the Climate Pioneer (est. 2010)

Thanks to a powerful and growing New Power grassroots movement, a broad alliance of Kentucky activists sent an electrifying message across the nation today: A just transition to a clean-energy future, even in the heartland of coal country Kentucky, is possible.

Recognizing the spiraling costs of coal-fired plant construction and more practical energy efficiency and renewable energy options, the East Kentucky Power Cooperative has agreed to halt its once fervent plans to construct two coal-burning power plants in Clark County.

Read the entire article at Jeff Biggers: Kentucky Cancels Coal Plant, New Power Movement Electrifies Grassroot Alliance.

“The official inquiry [into "Climategate"] might have exonerated scientists, but attitude changes are needed for science to ensure it holds the public trust.”

This week marks the first anniversary of the worldwide scandal over the release of e-mails stolen from a computer server at the University of East Anglia UEA in Norwich, UK. The server was in the universitys Climatic Research Unit CRU, most of the correspondents involved were climate scientists and the affair will be forever known as Climategate. The scientist at the centre of the storm, Phil Jones, the head of CRU, tells Nature on page 362 that he feels the worst is behind him.I

Read more at Closing the Climategate : Nature : Nature Publishing Group.

After the failures of 2009s climate conference in Copenhagen, a very different set of expectations are building in the climate movement for this years summit in Cancun, and with it, a difficult realization: Change, when it comes, will have to be be built on a popular movement, not a political negotiation.

Read the entire article at Environment | The Nation.

A last-ditch remedy for an ailing planet, or a reckless scheme that could be a greater threat to life on Earth than the problem it aims to solve? Opinions are sharply divided on geoengineering — potential massive interventions in the global climate system, intended to forestall the worst effects of climate change.

Read more at Geoengineering faces ban : Nature News.

(This is a significant and interesting cultural and political moment in the global warming discussion that is – or as the case may be, isn’t – happening. It shows us simultaneously that 1) not all Republicans have morphed into zombies, and 2) how much the concentration of wealth is moving the discussion about climate change to the extreme far right.  TCP Editor).

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger used the fourth anniversary of the passage of California’s landmark climate change law to slam Texas oil companies Valero and Tesoro for what he described as cynical attempts to manipulate voters into abandoning the law.

The governor’s vehement defense of the climate legislation commonly referred to as AB32 comes amid a fierce campaign led by oil interests to win passage in November of Proposition 23, a ballot measure that calls for suspending the climate law until the jobless rate hits 5.5 percent for a year, a level achieved only three times in 40 years.

Read more Schwarzenegger defends climate law, slams Texans.

What If Global Warming Is A Hoax – Global Warming Cartoon.

From a 2006 National Geographic Photo

This year’s extreme heat is putting the world’s coral reefs under such severe stress that scientists fear widespread die-offs, endangering not only the richest ecosystems in the ocean but also fisheries that feed millions of people.

From Thailand to Texas, corals are reacting to the heat stress by bleaching, or shedding their color and going into survival mode. Many have already died, and more are expected to do so in coming months. Computer forecasts of water temperature suggest that corals in the Caribbean may undergo drastic bleaching in the next few weeks.

Read entire article at NYT,  Extreme Heat Bleaches Coral, and Threat Is Seen – NYTimes.com.