---

How green is your favorite candidate?

This year's election is proving to be quite the dramatic showdown. Trump just all but sealed the Republican nomination, and Sanders and Clinton are brawling for every last delegate on the table.

There are a lot of hot button issues too - from building walls across national borders (what an architectural feat that would be), to freedom of religious expression, to our economy, to the dichotomy of lower income earners and the top 1%

But let's not also forget about the climate. Yes, this too has been somewhat of a contentious debate, and the outcome may reshape everything we know about our future, since the President will be leading policy change and very likely decided 4 new Supreme Court Justices if they make it two terms.

That's a pretty big deal for us greenies... and anybody who enjoys living on this rock we call Earth.

---

So, what do they think about when it comes to the environment?:

I wrote this a few days ago, by the way, before Kasich and Cruz dropped out, but their stances are still very meaningful, and they still hold office.

1. Hillary: the US must act

We'll start with Hillary. She has a commanding lead, and she and Bernie believe in a lot of the same things when it comes to climate change. So, what is she saying about it?

“The science of climate change is unforgiving, no matter what the deniers may say; sea levels are rising, ice caps are melting, storms, droughts and wildfires are wreaking havoc.” - Hillary Clinton, Remarks to the League of Conservation Voters in New York, November 13, 2015

 

“For this generation of Americans, climate change is our Space Race. It is our home-front mobilization during World War II and it is our response to the Great Depression.” - Hillary Clinton November 4, 2007.

 

2. Bernie: The US must act

Bernie is no stranger to climate change politics either.

“Today, the scientific community is virtually unanimous: climate change is real, it is caused by human activity, and we have a moral responsibility to transform our energy system away from fossil fuel to energy efficiency and sustainable energy.” - Bernie Sanders, Democratic Presidential Debate, October 13, 2015

 

“...the greatest global crisis that we face,” - Bernie Sanders

 

(MORE LIKE THIS: Evaluating the US/China Climate deal)

 

3. Cruz: It's a myth

“The scientific evidence doesn't support global warming... The satellites that actually measure the temperature showed no significant warming whatsoever ... Climate change is the perfect pseudoscientific theory for a big government politician who wants more power. Why? Because it is a theory that can never be disproven.” - Ted Cruz, NPR interview, December 9, 2015

“Climate change is not science, it's religion,” Ted Cruz, Glenn Beck interview October 2015.

 

4. Trump: IT'S A MYTH

“Snowing in Texas and Louisiana, record setting freezing temperatures throughout the country and beyond. Global warming is an expensive hoax!” Donald Trump, Tweet, January 29, 2014

“I don’t believe in climate change,” Donald Trump, CNN interview. September 2015

 

5. Kasich: Well...

“I think that human beings do affect the climate... We have to take our time to have remedies.” - John Kasich, NPR Living On Earth program, January 24, 2016

“We are going to continue to work on cleaning coal, but I want to tell you, we are going to dig it, we are going to clean it, and we are going to burn it in Ohio, and we are not going to apologize for it.” John Kasich, May 20, 2012

 

6. Nasa: science!

I realize NASA isn't running for president, but they do have an opinion on the issue that might help some of you naysayers or those on the fence about this issue...

“Multiple studies published in peer-reviewed scientific journals show that 97 percent or more of actively publishing climate scientists agree: Climate-warming trends over the past century are very likely due to human activities. In addition, most of the leading scientific organizations worldwide have issued public statements endorsing this position”

“Scientific evidence for warming of the climate system is unequivocal.”- Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change

 

So at least there is clarity out there. The candidates are clear on their positions (except maybe John Kasich) and the science is clear. We can measure the level of the oceans, the temperature of the planet and carbon dioxide. We can compare it to previous data we have gathered. We can now observe the effects of our warming planet. Have we become a society that does not care what it leaves to the next generation (or the next 7 generations)?

---

 

 

CONCLUSION:

I often look to Neil deGrasse Tyson for perspective in the madness. You have probably heard this already. He says, “The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it.”

Sustainable building design (get the free ebook about green home design by Carlson Studio) can a play a big part in solving the climate issues we face. Buildings use about 48% of all the energy in the US (from architecture2030.org). Transportation uses about 27%.

