Crude Awakening: Why Ecuador Voted to Stop Drilling in the Amazon

As countries around the world become more serious about reducing carbon emissions to meet international targets, many are still approving new oil and gas projects, committing us to increased global warming. Yet an increasing number of countries are taking a stand to leave those future emissions in the ground, even at the expense of their own profits.

Last year, Ecuadorians voted to halt the development of new oil wells in Yasuní National Park in the Amazon, keeping around 726 million barrels of oil underground. Meanwhile, Costa Rica and Denmark have created the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance to facilitate the managed phase-out of oil and gas production. And a group of at least 13 countries, including many island nations and oil and gas-rich Colombia, are calling for a Fossil Fuel Non-proliferation Treaty as a complement to the Paris Agreement. Can more nations set aside valuable profits from fossil fuel resources in favor of our collective desire for a livable climate?

This episode also features a story on Yasuní National Park produced by Mateo Schrimpf and reported by Kimberly Brown.

Tzeporah Berman

Chair, Fossil Fuel Non-proliferation Treaty 

Kevin Koenig

Climate, Energy, and Extractive Industry Director, Amazon Watch 

Jane Goodall: Celebrating 90
September 16, 2024 | 6:00 p.m.
Environmental icon Jane Goodall returns to Climate One in person to reflect back on her life’s work and offer a look forward to how we can heal our relationship with nature by better understanding ourselves. The indefatigable Goodall is now focused on three intertwined crises: biodiversity loss, climate change and environmental inequity.

Dr. Goodall will be in conversation with Climate One Founder Greg Dalton and Rhett Butler, founder of Mongabay, a nonprofit media organization that delivers news and inspiration from nature's frontline via a network of more than 900 journalists in about 80 countries. Mongabay covers forests, wildlife, oceans, and other conservation topics in six languages and is celebrating its 25th birthday this year.

Join us for an inspiring evening at the Sydney Goldstein Theater on the harsh truths facing all life on Earth and a bright yet narrow path forward.

Justin Pearson: No Justice Without Climate Justice
September 18, 2024 | 6:00 p.m.
On March 27, 2023, six people were gunned down in a mass shooting at The Covenant School in Nashville. The horrific event led Tennessee State Rep. Justin J. Pearson and two colleagues to protest for common sense gun legislation on the Tennessee House floor. House Republicans retaliated by expelling Pearson and his colleague Justin Jones. Pearson ran and won back his seat with 94% of the vote.

Pearson became a national voice for common sense gun regulation. He is also a strong advocate for climate and environmental justice, having worked to defeat a multi-billion dollar crude oil pipeline that could have poisoned Memphis drinking water and taken land from South Memphis residents. The Sierra Club recognized him as the 2023 National Changemaker of the Year.

Join us for a conversation with a rising voice for environmental justice.

Just days before the deadline to finalize ballot measures to be sent to California voters this fall, the oil and gas industry withdrew its referendum to overturn a ban on fossil fuel drilling within 3,200 feet of homes, schools and businesses. 

Shortly after the state legislature implemented the ban with SB 1137 in 2022, the industry trade group known as the California Independent Petroleum Association set to work collecting signatures to qualify an initiative to overturn the ban for the 2024 ballot. Under California law, as soon as the ballot measure gathered enough signatures to be put to a vote, SB 1137 was put on hold, allowing drilling to continue near sensitive areas. 

An estimated 3 million Californians — many of whom are people of color — live, work, and attend school within a 3,200 foot radius of drilling sites, leading to elevated cases of respiratory illnesses and cancers. Climate justice and community health activists celebrated the pending implementation of the drilling ban. While CIPA claims to have withdrawn their question to the voters in favor of challenging the ban in court, opinion polling shows that despite $20 million in fossil fuel advertising, an overwhelming majority of Californians were likely to vote for keeping the drilling ban in place.

PLUS:

The Inflation Reduction Act — which passed in Congress with virtually no Republican support — allocated hundreds of billions of dollars for climate resilience and clean energy implementation. Two years later, the data is clear: Congressional districts held by Republicans have received the vast majority of IRA funding.

Roughly three quarters of IRA funding, or $268.5 billion, has been directed to districts held by Republicans. Will this massive influx of federal funds, which often leads to new jobs and savings for local residents, spur further support for green energy in red states? Climate One Co-Hosts Greg Dalton and Ariana Brocious spoke with three experts to find out.

Source: Clean Edge Inc.

Do you work outside, or in a kitchen, a warehouse, or other place where you’re feeling the heat? How have rising temperatures impacted the way you work? We want to hear your story. 

Please send us an email at climateone@climateone.org or leave us a voicemail at ‪(650) 382-3869‬ and let us know how climate change is affecting you on the job. We may use it in an upcoming episode. Thanks for sharing!

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