 150 world leaders at the COP21 Paris climate conference: “I’ve come here personally, as the leader of the world’s largest economy and the second-largest emitter, to say that the United States of America not only recognizes our role in creating this problem, we embrace our responsibility to do something about it.” That might not sound like much, and his short speech at the opening of the summit certainly didn’t include anything that we haven’t heard from him before. In context, though, his address in Paris is remarkable compared to his address to the climate conference in Copenhagen in 2009. Obama was there on the last day of that conference to salvage what was left of a deal. And the remarks he gave were too little, too late. At Copenhagen, Obama didn’t say much that signaled what his administration would do on climate change, especially important given the U.S.’s historic role as the world’s biggest polluter. His words—“America has made our choice. We have charted our course. We have made our commitments. We will do what we say”—rang false and empty. The entirety of his eight-minute speech echoed the same problems that have plagued global climate action for over two decades. “I have to be honest, as the world watches us today, I think our ability to take collective action is in doubt right now,” he said. “We know the fault lines because we’ve been imprisoned by them for years. These international discussions have essentially taken place now for almost two decades, and we have very little to show for it other than an increased acceleration of the climate change phenomenon.” Read the rest at The New Republic. More: Obama’s New Climate Change Message: There’s Hope ; ; ;

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Obama’s New Climate Change Message: There’s Hope

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