faulker083

Watching the past and present ‘behavior’ of the stock market then trying to predict its future behavior is (without trying to sound hyperbolic) mindboggling difficult. Lots of bucks along with much expert and non-expert prognostications go into predicting the market, which seems hell-bent on being unpredictable. Searching for a successful formula to make a profit on the market is like trying to cheer up a moody adolescent with candy. It could work, but I wouldn’t bet on it. Like the stock market, which tries to predict the future of wealth, insurance institutions try to predict the future of financial risk. That’s why I find this new study-- Economic losses from US hurricanes consistent with an influence from climate change , in Nature Geoscience--so interesting. The author of this study claims that insurance losses due to hurricanes mean that Climate Change is sending us a clear message. “The study claims that the extra costs in recent decades do not just stem from more homes, busines...

Figuring out how to engage the local media (and thus the public) while planning local action around the 2015 UN Climate Conference in Paris has been a great challenge. Someone quipped that in order to get media attention on a march for Climate Change we would probably have to do something really crazy. That’s a little over the top, but it does dramatize the frustration those concerned about Climate Change feel. Why won’t local media pay attention to Climate Change? We’ve marched in force through downtown Rochester in support of Pope Francis’s message; we’ve conducted a well-attended forum on addressing this issue for our local candidates; and we even orchestrated a rally in front of City Hall last year representing many diverse organizations to show solidarity with the busloads of folks attending the People’s Climate March last year. But our local media didn’t show up for any of those events. That means that local concerns for Climate Change, a worldwide crisis that include...

More than likely you’ve already decided which of the three Monroe County Executive candidates you are going to vote for in November. Or whether you’re going to vote at all. So I’m keenly aware that my chances of changing your mind are limited. Arguing that you should vote for Sandy Frankel and that you should do so based on Climate Change vastly decreases the likelihood that you’ll even hear me out. In our community, the phrase Climate Change deflates any election dialogue quicker than a pin poking a balloon. Before your attention bursts altogether, let me march out the gist of my argument: This election is not about Ms. Frankel, it’s about you and your family and your future. You may think that your top priorities in this election are about your family, your jobs, your schools, taxes, guns, and our crumbling infrastructure—and they are. But none of these pressing issues can actually be solved unless the underlying reality of Climate Change is factored in. Because the job of Monroe C...

Scientists say we should bring climate temperatures back down to preindustrial levels. We’ve increased climate temperatures to about 1C above those averages. At the 2009 Copenhagen climate talks the world agreed to hold climate temperatures increases to 2C, which is what the COP21 Paris climate conference this year is struggling to achieve. But it looks like present efforts would only reduce climate temperatures to 1C from its present trajectory of 3.5C by 2100. If we fail altogether to bring down greenhouse gas emissions, we’re slated for about 4.5C. Offers for Paris Climate Talks Would Reduce Warming by 1°C  Warming could be reduced from 4.5˚C to 3.5˚C under INDCs submitted to date The current national offers of climate action submitted to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) would reduce projected warming by approximately 1°C, according to a  new analysis  released today from  Climate Interactive  and MIT Sloan. A Paris agreeme...