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Hey folks,
Last year Current requested that I create a green gift guide~ I had so much fun doing it, I decided to do it again~ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leah-lamb/the-ocean-lovers-green-gi_b_793277.html
A few years ago my brother and his wife gave me a Christmas gift that came in the form of a donation to the Heifer International.
While it was an incredibly considerate gift and reflected my values, lets get real. There was no squealing or jumping for joy when I unwrapped the gift. First~ because it wasn't attached to a personal issue I was passionate about, and second, it lacked the "cool" factor. I'm all for green gifts removed from the in-the-process-of-being-improved supply chain. But green gifts can still ignite a spark of excitement. So for those of you hunting for the perfect gift for your ocean/water loving friend~ you are in luck~ check out these thoughtful green gift ideas for water lovers.
Become a Land Lord of the Oceans
Lets begin by dedicating a small plot of the ocean to your loved one through the Ocean Registry. The Ocean Registry ® is a gift giving program designed to promote ocean awareness. The program offers a virtual ocean experience (using google ocean) where you can plot a piece of the ocean as a commemorative location registered to someone as a unique gift. 50% of proceeds are donated to ocean conservation.
Give the Gift of Story: Become A Media Mogul
This holiday season I would like to suggest that you give a powerful, long lasting and influential gift~ The gift of story.
Take part in producing the films that have the potential to influence and shape our culture and relationship to the natural world. Here are three worthy film projects that are in production and are addressing water issues through a variety of stories. You (and your loved one) could be a part of bringing these movies to the big (and small) screen.
INFLUENCE THE WAY THE WORLD RELATES TO WATER
ELEMENTAL
This feature-length documentary explores three very different lives, each of which has been transformed, in some way, by water. In India, the effervescent "Water Gandhi," Rajendra Singh, brought seven Rajasthani rivers back to life and now turns his attention to the greatest of Indian rivers, the Ganges. In Canada, indigenous activist Eriel Deranger struggles to save her people from the genocide wrought by living downstream from the world's largest industrial development: Alberta's Oil Sands. And in Australia, inventor Jay Harman draws on his lifelong obsession with water to attempt to halve the world's energy use. Depending on how much you contribute you can get a signed copy of the DVD, tickets to the pre-release in the bay area, or your name in the credits.
PROTECT THE RIVERS
PATAGONIA RISING
(Perfect for your mountain climbing, South America loving, river conservation loved ones.
Over the past century more than 45,000 large dams have redefined the course and health of the planet's rivers with disastrous impacts that continue to unfold. Tracing the hydrologic cycle of the Baker from ice to ocean, Patagonia Rising brings voice to the frontier people caught in the crossfire of Chile's energy demands. Juxtaposing the
pro-dam business sector with renewable energy experts, the documentary will bring awareness and solutions to this global conflict over water and power. Patagonia Rising finished production in December 2009 and now seeks post-production support.
k~ you get the point~ goto the link if you want live links and video.
Happy Holidays!Hey folks,
Last year Current requested that I create a green gift guide~ I had so... more
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leahl
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1 year ago
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Hello Good People of Current!
I'm working on this awesome project~ and I was thinking about how my time with speaking with you, reading your comments and reactions to the good news and bad inspired the creation of this project. And I got to thinking...OMG! I have to tell them!
It's called People and the Planet, and it is all about how people are
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/peopleandtheplanet/people-and-the-planet
Here is the even longer piece in Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leah-lamb/sex-pandas-kittens-and-sw_b_695770.html
I have a dream of creating stories that reconnect people to the planet, and reclaim the way we tell stories about the environment. What? You say. Reclaim? Yes. Reclaim. Let me tell you why.
After nearly two years of consuming and producing environmental video and blog content for Current's Green Channel, I nearly crawled away in a deep depression about the state of the world. I suffered from too-much-eco-news-itis. So I sublet my house, and retreated to a cabin perched on a cliff on the Lost Coast to complete my novel (and escape the world as we know it). I unplugged from the Internet (as best I could), and plugged into the planet. I spent the last three months walking in the woods, walking by the ocean, and consuming information from a different source: the natural world. I've never been happier.
What happened is that I started to see a huge disconnect between my experience in the environment, and the news I consume about the environment. And then I started thinking about the key reasons about why I went into producing media: to motivate, mobilize and inspire people to be stewards for our planet.
Houston. We have a problem. Because I don't know about you, but that majority of news I read about the environment these days sucks......Hello Good People of Current!
I'm working on this awesome project~ and I was... more
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leahl
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1 year ago
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Earlier today one of our community members raised a question that immediately reminded me of a drafted post sitting in my to-do pile. So I dusted this sucker off and refreshed it with some new information for all to read. Over on the announcement of our new submission tool, 02 commented:
"You guys never put my submissions up at all. It would seem as though a plan were afoot to force only designated providers - while the promise is held as Bullshit."
