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Climate Tours in Google Earth

Who needs Cancun? You can learn more about the climate impacts and solutions sitting at your desk playing with Google Earth.

Ben Jervey
By Ben JerveyDec 02, 2010
Ben Jervey
Ben is a writer and editor covering climate change, energy, and environment, and is currently the Climate and Energy Media Fellow at Vermont Law School. He was the original Environment Editor at GOOD Magazine and his work has appeared regularly in National Geographic News, Grist, DeSmogBlog, and OnEarth. He recently worked with the non-profit Focus the Nation to publish an Energy 101 primer. When living in New York City, he wrote a book, The Big Green Apple, on how to live a lower impact life in the city. A bicycle enthusiast, Ben has ridden across the United States and through much of Europe.
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As delegates from around the world have descended on Cancun for the next round of U.N. climate negotiations (COP16), an awesome new project on Google Earth can take you on a series of global "tours" to better understand the impacts of climate change. Right there from your desk.

The Google Earth Outreach team partnered with former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan, Wangari Maathai of the Green Belt Movement, CONABIO, and Oceana to create these video tours that cover "adaptation strategies that mitigate the effects of climate change," as well as science's best predictions of various impacts. Here's an intro:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BI5TQXw8Gyc

Former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan's "tour" reminds viewers that climate change is not just an environmental issue, but a human one. It's long, but fascinating:

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIzUTAQbXgc

As great as these videos are, I recommend even more strongly that you download the IPCC prediction "tours" straight to Google Earth.

Finally, if you're lucky enough to be in sunny Cancun right now, Google is actually hosting some Google Earth workshops throughout the COP. I would bet my bottom dollar that such a workshop would be time better spent than waiting for tardy negotiators.

environmentclimate changegooglecancununfcccgoogle earthcop16kofi annanwargari maathaigreen belt movementclimate tours in google earth

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