Felix Dodds comments on sustainable development, coffee & life

Originally published on Inter Press Service By Felix Dodds and Michael Strauss So, the worst has happened. American voters have apparently just elected the most chaotic and kleptocratic individual in their country’s political history as their president.  (We say ‘apparently’, because these days nothing can be certain about the integrity of the US political or electoral system – as is the case with far too many other countries.) That means the incumbent president, Joe Biden – who implemented the greatest investment in wind and solar energy, in climate-friendly technology, and in reducing CO 2 emissions in any nation in history – is out. That means the previous president, Donald Trump – who opposed every one of those climate-friendly investments and has promised the greatest re-investment in oil, gas and coal of any nation in history – is back in. As the annual global Climate Conference (COP29) continues its first week in Baku, Azerbaijan, we can already see what the impac...

Guest blog by Liz Thompson: Liz is  a sustainability consultant. She has served as Assistant Secretary-General of the UN for the Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development, as an elected Member of Parliament, Senator and Minister of Energy and Environment of Barbados and most recently as Interim Executive Director of the SUNY-UWI Center for Leadership and Sustainable Development. Reactions to the decision of the president of the U.S to withdraw from the voluntary climate pact known as the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, have ranged from surprise, to dismay, to disappointment, to chagrin, to relief, to elation. The decision to withdraw should have come as no surprise, for three principal reasons. First, on some matters, President Trump seems determined to keep the campaign promises of candidate Trump, at all costs. Second, his Party and his base are in the majority, climate change deniers and therefore see no need to take corrective action, despite the clear science...

((Rogue CNN exists in a parallel universe to ours where a property developer and reality TV star gets elected President)) T his was perhaps the most difficult press conference to date for new White Press Secretary Michael Strauss. Not only was he dealing with the Trump nine-day trip overseas and the fall out there but also the continued fall out of the Russia Affair. At today’s press briefing in the White House he fielded a number of difficult questions but as always was honest with the press. Rogue CNN: “Is it true at the NATO meeting that the President pushed or shoved Prime Minister Milo Dukanovic of Montenegro? And is it true that the Prime Minister contacted the police over what he called “an assault”? Strauss: “Look guys what’s a little pushing and shoving among friends? We all do it when we are out for a beer…the President had been missing a little personal contact as Bette Midler said so -so he took it where he could.” Rogue Washington Post: “Yes we ALL notic...