This isn't a anything new; in general people get a little confused when it comes to what gets featured on Current.com. It's not uncommon to find out that people either don't understand, or worse, their misunderstanding leads them to believe that there is a secret agenda conspiring against them behind-the-scenes. Trust me, this is just not the case. Our editorial team is relatively small on Current.com, especially in comparison with some of the more editorially driven sites out there. We see Current.com as a joint partnership between our internal team, and the community that frequents the site. While we produce content for TV, the amount of content we produce for the web is fairly small in comparison with what our community produces on a daily basis. Here's how things shake out:
Each channel on Current.com has a corresponding online producer who is responsible for featuring content and producing content via blog posts and original video. If you don't know them yet, here's the list:
News
Andrew Fitzgerald
Movies
John Lichman
Music
Shana Naomi Krochmal
Green
Leah Lamb
Tech
Sarah Lane
Comedy
Josh Heller
Each channel has an editorialized section called a playlist. The playlist is at the top of the channel, and the first story in the playlist is featured on the homepage (in the first slot of the corresponding channel module). I've posted about this before, so get the full breakdown here. I manage this team, and together with some off hours help from the online community team we editorialize the featured sections on the Current.com homepage and the channels with a combination of community submitted stories and original Current content. When it comes to up-to-the-minute news and stories we look to you guys, the Current community. But I'm sure it would help considerably to understand what we look for exactly when featuring content. How do we make our decisions? What goes into the process?
Editorial Guidelines
When we pick stories for featuring, we look at a combination of things including: interesting-ness, popularity, relevance, and trending. These can seem fairly vague, so let me explain:
Interesting-ness
These are stories that are potentially under reported, but have unique angle that could spark worthwhile discussions.
Popularity
These are ongoing mainstream stories that are also picking up page views, comments, and votes on Current. We take a look at these and determine which ones to feature throughout the day.
Relevance
As expected, stories get repeatedly submitted from different sources outside of Current. When we find a story that is feature worthy, we consider whether or not the story is still relevant (timely), and we also take a look at the overall submissions on Current while asking the following questions:
Is this the first version of the story?
Is there a newer version of this story that has updates, developments, or new information?
Trending
Sometimes a story on Current is not popular with the mainstream crowd, but is picking up steam on Current via discussion, page views, and votes. We identify this trend and feature these stories.
Ok, this covers how we recognize stories in the system, but what about the barebones requirements for a story in order to be featured? Specifically, a story needs a title and a description to be submitted, but depending upon how you support your story may or may not include a piece of media (image, video, etc.) If a story doesn't have media, we can't feature it. If you pick a source without media, you could always pick something from the Creative Commons on Flickr (be sure to abide by Creative Commons licenses and give credit back to the photographer wherever applicable) or you could simply record a quick webcam and upload that with a link to the source in your story description. Additionally, some sources are quite simply better than others. If you submit a blog post from an unknown source with no links to factual research, you'll be less likely to get featured when compared to a story with deep links and research to back up the story. So, now that you have an idea about how we pick stories for featured spots on Current, let's look at 02's latest submission from 10 days ago. Here are the details: Anthropologist Peter McAllister: "The Science of the Inadequate Modern Male." This is a great story, and definitely could have been feature worthy based on interesting-ness given a couple circumstances. It doesn't fall into the popular designation, but that's OK. We love unique stories. Where it gets the hook is in the relevance department. You see the same story was already submitted to Current by another community member. Here's a search on the last name "McAllister" (sorted by most recent). As you can see, remanns version of the story preceded 02's by 5 days. If any version of the story were to be featured, it would've been remanns version because the two stories contain identical information. As it turns out, neither version of the story was actually featured, and this has to do with the trending portion of our process. Discussion on these two stories never really picked up, and both had relatively low votes and page views. When compared to other stories trending in the system at the time, both were seconded to other stories submitted that were a better fit with our featuring designations. There are a whole slew of variables that play into this process which can only add to the confusion for some of you out there. Here are some commonly asked questions: Q: "I see <$user>'s stories featured ALL. THE. TIME. Admit it, you play favorites."
I really wish there were an easy way to convey this to everyone, but the simple fact is that the more active (and attentive to breaking news) a community member is, the more likely their stories will be featured. Volume and timing is everything. We actively go out of our way consider stories from new or underrepresented members of the community. If you're a rock star at finding stories before everyone else, I'd ask that you share your tips with the rest of the crowd. Find someone in the community who isn't commonly featured and give them some pointers. Additionally, if you're finding yourself on the short end of the stick as far as featuring is concerned, look to some of the regular faces you see in the featured spots. Go ahead, message them, ask them for pointers, or just make a friend. One thing is certain, the more you put into the system on a regular basis, the more likely you'll find yourself featured on the homepage.
Q: "Why do you guys push all content down that doesn't fall in line with your agenda?"
It's easy to believe that something like this is true, but it's just not in line with reality. First, we don't have an agenda in play when selecting stories. We routinely hang all personal biases up at the door with our coats when we come into work. True, we select stories to feature based on the criteria I listed before, but we do not actively push content down in popularity. Period. There are typically two reasons why content appears to be pushed down: It is voted down by the community. It is improperly added to groups that it shouldn't be. For example, a story about marijuana legalization added to News, Music, Movies, Green, Tech, and Comedy will commonly get removed from Music, Movies, Green, Tech, and Comedy.
Q: "I added this story already, why isn't mine featured?"
Many times this can come down some of our minimum requirements. As I mentioned before, there are times when a story has newly developing information, or there has been an update to the larger story (different angle, etc.). In these cases we will feature a newer version of the story, tweak the title of the original post (depending upon whether or not the story is still relevant), or unfeature it altogether if neither option works. If you are an avid contributor to Current.com, there could be cases where you are already featured for one story, and we wish to feature another story that you also happened to submit before anyone else. In these cases we might make an exception and feature another lesser known community member despite your story being technically first.
Q: "You changed my title, what gives?"
