WEBVTT - A Place of Urgency

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<v Speaker 1>Good morning, peeps, and welcome to wok F Daily with

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<v Speaker 1>me your girl Daniel Moody. Pre recording from the Long

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<v Speaker 1>Island Bunker, Folks. As you know, I have taken a

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<v Speaker 1>little respite as we prepare for what is going to

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<v Speaker 1>be just fast paced, NonStop as we head into convention

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<v Speaker 1>and get closer and closer to the election. But I

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<v Speaker 1>am leaving you with some really thoughtful, insightful episodes with

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<v Speaker 1>some of our favorites and some new voices. And today

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<v Speaker 1>is a new voice, Doctor John J. Berger, who's an

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<v Speaker 1>environmental scientist and policy expert, joins WOKF to talk about

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<v Speaker 1>his book Solving the Climate Crisis Frontline reports from the

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<v Speaker 1>Race to Save Earth, and we get into a really

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<v Speaker 1>in depth, the detailed conversation about the crisis that we

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<v Speaker 1>are in, and he offers up some very clear solutions,

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<v Speaker 1>clear ways that our politicians need to act now from

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<v Speaker 1>a place of urgency because the situation is becoming dire

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<v Speaker 1>and is existential to our ability to, oh, I don't know,

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<v Speaker 1>continue on this planet. So coming up next my conversation

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<v Speaker 1>with doctor John Jay Berger. Folks. I am very excited

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<v Speaker 1>to welcome to OOKF Daily, author of the book solving

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<v Speaker 1>the climate crisis. Frontline reports from the Race to Save Earth.

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<v Speaker 1>Doctor John J. Berger, who is an expert on the issue,

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<v Speaker 1>is an environmental science and policy specialist as well as

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<v Speaker 1>a prize winning author. Doctor Burger, talk to us about

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<v Speaker 1>where you see the world right now. For years, for

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<v Speaker 1>decades now, we have been warned about our warming climate.

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<v Speaker 1>We've been warned about rising sea levels and intense storms,

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<v Speaker 1>and it seems like every single day there is another

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<v Speaker 1>devastating headline. Have we reached the point of no return?

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<v Speaker 2>No? I don't believe that we have, Danielle, I think

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<v Speaker 2>that the science is pretty clear that if we are

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<v Speaker 2>able to reduce our carbon emissions down to zero, which

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<v Speaker 2>is a decadal challenge, then the climate will begin to

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<v Speaker 2>cool in two to three years. And the climate is

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<v Speaker 2>responsive only to the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

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<v Speaker 2>It doesn't care what political party we are, it doesn't

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<v Speaker 2>care what we say, and it doesn't care about the

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<v Speaker 2>policies that we nominally introduce. It's only interested in the

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<v Speaker 2>carbon dioxide concentration and the methane concentration and the nitros

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<v Speaker 2>oxide concentration in the atmosphere.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, one of the things that I find that

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<v Speaker 1>is the most frustrating about where we are with the

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<v Speaker 1>climate crisis is that I still feel like we're in

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<v Speaker 1>a place of defense where we're trying to defend against

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<v Speaker 1>attacks around fake science and this is in truthful that

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<v Speaker 1>you know, the globe always warms and it's always hot

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<v Speaker 1>in the summer, that we're still in a place of

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<v Speaker 1>trying to tell people that this is real. And if

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<v Speaker 1>we're in a position of trying to convince people that

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<v Speaker 1>climate change is real, then we're not really able to

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<v Speaker 1>focus on the work. Am I wrong about that?

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<v Speaker 2>I think that there's a tremendous amount of misinformation, and

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<v Speaker 2>there have been studies that show that half of the

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<v Speaker 2>American public at times has basically thought that the change

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<v Speaker 2>that we're seeing in the climate is just a natural

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<v Speaker 2>climate change. But we have seen the myths that have

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<v Speaker 2>been purveyed by the fossil fuel industry change over time.

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<v Speaker 2>First they told us that the climate wasn't warming, it

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<v Speaker 2>was actually cooling, and then they said, well, maybe it

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<v Speaker 2>is warming, but it's natural and it's good for us.

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<v Speaker 2>And so they've kind of evolved, and former President Trump

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<v Speaker 2>now acknowledges that the climate is changing at times, although

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<v Speaker 2>he also thinks that climate change is a Chinese hoax,

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<v Speaker 2>and when he does sound off and appear to be

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<v Speaker 2>agreeing with the idea that climate change is real, he says, well,

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<v Speaker 2>humans probably don't have anything to do with it, so

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<v Speaker 2>that's just a total bit of it has no scientific support.

