Patt Morrison for Thursday, 10/1/09--from the Governors' Global Climate Summit

PATT MORRISON SCHEDULE

Thursday, October 1, 2009

1-3 p.m.

 

CALL-IN @ 866-893-5722, 866-893-KPCC; OR JOIN THE CONVERSATION ONLINE ON THE PATT MORRISON BLOG AT KPCC-DOT-ORG

 

PATT MORRISON LIVE FROM THE

GOVERNORS’ GLOBAL CLIMATE SUMMIT

 

 

1:06 – 1:19

Obama’s impossible task: Global environmental action in a skeptical U.S.

President Obama’s chief environmental advisor Nancy Sutley didn’t mince words when she promised that the President would stake his political future to rally Congress behind a sweeping climate change bill.  The time for the President to start throwing around his weight may have become, as the Senate took up a carbon cap-and-trade bill that promises to be both revolutionary and controversial.  Can the President, and his adviser Ms. Sutley, thrust the U.S. back into a global leadership role on reversing climate change?

 

Guests:

Nancy Sutley, chair of the White House Council on Environmental Quality; principal environmental policy adviser to President Obama

 

 

1:21 – 1:30

Green maven

The glorious state of Washington has long been a pioneer for environmental stewardship. And the steward, Governor Christine Gregoire, has been at that helm, harnessing her state’s natural resources for sustainable energy and creating and training workers for green jobs. What’s her secret and how can she set other governors on her path?

 

Guest:

Christine Gregoire, Governor of Washington

 

[MUSIC BRIDGE]

 

 

1:30 - 1:39

Will the United Nations be anything more than a spectator?

The United Nations has tried its best to be a motivating point for global action against climate change, but so far it has failed miserably to entice its most influential members into global climate deals.  With the latest international climate talks starting in two months in Copenhagen the UN will try, once again, to shove its biggest member countries (namely China and the U.S.) into agreeing to dramatic cuts to greenhouse gas emissions.  Is it possible for the UN to be anything other than a spectator?

 

Guest:

Olav Kjørven (shh-yore-vin) UN Assistant Secretary-General and Director of the Bureau for Development Policy at the United Nations Development Programme

 

[BREAK]

 

 

1:41 – 1:58:30

Can green energy still be profitable energy?

As businesses wise up to the coming mandates for energy conservation and the need to control carbon emissions, environmental groups have also grown to be more flexible in their approach.  The Sierra Club, in particular, has begun to consider natural gas and nuclear power as bridge energy sources before a purely green, renewable energy economy is realistic.  Are these kinds of compromises possible, on the part of big industry and environmentalists, and when will that green economy become a reality?

 

Guest:

Carl Pope, executive director of the Sierra Club

 

2:06 – 2:39

Preparing for the worst: Adapting to climate change

Optimistically-minded scientists and political leaders still believe there’s a chance to stop and even reverse the effects of climate change; but the more pragmatic leaders are preparing for a drastically hotter and more volatile world within the next 100 years.  The impacts of climate change will be felt most destructively on the most impoverished areas of the world, which raises a philosophical question:  since developed countries are overwhelmingly to blame for polluting the Earth, are they most responsible for helping the planet adapt?  Patt asks that question and more to a panel of experts planning for the worst.

 

Guests:

Ann Veneman, executive director of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)

 

Amy Luers, environmental program director for GOOGLE.org

 

Michele de Nevers, senior manager of the environmental department at The World Bank

 

 

2:41 – 2:58:30

An Amazonian perspective on climate change

It is easily one of the front lines of the environmental battles, a place where the beauty of nature intersects with the commercial possibilities of endless natural resources.  The Amazon river and rainforest in Brazil has absorbed plenty of blows from mankind over the centuries, but it still remains the world’s lungs and a home to incredible bio-diversity.  How will Brazil protect the remaining Amazonian wilderness while still ensuring economic growth for its citizens?

 

Guest:

Carlos Eduardo de Souza Braga, governor of the Brazilian state of Amazonas

 

 

Jonathan Serviss

Producer, Patt Morrison Program

Southern California Public Radio

NPR Affiliate for Los Angeles

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jserviss@kpcc.org / jserviss@scpr.org

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