Yearly Archives: 2012
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…”
“You must feel vindicated, what with Hurricane Sandy and the way the weather and climate change has gone this yearâ€. That’s how a business acquaintance of mine put it the other day during a pre-Christmas lunch. Her point was that … Continue reading
Steady as she goes: global climatic denial guarantees chaotic future
Below is the full, 800-word version of my article, a compressed version of same appears in this morning’s Irish Times, which runs to just 600 words, so a quarter of the original piece fell under the subs’ desk knife. This … Continue reading
Humanity’s killing spree about to come full circle
With apologies for an uncharacteristic outbreak of navel-gazing, below, my article as it appears in the current issue of ‘Village’ magazine… My interest in environmentalism is barely 10 years old. For the bulk of my adult life, far meatier concerns … Continue reading
Sandy has the last word in a bitter election
Ever wonder what, in a world where the media took its cues from peer-reviewed science rather than energy industry shills, the front covers of even our business magazines might look like? Well, wonder no more. Below, is the amazing cover … Continue reading
The Arctic ice cap is melting – and with it goes our future
Below, my article, as it appears in today’s Irish Times. The piece has ‘gone viral’ via social media, with over 2,500 ‘Recommends’ on Facebook alone, and it was No. 3 in the ‘Most Read’ category of Irishtimes.com last week. Not … Continue reading
Mental blocks contribute to our inaction on climate change
My article, as it appeared in yesterday’s Irish Times. There’s a busy comments section attached, with the usual handful of hard chaws piling in to an otherwise productive discussion… IT’S REASSURING to imagine we are, by and large, rational beings … Continue reading
Myths and mischief-making in renewable energy reporting
I couldn’t have claimed to be Ireland’s greatest fan of wind energy. Not because I don’t think it’s a good idea – it is – but rather, my concern is whether it will ever be deployed on a scale sufficient … Continue reading
Extraordinary, unprecedented – but still not newsworthy?
Earlier this month, something quite extraordinary and unprecedented occurred in Greenland. The satellite image on the left above shows (in red) the area of Greenland which was experiencing summer melt on July 8th. It amounts to around 40% of the … Continue reading
It’s a race to the bottom – we’re winning as the oceans die
To me, nothing says summer down-time quite like finding a shady spot on a warm day and settling in for a great read. This year, I had the good fortune of picking two exceptional books – ‘The Ocean of Life’ … Continue reading
Life on Earth now under threat as never before
Below, my opinion article, as it appears in today’s Irish Times: WHEN WE put our mind to it, it’s amazing what we can learn to forget. Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 hosted one of the most important international conferences … Continue reading
Doom with a view? Trap tightens on our diminishing prospects
In the current issue of ‘Village’ magazine, editor Michael Smith has explored at length and in some depth the array of formidable challenges that humanity (and all other species on Earth) face in the years and decades ahead. It’s a … Continue reading
An interview with Irishenvironment.com
Robert (Bob) Hernan is the man behind Irishenvironment.com, an online resource for all things in the environment and ecology field on the island of Ireland. Bob was formerly Assistant Attorney General in the Environmental Protection Bureau, and his professional scalps … Continue reading
To save lives, we must first abandon hope
Below, my article, as it appears in the latest edition of ‘Village’ magazine: Is it a biscuit? Or is it a bar? Does the convergence of a range of environmental, energy and resource crises compound a problem – or a … Continue reading
A warning from history
It’s almost 20 years since the Earth Summit in Rio in 1992. This led to the ‘Rio Declaration’ and its 27 Principles, signed up to by the nations of the world amid much pomp and posturing. Later that year, a group comprising … Continue reading
Shadow of a doubt: how they fooled us about a killer habit
Below, my article, as it appears in today’s Irish Times. It’s as much about the ‘Tobacco Strategy’ as smoking. There are lessons that may be useful in facing down the climate deniers. At the very least, it’s good to know … Continue reading