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<v Speaker 2>We have scientific results from thousands of scientists and literally

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<v Speaker 2>billions of scientific observations over decades to show that the

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<v Speaker 2>climate is warming as a result of the waste industrial

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<v Speaker 2>gases that humans are spewing into the atmosphere, and there's

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<v Speaker 2>a direct correlation if you look at the graph of

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<v Speaker 2>how temperature responds, there is a direct correlation between concentration

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<v Speaker 2>and temperature. And we've been ignoring these facts, and we've

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<v Speaker 2>been ignoring the underlying science in our policy for decades now.

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<v Speaker 2>And we have made some very gentle policy measures that

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<v Speaker 2>have moved us in the right direction, but we are

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<v Speaker 2>nowhere near doing what needs to be done in order

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<v Speaker 2>to really climate change. Bring our emissions down initially to

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<v Speaker 2>net zero and ultimately to zero, and then we are

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<v Speaker 2>actually going to have to be drawing down excess greenhouse

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<v Speaker 2>gas from the atmosphere because we're at such a high

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<v Speaker 2>concentration due to decades of abusing the atmosphere that we

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<v Speaker 2>now need to remedy that situation with specific policy. But

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<v Speaker 2>to the point that I think you raise, we are

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<v Speaker 2>now kind of going hell bent for leather in terms

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<v Speaker 2>of releasing these gases. The world is at the highest

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<v Speaker 2>discharge rate of greenhouse gases ever and the rate is increasing,

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<v Speaker 2>not decreasing. Meanwhile, the United States is the number one

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<v Speaker 2>producer and consumer of oil and natural gas, and the

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<v Speaker 2>world's third largest producer of coal, and we are basically

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<v Speaker 2>not regulating the major financial institutions, the multinational banks that

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<v Speaker 2>are providing trillions of dollars of capital to expand fossil

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<v Speaker 2>fuel production and make this problem even worse. Meanwhile, we

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<v Speaker 2>are spending as a nation hundreds of billions of dollars

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<v Speaker 2>in explicit and implicit subsidies to the maturer multi trillion

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<v Speaker 2>dollar fossil fuel industry, where we are thereby buying more

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<v Speaker 2>severe hurricanes, more drought, and more destabilization and environmental damage

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<v Speaker 2>and public health damage.

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<v Speaker 1>One of the things I find, also with regard to

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<v Speaker 1>where we find ourselves is that I think it was

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<v Speaker 1>a couple of weeks ago that we had had three

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<v Speaker 1>consecutive days of the hottest days that the planet had

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<v Speaker 1>ever seen. And we're seeing temperatures in areas like India

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<v Speaker 1>that are reaching one hundred and twenty some odd degree

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<v Speaker 1>fahrenheit right and places in the Middle East, And it's

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<v Speaker 1>happening in areas that are not the key contributors to

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<v Speaker 1>climate change, but they are the ones that are dealing

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<v Speaker 1>with the brunt and the effects of climate change. And

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<v Speaker 1>so how do we reconcile the fact that while the

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<v Speaker 1>United States is one of the biggest polluters, that because

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<v Speaker 1>we're not the ones that are feeling the effects in

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<v Speaker 1>this moment in relation to these other poorer countries, that

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<v Speaker 1>it's like we're doing these kind of suggestions with regard

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<v Speaker 1>to policy, but it is there's not a sense of urgency.

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<v Speaker 2>This is a very complicated question that you've raised, and

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<v Speaker 2>I want to quibble with the premise of the question. First,

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<v Speaker 2>because although it was one hundred and twenty four twenty

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<v Speaker 2>seven degrees in India, it was one hundred twenty four

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<v Speaker 2>degrees in Palm Springs recently during one of the current

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<v Speaker 2>heat waves, and there's a giant heat dome that has

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<v Speaker 2>been sitting over the midwest of the United States, so

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<v Speaker 2>we are feeling these impacts. And in California, where I live,

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<v Speaker 2>we're suffering from an epidemic of extreme wildfire. There's a

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<v Speaker 2>huge wildfire, the fifth largest in the state's history, that's

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<v Speaker 2>raging right now in northern California, and that has already

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<v Speaker 2>consumed six hundred square miles and that incinerates, of course,

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<v Speaker 2>the wildlife and everything in that area, along with hundreds

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<v Speaker 2>of homes. And it's only partially contained. A very small

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<v Speaker 2>portion is contained, and there are one hundred wildfires going

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<v Speaker 2>on in California. Now. This has a very big human

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<v Speaker 2>climate fingerprint on it. So we are definitely suffering these impacts.