In previous posts I've mentioned that we will update headlines to meet AP Style, but on occasion we also need to actually re-word a title because a story has changed and no new story has been published to reflect the change, the title is just plain wrong, or the title leaves out key information about the discussion/story submitted. In these cases we always reach out to the original poster and notify them of the change via comment on the item (so everyone else can see) or via private message.
Q: "I thought featured stories were for news, why is [enter story type here] featured? I demand it be pulled!"
This is one question that will not go away, but I'll state again that "Current Stories" (on the Current.com homepage) is not strictly dedicated to news content. If it's news you want, then Current News is the place to be. Make it your homepage, and you'll never be the wiser to the varied mix of stories in "Current Stories." For those of you who don't mind the occasional crunch berry in your Capt. Crunch, you'll find that we feature a variety of stories ranging from recent episodes or sneak peeks of Current TV content alongside any story that meets our featuring criteria on Current regardless of type or group.
Q: "So, with all of these online producers blogging and producing video, does that mean Current is less about community contributions now?"
No, not at all. Our online producers are here to provide a bit of direction in some ways, while making sure that areas like News are not overrun with Britney Spears-style news. In addition, some of our more tradition aspects of community contribution will be making their way into each channel as time goes on. For example, The Rotten Tomatoes Show is closely aligned with Movies, and the show is largely comprised of community webcam reviews of the prior week's releases. If you want to participate and potentially get on TV, well then Current Movies is the place to hang out. John is also brewing up a Current Movies-specific plan involving written movie reviews, so keep an eye out for that as well. Shana just posted about Common's video pick from the "Make Common's Day" call out on the Current Music blog. This was sort of like a hybrid between a VCAM and a VC2 piece, where producers created a video for Common using greenscreen footage he shot while visiting the Current offices in LA. Andrew is prepping to embark on a deep Current News investigation that will include REQUIRE the participation of news-minded community members both on and off Current.com in order to be successful. He's finalizing the topic for the investigation, and a look at some of his recent blog posts will clue you into the direction that's taking shape. When this is fully underway, he'll lay out the details on the Current News blog. Lastly, when these folks blog they are pulling from both community contributions on Current AND content from our TV network. Think of these blog posts as our online playground where you're guys' content gets married to Current TV content -- all contextualized under trends going on in our world. And most importantly, Current community members are the key to making it all happen.
So, there it is in a nutshell. I hope this helps explain some of the question you, and others, may have about the site. We're going to be doing a lot of growing over the next few months, and we want you along for the ride. As always, shoot feedback and recommendations our way via comments here or posts on Get Satisfaction. Thanks for reading and contributing. Earlier today one of our community members raised a question that immediately... more
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News
Over on the Current News blog, Andrew took a look at setback for MILF rebels in the Philippines. Also, Obama's UN address raises a question about whether or not it added up to anything substantial. Lastly, Manuel Zelaya returns to Honduras after being ousted, only to remain behind the gates of the Brazilian embassy. Tegucigalpa is rioting, check out his posts for raw video.
Vanguard: The Art of War
>> Leader of Philippines rebel movement captured – Setback for MILF rebels
>> What should America’s intl priorities be? – Did Obama’s address change anything?
>> Manuel Zelaya’s triumphant(?) return to Honduras
Music
Hey, did you hear the news? We're launching a brand new show on Current TV!! It's called Embedded, and man...we're all super stoked about it.
Mos Def is coming to Current TV October 14th
Shana has the scoop over on the Current Music blog, along with some other awesome f'ing Amanda Palmer, Neutral Milk Hotel, and High School Musical news (wha?? -- ed. note: just read the post) from Peter Grumbine.
>> Mos Def is coming to Current TV October 14th
>> Amanda F’ing Palmer, Neutral F’ing Milk Hotel, and a high school f’ing musical
Movies
John's been playing hooky entrenched in all things related to the New York Film Festival, so here's what he has for this week's round-up on the Current Movies blog:
>> New York Film Festival By The Numbers: 9/17 to 9/23
>> We’re Watching: Afterschool trailer
>> Wednesday’s Important News: Sweet Diablo’s Valley High…Lander Remake, and the Nic Cage as Superman picture
Tech
I seriously laughed myself to tears when I saw Sarah's recent "olive branch in the form of a tweet" to Justine Bateman. Here's an article to catch you up on the drama, and if you feel like lending a helping hand post a tweet with #helpmallory in it.
Twitter tools. Also, my hatred of babies.
Here are Sarah's recent Current Tech blog offerings:
>> Power Twitter in Twitter tools. Also, my hatred of babies.
>> iPhone I love you but you’re bringing me down.
Green
Leah's been cranking away with posts, and a few from Current Green blog guest bloggers as well. Take a look at a few of her latest, and check out her recent Activist 911, an interview with Amazon Watch activist Han Shan. They discuss the new film CRUDE in "Death zone in Ecuador":
Activist 911: Death Zone in Ecuador
>> Guest Blog Post: Land mark case: environmental orgs can sue electric utility companies
>> Powershift announces new schedule regional summits
>> Activist 911: Death zone in Ecuador
Comedy
Over on the Current Comedy blog Josh makes an interesting comparison between Muammar al-Gaddaffi and accidental comedy -- because nothing is funnier than a dictator who unintentionally takes to stand-up. Also up for perusal is the latest Current Virals rundown, and rather serious flooding in the southeast US conjures up rather flippant memories of TV's Step-by-Step.
