<<<<Readings>>>>

"Patriots" - Defending Australia's Natural Heritage

William J. Lines, 2006, University of Queensland

 

The Weather Makers, by Tim Flannery (The history & future impact of Climate Change)

 

A great place to start reading about CC. Flannery is a biologist at heart, so there’s no surprise he is deeply concerned with the changing climate which will affect all life on earth in certain ways. He goes on to thoroughly explain the causes and impacts of CC on the biological world and provides some good examples of ways we can each take action towards sustainability. 

 

"An inconvenient truth"

Al Gore, 2006.

 

"Half Gone"

 

A Rough Guide to Climate Change, by Robert Henson.

 

Robert Henson works at the world-renowned National Centre for Atmospheric Research in Boulder, Colorado. This book is a complete, unbiased guide to one of the most pressing problems facing humanity. From the current situation and background science to the government sceptics and possible solutions, this book covers the whole subject. Topics covered: •Visible symptoms of change from a warming planet •How global warming works •The evolution of our atmosphere over the last 4.5 billion years •What computer simulations of climate reveal about our past, present, and future •The sceptics: Who are they? What are their grounds for disagreeing with the crowd? •Battle of the titans: The oil industry vs. the global commons •Global warming in the media: A review of the last few decades •Global solutions: What governments and scientists are doing to try and solve the problem. The guide also includes lifestyle advice and tips for consumers who want to make a difference in tomorrow's climate, and comes complete with a glossary of websites for further information.

 

 

Good News for a Change, by David Suzuki

 

Suzuki is a renowned environmentalist, geneticist, and global figure of sustainability. Any written or spoken words by this man are not to be missed. As the title suggests, this book is full of forward-thinking, positive approaches to sustainable living that are being practiced by communities all over world today. It is full of hope.

 

 

 Dead Heat: Global Justice and Global Warming, by Tom Athanasiou and Paul Baer.

 

Dead Heat argues that justice - not rhetoric and “aid” but real developmental justice for the people of the developing world - is going to be necessary, and surprisingly soon. It argues, more particularly, that such a justice must involve a phased transition from the Kyoto Protocol to a new climate treaty based on equal human rights to emit greenhouse pollutants. Dead Heat makes the case for climate justice, but insists that justice and equity, for all their manifold ethical and humanitarian attractions, must also be seen as the most “realistic” of virtues. It insists, in other words, that our limited environmental space will itself show that it is the dream of a “business as usual” future that is naïve and utopian.

 

Carbon Trading: a critical convention on climate change, privatisation and power, by Larry Lowmann (www. thecornerhouse.org.uk)

 

 

Heard of Carbon Trading? European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS)? Or Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)? These are the current market strategies being employed by signatories to the Kyoto Protocol. More importantly, wealthy governments are treating carbon trading as the only real solution to climate change. This well-presented document explores some of the fundamental flaws associated with carbon trading, CDM and similar ‘end-of-pipe’ solutions that render it ineffective in reducing green house gas emissions to suitable amounts. Subsequently, a string of social justice issues arise when companies purchase carbon credits from poorer, less developed countries and ‘offset’ their emissions by funding development projects that displace and jeopardise vulnerable communities. It argues that the failure of the EU EMS to bring about deep cuts in greenhouse gas emissions reinforces that broad systemic changes must come about if we are to successfully tackle climate change.

 

 

Carbon Trading, http:/www.carbontradewatch.org/

 

 Hoodwinked in the Hothouse: This briefing examines the relationship between free-market economic forces and climate change policy while scrutinising the rhetoric and reality behind promises on climate made by the most powerful politicians in the world – the G8. It also explores the origins of free-market environmentalism and analyses the conflicts and synergies that arise when the worlds of trade and environment collide. June 2005  http://www.carbontradewatch.org/pubs/hothousecolour.pdf

 

 

 

Position Paper on Emissions Trading, Climate Action Network of Australia (CANA)

 

http://www.cana.net.au/documents/CANA_EmissionsTradingPositionPaper_October2005.pdf

 

Australia's Climate Change Strategy: The Real Way Forward, Climate Action Network of Australia

 

 

 

www.cana.net.au/documents/real_way_forward.pdf

 

Sections 4 and 5 of TNEP's publication The Natural Advantage of Nations shows how deep cuts to greenhouse emissions can be achieved without needing nuclear energy. http://www.naturaledgeproject.net/NAON.aspx

 

 

Radical Solutions for Australia's Environmental Crisis, by Ian Lowe

 

Emeritus Professor at Griffith University and President of the Australian Conservation Council (ACF), Ian Lowe is a well-known environmental advocate and expert. This book is short and concise, discussing the key threats to Australia’s natural environment and its people. Lowe outlines the solutions to these crises, emphasising the importance of political will, social initiative and economic sustainability.

 

 

 Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature and Climate Change, By Elizabe

 

On the burgeoning shelf of cautionary but occasionally alarmist books warning about the consequences of dramatic climate change, Kolbert's calmly persuasive reporting stands out for its sobering clarity. Kolbert lets facts rather than polemics tell the story: in essence, it's that Earth is now nearly as warm as it has been at any time in the last 420,000 years and is on the precipice of an unprecedented "climate regime, one with which modern humans have had no prior experience."

 

 

 

 

Extra Sources:

 

 

 

Benford R.D. and Snow, D.A. 2000 “Framing processes and Social Movements: An Overview

 

and Assessment”, Annual Review of Sociology, 26, pp.611-39.

 

 

 

Gamson, W.A. and Modigliani, A. 1989 “Media Discourse and Public Opinion on Nuclear power:

 

A Constructionist Approach”, American Journal of Sociology, Vol.95, No.1, July, pp.1-37.

 

 

 

Gitlin, T. 1981, The Whole World is Watching: Mass Media in the Making and Unmaking of the New Left, Berkeley, University of California Press.

 

Beginners' Guide to the Kyoto Protocol: http://www.cana.net.au/kyoto/

 

 

Torrie, Ralph, Richard Parfett and Paul Steenhof, October 2002, "Kyoto and Beyond: The low-emission path to innovation and efficiency", prepared by Torrie Smith Associates for the David Suzuki Foundation and the Canadian Climate Action Network Canada - www.davidsuzuki.org/publications/climate_change_reports or to download directly: <www.davidsuzuki.org/files/Kyoto_72.pdf

 

 

 

 

 

 

Social Impacts of Climate Change - http:/cana.net.au/socialIm

 

In a hotter and more volatile world, both rich and poor stand to lose. Those already affected by poverty, malnutrition and disease will face new hardships. In Australia our industries, livelihoods and public health will face serious threats from drought, disease and extreme weather events. Where we live, and our cost of living will be affected.

 

Climate Refugees: Citizen's Guide to Climate Refugees: http://www.foe.org.au/download/CitizensGuide.pdf

 

 

 

Climate Change and Water in Oz - http://www.cana.net.au/water/index.html

 

 

 

Beyond Zero Emissions has released its scoping document discussing a fast conversion to a near zero emissions stationary energy sector for Victoria - http://beyondzeroemissions.org/zero-emission-stationary-energy