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<v Speaker 2>But the other aspect of your question has to do

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<v Speaker 2>with economic injustice and the fact that countries that have

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<v Speaker 2>very little responsibility for having discharged the historic legacy of

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<v Speaker 2>climate disturbing gases that are now in the atmosphere are

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<v Speaker 2>feeling the brunt of it. Because many of these countries are,

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<v Speaker 2>as you said, poor, they're trying to develop, they're in

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<v Speaker 2>hot or arid regions, and these regions are going to

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<v Speaker 2>be hit the hardest by the heat and the combined

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<v Speaker 2>drought that is coming and that we're already experiencing. We

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<v Speaker 2>have a very prolonged drought in California, which I believe

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<v Speaker 2>we're still in the throes of, although we had a

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<v Speaker 2>rainy year or two, but the overall trend has been

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<v Speaker 2>one of drying in the American West, which is another

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<v Speaker 2>clear fingerprint of climate change. So I think that in

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<v Speaker 2>terms of economic justice, the developed countries need to provide

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<v Speaker 2>a lot more assistance in the form of aid to

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<v Speaker 2>developing countries so that they can leapfrog the fossil fuel

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<v Speaker 2>era that we've become entangled in and go directly to

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<v Speaker 2>clean solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower, energy storage, so that these

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<v Speaker 2>clean technologies can provide power twenty four hours a day,

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<v Speaker 2>much like any of the traditional power sources. We have

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<v Speaker 2>to accelerate this transition, and ideally the United States would

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<v Speaker 2>become a model of environmental stewardship and climate responsibility and

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<v Speaker 2>as quickly as possible reduce our fossil fuel consumption. We

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<v Speaker 2>now use fossil fuels for seventy nine percent of all

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<v Speaker 2>of our energy in the United States, and only about

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<v Speaker 2>twenty one percent comes from renewable sources. These sources are

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<v Speaker 2>growing rapidly. But we need to provide a great deal

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<v Speaker 2>more capital in the form of public private partnerships that

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<v Speaker 2>can be used to leverage the trillions of dollars of

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<v Speaker 2>private money that's sitting on the sidelines looking for good

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<v Speaker 2>economic opportunities. And the good news is that if we

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<v Speaker 2>do this, and if we invest adequately in a rapid

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<v Speaker 2>clean energy transition, then we're going to be harvesting millions

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<v Speaker 2>of new jobs, will be enjoying better public health, environmental protection,

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<v Speaker 2>and we will be saving trillions of dollars on our

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<v Speaker 2>energy bill in contrast to that we're doing today, which

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<v Speaker 2>is spending one point three trillion dollars every year in

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<v Speaker 2>the United States on fossil fuels, and on top of

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<v Speaker 2>this trillion dollars, there's also about a trillion dollars worth

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<v Speaker 2>of public health damages that arise from this, and then

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<v Speaker 2>globally this tremendous amount of subsidies that are going into it. Globally,

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<v Speaker 2>we spend nine trillion dollars on fossil fuels every year

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<v Speaker 2>and about seven trillion dollars in additional funding. Now, if

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<v Speaker 2>we took that money and applied it to the green transition,

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<v Speaker 2>we could have a spectacular and very rapid, clean transition

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<v Speaker 2>that would protect the climate and protect public health because

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<v Speaker 2>as a result of this fossil fuel burning, probably eleven

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<v Speaker 2>million people die every year as a result of the

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<v Speaker 2>air pollution that is ninety percent caused by fole ful

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<v Speaker 2>fuel combustion. So we would improve public health, we would

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<v Speaker 2>save twelve million lives plus hundreds of millions of illnesses,

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<v Speaker 2>and we would avoid the catastrophe that's coming as we

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<v Speaker 2>continue to heat the planet. We're at roughly one point

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<v Speaker 2>four or one point five degrees centigrade of heating so far,

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<v Speaker 2>but we're on this trajectory that is going to carry

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<v Speaker 2>us to two and three degrees centigrade. Imagine doubling the

