“Humans are problem-solving animals – you would never know it reading the press,” said environmentalist Paul Hawken. He and NY Times writer Andy Revkin discussed how attitudes have changed in the 25 years since NASA scientist James Hansen testified before Congress about human-caused climate change. “Right now, the attitude is that climate change is happening to us...instead of the idea that actually climate change is instead happening for us,” Hawken said. Some problems stem from lack of education, while others can be attributed to policies and mindsets. “It’s our social systems that impede progress,” Revkin said. “The technologies are there, to some extent, but how do you facilitate them?” The speakers presented a hopeful outlook in the face of rising seas and extreme weather. “Carbon is the element that holds hands and collaborates in nature,” Hawken said. “We’re going to have to be like carbon and hold hands and collaborate.” Paul Hawken, Author and Entrepreneur Andy Revkin, Writer, The New York Times Dot Earth Blog This program was recorded in front of a live audience at The Commonwealth Club of California on October 18, 2013
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