Landmark Court Decisions Acknowledge Citizen Rights to a Healthy Climate (Video)

Ordinary citizens including children are using the courts to force governments to act on climate change. A number of lawsuits and some early judgements suggests that the courts may be able to spur significant climate action.

In August a group of 21 children, supported by renowned climate scientist James Hansen, filed a landmark constitutional climate change lawsuit against the federal government.

Video - Senator Markey Calls out Republican Climate Deniers for their Fossil Fuel Advocacy and their Obstructionism on Climate Change

The Democratic Senator for Massachusetts Ed Markey laments the collapse of the Shaheen-Portman energy efficiency bill. Had Republicans not opposed it, it would have cut carbon pollution and created jobs. He explains that the bill collapsed because Republicans tied the vote on Shaheen-Portman to three measures designed to support the fossil fuel industry:

Video - Former Mexican President Blames Republicans for their resistance to Combating Climate Change

According to former President of Mexico Felipe Calderón, the GOP is a major impediment in the fight against climate change. Speaking at the Harvard Business school in April, Calderón said that Republicans in Congress are like Chinese coal plants in that they are both adversaries in the fight against climate change. He called Republicans, "The most serious problem is in the United States Congress." "If you are a Republican, it's like a formal requirement to be a nonbeliever in climate change. And that's bad," Calderón said.

US Supreme Court Ruling Makes it Easier to Buy Election Outcomes

A recent ruling by the Republican-appointed majority on the US Supreme Court has freed uber-wealthy to flex their financial muscles so that they can buy electoral outcomes. The ruling on the McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission case upholds the $2,600 limit per candidate, however, limitations on the number of candidates that can be given money has been lifted. This means that those with the financial means can now interfere with the democratic process.

US Senators Climate Change Slumber Party

On the night of March 10 into the morning of March 11, Democratic and Independent US Senators pulled an all-nighter to discuss climate change. A total of 28 Senators spoke all night to urge action on climate change.

Democrats May Have Renewed Interest in Tackling Climate Change

We may be seeing renewed interest in climate change advocacy from Democrats. While Republicans have made their contempt for climate change legislation known, many Democrats are also guilty of dereliction of duty on the subject of climate change. Four years ago there were not enough votes in the Democrat controlled Senate to move forward with climate change legislation.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid recently told reporters that, "Climate change is the worst problem facing the world today." This is a reiteration of comments he made last June, when he said in a speech on the Senate floor that "we have no more important issue in the world than this issue, period."

Event - Making Waves: The Second Annual Canadian Association of Environmental Law Societies (CAELS) Conference

The Environmental Law Conference will take place on February 21 - 22, 2014 at the University of Ottawa’s new Faculty of Social Sciences building in Ottawa, Ontario. The Canadian Association of Environmental Law Societies (CAELS) is an exciting new networking project connecting environmental law students across the country.

The second annual CAELS conference will focusing on Canadian environmental law issues. The conference will bring together law students, academics, and practitioners from around the country to learn and network. This student-run conference will feature keynote addresses from Gord Miller (Environmental Commissioner of Ontario) and Maude Barlow (Council of Canadians). In addition, the conference will have multidisciplinary panels of speakers featuring graduate students, practitioners, and academics.

The Environmental Implications of the US Omnibus Spending Bill

A new spending bill may have bipartisan support but it has both good and bad implications for the environment. On Monday January 12, 2013, the House and Senate appropriations committee chairs announced that they had agreed on an omnibus appropriations bill (FY14). The bilateral agreement put together by House Appropriations Chair Hal Rogers (R-Ky.) and Senate Appropriations Chair Barbara Mikulski (D-Md.) allocates $1.012 trillion in federal spending.

Republicans Have Painted Themselves Into a Corner on Climate Change

The Republican position on climate change may drive party support to historic lows in the not too distant future. While most Americans (including supporters of the GOP) think that climate change is real and want the government to act, the majority of Republicans in Congress are science eschewing climate deniers. According to an analysis by the Center for American Progress, 58 percent of Republicans in the current Congress deny the existence of climate change or oppose action to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

Congressman Joe Barton of Texas and Senator Jim Inhofe of Oklahoma are poster boys for the flat earth/Luddites in Congress. They regularly dismiss climate change as a “hoax.” However a new analysis from a Stanford University Social Psychologists makes this position politically untenable. Americans, including Republicans think global warming is real and want the government to act.

Except for Republican Members of Congress Climate Deniers are a Rare Breed in America

According to the latest research, the vast majority of Americans both Democrat and Republican embrace the veracity of anthropogenic climate change and want the government to do something about it. However, according to an analysis by the Center for American Progress, a solid majority (58 percent) of Republicans in the current Congress deny the existence of climate change or oppose action to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

House GOP's Climate Denial Circus of Lies

The Republicans in the House of Representatives staged a climate denial circus on Wednesday December 11. Their so-called “factual” hearing about climate change, invoked the testimony of skeptics concluded that half of scientists think that global warming is a hoax. The actual number in more like 97 percent. They also tried to dismiss any connection between climate change and extreme weather. The Subcommittee on Environment hearing was ironically titled “A Factual Look at the Relationship Between Climate and Weather.”

