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THERE’S HOPE ALONG THE ROAD
TO FIXING CLIMATE CHANGE

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

In today’s newsletter, physicists awarded Nobel for climate change insights; climate protesters arrested in London; a clue to sea-level rise; the cities weaning themselves off coal … and a plant designed to cut flying’s carbon footprint.

PHOTOGRAPH BY DON ARNOLD, GETTY

By Robert Kunzig, ENVIRONMENT Executive Editor

Not long ago Nature reported a disturbing study of the world’s youth—a survey of 10,000 people age 16 to 25, from 10 representative countries, for their feelings about climate change.

Some 75 percent said the “future is frightening.” Fear was more common in poorer, more vulnerable countries—but according to the study, 46 percent of young Americans, and 56 percent of youth worldwide, think that “humanity is doomed.” (Pictured above, protesters during a Climate Change Awareness rally in Sydney.)

Leave aside for now whether the forecast is accurate. Isn’t it heartbreaking that so many young people believe it?

In September, Alejandra Borunda and I spoke with two astute observers of the climate problem, atmospheric scientist Katharine Hayhoe and writer Katharine Wilkinson. You can read excerpts here. Over the weekend, when news came in of the oil spill off southern California, I found myself thinking about something Hayhoe had said (pictured below, oil threatens Talbert Marsh in Huntington Beach, California).

PHOTOGRAPH BY STUART PALLEY

“We have to practice hope,” she said. We have to seek out other stories to counterbalance the depressing drumbeat of news.

Last week I told you about one hopeful story—on the electric car revolution. The revolution may not unfold as fast as needed to address climate change, Craig Welch writes, but it’s definitely coming. By the middle of this century, there are likely to be many more electric cars and many fewer piston engines on our roads, at least in developed countries.

Think about what that could mean for our world.

Even if governments take bold action to accelerate the energy transition, Earth will be hotter in a few decades, and seas higher and storms more intense. That’s because carbon dioxide sticks around once we put it in the atmosphere. Earth won’t stop warming until we reduce carbon emissions to zero.

But other nasty side effects of fossil-fuel burning aren’t like that; we don’t have to get to zero to feel the benefits. Once demand for oil starts plummeting, we should see fewer oil spills and foul beaches. We’ll surely see less air pollution—which these days kills seven million people a year worldwide.

And don’t forget the noise. Near Atlanta this weekend, after visiting an amazing nature reserve in a former granite quarry (that’s another story), my wife and I noticed especially ugly sound barriers along I-20, built to shield homes from the traffic noise. There were walls like that behind my parents’ house on I-66 in Virginia. In the coming decades maybe we’ll tear some of them down.

On the long road to fixing climate change, our cities should get cleaner and quieter first.

Thinking about the future that way may not make it less frightening—but maybe a bit more exciting.

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SMARTER PLANET

PHOTOGRAPH BY SEAN GALLUP, GETTY IMAGES

We asked, you answered: Do you have an electric vehicle? Want to get one? We polled 2,200 Americans and asked readers of last week’s newsletter. The responses to our poll with Morning Consult: 47 percent said they were interested; 38 percent nope. About three-fourths of respondents said EVs are too expensive right now, and two-thirds said they’d need rebates or other incentives to get one. Sixty percent said the EVs are inconvenient to recharge or care for, but many of our readers—we got more than 400 email responses—begged to differ.

Our emailers, many of whom are EV devotees or satisfied-for-now hybrid owners, say EVs wear more easily than regular cars—and that charging convenience and capacity are improving. Dwight King says he’s happily on his third EV (and has 39 solar panels on his roof). Rhea Cole bought a Nissan Leaf partly because the factory was 10 miles away from the family’s Tennessee home—and later added another. Cole recently got a look at a new larger Tesla, adding: “It made an impression.” (Pictured above: an electric Volkswagen after being assembled.)

THIS WEEK'S QUESTION

Offshore drilling: It has helped make America energy independent and created good jobs, but it has also contributed to climate-changing fossil-fuel consumption and led to environmental disasters, including last week’s spill off California’s Orange County. Should drilling continue off U.S. coasts? Why or why not? Let us know!

TAKE FIVE

Physicists awarded Nobel for climate change insights

Climate protesters block main roads in London; dozens arrested

The cities weaning themselves off coal

World’s second-largest rainforest will soon reopen to large-scale logging

New plant designed to cut flying’s carbon footprint

ONE MOMENT

PHOTOGRAPH BY JONATHAN IRISH, NAT GEO IMAGE COLLECTION

Eureka! These explorers live for the smell of decay. Tramping nearly a week along the untamed northern hardwood and boreal forest of Michigan’s Isle Royale National Park, a group of single-minded volunteers found what they were looking for: moose bones. The hunt is part of a six-decade predator-prey study that has unlocked insights into the area’s ecology and even human health, Nat Geo reports. “On this island, an increase of a few degrees in air temperature has had monumental effects,” says Slade Kemmet, a Nat Geo Explorer studying the effect of climate change on national parks. (Pictured above, moose skulls and antlers.)

GO BONE HUNTING

FAST FORWARD

PHOTOGRAPH BY OCTAVIO ABURTO

A clue to sea-level rise: Mangroves usually grow along the coasts, buffeted by waves and tides. What the heck are mangroves doing 100 miles from the sea in southern Mexico? The 100,000-year-old forest along a lagoon and waterfalls (pictured above) shows that seas have been dozens of feet higher than today. The area is valuable for climate researchers, Nat Geo’s Alejandra Borunda reports.

SEE THE MANGROVES

We hope you liked today’s Planet Possible newsletter. This was edited and curated by Monica Williams, Heather Kim, and David Beard. Have any suggestions for helping the planet or links to such stories? Let us know at david.beard@natgeo.com. Thanks for stopping by!

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