Foreign Policy Blogs

Some Great New Graphics

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The Climate Analysis Indicators Tool (CAIT) is an information and analysis tool on global climate change developed by the World Resources Institute.  It contains a truly impressive array of databases and graphics, excellent for delving deeply into questions of who, what, when, where and why greenhouse gases are being produced.  It has data for the world and the US (see above) and also looks at vulnerability and adaptation in various places.  CAIT has been and continues to be a stunning resource.

Now Google and the World Resources Institute have come up with some further very interesting and revealing graphic representations of greenhouse gas emissions, greenhouse gas emissions intensity, and per capita greenhouse gas emissions, broken down by US state, specific (Kyoto-regulated) GHG, over time and by sector.  This information is malleable and easy to work with, even if you’re just medium tech like me.

Meanwhile, the US Climate Action Network (USCAN) is providing us with an in-depth look at the commitments made by countries who have associated themselves with the Copenhagen Accord.  The maps, charts and links have most useful information.  According to USCAN, “138 countries, including the 27-member EU, are likely to or have engaged with the accord, representing 86.76% of global emissions.”

I would be remiss in not pointing you in the direction of these interactive graphs from the FT.  They depict carbon emissions past and projected, broken down by country, sector and with and without land-use changes factored into the equations.  These are also quite easy to work with and most informative.

If you’re even a little wonky, you can spend hours looking over these graphics and come away with a ton of useful data.

 

Author

Bill Hewitt

Bill Hewitt has been an environmental activist and professional for nearly 25 years. He was deeply involved in the battle to curtail acid rain, and was also a Sierra Club leader in New York City. He spent 11 years in public affairs for the NY State Department of Environmental Conservation, and worked on environmental issues for two NYC mayoral campaigns and a presidential campaign. He is a writer and editor and is the principal of Hewitt Communications. He has an M.S. in international affairs, has taught political science at Pace University, and has graduate and continuing education classes on climate change, sustainability, and energy and the environment at The Center for Global Affairs at NYU. His book, "A Newer World - Politics, Money, Technology, and What’s Really Being Done to Solve the Climate Crisis," will be out from the University Press of New England in December.



Areas of Focus:
the policy, politics, science and economics of environmental protection, sustainability, energy and climate change

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