…Natural and nature-based infrastructure projects such as the Colley Bay living shoreline have improved water quality, mitigated erosion, and restored habitats. Additional planned projects include constructing berms, reclaiming filled waterways and wetlands, and raising roads and structures.
In that spirit, the remainder of this series will consist of brief excerpts from NCA4-II on existing or proposed adaptations to the effects of climate change. Without further ado…
Per Climate Action Tracker (CAT), current US emission trends are actually within “striking distance” of the initial Paris Agreement targets for 2020 and 2025, despite Trump’s rhetoric and the US not even being a signatory to the Agreement. This unexpected progress is thanks to “subnational” and nongovernmental actors, such as states, cities, businesses, nonprofits and others. Yes, it would be great if the federal government were on board. And, yes, we need to do a lot more…
Of course, few people want to settle for a low-wage job. So what’s a non-college graduate to do? One thing is to complete a certificate job training program, which can almost double the earning potential of individuals without a high school diploma. Check it out:…
I have noticed these differences in the manner of veterinarians and physicians for years. Why the difference? Is it a matter of workload and stress? Status and power? How much can’t be helped and how much is a choice? How much is related to different incentives and payment systems?
Another way of putting this: focus on the process and uncertainty spurs you on; focus on the outcome and uncertainty makes you stumble.
Another theme in this report is that mitigation and adaptation efforts often yield near-term benefits unrelated to their value in reducing risks associated with climate change. Drought-resistant crops help poor farmers now. Increased energy efficiency makes business sense now. Coastal marsh restoration protects against flooding now. Even climate change skeptics could appreciate these co-benefits.
The Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4) focuses on the observed and projected impacts of climate change in the US, with special consideration given to risk reduction. Although the report is around 1600 pages long and would thus take some time to read, news media outlets were quick to react to the report’s release. CNN, in particular, was on it…
The FBI released its 2017 Hate Crime Statistics report a couple days ago. The report was covered by a bunch of news outlets, but the stories were mostly a rehash of the FBI’s relatively short press release. Few reporters dived into the detailed data tables that accompanied the report. I found none that compared the 2017 data to the previous year’s numbers. But I did.
To be pragmatic doesn’t mean one is shallow or selfish, lacking compassion or ideals. Pragmatists may be motivated by a strong sense of right and wrong, but they’re likely to keep their emotions in check in the service of whatever moral good they’re trying to achieve. That’s because strong emotion can make us stupid and short-sighted.
And yet in some other countries, for-profit schools and prisons are considered an improvement on their government-run counterparts. For-profit schools are doing wonders for poor children in India and Nigeria and for-profit prisons are widely accepted and praised in Australia.
The rationale for the proposed $450 billion home ownership program is that home equity is an important source of “iterative wealth building”, especially the use of home equity loans to build businesses and put the kids through college. Current disparities in wealth could therefore be reduced if more people owned homes. But does home equity actually play a significant or essential role in financing business or college educations in America?
The basic idea is that home owners are able to leverage their home equity to move up the economic ladder. Thus, the rationale for the Act is to right historical wrongs through a massive home ownership program to promote economic mobility within previously discriminated communities; hence the name, “American Housing and Economic Mobility Act”. Sounds good but would it work?
Then again, Americans love their specialists – nothing soothes the soul so much as expensive displays of conspicuous compassion.
“The Republicans [walked] away from the 1946 midterms with gains of 56 seats in the House and 13 in the Senate—and majorities in both houses…” - Top 10 Historic Midterm Elections by T.A. Frail/Smithsonian October 13, 2010
… a coalition of 17 states, 540 cities, counties and tribes, 1,914 businesses and investors, 253 faith-based and cultural organizations, and 343 higher education institutions have pledged their support for the Paris Agreement.
…Damning the Inner Other: a propensity to focus on and condemn the beliefs, motivations, biases, and inner life of out-group members and political opponents, as in accusations that rich people only give to charity out of self-interest. …
So there are three challenges here: 1) increase the likelihood of socioeconomic developments that present lower challenge to climate change mitigation and adaptation; 2) limit the rise in global temperatures; and 3) improve our ability to adapt to climate change. Per the IPCC report, here are some ways to address all three challenges:
This post will address: How has the US government sought to redress historical inequities in home ownership within previously discriminated communities? How successful have these efforts been?
“Sixty-two percent of jobs fall short of that middle-class standard when factoring in both wages and the cost of living in the metro area where the job is located, according to the study by Third Way, a think tank that advocates center-left ideas.” Whopping 62 percent of jobs don't support middle-class life after accounting for cost of living by Paul Davidson/USA Today October 30, 2018