>> Gaddafi is a dictator, a very entertaining dictator
>> Current Virals 9/22
>> Six Flags underwater
News
Over on the Current News blog, Andrew took a look at setback for MILF rebels in... more
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Current News
Holy cow. If you haven't been reading Andrew Fitzgerald's latest posts over on the Current News blog, you've been missing out. Don't panic, we'll get you caught up.
First up is a post that includes raw footage of Afghan insurgents being blown up by their own IED. The footage is shot from overhead from the perspective of airborne Apache helicopters, and well...
Here's a snippet:
US military personnel watch as Afghan insurgents set up a deadly IED and then accidentally trigger it themselves. I think this video is pretty rare: I imagine not many insurgents are caught on camera setting up their IEDs.
Check out the full video on the Current News blog and see for yourself.
To top things off, Andrew hit the ground running today with two new posts: The first regards Muntazer al-Zaidi, the Iraqi reporter made famous for throwing his shoes at President George W. Bush, and the implications of his reception post-release. Next up Andrew revisits the Kibera slums, which are now beginning to be dismantled in Kenya. Several years ago, Vanguard's Christof Putzel produced a peice on the Kibera slums, take a look:
Vanguard's Christof Putzel takes a look at the Kibera slum
In his post Andrew brings us updates on the present state of things in the Kibera slums outside of Nairobi. Take a look.
Current Movies
As is the style of John Lichman's Current Movies blog dispatches, here is a listicle of important posts you may have missed out on:
The New York Film Festival is starting up, and Current Movies is all over it. I suspect covering the fest may have been an elaborate ploy on Lichman's part, who may be secretly missing NYC. However, he's promised that we'll be premiering trailers, interviews, and magical unicorns over on Current Movies and our New York Film Festival group. Keep an eye out for more, I'm holding him to it.
John caught Stingray Sam at CineVegas this year, and he hasn't stopped talking about it. Good news for you, both his review and film's episodes are available via the tubes. Take a peek.
Toronto A to F, Weinstein's Super Serious Bet, and Harry Potter's Park. All part of Wednesday's Important News.
Speaking of festivals, are there too many out there? Read and decide for yourself?
Current Music
Over on the Current Music blog, Shana Naomi Krochmal unleashes word of two new punk rock docs. Check out the details, and peruse a list of classic punk rock doc faves culled from the Current Music community!
From the "Get this now" files, Peter Grumbine has not 1, but 2 offerings this week:
Os Mutantes' "Haih or Amortecedor" is their first album in 35 years. Here's some of what Peter had to say:
If you don’t know Mutantes, it would be easy to say something like they’re the Brazilian Beatles or the Brazilian version of the guys from Buena Vista Social Club, but they’re not; they’re Os Mutantes.
The Mutantes were a big part of the Tropicalia movement in Brazil during the ’60s. Imagine what you know about the psychedelic ’60s in America and the UK, and then combine that with Carnival, and you can basically suss up the sound of that movement. Put simply, it’s fucking wild.
Read more here.
As a "Get this too" add-on, Peter recommends Rodrigo y Gabriela. Here's what he had to say:
In case you don’t know the story, years ago, Rodrigo y Gabriela were in some badass metal bands in Mexico, but they grew tired of the limited scene and potential there. A lady from Mexico who had moved to Ireland was back in Mexico and ran into them. After talking about their situation, she invited them to come stay with her in Ireland, a country where artists were treated better. Ah fate, at last!
Read more here.
Current Tech
Ever since Sarah Lane took Final Cut Pro classes, she's been cutting together some awesome tech videos and posting them on the Current Tech blog. Here's a taste of flickr's new iPhone app, plus a list of some of the others she's cooked up:
Flickr's iPhone App... Finally!
Mag.ma - All the videos you love, plus the ones you don't
ColorSuckr for Photo Enthusiasts/Amateur Designers
Who here likes Helvetica? *Raises hand*
Current Green
Over on the Current Green blog, Leah Lamb tackled the green contraception debate (who knew?) while fantasizing about getting a greener car. Here's a snippet of what she learned:
I recently learned while checking out an article reporting on the Frankfurt Auto Show: I should start using condoms to lower my carbon footprint. The facts are coming out, if you want a car that has a small carbon footprint (we’ll skip over the argument that you wouldn’t have a car) than you should have a small car. A very small car. The kind of car that would make you get out of it if you wanted to…discuss… the birds and the bees. The kind of car that doesn’t need to carry a large family.
Who knew, right? Give the full post a look to learn more.
Guest poster Joshua Wiese, the coordinator for the Adopt a Negotiator project kicked off our first post for 360 Degrees of Copenhagen -- a series of blog posts leading up to the United Nations Climate Change Conference (aka COP15) in Copenhagen on December 7th, 2009. Give it a read.
Current Comedy
Funny man Josh Heller is in a "tribute" mood this week, and he has three Current Comedy blog posts to place on the alter of the Internet gods (that means you, dear readers):
First up, a Current Virals rundown dedicated to the memory of Patrick Swayze. No one puts Heller in the corner.
Next up, a very special Current Comedy blog post about the most famous meme to ever surface from Mexico in dedication of Mexican Independence Day.
Last, but not least, a special taste of what is to come on infoMania this week. Here's a hint: it involves Sarah Haskins and backpacks. Think you know the answer? Better click to make sure.
