Nachhaltigkeit umgesetzt: Esther, Samuel und die Climate Changers

Anders als bei den vorhergehenden Filmen der Reihe “Kraft der Lokalen“, “Das Wunder von Mals” mit Felix und “Zeit für Utopien” mit Aaron und Till, konnte ich diesmal direkt mit den Filmproduzenten sprechen.

Samuel, freischaffender Journalist, der sich überwiegend mit Themen in Bezug auf Umwelt und nachhaltige Entwicklung befasst, erzählte Esther, Grafikdesignerin und Filmemacherin, bei einem Mittagessen von seinem Vorhaben. Es ist 2015 und er will nach Paris, um die historische Klimakonferenz COP21 zu dokumentieren, die zu einem neuen internationalen Klimavertrag führen soll. Das Mittagessen findet zwei Wochen davor statt und Esther ist sofort Feuer und Flamme für die Idee, Samuels Vorhaben filmisch zu begleiten.

Die beiden haben nicht die offizielle Klimakonferenz innerhalb der Hallen dokumentiert, sondern die zivilgesellschaftlichen Aktivitäten auf der Strasse.

Rote Rosen vor dem Eifelturm als Symbol der COP21 Bewegung

Die Klimakonferenz in den Pariser Strassen

Tausende Aktivisten, Gruppen verschiedenster Art, Workshops, Präsentationen, Flash Mobs – alles fand auf den Pariser Strassen, abseits der Diskussionen der Konferenzteilnehmer statt. Esther und Samuel zeigen in ihrem Film “The Climate Changers”, eindrucksvoll und teilweise sehr ergreifend, die Stimmen und Motive derjenigen, die Handeln und sich nicht mehr nur Gedanken machen wollen. Gedanken um ca. 26 Millionen Klimaflüchtlinge pro Jahr, gravierende ökologische Konsequenzen des Klimawandels wie Fluten, Dürren und Stürme sowie über mögliche Lösungen, die jeder Einzelne umsetzen kann.

Man hat den Eindruck, dass die Leute auf den Strassen von Paris die Dringlichkeit der Situation verstanden haben und statt nur zu diskutieren, auch handeln wollen. Und zwar jetzt.

Alle gehen auf die Strasse

Klimawandel ist schon lange kein rein ökologisches Problem mehr. Es betrifft Umwelt, Wirtschaft und Menschen in gleichem Ausmass. In diesem Zusammenhang fällt oft das Wort “Klimagerechtigkeit“.

Für Klimagerechtigkeit

Studenten, Fracking-Geschockte und –Geschädigte, Gläubige, Blogger, Journalisten, Interessierte, Engagierte, Aktivisten, Idealisten. Ihre Projekte und Motive sind so unterschiedlich, dass man kaum glauben kann, dass sie alle auf verschiedensten Wegen ein gemeinsames Ziel verfolgen und sich darüber absolut einig sind:

Für Klimagerechtigkeit sorgen und die Welt vor einer Erwärmung von über 1.5 Grad bewahren.

 

Wenn nicht wir, wer dann?

Ob “Sustaina Clause”, Zero-Waste-Aktivist aus Afrika, Ex-Politiker von den Philippinen, #muslims4climate, Gegner des Damm-Baus in Brasilien, Unterstützer der indigenen Gruppen in Indonesien oder bekannte Künstler – alle wissen um die Klima-Problematik und keiner von ihnen stellt sich überhaupt noch die Frage ob oder was man machen sollte – Lösungen müssen her.

Die Bilder, Worte und Stimmungen, die Esther und Samuel im Film “Climate Changers” festgehalten haben sind eindrücklich und motivierend. Doch im Laufe des Films kommt die Frage auf: Was bleibt davon? Wie kann diese Aufbruchsstimmung aufrechterhalten werden? Vor 3 Jahren standen alle Zeichen auf Hoffnung. Heute, kurz vor der nächsten Klimakonferenz in Polen, mit einem amerikanischen Präsident, der den Pariser Vertrag kündigen will, vielen konservativen politischen Bewegungen, die uns an eine düstere Zeit erinnern und einer Wirtschaft, die es noch nicht schafft ein langfristiges Denken zu entwickeln, machen sich Frust und Ernüchterung breit.

Für etwsa einstehen und handeln

Wenn ich so darüber nachdenke – das ist irgendwie immer so mit wichtigen Dingen. Sie fallen einem nicht in den Schoss. Man muss sich anstrengen, beharrlich sein, durchhalten. Es wird immer, in jeder wichtigen Sache unseres Lebens, Höhen und Tiefen geben. Das ist völlig normal. Wichtig ist einzig und allein nicht aufzugeben. Den Idealismus am Leben zu erhalten.