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<v Speaker 2>amount of climate destabilization that we've already had, and the

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<v Speaker 2>impacts that that will have on the oceans and on

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<v Speaker 2>drought and on hurricanes and floods and all this. It's

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<v Speaker 2>basically intolerable that we should be doing this to ourselves

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<v Speaker 2>and not to mention the planet and other species, because

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<v Speaker 2>other species are dying at the rate at one an hour,

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<v Speaker 2>and we are losing the abundance of species. We've lost

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<v Speaker 2>seventy percent of the abundance of vertebrate species since nineteen

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<v Speaker 2>seventy and that's birds and mammals and anything else with

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<v Speaker 2>a backbone. Meanwhile, we're damaging and acidifying the ocean because

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<v Speaker 2>these toxic gases in the atmosphere react with the ocean

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<v Speaker 2>water and make it more acidic. So as we're warming

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<v Speaker 2>the ocean, it begins to expand, and we're melting the

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<v Speaker 2>polar ice, which is adding fresh water to the ocean.

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<v Speaker 2>It's destabilizing ocean circulation and currents, and could have dramatic

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<v Speaker 2>and catastrophic impacts on the climate of Europe. For example,

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<v Speaker 2>if we divert the Gulf Stream, which carries warm water

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<v Speaker 2>to northern Europe. So the kinds of changes that we're

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<v Speaker 2>talking about are existential changes that will produce hundreds of

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<v Speaker 2>millions of climate refugees, which will be destabilizing to civilization

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<v Speaker 2>as we know it. You can see what ten million

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<v Speaker 2>refugees has done to Western Europe. Imagine two hundred million refugees.

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<v Speaker 2>And we're already seeing refugees on our border, desperate to

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<v Speaker 2>come someplace where they can be safe not only from

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<v Speaker 2>dictatorship and from crime, but also many of these refugees

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<v Speaker 2>were basically small farmers that are unable to farm because

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<v Speaker 2>of the drought that's hit Central America. So on many

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<v Speaker 2>many fronts, in many ways, we need to deal with

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<v Speaker 2>this crisis because it's going to deal with us if

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<v Speaker 2>we don't. And I think you alluded to the fact

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<v Speaker 2>that there is an ecological dimension to this, there's a

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<v Speaker 2>technological dimension, and that there's a political dimension. And we

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<v Speaker 2>have the technology that we need, and we have the

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<v Speaker 2>money that we need. We're a very wealthy country. And

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<v Speaker 2>if it's just a few percent of our GDP that

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<v Speaker 2>and we divert some of this money that we're throwing

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<v Speaker 2>at the fossil fuel industry and setting on fire because

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<v Speaker 2>fuel has to be replenished every year. We're burning money

0:17:21.280 --> 0:17:25.240
<v Speaker 2>to support the fossil fuel industry, giving them subsidies, and

0:17:25.600 --> 0:17:29.399
<v Speaker 2>undermining our own economy as a result of that. This

0:17:29.560 --> 0:17:32.440
<v Speaker 2>is not beneficial to us.

0:17:34.840 --> 0:17:37.520
<v Speaker 1>It's not a long term strategy. I mean, everything that

0:17:37.560 --> 0:17:42.040
<v Speaker 1>you have laid out it spells existential threat and crises

0:17:42.119 --> 0:17:45.159
<v Speaker 1>because and I guess my other question for you is,

0:17:46.240 --> 0:17:49.480
<v Speaker 1>I would assume, and let's talk about the political dimension,

0:17:49.560 --> 0:17:53.400
<v Speaker 1>the policy dimension that you brought up, that people have

0:17:53.480 --> 0:17:59.160
<v Speaker 1>this information, people in power know what we're being faced with,

0:17:59.800 --> 0:18:05.600
<v Speaker 1>and I'm wondering, how do we convince these folks that

0:18:05.720 --> 0:18:09.720
<v Speaker 1>are in bed with the fossil fuel industry that they're

0:18:09.920 --> 0:18:11.560
<v Speaker 1>betting against themselves.

