Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Freak Storm Pushes North Pole 50 Degrees Above Normal to Melting Point | Earth First! Newswire



This story has been updated to include buoy measurements that confirm the North Pole temperature climbed above 32 degrees on Wednesday.

A powerful winter cyclone — the same storm that led to two tornado outbreaks in the United States and disastrous river flooding — has driven the North Pole to the freezing point this week, 50 degrees above average for this time of year.

From Tuesday evening to Wednesday morning, a mind-boggling pressure drop was recorded in Iceland: 54 millibars in just 18 hours. This triples the criteria for “bomb” cyclogenesis, which meteorologists use to describe a rapidly intensifying mid-latitude storm. A “bomb” cyclone is defined as dropping one millibar per hour for 24 hours.

NOAA’s Ocean Prediction Center said the storm’s minimum pressure dropped to 928 millibars around 1 a.m. Eastern time, which likely places it in the top five strongest storms on record in this region...
more: Freak Storm Pushes North Pole 50 Degrees Above Normal to Melting Point | Earth First! Newswire

Cultura Inquieta - Las mejores fotografías de National Geographic en 2015



(and you thought penguins are cute)

...no, but really: some great photos here: Cultura Inquieta - Las mejores fotografías de National Geographic en 2015

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Tidings to All Ye Who Would Build Pipelines Here: From Southern Oregon Rising Tide | Earth First! Newswire



Dear Jordan Cove & Pacific Connector,Happy fracking holidays! It’s a snowy December here in Southern Oregon and we hope everyone involved with the Pacific Connector Pipeline and Jordan Cove LNG export project is keeping us in your thoughts... [more]


from Southern Oregon Rising Tide

Over the holidays, Southern Oregon Rising Tide mailed festive postcards to several of their fracking foes with a special message: Bring the pipeline, expect resistance. Donning elf hats and tree-climbing apparel, SORT members scaled a snow laden doug fir tree that stands in the path of the proposed Pacific Connector Pipeline near Ashland, OR...

more: Tidings to All Ye Who Would Build Pipelines Here: From Southern Oregon Rising Tide | Earth First! Newswire
Earth First! Newswire | Media from the Frontlines of Ecological Resistance.

via @submedia

'Ichiefu,' manga by Fukushima nuke plant worker, to hit shelves abroad - The Mainichi


Three volumes of the manga "Ichiefu" are seen. (Mainichi)


"Ichiefu," a manga-cum-reportage series about the disaster-stricken Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant by an artist who actually works there, is set to be published in France, Germany, Spain, Italy and Taiwan.
    A total of some 20,000 copies of the "Ichiefu" series -- a dispassionate account of operations at the plant based on the day-to-day working experiences of 50-year-old author Kazuto Tatsuta (a penname) -- will hit shelves in the foreign markets. The question now is: How will the manga be received abroad?

    more: 'Ichiefu,' manga by Fukushima nuke plant worker, to hit shelves abroad - The Mainichi


    via The #OcNukeDaily • #OccupyNuclear

    #OccupyNuclear :)

    HOME: http://occupynuclear.net/
    #OcNukeDAILY NEWS: http://tinyurl.com/OcNuke
    FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/groups/OccupyNuclear
    BLOG: http://rceezwhatsup.blogspot.com/p/occupynuclear.html
    TWITTER: https://twitter.com/search?q=%23OccupyNuclear&f=realtime 
    YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCf5ETFVJ_HDGtHJ6_9qe6bA


    Saturday, December 26, 2015

    Sunday, December 20, 2015

    It's time to transition to 100% clean energy: the wind is now at our backs | Mark Ruffalo | Opinion | The Guardian

    @Mark Ruffalo

    Relying fully on clean energy is not only good for the environment, human health and the economy, it is also doable

    The climate agreement reached in Paris is provoking a flurry of caveats, criticisms and cautions. Many of those criticisms are warranted and there’s a lot of work ahead to make sure countries live up to their promises. But we should not miss a chance to celebrate a historic turning point.


    World leaders finally made commitments to clean, renewable energy that will help to ensure a safer, healthier and more prosperous future for us all. The agreement signals that the age of fossil fuels is coming to a close, and the age of renewable energy is dawning. 

