Updates & Posts

POST: January 8, 2020

(1) That the Earth is unable to process the massive accumulation of legacy greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions already in the atmosphere using her own systems in a timeframe needed to avert a shift out of our current life-sustaining ecological balance. That these, as of yet uncontrolled, emissions are pushing our planetary ecology into a “new normal” inconsistent with the survival of most species of life currently on the planet. 

(2) That Global Warming, caused by these GHG emissions and the resulting disruption of Earth’s natural systems, is causing massive immediate and future suffering and death and is a Clear and Present Danger to most currently existing life on the planet. That the Life and Liberty of future generations have already been exterminated unless restored by emergency measures taken in the next few years making remainder of human endeavor and activity only palliative and mitigatory.

(3) That because global warming is caused by anthropogenic changes humans have forcing in our environmental support system, those who cause and support such damage to our common life-support systems are a Clear and Present Danger to humanity.

(4) That informed by this awareness of present and future suffering, we must find the strength and determination to shift from our current  “business as usual” approach to human endeavors and adopt a “war footing”. We must quickly build the severe and unrelenting resolve needed to act affirmatively to remediate Global Warming – whatever the costs or benefits. 

(5) That this includes a refusal to engage in, or permit “war profiteering”. While all people have a right to the median standard of planetary living, no one has a right to profit from a declared Global Emergency.  This includes selfish attempts to patent or possess intellectual or real technology which would reasonably be expected to result in the resolution of this emergency until such time as that resolution (e.g. legacy carbon emissions returned to below 350 ppm) has been achieved.

(6) That accidental and deliberate delay in taking action has now left us with a very short timeline to manage this Global Emergency (450 ppm atmospheric carbon predicted on our current trajectory to arrive in the mid-2030’s). That regardless of whether this timeline is realistic it is the only possible timeline. This timeline looks roughly like this:

2020-2022: United Nations systems, government and industry organized toward Climate Engineering.  Selection of methodology and mobilizing of resources.  • Years 2022-2025: Emergency Climate Engineering underway. • Years 2025-2030: Global temperatures returned to less than 350 ppm.

(7) That because of the interconnectedness of our natural world, the changes affected by Global Warming are not linear but rather exponentially expanding feedback loops.  While we do not fully understand these feedback loops, we know they are increasingly foreshortening the time available to resolve this Climate Emergency.

(8) That we must now support nature in recovering from the damages we have inflicted and use human-derived methodology to solve this human-caused problem in a one-time effort.

(9) That to withhold or delay the use of Climate Engineering technology to assist and support our atmospheric and ecological systems in recovering to a level which will again sustain human, plant and animal life is the direct equivalent of the taking of human life.

(10) That methodology is currently available to resolve our Global Emergency in the form Climate Engineering – specifically Land-Based Carbon Removal, Ocean-Based Carbon Removal and Solar Radiation Management.

(11) That while private funding is free to explore other avenues, due to the emergency nature of the current crisis we must now limit our efforts to refining and deploying the existing technology in these areas on a global scale.

(12) That the United Nations was established and is funded ultimately by The People through their various governments to manage global emergencies and should be expected to use these technologies to resolve Global Warming. To not do so would demonstrate genocidal negligence. 

(13) That in order to accomplishing this work, elements of the United Nations should be modified until that the organization has the necessary representation, administration, enforcement and regulatory capacity to complete this work.

(14) That once the Climate Emergency is resolved (e.g. legacy carbon emissions returned to below 350 ppm), we must then have the resolve to judiciously withhold additional use of this technology until, operating through the United Nations, a new ethic for working with our planet’s systems (rather than abusing, degrading and damaging them), and for establishing carbon neutral and sustainable practices can be put in place.  This will necessarily include adoption of alternative sources of energy, population and resource management. We will essentially need to learn to regulate ourselves within the ecological balance of our planet as well as we have learned to exercise our freedom, independence, covetousness and gluttony.

Looking back from some 50 years distance we will certainly find that there will have been some variation in these conclusions and recommended actions, but essentially this is the pathway we will necessarily have to take to find our way successfully through the Climate Emergency.