0:18:12.000 --> 0:18:17.399
<v Speaker 2>It's a challenging question. The climate and environmental movement in

0:18:17.440 --> 0:18:23.440
<v Speaker 2>this country tends to be somewhat islanded or fragmented, and

0:18:23.960 --> 0:18:27.919
<v Speaker 2>my own personal belief is that this movement does not

0:18:28.160 --> 0:18:34.240
<v Speaker 2>speak really simply and really clearly with one voice to

0:18:34.359 --> 0:18:38.840
<v Speaker 2>the American public. So I am trying actually to see

0:18:38.880 --> 0:18:42.359
<v Speaker 2>if I can't get together enough support to put on

0:18:42.600 --> 0:18:47.920
<v Speaker 2>a national Climate roadblock Removal conference that would bring together

0:18:48.520 --> 0:18:54.960
<v Speaker 2>political leaders, with leaders in clean climate technology, and also

0:18:55.320 --> 0:19:00.959
<v Speaker 2>representatives of groups that are engaged now in trying to

0:19:01.000 --> 0:19:03.960
<v Speaker 2>protect the climate, but are doing so in a way

0:19:04.000 --> 0:19:07.520
<v Speaker 2>that's not really well coordinated. Because we have groups that

0:19:07.560 --> 0:19:11.320
<v Speaker 2>are protecting a park, or groups that are protecting a

0:19:11.440 --> 0:19:17.639
<v Speaker 2>particular species, or groups that are interested in conserving land,

0:19:18.240 --> 0:19:21.520
<v Speaker 2>and all of these groups have common interests, but they

0:19:21.600 --> 0:19:26.280
<v Speaker 2>also have different funders and they have different agendas, and

0:19:26.320 --> 0:19:30.399
<v Speaker 2>we need to get everybody together really to have a

0:19:30.560 --> 0:19:35.360
<v Speaker 2>coherent platform that can then be taken to the American

0:19:35.400 --> 0:19:39.800
<v Speaker 2>people and made clear that we have everything to gain

0:19:40.000 --> 0:19:43.639
<v Speaker 2>and little to lose, because the fossil fuel industry is

0:19:43.720 --> 0:19:49.840
<v Speaker 2>really a relatively small sliver of our economy, whereas the

0:19:49.960 --> 0:19:55.160
<v Speaker 2>clean energy economy offers millions of new, good paying jobs,

0:19:55.480 --> 0:19:59.280
<v Speaker 2>and it offers a clean environment. So I think, in

0:19:59.359 --> 0:20:03.359
<v Speaker 2>conjunction with getting a conference together, I would like to

0:20:03.440 --> 0:20:09.720
<v Speaker 2>see a democratic administration take over in Washington that believes

0:20:09.760 --> 0:20:13.399
<v Speaker 2>in the reality of climate change and that is committed

0:20:13.800 --> 0:20:17.920
<v Speaker 2>to making it a very high national priority. I think

0:20:18.080 --> 0:20:21.720
<v Speaker 2>personally this is the highest priority. It's the highest priority

0:20:22.320 --> 0:20:27.080
<v Speaker 2>from all kinds of perspectives and including the perspectives of

0:20:27.320 --> 0:20:31.880
<v Speaker 2>environmental and economic justice, because, as you pointed out, the

0:20:31.920 --> 0:20:35.639
<v Speaker 2>impacts of climate change that are created more by the

0:20:35.760 --> 0:20:39.119
<v Speaker 2>rich countries than the poor countries are disproportionate at least

0:20:39.400 --> 0:20:43.879
<v Speaker 2>felt by the lower income countries. And we're also seeing

0:20:43.960 --> 0:20:48.920
<v Speaker 2>that within the United States that lower income communities have

0:20:49.880 --> 0:20:52.760
<v Speaker 2>hotter temperatures, they don't have as many parks, they don't

0:20:52.800 --> 0:20:56.800
<v Speaker 2>have as many trees, the buildings aren't as well insulated.

0:20:57.040 --> 0:21:02.440
<v Speaker 2>They may be near petrochemical facilities that are processing fossil fuels,

0:21:02.720 --> 0:21:08.040
<v Speaker 2>so they're suffering from our commitment to the fossil fuel economy.

0:21:08.359 --> 0:21:12.119
<v Speaker 2>We need a federal government that is deeply committed to this,

0:21:12.240 --> 0:21:15.400
<v Speaker 2>but it has to be a multi layered approach, not

0:21:15.440 --> 0:21:20.360
<v Speaker 2>just the federal government, but state government, local government, regional government,

0:21:20.480 --> 0:21:24.439
<v Speaker 2>municipal government, and it has to be an all of

0:21:24.520 --> 0:21:30.359
<v Speaker 2>society effort. We need a national mobilization to address climate change.