    In many ways, the Paris deal is the mother of all market signals. To deliver on the promises world leaders made, we will need to leave coal and oil in the ground and move toward a complete reliance on clean energy. Let’s not miss the writing on the wall: fossil fuels are a losing bet, while renewables offer economic opportunity. 
    more: It's time to transition to 100% clean energy: the wind is now at our backs | Mark Ruffalo | Opinion | The Guardian



    Wednesday, December 16, 2015

    Support The #OcNukeDaily and #OccupyNuclear - GoFundMe


    Greetings! I have started a gofundme campaign for "OcNuke" / #OccupyNuclear‬ Please consider helping out! – My hope here is to recover a portion of my expenses for the purchase of a new laptop, recoup some of the monthly expenses for #OccupyNuclear, and to just have something to live on for a little while.
    (see the gofundme page for more about my situation)
    Following something of a sabbatical, and then a push for COP21 and my #BustTheMyth / "don't nuke the climate" campaign, my current plan is to revitalize #OccupyNuclear after the first of the year. My goal is to publicize and increase media exposure for, and, to inspire personal involvements in, world-wide anti-nuclear efforts, actions, news, networking and events. Please see occupynuclear.net.

    A variable rate of ice growth | Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis


    The rate of ice growth for the first half of November 2015 was quite rapid, but the pace of ice growth slowed during the second half of the month, only to increase again at the end of the month. Throughout the month, sea ice extent remained within two standard deviations of the 1981 to 2010 average.

    A variable rate of ice growth | Arctic Sea Ice News and Analysis



    Sea Ice News & Analysis – updated daily: – NOV'15: <



    Tuesday, December 15, 2015

    Support "what next" and #RCDaily - GoFundMe




    My hope here is to recover a portion of my expenses for the purchase of a new laptop, and to just to have something to live on for a little while.

    As a long-time environmental and anti-nuclear activist, it has become a wonderful hobby for me to be publishing my “whats next ” news and random blog and the #RCDaily • #Eco online newspaper (there also a Weekly version), along with the #OccupyNuclear suite.

    While it was never my intention to make any money from these endeavours, I have put a fair amount of energy into it, and basically had to buy a new computer in order to continue this (along with some other purposes, of course)...

    – please see the page for more info on my situation –

    thank you for your consideration!

    click to donate: Support Robert's #RCDaily #Eco News by Robert Cherwink - GoFundMe

    Wednesday, December 9, 2015

    ENERGY EFFICIENCY: Home Energy Special on "Ask This Old House"



    In a special episode of Ask This Old House, Richard and Kevin take a trip to Germany to discover how the country has become a world leader in energy efficiency. They find answers in the mechanical rooms of a home and a bed and breakfast. Plus, Kevin and Ross head to Texas to install a residential wind turbine in Texas.

    full episode: 

    Monday, December 7, 2015

    GlÓR NA HAOISE - Songs of Solidarity and Resistence



    We all know the story of how Royal Dutch Shell bullied the people from An Ros Dumhach (Rossport).

    Last saturday Rónán Ó Snodaigh played a concert in An Taibhdhearc in Galway for the launch of 'GlÓR NA HAOISE - Songs of Solidarity and Resistence' - a lavish and beautifully presented 3-cd collection celebrating the on-going campaign of civil disobedience.

    The back cover of the cd has a quote from the singer and storyteller Liam Clancy - 'Written history is nothing more than the propaganda of the victors. If you want the real history you'll have to go to the folksongs.'

    This 3-cd collection is just that - folksongs - from Francis Black, Mickey Coleman Singer/Songwriter Tyrone Ireland, Noelle MacDonnell, Margaretta D'Arcy, Paranoid Visions, Camilla Cantata, Mick Blake, Donal Finn, The Living Stream, Mícheál Ó Séighin, Jinx Lennon, Sinéad Uí Fhaoláín, Sean Cregan, Captain A, Sorcha Fox, Breeda Murphy, Louis de Paor agus John Spillane, Dr Owens Wiwa, Catriona Murphy, The People of Ogoniland, Astrid Ní Mhongáín, Liam Ó Maonlaí, Finbar Cafferkey, John Hoban, Fintan Vallely, Éamon Ó Súilleabháin agus Seosamh Mac Donnacha, Micheál Ó Conghaile, Donal O'Kelly, Chris Duignan, Tara Sheehy, Barry Johnston, Damhnait de Brún, Queen elvis, Cormac Lally, Kevin Burke (musician) & Ged Foley, Treasa Elsafty, Ethel Corduff, Din de Paor, Gréagóir Ó Dúill, Rita Ann Higgins, Breandán Ó Beaglaoich, Esse Egesse, The Rebel Souls, Indica, Cian Finn, Barry Krishna, Lee Barley & the Rossport Solidarity Camp, Colm Henry & Wildfire, Rosemary Woods, Leo Moran & Anto Thistlethwaite, The Latchiko's, Áine Uí Fhoghlú, Pete Mullineux, Sarah Clancy, Lee Barley, An Galar Dub, This Natchez, Niamh N Lochlainn, ian Lynch, Damien Dempsey.
    'Nuff said!



    via Kila on Facebook
    Contemporary Irish Music - Trad meets Irish Rave and back again...
    Hometown: Dublin originally now throughout Ireland!
    web: kila.ie


    GLÓR NA HAOISE
    SONGS OF SOLIDARITY

    In the autumn of 2011 shell announced in their monthly newsletter ‘corrib gas update’ that the tunnel boring machine (tbm) which was to bore under sruth mhada chonn estuary had been built, and was soon to arrive in erris. In naming the machine, they declared, ‘fionnuala has been chosen, in honour of the legend of the children of lir, which has a strong local resonance’.

