December 8, 2020
Part One:
We speak with Jariel Arvin, about his article at Vox.com, about a surprising source of support for climate improvement. The EU’s second-biggest oil producer — a Danish oil company — has taken a huge step: It has decided to end all oil production in 2050.
We also discuss other nations which are beginning to think along similar lines. As well, countries and individuals are putting in place more and more units of sustainable energy sources.
What is the best way to have conversations about the threats that our planet faces as a result of climate change? How do we persuade people who seem unwilling to accept the scientific evidence? Is talk sufficient? Or should we consider buying them out?
Part Two:
We talk with Art Cullen, editor of the Storm Lake Times (Iowa) about the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In an article entitled “Goodbye, U.S.D.A., Hello, Department of Food and Well-Being,” Cullen wrote that everyone is affected by a farm system that degrades the environment and drives climate change.
President-elect Biden understands both that climate change poses an immediate crisis to the planet and that agriculture is at the center of it. It will be important to see whom he appoints to lead the USDA and what policies he wants them to pursue. USDA governs a huge range of related issues, including large agri-business, forestry, drought, flooding, and even sequestering carbon in the soil to prevent its release into the atmosphere.
Cullen is hoping to see an emphasis on renewable rural prosperity: Renewable energy and resilient agriculture. He described a sustainable agriculture group that is working with Cargill, one of the largest big-ag corporations in the country.
