The planet's future: Climate change 'will cause civilisation to collapse' - Climate Change, Environment - The Independent

An effort on the scale of the Apollo mission that sent men to the Moon is needed if humanity is to have a fighting chance of surviving the ravages of climate change. The stakes are high, as, without sustainable growth, "billions of people will be condemned to poverty and much of civilisation will collapse".

This is the stark warning from the biggest single report to look at the future of the planet – obtained by The Independent on Sunday ahead of its official publication next month. Backed by a diverse range of leading organisations such as Unesco, the World Bank, the US army and the Rockefeller Foundation, the 2009 State of the Future report runs to 6,700 pages and draws on contributions from 2,700 experts around the globe. Its findings are described by Ban Ki-moon, Secretary-General of the UN, as providing "invaluable insights into the future for the United Nations, its member states, and civil society".

Twitter / Kelly Flood.

Am at U of V studing emerging political issues. Study grp is peopled by a folk who still debate whether global warming is real. Here we go!

The World Today - Steve and Al have a convenient meeting 13/07/2009

HANE MCLEOD: Not everyone's a fan of the former US vice president, turned climate campaigner.

Outside the venue for this morning's breakfast Al Gore was being serenaded by some sceptical protestors.

PROTESTORS (singing): Sea will rise when Al Gore takes a swim - more CO2 - She's loving and the planet loves it too.

SHANE MCLEOD: The atmosphere inside was a little warmer.

Not so peachy: Winter cold snap takes bite out of local peach harvest | Chronicle-Telegram

As local growers begin to open their farm stands this month, at least one crop will be in short supply.

A period of severe cold in January was devastating to Northeast Ohio’s peaches. Along the lakeshore in Lorain and Erie counties, fruit farmers estimate that they’ll only pick 25 to 50 percent of their crop. Less hardy than apples, pears and even plums, peach trees are vulnerable to below-zero temperatures. And even though the growing season has been ideal so far for other local fruits and vegetables, peaches didn’t have a fighting chance after the prolonged cold snap.