Uncovering the Mental Health Crisis of Climate Chang

The young man believed he only had five years to live.

 “Not because he was sick,” said Kate Schapira, “not because anything was wrong with him, but because he believed that life on Earth would be impossible for humans.”

The sign on Schapira’s booth read: CLIMATE ANXIETY COUNSELING 5¢ THE DOCTOR IS IN. Time to earn her pennies.

On that muggy June day, she had set up shop in Kennedy Plaza in downtown Providence, Rhode Island. Schapira is not a trained therapist — a fact she makes clear to visitors — but she is happy to chat with anyone suffering from anxiety about climate change. “A lot of what I do is listen and ask questions,” she said.

Read the Nexus Media story “By Jeremy Deaton - “Uncovering the Mental Health Crisis of Climate Change.”

How Six Americans Changed Their Minds About Global Warming

The Rev. Richard Cizik used to believe climate change was a myth. The science had to be rigged, he thought; those who believed in it were just tree-huggers. But in 2002, a friend convinced Mr. Cizik to go to a conference about climate change, and there, he said, “the scales came off my eyes.”

Nearly 70 percent of Americans now say that climate change is caused mainly by human activity, the highest percentage since Gallup began tracking it two decades ago. The number of Americans who say they worry “a great deal” about climate change has risen by about 20 percentage points.

But people don’t change their minds easily about controversial issues. So what is behind this trend?

Read The New York Times story - “How Six Americans Changed Their Minds About Global Warming.”

Liddell power station: The true cost of keeping the coal-fired plant open

For a long time, Australian governments have believed that the private sector should run the electricity sector.

Even after refurbishment, Liddell would emit
about 5-6 million tonnes of CO2 each year.

And successive governments have used market instruments to incentivise reducing emissions, by supporting renewables, discouraging coal use, or both.

Now things seem inside out: uncertainty about energy policy mechanisms is pervasive and the Federal Government is attempting to broker a deal for the ageing Liddell coal plant to stay open past its planned decommissioning date.

AGL's chief executive Andy Vesey, meanwhile, said the company could find the best solution for the market without selling the plant or extending its life.

Keeping Liddell open would possibly require government payments — amounting to a carbon subsidy.

Fear of supply shortages and an appetite for coal have combined with an inability to resolve the political side of energy and climate policy.

Read the ABC News story - “Liddell power station: The true cost of keeping the coal-fired plant open.”