    Fionnuala, of the children of lir, who, along with her three brothers, spent their last 300 years on the waters of iorras domnann (erris). And fionnuala, shell’s tunnel boring machine, weighing in at nearly 500 tonnes. A behemoth to dredge through ancestral memories. In appropriating the name of fionnuala, shell would have us fall under a spell. An amnesia of forgetting and accepting. That which destroys the old myth becomes the new myth. A response was called for.  And so it was that ‘glór na haoise’ came to be, to reclaim, restore and give voice to the pain and indignation felt by the people of northwest mayo and to celebrate their long stand for truth and justice.

    Each song and poem tells its own unique part of the story of the struggle. They tell of the arrival of enterprise oil and its successor royal dutch shell, and of the early years of the shell to sea campaign. They tell of the jailing of the rossport five now ten years past and of the execution, with the connivance of shell, of nigerian activist ken saro-wiwa twenty years ago.

    They speak of the potentially lethal attacks on local farmer willie corduff, who was assaulted by several balaclaved men while lying under a shell truck in protest, and of fisherman pat o’donnell,  whose boat was boarded and sunk also by masked men, an event the gardaí failed to investigate adequately, and for which no-one was ever held accountable. They tell of the arrival of shell’s pipe-laying ship the solitaire, and the hunger strike of shell to sea campaigner maura harrington. Of the arrival off the coast of two irish navy gunboats and hundreds of gardaí and private security, all to surround and repress a small community of campaigners. They tell of garda brutality, courtroom lies, booze and bribes. They sing of the indomitable spirit of the rossport solidarity camp, their actions, sit-ins, lock-ons and laughter. And of the journey, arrival, sinking and resurrection of  shell's tunnel boring machine in the boglands of gleann na muaigh.

    They sing of freedom and of the beauty of erris,

    in celebration, we remember…

    songsofsolidarity.com


    "We Do Not Want to Die in Silence": Indigenous People Demand Rights as Draft Climate Deal Reached | Democracy Now!



    "We Do Not Want to Die in Silence": Indigenous People Demand Rights as Draft Climate Deal Reached - YouTube

    Published on Dec 7, 2015 by Democracy Now!
    Negotiators from 195 countries at the United Nations climate summit have approved draft text for what they hope will form an accord to curb global carbon emissions by the end of this week. Among the issues still under discussion is whether the deal will mention indigenous rights. On Sunday, indigenous people from around the world took to the waters here in Paris to defend their rights and the environment. "We’re very, very concerned about the fact that reference to indigenous rights and human rights have been moved into an annex in the Paris text," Cree activist Clayton Thomas-Muller says. "It means that they’ve been put aside to be discussed after the weekend."

    Democracynow.org - Democracy Now!, is an independent global news hour that airs weekdays on 1,300+ TV and radio stations Monday through Friday. Watch our livestream 8-9am ET: http://democracynow.org

    Saturday, December 5, 2015

    Indigenous Rights on Chopping Block of UN #COP21 Paris #Climate Accord | #Indigenous Flotilla of Kayaks & Press Conference Demanding True Climate Solutions at COP21 | Indigenous Rising

    ***Media Advisory*** 
    #Indigenous Flotilla of Kayaks & Press Conference Demanding True Climate Solutions at COP21 ---



    Indigenous Rights on Chopping Block of UN #COP21 Paris #Climate Accord

    Paris – Saturday – December 5th – On Friday December 4th, Indigenous Peoples from around the globe demonstrated inside the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC/COP21) convention centre at Le Bourget. The protest was carried out to highlight objections to the proposed removal of language pertaining to both the rights of Indigenous Peoples and Human Rights from Article 2.2 of the draft Paris Accord, ending the first week of negotiations. Norway, the UK and the EU have been key players in this removal of the rights of Indigenous Peoples.
    Despite such vocal objections from Indigenous Peoples and their allies, the operative text of the Paris Accord, as it stands today, has had the rights of Indigenous Peoples language/clauses removed, and there is now a proposal to have ‘Human Rights’ removed as well.  At present, this leaves the rights of Indigenous Peoples only reflected within the preamble – which is purely aspirational text, and not legally binding or enforceable in any way. 
    “The inclusion of the rights of Indigenous Peoples text, in addition to Human Rights text is crucial. A Western, non-Indigenous evaluation of Human Rights does not necessarily adequately protect our rights as Indigenous Peoples,” states Princess Daazhraii Johnson, REDOIL Alaska spokesperson. 
    “Many of our Indigenous peoples still live off the land, living a subsistence-based lifestyle. And given that many of the world’s fossil fuel reserves are on or adjacent to Indigenous lands, we must protect our collective rights to self-determine our relationship to Mother Earth by rejecting false solutions to addressing climate change,” concluded Ms. Johnson...
    more: Indigenous Rights on Chopping Block of UN COP21 Paris Climate Accord | Indigenous Rising