Diese – ja man könnte schon fast sagen Lebensweisheit – lässt sich auf das gesamte Leben anwenden. Auch ich muss mich immer wieder motivieren engagiert zu bleiben und mich nicht auf die faule Haut zu legen und mir dabei zu denken: “Die anderen kümmern sich schon darum.”

Es kommt darauf an, ob wir alle Climate Changers werden oder nicht

Die Euphorie von Paris mag verflogen sein, doch durch “Climate Changers” werden wir daran erinnert und bleiben motiviert. Die regionalen Bewegungen bestehen weiterhin. Esther und Samuel werden bald ein weiteres Filmprojekt abschliessen, BaselWandel wird viele weitere Projekte unterstützen, die Lebensmittelkampagne wird Kleinbauern gerechte Preise ermöglichen und der Hambacher Forst wird nicht abgeholzt.

Was einzelne Personen erreichen können, zeigen nicht nur die Vorbilder des AUE, sondern auch Esther und Samuel in ihrem nächsten Film. Die beiden haben David Höner, den Gründer von “Cuisine sans frontières” (Küche ohne Grenzen) bei seiner Arbeit in Ecuador begleitet. Sie zeigen die Zerstörung durch die Erdölindustrie im Amazonasgebiet und fragen nach möglichen Alternativen. Zugleich porträtieren sie einen Mann, der mit einer Idee, seiner Erfahrung und einem Netzwerk von lokalen Helfern Alternativen für die indigenen Gruppen vor Ort schaffen will.

“Es braucht viele kleine Teilchen, die sich bewegen, damit das Wasser zu kochen beginnt” Esther Petsche

Gesellschaftlicher Wandel vollzieht sich nicht durch ein Wochenende vollgepackt mit Demonstrationen, ein paar Klimakonferenzen oder vielen grossen Worten, die zu Lebensweisheiten zusammengeschmiedet werden.

Nein. So funktioniert das leider nicht.

Es ist, wie schon gesagt, nicht so einfach. Wandel ist manchmal leise, manchmal laut. Mal macht er grosse Sprünge, oft kleine Schritte. Das Wichtigste, was einen Wandel per Definition ausmacht, ist langanhaltende Veränderung. Ein langer Atem. Nicht aufgeben. An das glauben, was man tut und für was man sich einsetzt. Wenn wir das in unserem Leben durchziehen und der nächsten Generation glaubwürdig mitgeben können – dann denken ich haben wir alle eine Chance.

Um “Sustaina Clause” aus dem Film sinngemäss zu zitieren:
“Es geht um dich und das was du mit deinem Leben machst.”

Egal wofür euer Herz schlägt, bleibt dran!

Eure Kimi

The big picture: Climate change – KimiB.Good #4

schmelzende Eisberge im Wasser

Here’s the podcast!

My last podcast episode and article are related to food topics and how food production and consumption are linked to sustainability. I have noticed that our food system has major impacts on our climate. And so has our waste system as well as our whole economic system.

It seems essential for me to step back and take a look at the bigger picture.

For me, climate change is the big picture when talking about sustainability. In the course of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the UN set 17 global goals in 2015 – the Sustainable Development Goals. These goals are a UN initiative and aim to transform our world towards a more sustainable development. They are all interlinked and almost all goals link somehow to climate change.

As you might guess, climate change is a huge topic and it is necessary to define what is meant by talking about that term.

What are we talking about

Climate change, global warming, weather, climate – they seem to tell us the same story but they refer to events with broadly different spatial- and timescales.

“Weather refers to atmospheric conditions that occur locally over short periods of time—from minutes to hours or days. Familiar examples include rain, snow, clouds, winds, floods or thunderstorms. Remember, weather is local and short-term. Climate, on the other hand, refers to the long-term regional or even global average of temperature, humidity and rainfall patterns over seasons, years or decades.” (Source: NASA, 2018)

Global warming includes upward temperature trend across the earth since the industrial revolution in the early 20th century, due to the increase in fossil fuel emissions. Worldwide the average surface temperature has gone up by about 0.8 °C since 1880, relative to the mid-20th-century baseline (of 1951-1980).

Climate change covers a broad range of global phenomena, which add heat-trapping gases to our atmosphere. These phenomena include the increased temperature trends described by global warming, but also encompass changes such as sea level rise, ice mass loss in Greenland, Antarctica, the Arctic and mountain glaciers worldwide, shifts in plant blooming and extreme weather events.

Climate change. Facts.

