In preparation for the Designing Climate Action workshop at New York Climate Week 2015, we explore the causes and effects of climate change. Learn more about the upcoming Designing Climate Action event at: http://www.climateweeknyc.org/events/designing-climate-action

1. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE DEBATE OVER CLIMATE CHANGE IS NOT OVER
Class 2 | September 17, 2015

2. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE CLIMATE IS NOT A DEBATE TOPIC
2
5:00 Your Media Bubble
5:20 Science Lab: Climate Change Cause & Effect
6:20 Activity (and break): Climate Influencer Debate
7:30 Homework: Designing Climate Action Event & Teams
7:50 Fin.

3. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
MEDIA BUBBLES
Truthiness
Climate filter
DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

4. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THIS WEEK’S HOMEWORK
4
“It’s not information overload. It’s filter failure”
- Clay Shirky
INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENT | Design your own media bubble, to effectively filter for the
climate change conversation; Infuse yourself with both optimistic & pessimistic views (start
with the video & readings)
• Create: Design your media bubble
• Document: Document the best sources you found, and post to Google docs
• Demo: Be prepared to give a demo of your media bubble in class

5. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
SPEAKING YOUR TRUTHINESS
5
Methods
Best Practices
Examples

6. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
CAUSE & EFFECT
Increasing severity
Disinformation
Obfuscation and confusion
DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

7. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THIS IS NOT A TEST: SYSTEMS THINKING RECAP
7
How great were Judy and Souvik as your teachers!!
STOCKS
FLOWS
FEEDBACK LOOPS
LEVERAGE POINTS
(SUPER) WICKED PROBLEMS
GO!

8. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
WICKED PROBLEMS
8
“WICKED PROBLEMS” HAVE NO SOLUTION, YOU CAN
ONLY MOVE THE NEEDLE.
• There is no definitive formulation of a wicked problem
• Every wicked problem is essentially unique
• Every wicked problem can be considered to be a symptom of another
problem
- SOURCE: Rittel & Weber, Dilemmas in a General Theory of Planning. 1973.

9. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
SUPER WICKED PROBLEMS
9
“SUPER WICKED PROBLEMS” SUCH AS CLIMATE
CHANGE ARE CHARACTERIZED BY FOUR ADDITIONAL
FEATURES:
• Time is running out;
• The central authority needed to address it is weak or non-existent;
• Those who cause the problem also seek to create a solution; and
• Hyperbolic discounting occurs that pushes responses irrationally into the
future
- SOURCE: Environment.research.yale.edu

10. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 10
THE CARBON
CYCLE

11. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 11
THE CARBON CYCLE: THIS IS WHY WE’RE HOT

12. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 12
2014: EARTH’S WARMEST YEAR ON RECORD (SINCE
1830’S)

13. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
AND THE CLIMATE HAS INTERTIA
13
CLIMATE INTERTIA: The climate changes slowly. The
amount of GHGs which we’ve forced into the
atmosphere is enough to increase warming by an
additional .6 degrees C.

14. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
CAUSES OF CLIMATE CHANGE
The anthropocene
DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

15. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
WHO’S TO BLAME? IT’S US (HUMANS)
15
- SOURCE:
Smithsonian
Magazine

16. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
WE’RE MESSING WITH OUR CARBON SOURCES &
SINKS
16
Greenhouse gasses are released & recaptured from the
atmosphere in two ways: Carbon Sources (or forcings)
& Carbon Sinks (or reservoirs).
SOURCE (FORCING): A source emits more carbon/GHGs than it absorbs.
Main sources are from fossil fuel combustion. Others include landfills and bovine animals.
SINK (RESERVOIRS): A sink absorbs more carbon/GHGs than it gives off.
The largest carbon sink is the ocean. Other major sources include soil, forests and other
biota.

17. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE DREAM OF THE (18)90’S IS ALIVE IN THE U.S.
The industrial age gave birth to the modern economy
IN 1896, SCIENTISTS DISCOVERED THE “GREENHOUSE
EFFECT”
…and its link to industrial age coal burning

18. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE MAJORITY OF GLOBAL EMISSIONS ARE DRIVEN BY
FOSSIL FUEL COMBUSTION
18
World GHG Emissions Flow Chart, 2010
(Total Emissions: 48,629 MtCO2e)

19. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
AS OF 2011 WE’VE BURNED 52% OF OUR CARBON BUDGET
19
“Human activities need to be limited to 1 trillion tonnes C
(1000 PgC) since the beginning of the industrial revolution if
we are to have a likely chance of limiting warming to 2°C.
This is our ’carbon budget’”
– Source: The IPCC
The same concept as a checking account.
When we’ve spent it all, there’s no more money (and the planet’s overdraft fees
will be much more significant than a bank’s small charges for bounced checks).
– Source: The World Resources Institute

20. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
AND GLOBAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION IS INCREASING
20
- Google, The World Resources Institute
5.5
M
12.7
M
(metrictons)ofoilequivalent(ktoe)

21. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
WHAT’S DRIVING THESE SHIFTS: POPULATION? GDP?
Global Population Global GDP
(million chained International Dollars, 2005, adjusted for inflation)
3B
44.5
M
7B 90M
Emissions have
tracked
population
growth
Emissions
per Capita
Emissions
Intensity
GDP growth has
outpaced
emissions
growth
6.3
486
5.9
693
MtCO2e/Mil. Intl. $
1990-2011
Per Capita tCO2e
1990-2011
- Google, The World Resources Institute

22. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
BUT THE BURDEN OF RESPONSIBILITY IS SHIFTING
22
- Source: The World Resources Institute
Cumulative GHG Emissions
1990-2011 (% of World Total)
Cumulative GHG Emissions
1850-2011 (% of World Total)

23. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE U.S. IS IN THEIR OWN LEAGUE ON CO2 EMISSIONS
23
- Google, The World Resources Institute

24. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
IN TEN YEARS BEIJING’S PHYSICAL INFRASTRUCTURE
QUADROUPLED
24
- Source: The World Resources Institute

25. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THIS HAS CAUSED SOME KERFUFFLE
25

26. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
WHICH SECTORS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MOST
GLOBAL EMISSIONS?
26
- The Environmental Protection Agency
Industry
Agriculture
Commercial Buildings
Transportation
Residential Buildings
Forestry
Waste & Wastewater
Energy Supply (Electricity and Heat)

27. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
GLOBAL ECONOMIC SECTORS DRIVING EMISSIONS
27
- The Environmental Protection Agency
14%
8%
19%
13%
26%
17%
Global Greenhouse Gas Emissions
by Sector (2007)
Agriculture
Residential & Commercial
Industry
Transportation
Energy
Forestry

28. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
WHICH SECTORS ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MOST
EMISSIONS IN THE US?
28
- The Environmental Protection Agency
Industry
Agriculture
Commercial Sector
Transportation
Residential Sector

29. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
U.S. ECONOMIC SECTORS DRIVING EMISSIONS
29
- The Environmental Protection Agency
9%
12%
21%
27%
31%
U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions
by Economic Sector (2013)
Agriculture
Residential & Commercial
Industry
Transportation
Electricity
U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions
By Economic Sector, 1990-2013
(U.S. Emissions have decreased 5% since 2005)

30. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
BUT THIS PICTURE SHIFTS WHEN DISTRIBUTING
ELECTRICITY TO THE POINT OF DEMAND
30
- The Environmental Protection Agency
10%
34%
29%
27%
U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions
by Sector With Electricity Distributed
(1990 - 2013)
9%
12%
21%
27%
31%
U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions by
Economic Sector (2013)
Agriculture
Residential &
Commercial
Industry
Transportation
Electricity

31. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE U.S. GRID COMES FROM NONRENEWABLE SOURCES
31
- Energy Information Administration
7%
39%
27%
19%
6%
1%
U.S. Electricity Generation
Energy Sources (2014)
Other Renewables
Coal
Natural Gas
Nuclear
Hydropower
Petroleum
24%
6%
6%63%
Other Renewables (2014)
Biomass
Geothermal
Solar
Wind
But the % of renewables in increasing over time.

32. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
MEGA FORCES UNDERLYING THIS CHALLENGE
32
RESOURCE AVAILABILITY
POPULATION
AFFLUENCE (GDP)
AWARENESS
POLITICS
SOCIETY
CLIMATE INTERTIA

33. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
NEXT WEEK
33
TURING THIS INTO AN OPPORTUNITY FOR POSITIVE
GLOBAL CHANGE
Mitigation! Technological solutions, behavior change,
treaties.

34. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE
Temperature increases >
Sea level rise
Severe weather
Habitat loss
DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

35. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 35
BUT ISN’T
BEING HOT
AWESOME?

36. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
OR OTHER ANIMALS.
OR PLANTS.
OR HUMANS.
36
NOT IF YOU’RE THIS GUY.

37. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
LET’S PUT THINGS IN HUMAN TERMS
37
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS
CLIMATE
SOCIAL/HEALTH
EFFECTS
CLIMATE
ECONOMIC
EFFECTS
SOME EFFECTS WE’RE MORE CERTAIN OF THAN OTHERS

38. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
EFFECTS ARE NOT FELT EQUALLY
38
Climate Change vulnerability index, 2011 (Yale)

39. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
GHG FORCINGS ARE TURNING INTO RUNAWAY
FEEDBACKS
39
Feedbacks: Can either amplify or diminish the effect of
forcings.
• Ice albedo
• Ocean acificiation
FEEDBACK: Some feedbacks we’re more certain of than others.
POSITIVE FEEDBACK: A feedback that increases initial warming/temperature.
NEGATIVE FEEDBACK: A feedback that reduces initial warming/temperature.

40. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THIS LEADS TO VARIABILITY IN PROJECTIONS
40
WE’RE ARGUING ABOUT THE DEGREE OF SEVERITY

41. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
UNTENDED CONSEQUENCES & TIPPING POINTS
41
Tipping point: a critical threshold at which the future
state of a system can be qualitatively altered by a small
change in forcing.
• Ocean circulation
• Ice/glacial loss
• Rapid methane release
Policy-relevant tipping elements: those that could be
forced past a tipping point this century by human
activities.

42. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 42
WHEN THE TEMPERATURE INCREASES
> Causes oceans to expand (water
absorbs more heat!)
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS

43. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 43
WHEN THE TEMPERATURE INCREASES
> Leads to more severe storms (hot air
holds more moisture, hot water more heat)
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS

44. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 44
WHEN THE TEMPERATURE INCREASES
> Causes glaciers to melt
> Causes feedback “albedo effect”
> When glaciers are on land, causes sea
level rise
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS

45. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 45
WHEN THE TEMPERATURE INCREASES
> Causes permafrost to melt
> Causes release of methane emissions
(feedback)
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS

46. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 46
WHEN THE TEMPERATURE INCREASES
> Intensifies droughts (hot air absorbs
more moisture from the land)
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS

47. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 47
WHEN THERE’S MORE CARBON IN THE
ATMOSPHERE
> Causes ocean acidification
> Causes coral bleaching
> Causes reef food chain collapse
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS

48. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 48
WHEN CLIMATE PATTERNS CHANGE
> Causes habitat loss
> Causes species extinction
CLIMATE
ENVIRONMENTAL
IMPACTS

49. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 49
WHEN SEA LEVELS RISE
> Causes floods
> Hundreds of millions of people live in
low-lying areas prone to floods
CLIMATE
SOCIAL/HEALTH
EFFECTS

50. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 50
WHERE FLOODS/DROUGHT OCCUR
> Causes climate refugees to flee
CLIMATE
SOCIAL/HEALTH
EFFECTS

51. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 51
FOSSIL FUELS COMBUSION CAUSES
CLIMATE CHANGE
> Co-pollutants are also released (black
carbon), causing respiratory illness
CLIMATE
SOCIAL/HEALTH
EFFECTS

52. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 52
CLIMATE
SOCIAL/HEALTH
EFFECTS

53. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 53
WHEN DROUGHTS OCCUR
> Contributes to global conflict
> The war in Syria has been partially attributed
to climate change
CLIMATE
SOCIAL/HEALTH
EFFECTS

54. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 54
CLIMATE
ECONOMIC
EFFECTS
WHEN SEVERE STORMS OCCUR
> Causes economic activity loss
> Causes costly damages
> Hurricane Sandy caused $38 Billion worth of
damage

55. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015 55
CLIMATE
ECONOMIC
EFFECTS
WHEN DROUGHTS OCCUR
> Causes economic activity loss

56. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
NEXT WEEK
56
TURING THIS INTO AN OPPORTUNITY FOR POSITIVE
GLOBAL CHANGE
ADAPTATION, RESILIENCE, AND INNOVATION!
Technological solutions & behavior change.

57. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
CLIMATE CHANGE INFLUENCERS
Trolls
Disruptors
Talking heads
Political wonks
Paradigm shifters
DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

58. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE CLIMATE IS NOT A DEBATE TOPIC
58
"Is Capitalism the problem?”
You’ll be assigned a specific role to play, as a member of the activist, media, business,
scientific, or political community.
As your character, prepare a one minute statement (timed) to deliver to the class
responding to the prompt above.
You have 30 minutes to prepare, including your break time.

59. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
THE CHARACTERS
59
ACTIVIST MEDIA SCIENTIFIC GOVERNMENT BUSINESS
Bill McKibben
350.org
Steven Colbert
Host, The Late Show
Gavin Schmidt
Climatologist, NASA
Goddard Institute for
Space Studies
Jeb Bush
2016 US Presidential
Candidate
Elon Musk
CEO, Tesla
Fred Krupp
President, The
Environmental
Defense Fund
Elizabeth
Kolbert
The New Yorker
Neil deGrasse
Tyson
Director of the
Hayden Planetarium
Gina McCarthy
Administrator,
The EPA
Bob Dudley
CEO, British
Petroleum
Joseph Bast
President and CEO,
The Heartland
Institute
Bill O’Reilly
Host, The O’Reilly
Factor
John Holdren
Director of the Office
of Science and
Technology Policy,
the White House
Xi Jinping
President of China
Larry Page
CEO, Google (Future
CEO Alphabet)
Jacqui
Patterson
Director, NAACP
Environmental and
Climate Justice
Program
Joel Makower
Chairman &
Executive Editor,
GreenBiz
Richard Lindzen
Professor of
Meteorology, MIT
Ban Ki-moon
Secretary-General,
the UN
Charles Koch
CEO, Koch Industries

60. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
HOMEWORK
Rich research
Event experience design
DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015

61. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
HOMEWORK
61
Read: The Sunniest Climate-Change Story You’ve Ever Read
http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2015/09/sunniest-climate-change-story-ever-read.html
Workshop Roles / Focus
• Transportation topic
• Business solutions topic
• Renewables deployment & efficiency topic
• Target awareness topic
• Event facilitation, design
Propose 2 activities for a workshop designed to harvest/brainstorm ideas for your
category of focus:
• Your activity should last 45 minutes; About 7 people per group
• Divide activity into opening, brainstorming, and closing segments
• Design activity prompts – including a template to share ideas prior to collective
brainstorming

62. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
INVITE ATTENDEES TO EVENT!
62
Forward the email to people of interest
Spread the word & build momentum
Use it as an excuse to meet new people

63. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
TEAM ASSIGNMENTS
63
FOUR PEOPLE PER GROUP.

64. DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015DESIGNING CLIMATE ACTION | WEEK 2: SEPTEMBER 17, 2015
FIN.