Current News
Holy cow. If you haven't been reading Andrew Fitzgerald's... more
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Hey folks. So truth be told, I like asking questions, but tomorrow Jill Buck, founder of the Go Green Initiative (a program designed to create a culture of environmental responsibility on school campuses across the nation) will be asking me the questions during her live radio show, "Go Green Radio". (That would be Thursday, October 20th, at 9am-10am PST)
We'll be chatting about the role of the media in the sustainability movement, going green (it is the name of her show and all), and what goes on behind the scenes of Current Green.
You can do something CARAZY and actually call in at 866-472-5788 and ask a question if you so desire, and/or you can listen live at the Voice of America.
Meanwhile...I'll be memorizing my answers.... In all seriousness, hope you can join, it would be fun to have your voices and your thoughts in the conversation!Hey folks. So truth be told, I like asking questions, but tomorrow Jill Buck, founder... more
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leahl
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After a year of restless sleep and nightmares that involve the state of the planet, I slept with a sense of ease and comfort of an innocent child after seeing Avatar. Added bonus, and I didn’t even after to pay extra. (If you haven’t seen the movie~ stop now. Open a new page on your browser and buy yourself a ticket to the next showing (in 3D of course).
Read the rest at Leah's blog.After a year of restless sleep and nightmares that involve the state of the planet, I... more
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So I was content until I made one fatal flaw, I watched the movie Twilight. I instantly borrowed the second book in the series, and my obligatory moments of reading turned into rapid-fire-steal-every-moment-I-can-away-from-the-family-I-traveled-across-the-country-to-visit so-I-can-find-out-what’s-going-to-happen-next.
Truth be told, I’m a sucker for vampire stories. So when my mother inquired about my fascination, I was a tad shocked by what flew from my mouth: Not an explanation that the stories are…well…hot, but rather a tirade on and how the modern day vampire story is just a metaphor for the sustainability challenges of our time. Who knew?
Argh! Leah's a vampire!
[current_green blog]
-John LichmanSo I was content until I made one fatal flaw, I watched the movie Twilight. I... more
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The Rich vs. Poor divide continued in Copenhagen today as delegates from African nations staged a short boycott. The debate is primarily over whether or not to keep the Kyoto treaty, which legally binds developed countries to make emissions cuts but doesn't ask the same of developing countries. Negotiators for developed countries want those same regulations placed on developing countries (with an eye towards China, especially). They're back to negotiating , however, which is a good thing as there are only four days until the bigwigs fly in hoping to sign something.
Over the weekend thousands of protesters took to the streets of Copenhagen and on Saturday more than 900 were arrested. Here's some video from the festivities.
Leah Lamb is still going strong with the live Copenhagen call-in show. Make sure to check that out at 9:15am PST (12:15 pm EST). Here's a clip from Friday's show.
Calling in from Copenhagen: Karl Burkart on the perils of blogging and walk outs
Recently on the Current News Blog:
- Iran to try three hikers for espionage
- Top 10 stories of 2009: Obama, Afghanistan, Pirates, and more (Video)
- Copenhagen round-up: Walkouts, Wind farms, Monckton, Climategate and Video
- Uganda's new laws: Anti-gay and FGM
- The Beast of Kandahar and conducting war via remoteThe Rich vs. Poor divide continued in Copenhagen today as delegates from African... more
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Week one of the Copenhagen climate conference is coming to a close. What's happened so far? Here's a quick round-up for you. (Climate conference enthusiasts - I'm sure I'm leaving a bit out - feel free to add in the comments.)
We covered the walk-out over the so-called "Danish text". (Despite folks who seemed to think we were censoring "Danish text" by not letting people use it as a tag. Site bug, people! Read all about it in the comments! Tag away!) Walkouts have continued among smaller and developing nations, leading to fears that the conference will produce two rival documents.
Answering calls for developed countries to pony up the cash, the European Union came through with a pledge of over $10 billion (over 7 billion euros), but leaders from developing nations said the figure wasn't high enough.
And what about the US? Well President Obama was busy this week on the other side of the North Sea from Denmark accepting his Nobel Prize. Back home, his loving and supportive nation was doing it's best to constructively add to the conference with the "climategate controversy" (and I was inspired to launch a new series called "-Gates that are not -gates"). And America's official delegation to Copenhagen? Well the Interior Secretary checked out a wind farm. We've got video!
U.S. Visits Danish Wind Farm: Raw Video
Meanwhile Leah Lamb has been crazy-busy over on Current Green with her live daily Copenhagen check-in. (Tune in at 9:15 am PT!) We've also got video of that!
Calling in From Copenhagen: Joshua Kahn Russell (Video)
Leah also weighed in on climate change skeptic Lord Monckton's comparing activists to Hitler Youth. Her take: Totally a publicity stunt.
That's it for today's round-up - we'll be ramping up to even more Copenhagen coverage next week as the negotiations intensify.
Recently on the Current News Blog:
- Uganda's new laws: Anti-gay and FGM
- The Beast of Kandahar and conducting war via remote
- Spiral light over Oslo, Norway - Mystery SOLVED!
- Climategate: Gates that are not gates (a new series)
- It's Vanguard Day on Current News!Week one of the Copenhagen climate conference is coming to a close. What's... more
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There are few things that make me more catatonically depressed than the partisan shouting match we call news today. I get it, controversial partisan statements mean more viewers which means more money which in turn means more controversial partisan rejoinders. I understand the financial imperative here, I'm no news-biz-hayseed. But I have to say, it sucks and it's dangerous. It sucks because it's boring (blah blah HuffPo blah blah Fox News...everybody just STFU and focus on the news, please). It's dangerous because it distorts anything a few people disagree with into an equal-time-required rancorous partisan debate.