Energy use directly impacts CO2 emissions, given our current infrastructure that typically burns fossil fuel to create energy. As we now know, there options to create energy without CO2 emissions. Sources of energy such Hydroelectric, solar, wind, geo thermal, etc. can all help the main made environment become more sustainable. And that is just the energy part. Sustainable design, if done properly, can improve water conservation, improve human health and happiness, conserve resources and materials and have a gentle impact on the building site.

As Katherine Hayhoe told us at Green Build 2014 in New Orleans, there will be some level of adaption to climate change and some level of suffering. Our actions are coming too late to eliminate all suffering. We get to choose how much change and how much suffering us and future generations will be exposed to. http://katharinehayhoe.com/ She is also very hopeful, as am I.

What will the voters decide? What will you decide?

 

Interested in doing your part beyond voting? How about a free consultation about green design or LEED consulting? Our team of talented architects and eco consultants at Carlson Studio Architecture are here to help!

 

 

 

---

 

---

The 21st Conference of Parties (COP 21) has begun in Paris, and will continue through December 11th.

 

The governments of nearly 200 countries are gathering to discuss a new global agreement on climate change, with participation from an estimated 40,000 attendees. More than half of the countries there will be represented by their heads of State, and 170 countries have already submitted their plans.

 

In other words, this is a really big deal!

---

 

The path to climate destruction:

 

Scientists have warned us for decades that if greenhouse gas emissions continued to rise, we would pass the threshold beyond the point in which global warming became catastrophic and irreversible.

 

That threshold is estimated to be a temperature rise of 2C above pre-industrial levels, and based on current emissions trajectories we are barelling toward a rise of about 5C (which equates to approximately 9 degrees Fahrenheit).

 

Some nations are already feeling the impacts of climate change even now, at the current level of almost 1°C warming. Conflicts exacerbated by extreme weather are on the rise, and some are seeking official climate refugee status based on weather-related events occurring in their homeland.

 

One of the COP's core initiatives is to support vulnerable countries and communities in adapting to the impacts of climate change that are happening right now as well as looking into the future.

 

To help you understand the significance of the event, I'm going to highlight a few critical moments in history.

 

1992

Governments met in Rio de Janeiro and forged the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. That agreement, still in force, bound governments to take action to avoid dangerous climate change, but did not specify what actions were required.

 

1995

The first UN Climate Change Conference (COP1) was held in Berlin.

 

1997

Kyoto protocol (COP3). The pact required worldwide cuts in emissions of approximately 5%, compared with 1990 levels by 2012, and each developed country was allotted a target on emissions reductions. Unfortunately, developing countries, including China, South Korea, Mexico and other rapidly emerging economies, were given no targets and allowed to increase their emissions at will.  Al Gore, then US vice-president, signed up to the protocol, but it was never ratified by the US Congress.

 

2009

Copenhagen (COP15)- The conference did not achieve a binding agreement for long-term action.  It only produced broad stroke agreements that fell far short of intended goals.

 

what others are saying

I found that Ricken Patel’s article, "The Paris climate summit is a real test of humanity," summed it up quite well.  Mr. Patel states, “Climate change is in many ways a crucible. It is the greatest threat we have ever faced, and will require us to come together as never before, in the most ambitious solution we’ve ever attempted.

 

The solution is clear, and it's the only answer we have: to transform our economies to be powered by 100% clean energy.

 

But will we be wise enough, skilled enough, brave enough, to answer the call of our people, of our children and their children? For 20 years we have talked in these climate conferences. Progress has been glacial.

 

The largest corporations in the world are almost all oil companies. The top four have the same budget as the government of China. The top 10 have the same budget as the US government. They are states, superpowers unto themselves. And to save our species from the threat of catastrophic climate change, they must radically change, or die. So far, most of them have chosen to fight for shortsighted profit, and our demise.”

 

---

How we're celebrating:

 

Here at Carlson Studio Architecture, we are celebrating this important international event that supports sustainability with an open house and holiday party at our office on December 3rd, 2015.  This date also happens to be the day in the conference that will focus on Buildings, so we will be paying especially close attention. 

 

We share a vision with each other and our clients, as we want to make a difference in the world we live in.  Being conscious of and combating climate change is the number one reason why we do what we do, and we pledge our support to the COP 21 in hopes that this is a landmark year that spurs important decision-makers to take meaningful action.

 

Interested in learning more about why green building design is so important? Check out this free ebook on Green Home Design:

 

---