0:21:30.560 --> 0:21:34.440
<v Speaker 2>We should have the White House first thing when they

0:21:34.520 --> 0:21:40.200
<v Speaker 2>take over, issue a National Climate Emergency Declaration to bring

0:21:40.280 --> 0:21:44.840
<v Speaker 2>this issue to the fore so the public will understand it.

0:21:45.080 --> 0:21:48.240
<v Speaker 2>And then we should couple that with a National Climate

0:21:48.359 --> 0:21:53.080
<v Speaker 2>Prosperity Plan, which should be produced by the national laboratories

0:21:53.119 --> 0:21:57.199
<v Speaker 2>and the best science and engineering, technology and knowledge that

0:21:57.240 --> 0:22:01.040
<v Speaker 2>we have, so that we can map out the scenario

0:22:01.240 --> 0:22:05.600
<v Speaker 2>or the optimal path to a clean energy transition that

0:22:05.920 --> 0:22:11.240
<v Speaker 2>is least cost and that is quickest and most effective

0:22:11.280 --> 0:22:14.480
<v Speaker 2>and most efficient. And then we ought to have the

0:22:14.520 --> 0:22:19.520
<v Speaker 2>president issue a national Climate report to the nation every year.

0:22:19.680 --> 0:22:22.639
<v Speaker 2>Just as we have State of the Union address, we

0:22:22.680 --> 0:22:26.080
<v Speaker 2>should have this state of a Climate address. Wow.

0:22:26.240 --> 0:22:27.880
<v Speaker 1>That yeah, that's a great idea.

0:22:28.640 --> 0:22:31.119
<v Speaker 2>And I think that we should couple this with a

0:22:31.240 --> 0:22:36.080
<v Speaker 2>national atlas of climate risks so that people who may

0:22:36.119 --> 0:22:39.800
<v Speaker 2>think that the climate is somebody else's problem will be

0:22:39.880 --> 0:22:43.720
<v Speaker 2>able to look at this atlas and see that, oh,

0:22:43.760 --> 0:22:48.240
<v Speaker 2>my area is like either hit by floods already or

0:22:48.480 --> 0:22:52.119
<v Speaker 2>likely to be flooded again within the next few years,

0:22:52.160 --> 0:22:57.680
<v Speaker 2>and my property along the coast is going to lose

0:22:57.720 --> 0:23:02.719
<v Speaker 2>its value when sea level rises by two feet or

0:23:02.760 --> 0:23:09.880
<v Speaker 2>whatever within whatever timeframe. This will help people visualize the

0:23:09.920 --> 0:23:15.040
<v Speaker 2>impacts of climate change and the climate disruption within our

0:23:15.080 --> 0:23:18.960
<v Speaker 2>own borders, so we'll realize this is not somebody else's problem.

0:23:19.280 --> 0:23:22.320
<v Speaker 2>This is everybody's problem, and if we treat it that way,

0:23:22.720 --> 0:23:27.920
<v Speaker 2>it could have a very beneficial effect in bringing people together,

0:23:28.560 --> 0:23:32.000
<v Speaker 2>even people who think that they have disparate interests. We

0:23:32.200 --> 0:23:36.640
<v Speaker 2>all have a very common interest in a healthy climate.

0:23:37.000 --> 0:23:41.360
<v Speaker 2>Climate does not ask you what is your political affiliation

0:23:41.680 --> 0:23:46.160
<v Speaker 2>before the flood floods your basement or the hurricane rips

0:23:46.200 --> 0:23:49.560
<v Speaker 2>off your roof. We have to get together as a nation,

0:23:50.119 --> 0:23:55.240
<v Speaker 2>and for political purposes, the fossil fuel industry and its

0:23:55.680 --> 0:24:01.639
<v Speaker 2>allies in the Republican Party largely have tried to muddy

0:24:01.680 --> 0:24:05.439
<v Speaker 2>the waters that obscure the true issues here, so that

0:24:05.520 --> 0:24:09.359
<v Speaker 2>people have not clearly seen what is the cause of

0:24:09.400 --> 0:24:12.520
<v Speaker 2>what's going on and what has to happen. And that's

0:24:12.560 --> 0:24:17.240
<v Speaker 2>why public education is very important in dealing with this crisis.

