Extended Speech at 350 for 350 Rally on FDR Bridge

There are three numbers you need to really understand global warming, none of them very complicated. For all of human history until about 200 years ago, our atmosphere contained 275 parts per million of carbon dioxide (that's the first number).

Parts per million simply means the ratio of the number of carbon dioxide molecules per million other molecules in the atmosphere. That much CO2 is useful—without it the earth would be very cold, like Mars, so we need some carbon in the atmosphere.

Beginning in the 18th century (the industrial revolution), we started to burn coal and gas and oil to produce energy and goods. The amount of carbon in the atmosphere began to rise, at first slowly and now more quickly.

We're taking millions of years worth of carbon, stored beneath the earth as fossil fuels, and releasing it into the atmosphere. By now—and this is the second number—the planet has 387 parts per million CO2 – and this number is rising by about 2 parts per million every year.

387 ppm is higher than any time seen in the recorded history of our planet – and we're already beginning to see disastrous impacts on people and places all over the world.

Glaciers everywhere are melting fast—and they are a source of drinking water for hundreds of millions of people. Mosquitoes, which like a warmer world, are spreading into lots of new places, and bringing malaria and other diseases with them.

Drought is becoming much more common, making food harder to grow in many places. Sea levels have begun to rise, and scientists warn that they could go up as much as several meters this century. If that happens, many of the world's coastal cities, island nations, and farmland will be underwater.

These impacts are combining to exacerbate conflicts and security issues in already resource-strapped regions.

In the past year, some of the world's leading climate scientists have told us what the highest safe level of CO2 is: 350 parts per million. That's the last number you need to know, and the most important. It's the safety zone for planet earth.

That will be a hard task, but not impossible. We need to stop taking that carbon out of the ground and putting it into the air. Above all, that means we need to stop burning so much coal—and start using solar and wind energy and other such sources of renewable energy –while ensuring the Global South a fair chance to develop.

In the US, we need to shift to a Clean Economy. Thousands of new companies, millions of new jobs, and billions in revenue generated by solutions to the climate crisis -- this is the clean energy economy we can adopt with today's technologies, resources, know-how, and leadership. This is the opportunity of our generation— to lead the transformation to an economy that is robust without causing environmental harm.

By decreasing use of other fossil fuels, and improving agricultural and forestry practices (means stop cutting down the trees) around the world, we could get back to 350 by mid-century (2050). But the longer we remain in the danger zone—above 350—the more likely that we will see disastrous climate impacts.

Every year since 1992, the United Nations hosts a two-week long conference for world leaders to meet and discuss what to do to about the global threat of climate change. In December of 2009, this meeting will be in Copenhagen.

There, delegates, non-governmental organizations, and businesses from every nation will meet to forge a new global climate change agreement.

The United Nations is negotiating a treaty that could put the world on a course to solve the climate crisis, but the current plans for the treaty are much too weak to get us back to safety. Right now, the numbers in the discussion are 450ppm and 550ppm (EU), which scientists are saying are far outside of the safe zone, and ensure disaster for our planet's future.

It's no small task, but we need to let our world leaders know that 350 is the safe target that can ensure an equitable future and save us from climate catastrophe. This effort will require unprecedented international cooperation and significant public awareness.

Tell your friends, family, coworkers, congregation, guy on the street, anyone who will listen but more importantly – tell your congressman and new president ….. about 350.

For more information, go to
http://www.350.org/