tv Inside Story Al Jazeera September 24, 2014 11:30am-12:01pm EDT
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sentence... it simply cannot stand. >> this trial was a sham... >> they are truth seekers... >> all they really wanna do is find out what's happening, so they can tell people... >> governments around the world all united to condemn this... >> as you can see, it's still a very much volatile situation... >> the government is prepared to carry out mass array... >> if you want free press in the new democracy, let the journalists live. >> once again scientists and politicians are streaming from across the globe for a science fest on climate change. can new york 2014 escape the fate? it's inside story.
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>> hello, i'm ray suarez. ten of the hottest years ever measured have been in the 21st century. shocking amounts of canadian arctic ice and green land glacier packs have melted in recent summers. areas are finishing their ho hottest summers. scientists and activists have converged on energy. it's wide degreed that the worldwide temperature rise is the limit the planet can safely stand, and reports say holding the line is getting close to
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impossible. for one day only more than 100 leaders from around the world came together at the united nations tuesday to plot a new road map for combating climate change. >> we are the first generation to feel the impact of climate change and the last generation that can do something about it. >> reporter: the plans and pledges are non-binding and are intended to serve as a building block to rise as a successor to the kyoto call. >> nobody gets a pass. >> reporter: some hope for goals include the elimination of deforesttation by 2030, cutting carbon emission, and offering buildings of dollars in donations towards implementing greener policies.
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worldwide emissions of greenhouse gasses rose over 2% last year according to the global carbon project. summer's 2014 average temperature was the hottest on record. along with the u.s. the biggest greenhouse gas emitters of 2013 for india and china, neither countries top leader attended the summit. india's emissions rose by 5 measures. and china's increased by just over 4%. despite governmental efforts to increase spending in green energy. >> in 2013 china's renewable energy contributed to 24% of the world's total. china will make even greater efforts to address climate change and take on international responsibility to change initial conditions who will announce twenty20 actions on climate change. >> in most developed countries
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emissions are gradually decreasing. the u.s. has seen a decline in those years coal production regained some market share. >> over the past eight years the united states has reduced our carbon pollution by more than any other nation on earth. but we have to do more. >> reporter: european union members saw a 1.8% decline in carbon emissions last year. they've pledged nearly $4 billion to help developing countries develop clean energy projects. one plan put forward by the international renewable energy is called the african clean energy corridor. four-fifths of the the energy is generated by carbon fuels. smaller nations are already
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seeing the dire effects of climate change firsthand. the african nation comoros voiced its concern. >> other more painful events including floods, increasingly frequent blood such as those in april 2012 that affected more than 20% of the population. with losses of human life and damage of $20 million u.s. >> the people of comoros are not the only crisis concerned about climate change. over the weekend tens of thousands of people took to the streets to heighten awareness from london to brazil. al gore and ban ki-moon were among the crowd in new york. >> climate change is a defining issue of our time, and there is no time to lose if we do not take action now. i'm overwhelmed to find such a
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strong power in energy and voice of people. >> the largest group of world leaders ever got together at this latest climate conference. for now these are just talks about talks setting the stage for later negotiations that will put targets and requirements in place, if it all works. joining me for that conversation, director of the country support and partnership's division at the international renewable energy . and jean pascal vice chair of the panel on climate change the ipcc. what is the task? what has to come out of new york to set up lima and paris, the waiting conferences down the road? >> you know, when you look at the last ipcc report, you see
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that the two-degree targets that the international community has decided to make everything possible to avoid warming stronger than two degree see above the temperature, it's really towards carbon neutrality before the end of the century that humanity needs to go. if you compare that needs as stated by the laws of nature to the present trends, which you illustrated in your report, which are upward trends, you see there is a huge gap between the evolution now and what would be needed in the coming years and decades. the secretary general ambition with this summit is to ask them to commit to a high level ambition so that the efforts get more in line with the science
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that is reported by the ipcc. >> lori, those goals that the vice chairman just laid out have been the goals for many years. they were the goals in copenhagen. they were the goals in cancun, but always the nations of the world has found reason, excuse a way to step back from the brink of having targets that can actually be checked and monitored. having requirements for their national output. is the world getting it? are they more serious today in new york than five years ago in copenhagen? >> well, i think--i'm just coming from the finance section, which is currently still on, and i'm actually seeing a level of motivation coming through.