Case in point: Today the Washington Post let Sarah Palin publish an Op-Ed in its newspaper. I'm not going to do them the courtesy of linking to it. (Here's a good point-by-point rejoinder from the Atlantic though.) In it, Ms. Palin calls on Obama to boycott Copenhagen because of the "climategate" leaked emails. Despite plenty of explanations in non-partisan press that the emails, though embarrassing in tone, do not represent any sort of actual shift in the science around climate change - the Post was so click/viewer-hungry as to let this climategate thing roll on in its pages.
Hence our new series:
-Gates that are not -gates!
(Credit due to Josh who coined "FAILs that are not FAILs".)
Now I already missed Kanyegate this year, but I think climategate is a good one to start with. I'm calling it, it's not a -gate!
Why? Let me let Time magazine explain it to you. (I mean c'mon, Time is about the safest down-the-middle reporting you can get.)
4. Do the e-mails weaken the scientific case for global warming? Put it this way: when it comes to climate-science analysis from the representative of the world's biggest oil-producing state [Saudi Arabia], it's wise to be suspicious. In the weeks since the e-mails first became public, many climate scientists and policy experts have looked through them, and they report that the correspondence does not contradict the overwhelming scientific consensus on global warming, which has been decades in the making. "The content of the stolen e-mails has no impact whatsoever on our overall understanding that human activity is driving dangerous levels of global warming," wrote 25 leading U.S. scientists in a letter to Congress on Dec. 4. "The body of evidence that underlies our understanding of human-caused global warming remains robust."
I'm taking a stand. It's not about climate change and it's not about left vs right. It's about -gates. I'm asking my fellow Americans to carefully consider what we grant "-gate" status to. Watergate was a big honkin' controversy that deserved the barrels of ink spilled over its progression. And it was even partisan. It was an IMPORTANT partisan scandal. But not every disagreement that happens across the screens of cable news deserves this holiest of suffixes.
I hate to break it to everyone, but I think Climategate falls short of -gate status.
Okay, rant concluded. Thanks.
PS - If you're going to disagree in the comments, read through the TIME article first.
Recently on the Current News Blog:
- It's Vanguard Day on Current News!
- Who will pay for climate change? - Copenhagen
- Obama lays out plan for jobs; Meeting lawmakers tomorrow
- Photography in conflict: Jeff Antebi covers the Afghanistan election
- Iran students' day of protestThere are few things that make me more catatonically depressed than the partisan... more
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That's reportedly the big question at Copenhagen right now. Yesterday there was the leak of the "Danish text" - purportedly an early draft of what could be the final climate agreement at Copenhagen as prepared by unnamed representatives from rich countries. The text was so unacceptable to delegates from developing countries that they took to the streets. (And, they weren't the only ones that were mad: it also cost Leah an interview!) But why?
It comes down to rich vs. poor (developed vs. developing). Big, rich countries like the US emit lots of carbon and, importantly, have done so for a very long time. But, they're also leading the charge into reducing emissions. Less wealthy developing countries, like many of those in the African delegation, are just getting to the point of economic productivity where they're going to start needing more and more electricity. But they're not yet to the point where they have whole industries dedicated to reducing emissions. Additionally, when the climate change s**t hits the climate change fan - developing countries expect they'll be the worse off with the least resources to deal with it.
Back to the "Danish text". What made this so offensive to developing countries was that it treated rich and poor countries equally. Or at least more equally than was palatable. And we're all about equality right? No, not at Copenhagen we're not. A group of 123 developing countries calling themselves the "G77 plus China"(...I don't know how the math works) want developed countries to make bigger cuts in emissions and to pledge a sizable chunk of money to help them out in the aforementioned s**t/fan scenario. How much money? The "Danish text" offered $10 billion. The NYTimes reports the number is probably in the hundreds of billions.
All of this to say - the debate about how to tackle climate change seems to have quickly become about footing the bill.
Recently on the Current News Blog:
- Obama lays out plan for jobs; Meeting lawmakers tomorrow
- Photography in conflict: Jeff Antebi covers the Afghanistan election
- Iran students' day of protest
- Copenhagen backgrounder - A roundup of pre-conference reading
- Will TARP cuts mean a jobs program? - Real RecoveryThat's reportedly the big question at Copenhagen right now. Yesterday there was... more
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Copenhagen kicks off this week and I still can't figure out whether or not it's going to matter. It seems like we're not going to get any sort of binding agreement out of it though their should be a fair amount of attention paid to the climate change issue. We'll be covering Copenhagen here at Current both on the Current Green Blog and here on the Current News Blog. I'll be focusing more on the policy side of things.
So, on that, what do you need to know going into Copenhagen? Here's some background reading for you.
Newsweek offers a good overview on the threat posed by political inaction going into the conference. Power Failure: Politicians are fiddling while the world burns. What's a voter to do? Its author, James Hansen, says even Obama may not be able to bring about the change in climate change policy we're looking for.
Our planet, with its remarkable array of life, is in imminent danger of crashing. Yet our politicians are not dashing forward. They hesitate; they hang back. Therefore it is up to you. As in other struggles for justice against powerful forces, it may be necessary to take to the streets to draw attention to injustice. Civil resistance may be our best hope. It is crucial for all of us, especially young people, to get involved. This will be the most urgent fight of our lives.
