Climate Change

BRICS: Talk Left, Walk Right – Patrick Bond (pt 2/2)
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BRICS: Talk Left, Walk Right – Patrick Bond (pt 2/2)

In part 2, Patrick Bond broadens out his analysis of the BRICS countries engaging in what he terms “talk left, walk right.” He explains the economic theories of “accumulation by dispossession” and refers back to the aims of the Non-Aligned Movement of 1961 and the spirit of the 1955 Bandung Conference.

Climate Lobbyists Hijack Progressive Climate Bills – Rebecca Burns
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Climate Lobbyists Hijack Progressive Climate Bills – Rebecca Burns

Rebecca Burns, journalist at the investigative news outlet The Lever, discusses her reporting on extensive lobbying efforts to hold up legislation which would require companies to disclose all of their greenhouse gas emissions. In a recent report, she details how the same lobbyists who seek to derail progressive climate legislation in California are also getting paid by counties and cities along the California coast to deal with the impact of coastal erosion and fires.

Debt and Climate Crisis in Sri Lanka and the World – Asoka Bandarage
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Debt and Climate Crisis in Sri Lanka and the World – Asoka Bandarage

Dr. Asoka Bandarage is an adjunct professor at the California Institute for Integral Studies and the author of a new book, Crisis in Sri Lanka and the World. Sri Lanka has had a minuscule carbon footprint, and yet the country is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change, coastal erosion, and flooding. She discusses the convergence of existential climate and debt crises in Sri Lanka, the latter resulting from IMF debt restructuring and the lack of a globally coordinated multilateral sovereign debt mechanism that places traditional and private lenders on an equal footing.

Global Upheaval Undermining Food Security – Matin Qaim

Global Upheaval Undermining Food Security – Matin Qaim

Matin Qaim, Director of the Center for Development Research at the University of Bonn, examines the various aspects comprising food security, namely local and global supply chains, the generation of income for local farmers, investments in the production of nutritious foods, as well as accounting for climate externalities. Attaining food security has become even more difficult given the disruptions around the pandemic, rising inflation, and the failed Black Sea grain deal. He asserts that small-scale farming and agroecological approaches are not necessarily low-tech and that certain technologies, if applied correctly, can assist smallholder farmers.

Non-Aligned Movement +G77 (Group of Developing Countries) versus G7+NATO+OECD+World Economic Forum
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Non-Aligned Movement +G77 (Group of Developing Countries) versus G7+NATO+OECD+World Economic Forum

Jomo K.S. warns U.S. policies are driving the world towards war and depression, leaving developing countries with a strong vested interest to reconvene a new non-aligned movement and strengthen democratic institutions of global governance. Lynn Fries interviews Jomo K.S. on GPEnewsdocs.

Extraction, Destruction of Ecosystems, and Fires in North America – Éric Pineault
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Extraction, Destruction of Ecosystems, and Fires in North America – Éric Pineault

Éric Pineault, professor of ecological economics at the Institute of Environmental Sciences at the University of Quebec in Montreal, explains how the fires raging in Canada are a corollary of the paradigm termed Extreme Oil. He discusses various oil and gas projects across North America, as well as the Canadian government’s support for the Trans Mountain Pipeline project, and how terms such as “net zero” and “carbon neutral” are misleading and conveniently serve Big Oil’s aims. 

His recent book A Social Ecology of Capital presents an empirical analysis of capitalist societies, which both builds on and enhances Marxist theories by accounting for the energy extraction and colonization of ecosystems, a characteristic of what he terms our “fossil-industrial” society. His conception of capitalist metabolism outlines extractivism, production, consumption, and waste dissipation, which leads to an absorption of surplus energy, capital accumulation, and profit maximization. Most importantly, how is this understanding of social ecology useful for furthering a project of emancipation?

Part 2/2 – Chomsky on Ellsberg and the Danger of Nuclear War

Part 2/2 – Chomsky on Ellsberg and the Danger of Nuclear War

Noam Chomsky discusses the history of nuclear agreements and arms control treaties, highlighting their gradual dismantling by successive U.S. administrations. He criticizes the U.S. for its withdrawal from treaties and the deployment of military assets near Russian borders. Chomsky also expresses concerns about the dangers of artificial intelligence and the need to address larger-scale threats while working on immediate issues. He emphasizes the importance of understanding the world as it is and taking tactical decisions to achieve tangible progress.

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