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Do individual carbon footprints really matter?
Do Individual Carbon Footprints Really Matter? | Elizabeth Kolbert | GZERO World

Do individual carbon footprints really matter?

Do we spend too much time thinking about our own carbon footprints and not enough time thinking about bigger factors? Climate journalist Elizabeth Kolbert acknowledges it's necessary for individuals to make changes in the way they live, but that isn't the number one priority.

"What would you do to try to move this battleship in a new direction? It requires public policy levers. And it requires … some pretty serious legislation." Ian Bremmer spoke with Kolbert, an award-winning journalist and author and staff writer at The New Yorker, on a new episode of GZERO World, airing on US public television.

Watch the episode: Can We Fix the Planet the Same Way We Broke It?

Geoengineering: science fiction or a solution to the climate crisis?
Geoengineering: Science Fiction or a Solution to the Climate Crisis? | GZERO World

Geoengineering: science fiction or a solution to the climate crisis?

What are the most promising climate solutions? Elizabeth Kolbert discusses the three types of technologies that are being considered to address climate change, which include cutting edge, science fiction-like technologies like geoengineering, pulling carbon out of the atmosphere and nuclear fusion. Kolbert, a Pulitzer Prize winning climate journalist, spoke with Ian Bremmer on GZERO World about the opportunities and unknowns involved in assessing these extreme solutions. "You can say, 'Well, we've unwittingly geoengineered the planet, let's try to think this through rationally and can we come up with technologies like solar geoengineering to mitigate or counteract that?'" The episode is airing on US public television starting April 16.

Watch the episode: Can We Fix the Planet the Same Way We Broke It?

The climate crisis: how screwed are we?
The Climate Crisis: How Screwed Are We? | Elizabeth Kolbert | GZERO World

The climate crisis: how screwed are we?

How bad is the climate crisis? Every year, the UN's Emissions Gap Report shows a large gap between the trajectory we're on and the trajectory we ought to be on, explains climate journalist Elizabeth Kolbert. "Every decade now is warmer than the decade before. And we're seeing the damage pile up," says Kolbert, whose latest book is Under A White Sky: The Nature of the Future. "We saw the tremendous wildfire season in California last fall. The hurricane season in the Gulf. These are all connected to climate change, and we're just going to keep seeing more of that." She spoke with Ian Bremmer on GZERO World, airing on US public television stations starting April 16. Check local listings.

Watch the episode: Can we fix the planet the same way we broke it?

Can we fix the planet the same way we broke it?
Can We Fix the Planet the Same Way We Broke It? | Elizabeth Kolbert | GZERO World

Can we fix the planet the same way we broke it?

Every recent decade has been warmer than the decade before it. And as the climate continues to warm, more nations are looking to extreme measures to slow down the trend. While some of these solutions may sound like science fiction—see: injecting sulfur particles into the atmosphere or shooting millions of tiny orbital mirrors into outer space—do such desperate times call for desperate measures? Elizabeth Kolbert, a Pulitzer Prize-winning climate journalist, joins Ian Bremmer on GZERO World to talk about some of the more extreme climate solutions currently on the table and how likely they are to be used in the coming years.

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Podcast: Can we fix the planet the same way we broke it? Elizabeth Kolbert on extreme climate solutions

Transcript

Listen: In a wide-ranging interview with Ian Bremmer, Pulitzer Prize-winning climate journalist Elizabeth Kolbert assesses the current state of the climate crisis and answers a simple question: how screwed are we? And as the climate continues to warm at a record pace, she unpacks some of the more extreme climate solutions that some increasingly desperate nations are starting to consider. Such measures may sound like stuff of science fiction (see: injecting sulfur particles into the atmosphere or shooting millions of tiny orbital mirrors into outer space) as times become more desperate, their appeal is growing. Can we fix the planet the same way we broke it?

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The climate cost of Big Tech’s space obsession
The Climate Cost of Big Tech’s Space Obsession | Author Elizabeth Kolbert | GZERO World

The climate cost of Big Tech’s space obsession

Should wealthy individuals and nations shoulder more of the burden in addressing climate change? Pulitzer Prize-winning climate journalist Elizabeth Kolbert argues that Big Tech leaders like Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk should shift more of their focus to fighting for our own planet's survival, instead of space exploration. "We're doing as much as we can to make life difficult on planet Earth for ourselves. But there's virtually nothing we could do to make it as difficult as life on Mars, where there's, among other things, no oxygen." Kolbert, the author of Under a White Sky, discusses why it's so crucial for a few rich countries to bear most of the climate burden, since they're also the biggest emitters. Her conversation with Ian Bremmer is featured in the upcoming episode of GZERO World, airing on US public television stations starting this Friday, April 16. Check local listings.

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