It's OK, you can talk about climate change
In this edition: Talking with friends or neighbors about a polarizing issue may not be easy, but some experts see a need for more climate conversation; a lesson from Australia; the meaning of melting sea ice.
In this edition: Talking with friends or neighbors about a polarizing issue may not be easy, but some experts see a need for more climate conversation; a lesson from Australia; the meaning of melting sea ice.
What we're writing
If climate change comes up with family or friends ...
... It's OK to talk. There's actually a gap to be filled. Two-thirds of Americans are very or moderately interested in global warming. Yet two-thirds say they hear or talk about the issue only "several times a year or less."聽George Marshall of Climate Outreach, a British nonprofit that promotes public engagement with climate change, argues that 鈥渂reaking the collective silence is ... a key to making headway on climate change.鈥澛�//聽Mark Trumbull聽
Trump wouldn't be first leader to oppose聽climate action
Donald Trump has made some statements moderating his stance on climate change this week, but he's still pushing a fossil-fuel revival. Canada and Australia are examples of what can happen when a leader聽does lay siege to climate policy and science. //聽Henry Gass
Sea ice at record low: why that's a big deal
Expected effects, according to scientists, include聽more absorbing of heat by oceans, and a wavier聽jet stream.聽//聽Rowena Lindsay
Most Americans support Paris climate deal
A new report finds that聽71 percent of Americans want the United States to stay in the Paris climate deal, but views on whether climate change is a threat differ more widely. //聽Zhai Yun Tan
New voice for the climate? Teens in Washington State.
A lawsuit by students聽centers around Americans' collective responsibility to mitigate the effects of climate change. However that argument fares in court, researchers have found that portraying climate change as a collective challenge聽(rather than an individual burden) is a winning approach with the public, as measured by increased donations to environmental causes. //聽Rowena Lindsay
What we're reading
How four people fight deforestation in Borneo
The problem is massive. Their ideas are creative and determined.聽// Spiegel Online
Wildfires: hinting at a dry聽new normal in Appalachia?
Wildfires erupt in聽a dry spell that would be more typical in the American West.聽// PBS Newshour
The Arctic is a seriously weird place right now
In sunlight-free November, sea ice shrank. That stands out even聽in an age where climate change is often making outlier conditions聽the norm.聽// Climate Central
What's trending
US聽gasoline prices are second-lowest in eight years
Thanksgiving weekend is one of the heaviest travel times of the year. AAA predicted that 48.7 million people聽would be traveling 50 miles or more for the holiday in 2016, a rise of more than 1 million from last year and the most since 2007. Average pump prices are almost as low as last year, making them the second-lowest in eight years. // The US Energy Information Administration
Volkswagen's聽2025 electric ambitions
"As a volume manufacturer, we intend to play a key role in the breakthrough of the electric car." //聽Volkswagen announcement, covered by Autoblog
Canada announces plan to phase out coal by 2030
"We know the world is moving to a low-carbon future.... This is part of it."聽// Canada's Federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna, quoted by聽BBC