Should NATO Exist? Phyllis Bennis vs. Ex-CIAer Stan Sloan...
The 17th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP17) takes place in Durban, South Africa from Nov. 28 through Dec. 9. Democracy Now! is covering the official proceedings as well as the events outside.
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Ousted Maldives Pres. Mohamed Nasheed a Leading Voice for Island States Threatened by Global Warming
For years, Mohamed Nasheed was the most vocal world leader on the threat climate change poses to residents of small island states. After becoming the first democratically elected president in Maldives, he pledged to make the nation the first carbon neutral country and once held a cabinet meeting underwater. We discuss Nasheed’s...February 09, 2012 | Story -
Guardian Environment Editor John Vidal on WikiLeaks Cables and U.S. Manipulation of Climate Talks
John Vidal, the environment editor for The Guardian of London, is in Cancún after reporting on the Copenhagen summit a year ago. The Guardian is one the five news outlets to receive the massive trove of WikiLeaks cables ahead of time and has been publishing new revelations every day. We speak to Vidal about the latest diplomatic...December 07, 2010 | Story -
Bill McKibben: Climate Talks So Weakened by U.S., Major Polluters that Walkout Could Be Good News for Planet
Longtime environmental writer and activist and 350.org founder Bill McKibben has won the 2010 Puffin/Nation Prize for Creative Citizenship. Speaking outside the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Cancún, McKibben says, "In certain ways, [a U.S. walkout] would be the best thing that could happen. For 15 years ... the U.S....December 07, 2010 | Story -
Democracy Now! Questions Chief E.U. Climate Negotiator about WikiLeaks Cables
WikiLeaks is a hot topic at the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Cancún after secret diplomatic cables revealed new details about how the United States manipulated last year’s climate talks in Copenhagen. The Guardian newspaper reported the cables provide evidence that spying, threats and promises of aid formed part of...December 07, 2010 | Story -
U.S. Climate Envoy Refuses to Answer Democracy Now!'s Questions on WikiLeaks Cables' Account of Summit Manipulation
At the U.N. Climate Change Conference in Cancún, U.S. Special Envoy for Climate Change Todd Stern refuses to comment on the WikiLeaks cables’ account of discussions with the European Union on using climate aid to gain the backing of small island states for the informal Copenhagen Accord reached at last year’s U.N....December 07, 2010 | Story -
"Cochabamba, the Water Wars and Climate Change." By Amy Goodman
Thousands of climate justice activists have arrived here in Bolivia for the World Peoples’ Summit on Climate Change and Rights of Mother Earth. Bolivian President Evo Morales called for the gathering to give the poor and the Global South an opportunity to respond to the failed climate talks in Copenhagen. Ten years ago this month, the host city for the summit, Cochabamba, was at the center of...April 21, 2010 | Blog Post -
Greek PM George Papandreou on Global Warming, Socialism and Democracy
We interview Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou about climate change and greenhouse gas emission, socialism, democracy and much more. As the head of Greece’s Socialist Party, Papandreou became prime minister in October after the Socialists trounced the center-right government in national elections, winning 44 percent...January 04, 2010 | Story -
Leading Climate Scientist James Hansen on Why He’s Pleased the Copenhagen Summit Failed, "Cap and Fade," Climategate and More
We speak with the nation’s leading climate scientist, James Hansen. He wasn’t at the Copenhagen climate summit and explains why he thinks it’s ultimately better for the planet that the talks collapsed. We also speak with with Dr. Hansen about his new book, Storms of My Grandchildren: The Truth about the Coming...December 22, 2009 | Story -
US-Led Copenhagen Accord Decried as Flawed, Undemocratic
The climate summit in Copenhagen came to a close Saturday with the world’s nations reluctantly agreeing to "take note of" but not endorse a non-binding accord President Obama announced Friday night. The twelve-page agreement seeks to limit global warming to a maximum of a two degree Celsius rise in temperature....December 21, 2009 | Story -
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on How to Tackle Climate Change: "We Must Go from Capitalism to Socialism"
We speak with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez about climate change, the Copenhagen summit and President Obama. Chavez calls the COP15 summit undemocratic and accuses world leaders of only seeking a face-saving agreement. "We must reduce all the emissions that are destroying the planet," Chavez says. "That requires...December 21, 2009 | Story -
"The Countries that Can Really Make a Difference Have Not Really Got Sensitive Enough to the Plight of the Poorest of the Poor"– IPCC Chair Pachauri
We speak with Rajendra Pachauri, the chair of the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change about the climate summit, the role of developed countries, and why he promotes vegetarianism as a way of reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Pachauri and the IPCC won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007. [includes rush transcript]December 18, 2009 | Story -