    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
    Saturday, December 5, 2015
    Screen Shot 2015-12-05 at 4.12.20 AM
    Contact:
    Dallas Goldtooth, Indigenous Environmental Network, France: +33 75 1413 823, US: (708) 515-6158, dallas@ienearth.org
    Andrew Miller, Amazon Watch, (202) 423-4828, andrew@amazonwatch.org
    Jonathon Berman, Sierra Club, (202) 495-3033, jonathon.berman@sierraclub.org

    ***Media Advisory***
    Indigenous Flotilla of Kayaks & Press Conference Demanding True Climate Solutions at COP21

    During the COP21 climate talks in Paris, Indigenous Peoples from the Arctic to the Amazon and their allies will gather to demand real climate solutions, including bottom-up initiatives originating in Indigenous knowledge, culture, and spirituality. 

    What: Sunday’s event will feature an all-indigenous flotilla of kayaks followed by a press conference featuring Indigenous leaders from the Americas offering solutions to stave off the worst of climate change and protect Mother Earth. 
    • The launching of a declaration calling on world leaders to keep fossil fuels in the ground, led by Indigenous peoples and signed by over 150 organizations.
    • The signing announcement from Indigenous women leaders from North and South America of a treaty to protect Mother Earth.
    • Presentation of the Kawsak Sacha “Living Forest” proposal from the Amazon rainforest by the Kichwa Indigenous people of Sarayaku. 
    • Indigenous flotilla on the Bassin de la Villette, including Sarayaku’s “Canoe of Life” which has traveled 6000 miles to Paris with a message from the Amazon.

    When: The flotilla action will start Sunday, December 6th at 2 pm local time, immediately followed by a press conference

    Where: Péniche Antipode barge on the Bassin de la Villete Canal. 55 Quai de la Seine, 75019 (Closest metro station: Riquet on the 7 Line)

    Who: The press conference will be led by Indigenous peoples organizations and movements including Indigenous Environmental Network; Idle No More, and the Kichwa community of Sarayaku from Ecuador. 

    Indigenous spokespeople speaking at the press conference:
    1. Felix Santi (Kichwa): President of the Kichwa community of Sarayaku in the Ecuadorian Amazon, speaking about the Canoe of Life and the Living Forest concept;
    2. Faith Gemmill (Gwich’in & Pit River/Wintu): Executive Director of Resisting Environmental Destruction on Indigenous Lands, speaking on the Declaration to Keep Fossil Fuels in the Ground;
    3. Casey Camp-Horinek (Ponca): Native rights activist, environmentalist and actress, speaking on the Indigenous Women’s Treaty; and
    4. Ena Santi (Kichwa): Sarayaku Council Member in charge of Women’s Issues, speaking on the Indigenous Women’s Treaty

    Other spokespeople available for comment post-press conference:
    • Tom Goldtooth (Dine’ and Dakota): Executive Director of the Indigenous Environmental Network
    • Leila Salazar-López: Executive Director of Amazon Watch
    • Eric Pica: Executive Director of Friends of the Earth
    • Esperanza Martínez: Director of Acción Ecológica
    • Lindsey Allen: Executive Director of Rainforest Action Network
    • May Boeve: Executive Director of 350.org
    • Mary Anne Hitt: Director of Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign

    Visuals: 
    • Indigenous flotilla of several canoes and at least 25 kayaks adorned with Indigenous art work representing the different Indigenous cultures participating in the event;
    • Colorful banners and flags; and
    • Indigenous representatives wearing their traditional attire and regalia

    ###
     

    Wednesday, December 2, 2015

    Investing in the Climate Revolution — Natural Resources Defense Council — Medium

    Investing in the Climate Revolution

    A new publicly traded index fund will be the first to invest only in S&P 500 companies that don’t own fossil-fuel reserves.

    With the opening of the Paris climate talks this week, President Obama joined leaders from 150 other nations to affirm an historic global pivot. The world is moving away from the dirty fossil fuels that drive climate change and toward the cleaner, smarter energy options that can power our future without threatening our kids...



    Investing in the Climate Revolution — Natural Resources Defense Council — Medium

    https://medium.com/natural-resources-defense-council




    http://www.nrdc.org