Questions and conversations about big energy, the carbon market, and justice

Already a huge force in Europe, carbon trading is beginning to be established in the US as the primary way that governments and corporations address the climate crisis. But researchers and critics are discovering that the policies rarely benefit the environment.

Kevin Smith & Tamra Gilbertsonleading critics of international climate change policy and researchers with www.carbontradewatch.org are currently on tour in the Pacific Northwest and will hold a presentation in Astoria.

The speakers are part of a growing international network of researchers and activists known as the Durban Group for Climate Justice. Started in South Africa, members of the network approach climate change within a social justice framework that examines the widespread negative impacts and environmental ineffectiveness of many pro-business climate policies. Their studies find that carbon trading slows the social and technological change needed to cope with global warming by unnecessarily prolonging the worldıs dependence on oil, coal and gas.

The activistsı research documents that most of the carbon offset credits being sold to industrialized countries come from projects that do nothing to reduce fossil fuel use, such as schemes that burn methane from coal mines or waste dumps, and may even provide extra revenue for the fossil fuel industry. The researchers believe the bulk of fossil fuels must be left in the ground if climate chaos is to be avoided, and that Carbon Trading dangerously delays action to achieve that objective.

Tamra Gilbertson, the Coordinator of the Environmental Justice Project at the Transnational Institute and a researcher with Carbon Trade Watch. Gilbertson edited the recent report "Agrofuels - Toward a Reality Check in Nine Areas". This report documents the use and abuse of biofuels in the Global South, often under the guise of "offsetting" tradeable carbon credits.

Kevin Smith, a researcher with Carbon Trade Watch. Smith's report The Carbon Neutral Myth documents and exposes the booming industry dedicated to avoiding the core of the climate issue, and offers expert advice on constructive ways forward.

Climate Change event tonight: What is our Carbon Future?

Who: Leading critics of international climate change policy

Where: Cannery Pier Hotel, 10 Basin Street, Astoria OR, US

When: Friday, February 1st, 7pm

See the complete tour schedule

www.dailyastorian.com