Jem Bendell - scientistswarning.org

CLICK HERE - Deep Adaptation: A Map for Navigating Climate Tragedy (36 page .PDF document)

. . . The paper, published in July of 2018, concludes “…recent research suggests that human societies will experience disruptions to their basic functioning within less than ten years due to climate stress.  Such disruptions include increased levels of malnutrition, starvation, disease, civil conflict and war – and will not avoid affluent nations. This situation makes redundant the reformist[2] approach to sustainable development and related fields of corporate sustainability. Instead, a new approach which explores how to reduce harm and not make matters worse is important to develop. In support of that challenging, and ultimately personal process, understanding a ‘deep adaptation agenda’ may be useful.”

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cnn.com - by Ira Helfand - July 6, 2019

America confronts a long list of critical problems and they all require urgent attention. But among them, two issues stand out: catastrophic climate change and nuclear war are unique in the threat they pose to the very survival of human civilization. The enormity and imminence of these twin existential threats cannot be overstated and how to confront them must be the central issue of any presidential campaign.

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Editor’s Note:  Ira Helfand, a medical doctor, is a member of the international steering group of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons, the recipient of the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize. He is also co-president of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War, the founding partner organization of ICAN and itself the recipient of the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize. 

A page from the Office of Inspector General report.

CLICK HERE - U.S. Department of Homeland Security - Office of Inspector General - Management Alert – DHS Needs to Address Dangerous Overcrowding and Prolonged Detention of Children and Adults in the Rio Grande Valley (16 page .PDF report)

nytimes.com - by Zolan Kanno-Youngs - July 2, 2019

Overcrowded, squalid conditions are more widespread at migrant centers along the southern border than initially revealed, the Department of Homeland Security’s independent watchdog said Tuesday. Its report describes standing-room-only cells, children without showers and hot meals, and detainees clamoring desperately for release.

The findings by the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General were released as House Democrats detailed their own findings at migrant holding centers and pressed the agency to answer for the mistreatment not only of migrants but also of their own colleagues, who have been threatened on social media.

The tiny archipelago Tuvalu is among the Pacific island nations facing an "existential threat" from climate change ( Getty Images for Lumix )

CLICK HERE - UN - OHCHR - UN expert condemns failure to address impact of climate change on poverty

thehill.com - by Justin Wise - June 30, 2019

A United Nations report is warning that the world is risking a "climate apartheid" scenario in which the wealthy can pay to avoid the consequences of global warming while the rest of society suffers. 

“Even if current targets are met, tens of millions will be impoverished, leading to widespread displacement and hunger,” U.N. special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, said in a report released last week.

The report says that extreme climate change threatens to push "more than 120 million more people into poverty by 2030," according to Alston, who added that it will "have the most severe impact in poor countries, regions, and the places poor people live and work.” 

BARREN RIDGE, CA - APRIL 4: The new project will join the current large Barren Ridge solar panel array in Kern County, California. (Photo by George Rose/Getty Images)GETTY IMAGES

CLICK HERE - Kern County, CA - Eland 1 Solar Project

forbes.com - by Jeff McMahon - July 1, 2019

Los Angeles Power and Water officials have struck a deal on the largest and cheapest solar + battery-storage project in the world, at prices that leave fossil fuels in the dust and may relegate nuclear power to the dustbin.

Later this month the LA Board of Water and Power Commissioners is expected to approve a 25-year contract that will serve 7 percent of the city's electricity demand at 1.997¢/kwh for solar energy and 1.3¢ for power from batteries.

"This is the lowest solar-photovoltaic price in the United States," said James Barner, the agency's manager for strategic initiatives, "and it is the largest and lowest-cost solar and high-capacity battery-storage project in the U.S. and we believe in the world today. So this is, I believe, truly revolutionary in the industry."

Maximum temperatures across Europe on Wednesday, as seen by the American GFS weather model, in degrees Fahrenheit. (Weatherbell.com)

washingtonpost.com - by Ian Livingston - June 26, 2019

A ferocious heat wave has overtaken parts of Europe. A number of records have already been broken, and there are several days of extreme heat to go.

As the heat wave escalates toward its peak late this week, temperatures have already neared or surpassed 100 degrees (37.8 degrees Celsius) in parts of France, Germany, Poland and Spain. Even Switzerland has seen locations rise toward the mid-90s.

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From monitoring deforestation to designing low-carbon materials

Steam and exhaust rise from a chemical factory and coking plant in Germany. Photo by Lukas Schulze/Getty Images

CLICK HERE - RESEARCH - Tackling Climate Change with Machine Learning

theverge.com - by James Vincent - June 25, 2019

The AI renaissance of recent years has led many to ask how this technology can help with one of the greatest threats facing humanity: climate change. A new research paper authored by some of the field’s best-known thinkers aims to answer this question, giving a number of examples of how machine learning could help prevent human destruction.

The suggested use-cases are varied, ranging from using AI and satellite imagery to better monitor deforestation, to developing new materials that can replace steel and cement (the production of which accounts for nine percent of global green house gas emissions).