Much of the lies and misrepresentation came from John Christy, a climate denying professor at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. While the only scientifically factual part of the hearing came from Pennsylvania State University’s Dr. David Titley.

Event - Risky Business: Empowering People with Environmental Information

This event will take place on November 27, 2013, 08:30 - 16:40 at the Institution of Civil Engineers, One Great George Street, London, UK. Risky Business: Empowering People with Environmental Information brings you the most up-to-date information on legislation and regulation that affects environmental due diligence.

Expert speakers from all areas of the field will provide an insight into the current landscape and recent developments within the industry whilst providing practical guidance to ensure you are doing all you can to help your clients and yourself.

Risky Business provides a forum for delegates to question key industry decision makers on recent hot topics affecting the industry and network with colleagues from other environmental and property businesses.

Supreme Court to Review EPA's Right to Limit GHGs

The United States Supreme Court has indicated that it may limit the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) efforts to regulate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. On Tuesday, October 22, 2013, the US Supreme Court indicated that it would hear arguments against the EPA's right to regulate GHGs under the Clean Air Act (CAA).

This is in response to six separate petitions for ‎certiorari (a writ or order by which a higher court reviews a case tried in a lower court). The litigation is titled Coalition for Responsible ‎Regulation, Inc. et al., v. Environmental Protection Agency (D.C. Cir. Index No. 09-1322). Those who filed the petitions are putting the interests of the old energy economy ahead of efforts to combat climate change. They include the State of Texas, the US Chamber of Commerce, and predictably industry associations ‎of energy producers and users.‎

Event - Regulating Climate Change: The Supreme Court, Clean Air Act and EPA's Upcoming Greenhouse Gas Rules

Regulating Climate Change: The Supreme Court, Clean Air Act and EPA's Upcoming Greenhouse Gas Rules October 30, 2013 12 p.m. -1:15pm Faculty Club, D’Agostino Hall New York University School of Law 108 W 3rd St, New York, NY Registration is free, but required: RSVP.

Republican Controlled Subcommittee on Energy to Hold Hearings on Climate Change

The likelihood of House Republicans exploring the science of climate change is right up there with hell freezing over. However, this is precisely what is scheduled to take place, (no not hell freezing over Republicans investigating the science of climate change). Believe it or not House Republicans have summoned the leaders of 13 federal agencies to a hearing set to take place on September 18, 2013. These hearings will examine the sweeping climate change agenda proposed by US President Barack Obama in June.

Event - Legal and Insurance Lessons Learned From Major Catastrophic Events

Legal and Insurance Lessons Learned From Major Catastrophic Events will take place on September 10, 2013,8 a.m. at the TKP Conference Center, 109 West 39th Street (Between 6th and Broadway), New York, NY.

ALEC Must Die

There is a sinister force that is corrupting American politics by giving the most environmentally destructive elements of Big Business significant control over state legislatures. The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) turns 40 this year. This organization is composed of large corporations and state lawmakers. They draft environmentally harmful model laws that have been adopted in state legislatures across the country.

ALEC describes itself as “nonpartisan public-private partnership” and is registered as a not for profit organization. While the organization enjoys 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, many groups see it as little more than a front for one of the most powerful and influential lobby groups in America.

Video - United States of ALEC

Moyers & Company presents "United States of ALEC," a report on the most influential corporate-funded political force most of America has never heard of -- ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council. A national consortium of state politicians and powerful corporations, ALEC presents itself as a "nonpartisan public-private partnership." But behind that mantra lies a vast network of corporate lobbying and political action aimed to increase corporate profits at public expense without public knowledge.

Video - United States of ALEC: A Follow-Up

Moyers & Company follows up on a breakthrough 2012 report about ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council. A national consortium of state politicians and powerful corporations, ALEC presents itself as a "nonpartisan public-private partnership." But behind that mantra lies a network of lobbying and political action aimed to increase corporate profits at public expense without public knowledge.

Video - ALEC's Organized Corruption

ALEC creates model bills, drafted by lobbyists and lawmakers. This includes support for the lax regulations in the fossil fuel industry and resistance to clean sources of energy.

However there ALEC's influence extends far beyond crafting model legislation. As explained in the New York Times, "a review of internal ALEC documents shows that this is only one facet of a sophisticated operation for shaping public policy at a state-by-state level. The records offer a glimpse of how special interests effectively turn ALEC's lawmaker members into stealth lobbyists, providing them with talking points, signaling how they should vote and collaborating on bills affecting hundreds of issues like school vouchers and tobacco taxes. The documents — hundreds of pages of minutes of private meetings, member e-mail alerts and correspondence — were obtained by the watchdog group Common Cause and shared with The New York Times..."

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