All the pre-election polls forecast a close race, but none projected that Scott Morrison and the Liberal coalition would form the next Government of Australia. So what factor(s) made the difference? And how might similar factor(s) influence the outcome of the forthcoming Canadian election. In his victory speech, Morrison referred to “the quiet Australians” who … Read more
Australians go to the polls on Saturday, May 18 next to elect members of the 46th Federal Parliament. This has been dubbed the climate change election with good reason: concern about the climate and environment has never been greater among Australians. Over the last twenty years, Australian elections have seen on-and-off enthusiasm for parties who … Read more
The Canadian Government is striving to find a balance between the environment and the economy. The difficulty is that climate change risks to the environment have little correlation with economic risks. If the economy is maintained on the basis of advantages to the fossil fuel industry, there will be a political showdown that could result … Read more
Deciding which countries will successfully meet climate change goals is as difficult as choosing the winning horse before a race starts. There are too many variables to be certain of the outcome., So, just as in a horse race, an assessment of a country’s commitment to meet these goals requires a consideration of “the odds”, … Read more
A lump of coal! Naughty children are warned that if they don’t behave this lump would be in their Xmas stocking. But down under in Australia coal is a commodity to be admired, for a number of reasons: First, Australia has plenty of coal, and exports millions of tons a year. Second, coal is cheap, so it … Read more
Four years ago 4RG and other climate change NGOs sponsored “Sleepwalking to Catastrophe”, a Climate Change Forum. Alanna Mitchell, the author of “Sea Sick”, was one of the panellists. She told us that the great coral reefs of the world were facing extinction. Alanna’s message was dramatic, but factual: Global Warming was the culprit. The world … Read more
Like Canada’s Stephen Harper, Tony Abbott Prime Minister of Australia was a sceptic about climate change. Abbott explained extreme weather conditions that hit Australia, such as record-breaking temperatures, followed by bush fires, as Mother Nature Australian style (Abbott: “Fire is a fact of Australian experience”.) Claiming there was no link between bushfires and climate change, … Read more
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