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this summit is not being held , but with action moving toward. the countries coming up with more than this summit would achieve. >> countries find a way to act in their own national interests, which in the short term is to do as little as possible to keep the growth going especially in least developed countries. >> correct. this is a major milestone on the way to paris in support of lima. countries need to see the economic benefit from emission increases. so hopefully with sessions such as the private sector session
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that took place in the summit we can see more corporation between industry and countries bringing those economic benefits closer to today, and not some far away future where we lose sight of them sometimes. >> but the countries have to be convinced, don't they? do they believe yet? do they believe yet, for instance, investment in cleaner energy actually creates economic growth? >> well, you know the ipcc report shows that there are many opportunities to reduce emissions, at the same time address other challenges such as job creation, improve the energy access, fight poverty, etc. as more and more countries and decision makers release that there are co-benefits to climate
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action, there is more and more action in the direction at the same time protecting climate and reducing emissions and addressing some of the other challenges that humanity has, particularly in the developing countries. >> lori, if the world is committed to action, who pays? that's often been one of the hang ups that devices, systems, some really brilliant ideas to bring down emissions to bring to the table, but it will take certainly in the near term significant investment. >> creating and enabling conditions that will bring in investment. most of the developing countries allow the ability to foster growth and create jobs by bringing in investment in the areas like
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inside story ever this brief break we'll take a look at the specific proposal to slow the growth of emissions and what will be the buy in to make this to work. stay with us. >> oscar winner alex gibney's edge of eighteen. an intimate look... >> ...wait...is that a camera? >> at the real issues facing american teens >> whoa...code red.... >> dreaming big... >> i gotta make it happen... and i'm gonna make it happen... >> choices made.... >> i'm gonna lose anything left that i have of the mexican culture... >> fighting for their future... >> it is imperative that i get into college... it's my last chance to get out of here... >> the incredible journey continues... on the edge of eighteen only on al jazeera america
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>> where were you when the babies lives were being saved? >> are women in texas paying the price? >> who's benefiting from restricting access to safe abortions? >> fault lines... al jazeera america's hard hitting... ground breaking... truth seeking... breakthrough investigative documentary series access restricted only on al jazeera america >> you're watching inside story on al jazeera america. i'm ray suarez. there has been no shortage of ideas of how to push back against climate change that is driven by human activity. many of the ideas are simply smothered in the cradle. by interests worldwide that just want to keep on doing what they've been doing for as long as they can, and recognize that if you just make change sound too hard politically, economically, it just won't happen.
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tell me about the proposal of the corridor. >> you have many countries in the surbahar ar are ren africa that are growing. and that means needs are going to be growing very fast. when you look at the energy mix you're seeing going through. the african corridor mix is to work with the evolving infrastructure, green infrastructure to change the mix in favor of much more renewable energy. so you do have south africa, which needs a lot of energy moving forward, and so do in the
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north, which is egypt, and countries in the middle that have the potential to sub clea supply clean energy to both these large countries. >> this is a segment that you watch very closely, and africa provides a wonderful test case because a lot of places don't have infrastructure yet. so you get to start with the most modern start first. >> it really does. when you say modern, let me make a small had parenthesis. it should create that energy system that works regardless of what the future world looks like. that will create economic growth as well as respond to the local resources, local conditions, and you cannot stamp the same solution for every country, but absolutely we're looking forward
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to see on the renewable side the renewable initiative, and i will hope with the international community we'll see clean solutions as more than just renewables. >> if you take a look at a map of africa from the cape to cairo there are vast sections with no rural electrifications. you're taking the first stab. >> and identifying what works for their local conditions. let's not forget that these areas, the diverse set of challenges is also relevant to water. it's also relevant to food. so you're looking--we have a blank slate, and we have conditions where we can create success for whatever resources are available if it's sun, that's wonderful. wind, wonderful. if it's fossil fuel, let's make it cleaner and see what technologies we can employ there as well. >> when you pull off a project
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like this, when you make a test case of a country, does the rest of the world watch? does it have a knock-on affect. if it works on tanzania, if it works in kenya, and might parts of peru be willing to take a shot, and mali and so on? >> well, certainly to pilot and test cases are extremely useful. good news can be spread. but as in the opener ceremony, it's not only a matter of individual choices including individual choices by countries. it's a matter of having the international economical and political context that favors that kind of initiative. it is not only an one shot in one country or in a few countries, but that it really becomes something that is--that becomes economically interesting for everyone. and in that perspective as the