There are actually a lot of facts on climate change. I will present a summary of 10 facts which might illustrate the urgency to act for all of us.
To all sceptics: Right below the facts, I will shortly explain how science and the scientific methods work. Sure you can still deny the existence of human caused climate change but you might feel a little lonely and stubborn at some point. Nevertheless, the decision is up to you. Personally, I do not doubt the existence of climate change and that humankind plays an essential role.

a grafitti saying I do not believe in global warming half swamped

97 percent: The percentage of scientists who agree that warming trends over the past century are very likely caused by human activity.
But it is always a good idea to take a look at the opposite view: form your own opinion on scientific consensus.

1950: Year when atmospheric CO2 levels broke records from the previous 400,000 years, sharply rising and continuing to grow.

8 inches: Rise in global sea levels over the last century. The rate of rise has nearly doubled in the last two decades.

Meer mit Eisschollen

16: Number of record-breaking hottest years since 2000. 2016 was the hottest year yet.

1.5 degrees: The average worldwide temperature increase in Fahrenheit compared to a century ago.

400 parts per million: Average concentration since 2016 of CO2 in the atmosphere, compared to 275 PPM for past 400,000 years.

9: The 9 most explosive fires in America’s history have all occurred since 2000, with 2015 having the biggest fire (10.1 million acres burned) in American history.

Forest fire

19th century: When the heat-trapping nature of CO2 was first demonstrated.

30 percent: The increase in acidity of the world’s oceans.

$180 billion: Estimated economic losses to the United States by end of the century if no action is taken on climate change

beach with a lot of trash

How to get to these facts

How do scientists know about climate change and the facts mentioned above? The way scientists work, in a nutshell, is called “the scientific method“.

This method is the gold standard for exploring everything around us and apparently humankind. It’s the process that scientists use to understand everything from animal behavior to the forces that shape our planet—including climate change.

The process includes the following steps:

  1. Form a hypothesis (a statement that an experiment can test)
  2. Make observations (conduct experiments and gather data)
  3. Analyze and interpret the data
  4. Draw conclusions
  5. Publish results that can be validated with further experiments (rinse and repeat)

These steps may vary from discipline to discipline but overall these are the steps to gather scientific knowledge. And not only by going through them one time. The more observations are done, the more data is gathered the better is the scientific understanding and the more valid are the drawn conclusions.

Referring to climate change, I did not count the numbers of studies which deal with global warming and climate change issues but there are consensus studies which prove that the scientific consensus on whether climate change is happening and humankind is a major contributor is between 90 and 100%.

Using the scientific method, scientists have shown that humans are extremely likely the dominant cause of today’s climate change. It all starts in the late 1800s. In 1958 Charles Keeling of the Mauna Loa Observatory in Waimea, Hawaii, started taking meticulous measurements of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere, showing the first significant evidence of rapidly rising CO2levels and producing the Keeling Curve  climate scientists know today.

Keeling Kurve die den Anstieg von CO2 in der Atmosphäre anzeigt

Whether or not you belief in the scientific method and their conclusions, something is happening with our planet and it tends to be more extreme than everything humankind has experienced so far.

… and in Switzerland

The climate in Switzerland varies a lot due to altitude and season but there are certain changes which can only be explained in terms of the increase in greenhouse gases. According to MeteoSwiss, there are three critical changes for Switzerland so far:

  1. Average annual temperature increased around 2°C since 1864 (as by 2018)
  2. There has been significantly less snow since the 1980s
  3. Changes in precipitation are becoming apparent
a graph which shows the climatic changes of Switzerland
Figure 1: The temperature series from Basel since 1755 demonstrates that the Swiss climate is subject to strong fluctuations. In the first 200 years of the measurement series, the fluctuations were primarily due to natural causes. In the last few decades, temperatures have broken through the bandwidth of long-term, natural fluctuations in an upward direction (climate change). The graph shows deviations in °C from the 1864-1900 mean.

Myths about climate change in a nutshell

There might be even more myths than facts about climate change. I’ll try to collect some of the more important myths and provide short and precise enlightenment.

