Resources

Background information and useful links

Books on Climate Change

There is no planet B by Mike Berners-Lee – ISBN 978-1-108-43958-9

The future we choose by Christiana Figueres and Tom Rivett-Carnac – ISBN – 978-1-83877-082-2

Limits to Growth a 30 year update by Donella Meadows, Jorgen Randers, Dennis Meadows – ISBN 9781931498586

Books on Systems Change

Thinking in Systems by Donella H Meadows – ISBN – 978-1603580557

Cultivating System Change by Anna Birney – ISBN 978-1-910174-09-8

Concept 1 – Planetary Fever

These NASA web sites have some good background information on Climate Change:

https://climate.nasa.gov/

https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/world-of-change/global-temperatures

Our world in data website has regularly updated data on greenhouse gas emissions – https://ourworldindata.org/co2-and-other-greenhouse-gas-emissions

IPCC report on Climate Change can be found at – https://www.ipcc.ch/sr15/

Concept 2 – Climate Bathtub

The Climate Bathtub concept is adapted from previous models developed by:

• Climate Interactive – see https://www.climateinteractive.org/
• Based on work by Prof John Sterman – see http://climateinteractive.files.wordpress.com/2009/11/understanding-complacency-on-climate.pdf

For a more detailed look at the science behind the climate bathtub take a look at this excellent video by Drew Jones at Climate Interactive which was shared as part of their Climate Leader course –

https://www.climateinteractive.org/programs/the-climate-leader/stocks-and-flows/

Tipping points is a complex topic with a lot of confusing and, in some cases slightly alarmist, information available on the web. We have carefully selected two links which should give you a good and balanced perspective on current thinking around this topic.

• The tipping point project – see https://climatetippingpoints.info/
• National Geographic 2019 article – see https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/2019/11/earth-tipping-point/

Concept 3 – Carbon Walk

For some useful background information about carbon emissions targets and carbon footprint calculation see:

• Climate Action tracker
  • Thermometer – https://climateactiontracker.org/global/cat-thermometer/
  • Graphs – https://climateactiontracker.org/global/temperatures/

• Paris Agreement – https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement/what-is-the-paris-agreement

• There are several simple on-line Carbon Footprint calculators available. The level of detail they include varies and hence they will give you different answers. Their main utility is to give users an idea of what contributes to their footprint and what changes they could make to reduce it.
  • WWF uses the figure of 10.5 tons of CO2 per person as the target average for 2020; see their footprint calculator –  https://footprint.wwf.org.uk/#/
  • Global Footprint Network – https://www.footprintnetwork.org/
    • Calculate your ecological footprint – http://www.footprintcalculator.org/
    • Explore Earth overshoot day – https://www.overshootday.org/about/
• For a more detailed calculation of your Carbon Footprint go to – https://www.carbonindependent.org/index.html
• New in 2022 – For a detailed foot printing tool which also provides some inspiration on how to reduce you footprint you might also like Giki Zero – https://giki.earth/about

Concept 4 – System and Self

For a good introduction to spheres of influence and individual actions – see https://www.theguardian.com/environment/climate-consensus-97-per-cent/2017/may/19/study-inspiring-action-on-climate-change-is-more-complex-than-you-might-think

Sources of ideas about systems and changes we can make:

• Project Drawdown – https://www.drawdown.org/
• Bioregional – one planet living – https://oneplanet.com/

Concept 5 – Shadows and Beacons

For the original Climate Shadow article by Emma Pattee see- https://www-mic-com.cdn.ampproject.org/c/s/www.mic.com/impact/forget-your-carbon-footprint-lets-talk-about-your-climate-shadow/amp

The carbon footprint data included in the Climate Shadow video is adapted from “How bad are bananas?” by Mike Berners-Lee.

• Smartphone carbon footprint – 70kg per year assuming 195 minutes of use per day (typical average) and that phone is kept for 2 years before trading in (based on total embodied CO2e of 105kg) – see How bad are bananas p.116
• Car carbon footprints – see How bad are bananas p. 62, 145
  • Total embodied carbon of cars:- Elec (11 ton CO2e); Small petrol (5 ton CO2e); SUV (26 ton CO2e)
  • Carbon intensity of petrol of 5475g/gallon; Small petrol car fuel efficiency 36 mpg avg; Large SUV fuel efficiency 15 mpg avg
  • For Electric car assume energy usage of 0.35 kWh per mile https://ecocostsavings.com/average-electric-car-kwh-per-mile/
  • Electricity carbon intensity of 233 g CO2/kWh (UK National Grid avg for 2020) – https://bulb.co.uk/carbon-tracker/