0:24:17.720 --> 0:24:22.040
<v Speaker 2>Along with all of the other specific roadmaps kind of

0:24:22.080 --> 0:24:25.320
<v Speaker 2>ideas that I lay this out in Solving the Climate

0:24:25.400 --> 0:24:29.879
<v Speaker 2>Crisis Frontline reports. I have fifteen pages of specific policy

0:24:29.920 --> 0:24:34.560
<v Speaker 2>proposals which if we implemented, these proposals would really get

0:24:34.640 --> 0:24:37.639
<v Speaker 2>us on the path to solving the climate crisis. It

0:24:37.920 --> 0:24:42.240
<v Speaker 2>includes things like we stop all fossil fuel subsidies, we

0:24:42.280 --> 0:24:46.399
<v Speaker 2>impose a moratorium on new fossil fuel development, we have

0:24:46.600 --> 0:24:50.720
<v Speaker 2>the Climate Emergency Declaration that I mentioned, and we create

0:24:50.880 --> 0:24:55.240
<v Speaker 2>a very well funded National Clean Energy Bank and the

0:24:55.320 --> 0:24:59.119
<v Speaker 2>issue new clean energy Treasury bonds, and we make the

0:24:59.160 --> 0:25:02.920
<v Speaker 2>capital available. These are not expenses that are going to

0:25:03.040 --> 0:25:08.800
<v Speaker 2>drain our economy. These are very very profitable investments. They're

0:25:08.800 --> 0:25:11.720
<v Speaker 2>a lot more profitable than putting your money into the

0:25:11.760 --> 0:25:15.119
<v Speaker 2>stock market. They will pay off three, four or five

0:25:15.280 --> 0:25:20.560
<v Speaker 2>times what you invest as a nation in this type

0:25:20.560 --> 0:25:22.320
<v Speaker 2>of endeavor.

0:25:22.960 --> 0:25:24.760
<v Speaker 1>I mean, I think to the points that you have

0:25:24.920 --> 0:25:29.800
<v Speaker 1>laid out that we need to change the conversation and

0:25:29.920 --> 0:25:33.360
<v Speaker 1>make it be one that does really get to people's

0:25:33.400 --> 0:25:38.040
<v Speaker 1>pocketbooks and the way in which we're already paying for

0:25:38.280 --> 0:25:41.160
<v Speaker 1>the climate crisis. When we're looking at our utility bills

0:25:41.200 --> 0:25:44.000
<v Speaker 1>when we're looking at where to move and where to live.

0:25:44.040 --> 0:25:46.840
<v Speaker 1>And it was just a year or so ago when

0:25:47.240 --> 0:25:50.240
<v Speaker 1>the big insurers in Florida and California said, we're not

0:25:50.400 --> 0:25:53.080
<v Speaker 1>ensuring your homes anymore, right, and we're going to see

0:25:53.119 --> 0:25:55.919
<v Speaker 1>more and more of those things happen. We'll leave it

0:25:55.960 --> 0:25:59.679
<v Speaker 1>here today, doctor John Berger. But I so appreciate you

0:25:59.760 --> 0:26:04.520
<v Speaker 1>make in the time to join WOKF. This is incredibly insightful, my.

0:26:04.560 --> 0:26:06.960
<v Speaker 2>Pleasure to talk with you. If people want to find

0:26:07.000 --> 0:26:11.600
<v Speaker 2>out more, they could go to my website Johnjayberger dot

0:26:11.640 --> 0:26:14.879
<v Speaker 2>com burger with an E, and they could also go

0:26:14.960 --> 0:26:19.080
<v Speaker 2>to Solving the Climate Crisis dot us, where they can

0:26:19.080 --> 0:26:21.879
<v Speaker 2>find out how to gets solving the climate crisis and

0:26:21.960 --> 0:26:25.240
<v Speaker 2>also how to learn more about the work that I'm

0:26:25.280 --> 0:26:27.159
<v Speaker 2>doing in order to contact me if they want me

0:26:27.240 --> 0:26:30.480
<v Speaker 2>to speak or consult. Thank you so much for having me.

0:26:30.480 --> 0:26:32.440
<v Speaker 2>It's been a pleasure talking with you, Danielle.

0:26:35.800 --> 0:26:39.040
<v Speaker 1>That is it for me today. Dear friends on WOKF.

0:26:39.119 --> 0:26:43.080
<v Speaker 1>As always power to the people and to all the people. Power,

0:26:43.359 --> 0:26:45.680
<v Speaker 1>get woke and stay woke as fuck.