Developing nations to study ways to dim sunshine, slow warming

Developing nations to study ways to dim sunshine, slow warming

Scientists in developing nations plan to step up research into dimming sunshine to curb climate change, hoping to judge if a man-made chemical sunshade would be less risky than a harmful rise in global temperatures.


The existential trap of solar geoengineering

With so much at risk from climate change, scientists in developing nations understandably argue they must be at the table as these technologies are explored for their benefits and costs (see commentary in Nature). This story from Reuters explores an initiative, the Solar Radiation Management Governance Initiative (SRMGI.org) that is facilitating developing nation engagement in assessing solar geoengineering.

Let's hope their deliberations encompass the existential threat these technologies pose: One they are employed, they give excuses to avoid reducing carbon emissions. Yet once they are deployed, what happens if major societal disruptions bring them to a halt (for example, if financial collapse means there are no longer resources to pay for them)? The carbon emissions that were permitted to enter the atmosphere because of the promise of solar geoengineering will likely rapidly assert their impact on global temperatures. Any assessment of solar geoengineering must examine this endgame.

There are other obvious risks, most especially that solar geoengineering to lessen temperature increases does nothing to prevent further accumulation of carbon dioxide in the oceans and fresh water bodies, exacerbating acidification.

See the full story in Reuters.

An economist's 'answer to everything.' Hint: It takes Nature

Economist Partha Dasgupta takes issue with our failure to account for the cost of Earth's destruction

Partha Dasgupta is a Cambridge University economist who has criticized politicians and economists for not including the cost of Earth's destruction when tallying things like economic growth.

This engaging video featuring Dasgupta and Danish actor Alexander Skarsgård boils his 600-page treatise down to five minutes.

Stanford University biologist Paul Ehrlich says "watching this is likely your mind's best use of five minutes this week."

The bottom line: We have to start accounting for Nature.

Not doing so, Skarsgård notes in the video, is like using only the goals your team scores to assess a soccer game. You might have an impressive number, but you have no idea if your team is winning or losing.

Worth your time....

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Can we counter climate change by dumping carbon in the ocean?

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Brandon Moffatt: Climate Action 2.0 starts with certainty and access to capital green economy leaders

Climate Action 2.0 means acknowledging Canada is now in a competition with other advanced nations that are building their own foundations to attract the top talent of the green economy.

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