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Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

washingtonpost.com

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Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#371

Post by CM30 »

kilroy123 wrote: post #120

I have a theory, and I have no evidence to back this theory up. The increases in anxiety in the general public over the last decade or so is in large part to people knowing we're on an unsustainable path. We're all collectively marching towards the edge of the cliff to jump off together. More people than ever have anxiety because we subconsciously (or consciously) know this. We're unsustainable with how we pollute an…

Maybe, though I suspect the income inequality/political instability side is causing more anxiety than the environmental one. The latter is certainly more of a focus now than it was before, but the money side probably plays more on people's minds. A lot of old life advice isn't working any more, people are finding their kids may have a worse quality of life than they did and governments are doing nothing to fix it.

And of course, then there's the constant media hysteria driven by an obsession with social media stats and clicks too. Things are bad in many ways, but if you went by how the press spins it, you'd think the apocalypse was about to hit next week.

That'd surely increase a lot of people's anxiety, even more so if their sources are particularly slanted in a certain political direction.

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#372

Post by pureliquidhw »

zuluwill wrote: post #357

Serious question: what things/science/technology should you work on that can impact this and compound positively over time (outside of just changing your own personal habits, but not to say you shouldn’t do this as well)?

Gathering trash, and not participating in the creation of it, is a good place to start.

Help this project or those in a similar vein: https://www.theoceancleanup.com

As much as I am against Zoo's, they do a lot of conservation work, as do many museums. They have boards you can serve on to help guide investments. Saving the rain forest.

Engineer a disposable, insulating material that's actually biodegradable vs breaking down into microplastics to replace Styrofoam.

Similar to the above, for forks/knives/spoons/plates/bowls.

Support a healthy GMO movement that creates sustainable crops that use less acreage.

Shorten your commute, plant trees, don't mow your lawn, turn your computer off at night, potty train kids ASAP, drink water, cut back meat, carpool, don't burn anything.

Find ways to make the above easier for everyone and push for them. Acting locally will free up another motivated individual with better answers to act regionally, and that will trickle up. When the whole world is on fire, it's hard to focus on picking up that stray napkin. But if enough people pickup the coffee cups, we can focus on the next level up.

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#373

Post by kmlx »

zuluwill wrote: post #352

serious question: what things should you work on that can have the greatest impact and compound positively (I.e go beyond changing just your personal habits)?

imo space tech. why? because we need space colonies and because there are currently nations which can’t wait for global warming to come soon enough (russia has a whole new income stream they plan, and starting to, exploit)

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#374

Post by option »

TheBeardKing wrote: post #312
z0r wrote: post #307

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This isn't the outcome of just a small group of 'bad guys'. Extinction is a byproduct of the increased footprint of humankind as our populations and their associated demands grow. Climate change is one problem, but it isn't the full problem. For example, you need education (to reduce demand for poached goods), political and economic stability (to reduce conditions of poverty that make poaching a rewarding pursuit, or…

Sorry, but in the US at least, if you vote Republican, you are working actively against solutions.

Really, I wish it were that easy! Democrats were the main driving force (see Kelly’s earlier career) behind demonizing and reducing nuclear power. We can significantly reduce carbon emissions by using the safest power generation by far - nuclear energy.

Instead California is going to pathetically miss its emission targets due to nuclear power plant closure and despite Bernie’s denial the closure of Vermonts nuclear power plant did increase emissions.

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#375

Post by rossenberg79 »

Bluestrike2 wrote: post #319
dkarbayev wrote: post #279

One thing that I fail to wrap my mind around: aren’t all those corporations executives, politicians, and poachers living on the same planet Earth as all of us? Don’t they ever think that they’re actually destroying our planet and there’s no other place to live? I can imagine that they don’t believe pro-climate change people, but they could simply hire an independent group of researchers, don’t they? And I mean actual…

That's the not-so-funny element. Companies like Exxon were the first to hire independent researchers back in the 70s and helped pioneer climate research, with management being briefed on the as far back as 1977, and had developed its own models by 1982 that were widely circulated within the company.[0][1] That research was allowed to continue for nearly a decade, and Exxon researchers consulted on DOE research and re…

What if it actually is cheaper though to reverse trends in the future? The companies that weren’t taking full advantage now will be forever playing catch-up in the future, or shut down entirely.

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#376

Post by ddebernardy »

zuluwill wrote: post #352

serious question: what things should you work on that can have the greatest impact and compound positively (I.e go beyond changing just your personal habits)?

The flip question is interesting too. What should you not work on, or at the very least strive to not work on or use?

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#377

Post by camgunz »

thatfrenchguy wrote: post #320
TheBeardKing wrote: post #312

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry, but in the US at least, if you vote Republican, you are working actively against solutions.

And if you vote mainstream Democrat as well ;-)

Almost all Democrats since Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth (and many before) have supported various levels of action on climate change. "Mainstream" Democrats and "socialist" Democrats agree like 99% on policy. The differences are primarily cultural and trumped up by Republicans and the media.

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#378

Post by mcantelon »

RcouF1uZ4gsC wrote: post #259
kilroy123 wrote: post #120

I have a theory, and I have no evidence to back this theory up. The increases in anxiety in the general public over the last decade or so is in large part to people knowing we're on an unsustainable path. We're all collectively marching towards the edge of the cliff to jump off together. More people than ever have anxiety because we subconsciously (or consciously) know this. We're unsustainable with how we pollute an…

I also have a theory. Anxiety is increasing because anxiety sells. The right leaning sites raise anxiety about immigrants. Left leaning sites raise anxiety that Trump is on his way to becoming a dictator. Environmental sites raise anxiety about species going extinct. Business sites raise anxiety about increase regulation and taxes. Meanwhile, humans are the best off we have ever been. This is one of the most peaceful…

Anxiety sells and social media enables every person to play a part in signal boosting it.

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#379

Post by TheBeardKing »

option wrote: post #374
TheBeardKing wrote: post #312

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sorry, but in the US at least, if you vote Republican, you are working actively against solutions.

Really, I wish it were that easy! Democrats were the main driving force (see Kelly’s earlier career) behind demonizing and reducing nuclear power. We can significantly reduce carbon emissions by using the safest power generation by far - nuclear energy. Instead California is going to pathetically miss its emission targets due to nuclear power plant closure and despite Bernie’s denial the closure of Vermonts nuclear p…

I think you're missing the forest for the trees. With only a passing interest in environmental policy and without doing any research, I can think of numerous environmental policies rolled back or being rolled back by the Trump administration and congressional Republicans. To even act like the two national parties are even closely aligned on environmental policy is simply sticking your head in the sand.

Re: Up to one million species are on the verge of extinction, U.N. panel says

#380

Post by 52-6F-62 »

selimthegrim wrote: post #252
52-6F-62 wrote: post #222

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not really sure I understand what you're saying. Can you elaborate?

I’m agreeing with you but I’m saying for a lot of environmentalists they have guilt they want to purge and a solution like that won’t do it.

Right— so you're saying a path that allows people to persist in their actions is unacceptable to environmentalists because it allows them to continue in their actions. More or less?

I'm unclear where "conservatives" comes into play. I've never considered myself a political conservative, TBH.

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