On Friday, The United States will officially be back in the Paris Climate Agreement!
*cue appropriate volume of fanfare*
And while in a week where Dallas, Texas is colder than Anchorage, Alaska - our co-host Paul Dickinson takes us on a short list of topics discussing the social cost of carbon recently updated by Joseph Stiglitz and Lord Nicholas Stern to match the severity of the climate crisis, as well as a listener question regarding the unregulated growth and steadily growing emissions of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies.
But all of this in context, with the US “still in” as it’s being promoted - We anxiously await the United States’ Nationally Determined Contribution which should be announced anytime between now and late April. Once that number comes through, the race to COP 26 will be at full speed where the very first 5 year check in of global accountability and ambition towards a net-zero 2050 and beyond will happen.
So with the world’s largest economy on track to boost the global coalition of nations dedicated to this collective goal, will we be able to achieve emission reductions fast enough to avoid catastrophe? This week our guest is legendary science fiction writer, Kim Stanley Robinson, whose prolific career includes the international bestselling Mars trilogy, and more recently Red Moon, New York 2140, Aurora, Shaman, Green Earth, and 2312. Stan joins us for an exclusive look into the themes of his latest book: The Ministry for the Future, which offers an unflinching look at what our future may hold even in 2025 if we do not address runaway climate change. Optimistically he says, “We are all living in a science fiction novel we are coauthoring together.”
So, what future will we write?
Sci-Fi Pop Music this week from French duo, Toukan Toukän!
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Thank you to our guest this week, Kim Stanley Robinson.
Grab a copy of his latest book - ‘The Ministry For The Future’
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Our musical guest this week is Toukan Toukän!
Music video for ‘Konowoulen’
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93. The Race To Zero! Extreme Electrification with Nico Rosberg and Sara Price
92. Vicki Hollub Thinks Oil Has a (Low Carbon) Future
91. The Race to Zero! Road to COP26
90. Ferocious Love with Katharine Wilkinson
88. Living on Planet Earth with Oliver Jeffers
87. The Future of Urban Transport
86. The Scientific Case for The Race to Zero with Johan Rockström
BONUS: U.S. Inauguration Special with Gina McCarthy
85. The Future of Shipping
BONUS: A Great Regeneration with Andrew Higham and Mission 2020
84. The 2020 Christmas Lectures: A User's Guide to Planet Earth with Dr. Helen Czerski, Prof. Chris Jackson and Dr. Tara Shine
83. How Europe is Racing to Zero with Frans Timmermans and Nigel Topping
82. The Paris Effect with Laurence Tubiana
81. Climate Justice and Racial Justice with David Lammy
80. The Future of Fuels
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