The Economist's backgrounder is locked behind a paywall, so I can't link you to that one. I can however offer you their handy chart of how much different countries residents would be willing to pay to fix climate change.
Foreign Policy magazine has a feature called "Who Killed Copenhagen? An FP Whodunit." It features a list of folks who've made the official results of the conference possibly moot, including Harry Reid, Wen Jiabao, and Obama.
Obama's role in delivering the bad news was a sad spectacle, but not really a surprise. It marked the culmination of a year in which climate has all but slipped off the president's agenda. While a host of European leaders, from Gordon Brown to Angela Merkel, have publicly stated their intention to attend Copenhagen and committed to carbon reductions, Obama has stonewalled.
One of my favorite blogs, Crooked Timber, has a more optimistic take, pointing to signs that might mean a possible good outcome from Copenhagen and the year to follow.
# Obama’s commitment to a 17 per cent (rel 2005) target, which essentially puts the Administration’s credibility behind Waxman-Markey
# China’s acceptance of a quantitative emissions target, based on emissions/GDP ratios, but implying a substantial cut relative to business as usual
# The change of government in Japan, from do-little LDP to activist DPJ
# EU consensus on the need for stronger action
# Acceptance of the principle of compensation for developing countries, and acceptance by countries like India that they should take part in a global agreement and argue for compensation
Oh, and what is "Climategate", the conveniently-timed news story eating up the precious oxygen in the news cycle? Newsweek's got that covered too.
Few of us would escape with reputations intact if our e-mail were made public, and the scientists ensnared in "climategate" are no exception. Writing "I've just completed Mike's Nature trick of adding in the real temps to each series for the last 20 years … to hide the decline" makes Phil Jones of the University of East Anglia, who typed that in 1999, look as if he is pulling a fast one to conceal a trend toward global cooling. And when another scientist wrote that "I can't see either of these papers being in the next I.P.C.C. report. Kevin and I will keep them out somehow—even if we have to redefine what the peer-review literature is!" it looks like a blatant attempt to censor opposing views.
That's about all I've got - though if you see any other good ones out there let us know. Leah at Current Green has posted a list of sources to follow during Copenhagen, so make sure to check that out. She'll be doing a fifteen live webcast on Current Green at 9:15 PST every day rounding up what's happening in Denmark.
Oh wait, I lied, one more link. From FP Passport: Copenhagen prostitutes offer freebies to climate change delegates.
Recently on the Current News Blog:
- Will TARP cuts mean a jobs program? - Real Recovery
- Obama loses fans in Turkey over Afghanistan
- Meet Zouhair al Jezairy, my new Iraqi journalist friend
- Bhopal: 25 years later
- What's news in Turkey?Copenhagen kicks off this week and I still can't figure out whether or not... more
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So change is in the air!!! I woke up yesterday morning like any other~ running late, skipped breakfast, you know the drill. Well I woke up this morning from a powerful dream of staring into the ashes of fire pit. What happened in between? Current announced it's new direction: and will discontinue all original online content that isn't affiliated with their franchise shows. I ask that you celebrate this transition with me, and understand that I wish nothing but the best for my cohorts at Current.
I want to send a special goodbye to the current green community. You guys have been an amazing online community to be apart of, and it has been a true honor to share this space with you. You have challenged, inspired, and informed me, but most importantly influenced the way I will think about environmental media forever. But more than anything, you have taught me about the power of online community and what it can mean to the environment. For this, I will be eternally grateful.
I'll still be online, you can track me down on my blog and on twitter. I'll still be doing a weekly round up of news. The crazy mission to remove garbage from the ocean will continue (and is living on facebook).
In the meantime, may current continue to be a place where information, thoughts, ideas, and community, are shared.
And now....here's the lengthy comment :)
When you reflect on life, there are a few moments that are distinct game changers. For me, the top three are:
#1. At age 20 leave NYC. Stop pursuing acting career after realizing I don’t want to spend my life speaking other people’s words, because I want to speak my own.
#2. Upon realizing my life purpose involves being committed to healing the planet, I became a wilderness rehab counselor with the firm belief that we cannot ask people to heal an ailing planet if we cannot heal ourselves.
#3. After participating in the largest (at that time) organized protest on the planet, and seeing nothing but a few incorrect statistics and lame reporting on the back pages of the New York Times (this was before the age of new media) I decided I wanted to be the storyteller rather than rely on others to get it right.
I mention these because today I am faced with a game changing moment. Yesterday I learned that current.com is changing direction, and will stop producing original content on channels that are not affiliated with their TV franchises. So I say goodbye to the green channel which I helped create, to an online community I have become endeared to, and to a platform I believe in. Luckily, I’m a firm believer that change is for the better. No really, I tattooed it to my body during another crucial time of change (ok, so I was 19 at the time, but I still love that tattoo).
The way I see it, the experience provides me an opportunity to walk the talk. Embracing change, not resisting transition, not staying stagnant, being true to the truth, flexibility, committing to transformation, these are the key ingredients to living on a sustainable planet. The changes in our economy, to our work lives, to the way we live and depend upon each other are changing as we learn (or relearn) about the requirements of living sustainably. Changing what we know, leaving what is safe, being open to new opportunities (sometimes in unexpected places from unexpected people) that is how we will find, create, and develop new innovative ways to live on the planet.