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u.n. secretary general said this morning, and as the ipcc has shown in its report as well, having at some point a pricing of carbon emissions to the atmosphere is a key element to incentivize the cleaner energy in the world. once industries have to start paying for using the atmosphere as a sewer, then they look at other possibilities that are cheaper from that point of view. that becomes economically interesting. it becomes naturally interesting to have cleaner energy. to have that kind of carbon pricing and international policies that one needs cooperation at the highest international level, and this is why those international meetin meetings, such as the one today, such as the climate negotiations
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taking place in lima, paris, etc. are so important. it is only and the international scale that you really can have that kind of economic tool on that level. >> but isn't that where it all falls apart? in a way it's more attractive to make a test case out of kenya, out of tanzania because when you go with the big things like you've just been talking about, so you get jacob duma in a room, lula da silva, hillary clinton back in copenhagen, they get right up to the cusp of being able to do something like make it cost money to pollute, but they can't make it that last couple of yards to victory. have conditions changed so that those sorts of things won't fall apart in the final analysis? >> well, the world bank has launched a few days ago as
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announced a few days ago that obtained a signature of more than 70 countries on carbon pricing. there is movement in the right direction, and there is hope that as part of the agreement next year that there will be elements of that, that would really insen incentivize it everywhere. >> are we closing to pricing carbon. >> no. >> that was quick. when we come back with more "inside story" after this brief break we'll look forward to lima, peru, to paris, and the conscience in this new york gathering is supposed to be building a foundation. stay with us. clutter,
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just real reporting. the new al jazeera america mobile app, available for your apple and android mobile device. download it now . >> welcome back to "inside story" on al jazeera america. i'm ray suarez. it's been 22 years since the earth summit in rio de janeiro. the scientists have spent the two decades since ringing the alarm bells about a warmer,
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drier earth and extreme weather events, and not enough has happened to constrain emission growth while hundreds of millions of people woul who were poor aren't now, but many of those people live in places that are vulnerable to climate change. it sounds like you're accidentibl skeptical about a pricing solution. >> i'm sorry to be a downer, but i'm looking at the largest international experiment we've had so far in trading carbon. that is the european union carbon trading system, which did not yield what it was expected to yield. they're taking their next step to reform that system at the end of october, but so far
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farkhar on pricing was not a driver. >> what will help make that corridor more economically efficient, work board, bring more investment and more success? >> i think the main focus of all our discussions have dominated the economics of renewables is very compelling. the technology costs have gone down substantially over the last four or five years. there has been competition strongly with the fossil fuel segment. i think all of us really believe that honest economics make sense. you don't have governments going into this really actively. that's what's changing. i think what we'll see with this initiative which is clear to
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large regional markets and will allow investments to have an escape. one country may not have the skill to attract large investment. but when you have many with harmonizing regulations you have the possibility of attracting private investors, who are much more actively involved in the growth of renew able energy in the united states. i'm actually much more optimistic about the economics for renewables. being the key driver. >> before we go, is president ping on board and president narendra modi on board. these are economies that have
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grown in their emission footprint, and countries that want to be a lot richer fast. >> put it like this, one very interesting fact that came out of the report was that in the developing countries, and china has been getting a lot of investment, actually the renewable energy capacity are much more than the focusing capacities. so i think the economics are very clear for india. they're extremely clear for china as well, which is why you see huge investments and policies getting driven and supporting renewable energy investments. >> i'm going to give jean pascal one last shot at it. >> well, the challenge, indeed, is to satisfy the needs of the population of the world, particularly the poor people who
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don't have access to energy, clean energy in particular, who have to walk for miles to collect water, etc. the challenge is to address at the same time the needs of those people. and the challenge of fighting climate change. i agree that innovation and technology is certainly part of the solution, and a decreasing cost of some technologies is extremely promising. but i also think on the basis of what the ipcc has reported to have international pricing on carbon would help in that direction. we'll see next year. if the world is moving in that direction. >> to my guests, thank you very much for being with us today. that brings us to the end of this edition of "inside story." thanks for being with us. join us on facebook. the handle is
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aj inside story am. mine is @ray suarez. in washington, i'm ray suarez. the u.s. president tells the u.n. general assembly the rebel group which has taken over parts of syria and iraq must be destroyed. >> no god condones this terror. no grievance justifies these actions. ♪ hello, i'm here with the top stories from al jazeera. on the run, rebel groups in
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