  1. “CO2 is not a pollutant. It’s a GREEN gas which plants, crops and trees need to grow.”
    Yes, plants need CO2 for photosynthesis as humans need oxygen for respiration. In fact, the world’s forests store and cycle huge amounts of carbon. However, there’s a limit to the amount that they can absorb, and with deforestation increasing this limit is getting lower. It’s not the nature of CO2 that causes problems; it’s the quantity: there hasn’t been this level of CO2 in the atmosphere for 800,000 years.
  2. “Climate change has been here AT LEAST 5 million years.”
    In its basic sense this statement is true. Climate change is currently happening to an extent that cannot be explained by natural factors alone. Global temperatures have been rising for over a century, accelerating in the past 30 years, and are now the highest since records began. The global scientific community widely agrees that the warming we are experiencing is man-made.
  3. “A few degrees is nothing.”
    During the last ice age, which ended 12,000 years ago, the world’s average temperature was only 4-5°C cooler than it is today. Yet those few degrees have made a drastic difference: parts of Britain were under a mile of ice, and sea levels were about 100 metres lower than they currently are. Just a few degrees can have very dramatic effects, and what’s happening now is at a far greater rate than we’ve ever seen. To avoid the worst impacts, all nations agreed to the 2 degree (or even 1.5 degree) treshold in the Paris Agreement.
  4. “Wind farms and solar are expensive and inefficient. Nuclear, coal and oil are the only realistic way to provide for our energy needs.”
    Solar power has been the cheapest form of energy generation (per unit of energy generated) for a long time and onshore wind costs about the same as gas. Some great news over the past decade is that the costs of renewables have fallen faster than predicted. By the way, nuclear power is the most expensive one. However, the most important measure is energy efficiency. Technology like double glazing and loft insulation may not sound glamorous, but it reduces our bills and helps save the planet at the same time.
  5. “Everything is affected by climate change, but things adapt!”
    Nearly true. We all know about the adaptation part since we heared about Darwin’s natural selection rule. But there is a tiny difference to the statement in the headline which changes a lot of its meaning: Everything is affected by climate change, and some things adapt. To survive, life on earth has two options: Move or adapt. If you cannot adapt and there is no suitable habitat for you left, you die. And in the end, this rule applies if you are a plant, an animal or a human being.
  6. “Global warming was made up as a way to make money.”
    Oh come on! There are so many easy ways to make money. Tobacco, alcohol, weapons and allegedly necessary consumer goods for example. Do you really think “they” would do such an effort? No way.
  7. “The only way this planet will survive is us humans getting wiped out.”
    I cannot deny that I may have had this thought too at some point. But isn’t is a bit cowardly to ruin something and give up afterwards? Now comes the hardest part. Doing it right. So roll up your sleeves and get it done, chicken.

The good news

Even if we reduce our carbon footprint and reach the goals of the Paris Agreement, our past has its effects we cannot stop. However, Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) technologies are on the rise and, as we have seen in history before, technology is able to develop in major leaps if the conditions are right. Sure the conditions are not yet in favour of everything which tackles climate change but we are making progress. Politically, economically and most important in our thinking and awareness.

For more concrete CDRs, please read Jacob Devaney’s article “Good News About Climate Change!”.

As you may have experienced while trying to achieve a goal together with other people, the first thing to be set is cooperation. By working together, we can pave a path forward to a future in which businesses rely on renewable energy, cities rethink waste disposal and transportation, and communities and individuals take simple actions to save the planet.

Cheers,
Kimi

Further links

https://www.ted.com/playlists/78/climate_change_oh_it_s_real

https://www.wwf.org.uk/effectsofclimatechange

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2017/01/tech-innovations-save-us-from-climate-change/

Climate Change – KimiB.Good #4

Floes swimming in the sea

 

Here’s the atricle!

In this 4th episode of KimiB.Good, I would like to talk about the big picture. In terms of sustainability, climate change seems to me like the big picture because nearly every sustainable development goal is linked to climate change. These goals were set by the United Nations to transform our world towards a more sustainable development.

This time I joined and interviewed innovate project leaders at the Climate Lounge Pad Boot Camp and asked them about their project scope, their motivation and their learnings. I also moderated a round table at the 3rd Basel Sustainability Forum and asked experts and students to answer some of my questions concerning climate change.

Climate Launchpad

The Climate Launchpad is the world’s largest green business ideas competition. The mission is to unlock the world’s cleantech potential that addresses climate change. The competition creates a stage for those ideas and it is split into the submission, the Boot Camp and the finals where the participants pitch their projects to a interdisziplinary jury.

My interview partners at the Climate Launchpad Boot Camp are:

Elena Eigenheer – Youtrition
Briac and Jonathan –  hiLyte-Power
Bhupinder and Bejal – Green Data by Swiss Vault Systems
Nathalie Fickenscher-Carbonelle – fermentaya 

3rd Basel Sustainability Forum

The Basel Sustainability Forum is an annual conference, covering different sustainability topics year by year. In 2018 the conference in Basel presents the current status of research and policy on climate change in Switzerland and beyond, and it addressed some controversial topics, such as the pricing and consumption of fossil fuels affecting pathways towards decarbonization, the right of developing economies to follow their own development path, the competition between economic interests and their social or environmental consequences, and a certain competition between a global climate change agenda and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Hope you’ll enjoy the interviews and thanks in advance for your comments.

Cheers,
Kimi