In other words, I am thankful for this opportunity for movement, and for the new opportunity to clarify my new focus. The past two and half years at Current have been amazing, and it was an honor to work in the media, and at a place that attracted some of the hardest working, committed, decent, and caring people I know.
Meanwhile, I’m looking forward to reconnecting with the earth I talk so much about, and am looking forward to finding new opportunities to herald the belief that thriving on a sustainable planet is still possible. I am giddy with excitement to continue my crazy project of removing 560 pounds of garbage out of the ocean by hand. It would seem there is no better time than the present than to complete the novel I have committed to completing by March. Oh yes, and I’m sure I’ll get sucked into some new media consulting gigs. :)
I’ll continue twittering about, you can follow (and join) the garbage project on Facebook, and my friend Julie inspired a weekly newsletter when she asked, “I want to know who has the hope, the plan, the way out. If there is one. What is it?” So every week I send a newsletter to my personal network with links to some of the key environmental stories. If interested, you’ll find the info on the top right side of my blog.
Meanwhile, what better way than to end one chapter and begin the next with one of my favorite quotes of all time:
“Nothing that is worth doing can be achieved in a lifetime, therefore
we must be saved by hope.
Nothing which is true or beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history; therefore we must be saved by faith.
Nothing we do, however virtuous, can be accomplished alone, therefore
we must be saved by love.”
-Reinhold NiebuhrSo change is in the air!!! I woke up yesterday morning like any other~ running late,... more
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Last year I gave myself a goal to choose one environmental issue I am particularly passionate about, and rather than send money to an organization, create a hands on project where I can see the difference I make. Without too many deep thoughts involved, I decided to figure out how much garbage I was personally responsible for putting into the ocean, and then go remove it. I went and got my diver's certification, and...well..that's as far as I got!
There is a part of me that realizes this is ridiculous. At the beginning of the day I believe we ultimately need to be changing large systems so that we aren't forced to live in a way that is inherently damaging to the planet. In the middle of the day, I believe we each need to do each do our part both personally and politically. At the end of the day, I believe we need to address the damage that we did in the past and fix it.
So this New Year's Eve, I made the resolution again, but this time I opted to ask everyone in the Internets to help me, (I also posed a challenge on Current for people to join me and choose just ONE green thing to focus on and, ask us for our help. So far 13 people have taken the 1 Green Thing Challenge.)
Thankfully people have been sending in great suggestions, and Derk figured out the following calculation: 14 billion pounds of garbage was being dumped into the ocean every year - US is responsible for 1/3 (at least) - - so 4.6 billion pounds each year Divide that by the 304,059,724 Americans on record - and you get ... 15.1286067731... lbs. (see the blog post for live links to his resources)
According to Derk's calculation, 15.1286067731 x 37 (my age in 2010) if I am to remove the garbage out of the ocean that I am personally responsible for: I'll be removing 559.758422, aka 560 pounds of garbage out of the ocean.
Today's questions I would love help with:
1. What does 560 pounds of garbage look like?
2. Where should I store it?
3. I need to contact a diving association or organization that specializes in garbage removal: anyone have suggestions?Last year I gave myself a goal to choose one environmental issue I am particularly... more
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Calling in from Copenhagen! Tune in week day mornings during the United National Climate Change Conference (also known as COP 15) to get the daily low down from people attending the Conference. Each morning we will host live skype calls with people at their various locations. November 8th's raw and uncut live interview was with Tadzio Mueller, political scientist and activist, involved in the international network climate justice action that is organizing protests during the cop15 climate summit in Copenhagen.Calling in from Copenhagen! Tune in week day mornings during the United National... more
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It's being called one of the most historic events in history. This December 8th-18th Copenhagen is not just a city in Denmark, it's the location of the United Nations Climate Change Conference Each morning at 9:15am PST 12:15 EST and 6:15pm Copenhagen time we call live into Copenhagen and speak with a variety of guests about their various locations. November 14th raw and uncut live included interviews were with award winning journalist and author Naomi Klein, lead organizer for the Rain Forest Action Network Joshua Kahn Russell.It's being called one of the most historic events in history. This December... more
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leahl
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It's being called one of the most historic events in history. This December 8th-18th Copenhagen is not just a city in Denmark, it's the location of the United Nations Climate Change Conference. Each morning at 9:15am PST 12:15 EST and 6:15pm Copenhagen time we call live into Copenhagen and speak with people at various locations throughout the city. The following uncut interview is with Alex Loors, founder of Kids vs Global Warming and was part of our live stream on December 15th.It's being called one of the most historic events in history. This December... more
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leahl
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It's being called one of the most historic events in history. This December 8th-18th Copenhagen is not just a city in Denmark, it's the location of the United Nations Climate Change Conference. Each morning at 9:15am PST 12:15 EST and 6:15pm Copenhagen time we call live into Copenhagen and speak with people at various locations throughout the city. The following interview is with photojournalist Kris Krug who describes his experience documenting the marches and protests.It's being called one of the most historic events in history. This December... more
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Calling in from Copenhagen! Tune in week day mornings during the United Nations Climate Change Conference (also known as COP 15) to get the daily low down from people attending the conference. Each morning we will host live Skype calls with people at their various locations. The following is a segment from November 11th's raw and uncut live interview was with 350.org's art ambassador Kevin Buckland, Mike Rimoin, Josh Solnick and the dancing and rapping penguins. They'll be returning next week to have a more serious conversation about the role of art in social actions.Calling in from Copenhagen! Tune in week day mornings during the United Nations... more
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