Environmental and Indigenous Activists Criticize Proposed Deal to Save Rainforests
On Wednesday, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the Obama administration would commit $1 billion over the next three years toward a proposed global scheme to preserve tropical forests. It’s called REDD, or Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation. As countries attempt to hammer out a final deal...December 18, 2009 | Story -
Bolivian President Evo Morales on Climate Debt, Capitalism, Why He Wants a Tribunal for Climate Justice and Much More
Bolivian President Evo Morales joins us in Copenhagen to talk about the UN climate talks, capitalism, climate debt and much more. "Policies of unlimited industrialization are what destroys the environment," Morales said. "And that irrational industrialization is capitalism." [includes rush transcript]December 17, 2009 | Story -
EXCLUSIVE : Leaked Internal UNFCCC Document: Global Temperatures Will Rise by More than Two Degrees Celsius
A leaked internal document from the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change states that current targets on emissions reductions from countries around the world will cause global temperatures to rise above two degrees Celsius. According to the UNFCCC document, current emissions reduction targets could lead to a three...December 17, 2009 | Story -
Voices from Small Island States: Maldives President Mohamed Nasheed, a Tuvaluan Delegate and a Youth Activist from the Solomon Islands
"For us, this is more than just another meeting," said President Nasheed. "This is a matter of life and death." Eighty percent of the Maldives lies three feet or less above sea level. The predicted rise in sea level caused by global warming could wipe the country off the map. The islands of Tuvalu and the...December 17, 2009 | Story -
"A Naked Form of Blackmail": Naomi Klein on Secretary of State Clinton’s Proposal to Set Up $100 Billion Climate Aid Fund for Developing Countries
Secretary Clinton said the US would consider contributing to an international $100 billion annual climate aid fund for poorer nations beginning in 2020 if the Copenhagen talks resulted in a comprehensive deal. It is unclear how much money the US would give to the fund. Aid groups say the $100 billion would be insufficient. We...December 17, 2009 | Story -
Climate Crackdown: UN Bars Friends of the Earth and Other Environmental Groups from Climate Talks
The crackdown around the UN climate talks in Copenhagen is intensifying. Earlier today the United Nations suspended several mainstream environmental groups and barred members from re-entering the conference. Organizations targeted include Friends of the Earth, Tck Tck Tck, Avaaz, World Vision and Via Campesina. Democracy Now!...December 16, 2009 | Story -
Police Pepper Spray, Arrest Protesters Marching on UN Climate Summit as Hundreds Inside Stage Walkout
In Copenhagen, thousands of protesters marched toward the UN climate summit on Wednesday with the stated goal of transforming the talks into a People’s Assembly and to call for climate justice. Police made over 200 arrests. Meanwhile, inside the Bella Center, hundreds of people staged a walkout to try and meet the marchers...December 16, 2009 | Story -
NYT Reporter Andrew Revkin on the Climate Talks: There’s an Epic Fight Over Words
World leaders are arriving in Copenhagen as the climate summit formally enters high-level talks. On Tuesday, US climate negotiator Todd Stern said he foresees no change in President Obama’s offer to cut emissions by 17 percent of 2005 levels. We speak to Andrew Revkin, environmental reporter at the New York Times. [includes...December 16, 2009 | Story -
"If Bush Was in Kindergarten, Obama Is in First Grade"– Indian Environmentalist Sunita Narain on US Climate Policy
As heads of state begin to arrive to the COP15 summit here in Copenhagen, the rift between rich and poor countries continues to widen. With less than three days to go, there is no final agreement or breakthrough on the future of the Kyoto Protocol, which industrialized nations, led by the United States, are seeking to dismantle....December 16, 2009 | Story
Job Openings
Columns
By Amy Goodman with Denis Moynihan. Veterans of the occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan are now challenging the occupation of Chicago. This week, NATO is holding the largest meeting in its 63-year history there. Protests and rallies will confront the two-day summit, facing off against a massive armed police and military presence.
Web Exclusives
In an extended interview, David Bronner, president of Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soaps, discusses the history of the company, why they put sustainability and social justice ahead of profits, the organic and GMO labeling movements, the U.S. war on hemp, and why they refuse to sell out. [includes rush transcript]
Human Rights Watch’s Kenneth Roth examines why the U.S. has not pressured Bahrain to release pro-democracy activists. He also discusses Syria and the conditions in Israeli jails and courts that prompted 1,550 Palestinian prisoners to go on a hunger strike. [includes rush transcript]