Dikembe Mutombo, who is Congolese and an internationally famous retired sports star and philanthropist, worked with CDC to film a public service announcement (PSA) for Ebola to help communicate with the Congolese people.

thehill.com - by Chris Mills Rodrigo - June 24, 2019

U.S. officials are working with basketball Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo to help fight the recent Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

"I am speaking with you today because I care deeply about our country, and I need your help to stop the Ebola outbreak in the north part of the country. Ebola is real. The current outbreak is the country’s largest ever," Mutombo, who is from the DRC, says in a video posted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Spots were recorded in Kiswahili, French and Lingala.

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TRANSCRIPT (English):

A cemetery sitting on melting permafrost tundra at the village of Quinhagak on the Yukon delta in Alaska. The scientists’ findings offer a further sign of a climate emergency. Photograph: Mark Ralston/AFP/Getty Images

CLICK HERE - STUDY - Threshold sensitivity of shallow Arctic lakes and sublake permafrost to changing winter climate

theguardian.com - reuters - Matthew Green - June 18, 2019

Permafrost at outposts in the Canadian Arctic is thawing 70 years earlier than predicted, an expedition has discovered, in the latest sign that the global climate crisis is accelerating even faster than scientists had feared.

A team from the University of Alaska Fairbanks said they were astounded by how quickly a succession of unusually hot summers had destabilised the upper layers of giant subterranean ice blocks that had been frozen solid for millennia.

afro.who.int - June 11, 2019

The Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO) have confirmed a case of Ebola Virus Disease in Uganda. Although there have been numerous previous alerts, this is the first confirmed case in Uganda during the Ebola outbreak on-going in neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The confirmed case is a 5-year-old child from the Democratic Republic of the Congo who travelled with his family on 9th June 2019. The child and his family entered the country through Bwera Border post and sought medical care at Kagando hospital where health workers identified Ebola as a possible cause of illness. The child was transferred to Bwera Ebola Treatment Unit for management. The confirmation was made today by the Uganda Virus Institute (UVRI). The child is under care and receiving supportive treatment at Bwera ETU, and contacts are being monitored.

CONCEPT DRAWING KALINAGO RESILIENCE HUB CHANNELING CULTURAL BUILDING PRACTICES AND MYTHOLOGY OF THE CENTIPEDE. PHOTO © ILLYA AZAROFF AND + LAB ARCHITECT PLLC

rocagallery.com - by Illya Azaroff - May 21, 2019

 . . . Since Hurricane Maria struck in 2017, the tiny island of Dominica is rebuilding with the aim of becoming the first climate resilient and 100% sustainable nation in the world . . . Dominica can unlock the DNA of resilience through the vernacular building practices and rich cultural history of the Kalinago people that first inhabited the island . . .

 . . . Rediscovering these historic threads of resilience have been key to developing new master plans for the territory under the Kalinago Institute for Resilience and Regeneration (KIRR), founded by my team together with leading experts and community leaders, including members of the Kalinago council of chiefs, Nichie Louis Patrick Hill and Dr. Michael McDonald. Its mission is to create a thriving Kalinago Territory as a low carbon, resilient region where citizens can live and excel within the carrying capacity of its ecosystems for multiple generations into the future.

Photo:  Francesco Bellina/TNH

thenewhumanitarian.org - May 31, 2019

 . . . In recent months, a surge in violence in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger – three Sahelian countries with shared borders and common problems – has left more than 440,000 people displaced and 5,000 dead, as militants – some with links to al-Qaeda and IS – extend their grip across the region.

As they gain ground, the jihadists are stoking conflicts between different ethnic groups that are accused of either supporting or opposing them, putting the region’s entire social fabric into question. Cycles of inter-communal violence are now claiming more lives and uprooting more people than direct jihadist attacks. Nobody seems able to stop it.

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Icebergs off coast of Greenland. - Credit: Kertu / Adobe Stock

CLICK HERE - STUDY - PNAS - Ice sheet contributions to future sea-level rise from structured expert judgment

cnn.com - by Sareena Dayaram - May 21, 2019

Global sea levels could rise more than two meters (6.6 feet) by the end of this century if emissions continue unchecked, swamping major cities such as New York and Shanghai and displacing up to 187 million people, a new study warns.

The study, which was released Monday, says sea levels may rise much faster than previously estimated due to the accelerating melting of ice sheets in both Greenland and Antarctica.

The international researchers predict that in the worst case scenario under which global temperatures increase by 5 degrees Celsius (9 degrees Fahrenheit) by 2100, sea levels could rise by more than two meters (6.6 feet) in the same period -- double the upper limit outlined by the UN climate science panel's last major report.

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https://youtu.be/6cRCbgTA_78

Climate scientist, Katharine Hayhoe explains the impacts of temperature increases from climate change.

CLICK HERE - PBS - What's the Big Deal With a Few Degrees?

CLICK HERE - BIO - Katharine Hayhoe

                          An expanding list of news and information resources on Tropical Cyclone Idai . . . 

CLICK HERE - OCHA - Humanitarian Response - Mozambique

CLICK HERE - reliefweb - Tropical Cyclone Kenneth - April 2019

CLICK HERE - UNOCHA - Virtual OSOCC - Situation Overview - TROPICAL CYCLONE IDAI IN MOZAMBIQUE

CLICK HERE - reliefweb - Tropical Cyclone Idai - March 2019

CLICK HERE - GDACS - Summary - Overall Red alert Tropical Cyclone for KENNETH-19 in Mozambique, Comoros