This post is by Kyle Meng, a research fellow at Environmental Defense.

Next week, delegates and negotiators from some 190 countries will descend on the Indonesian island of Bali to determine the fate of a global climate agreement to succeed the Kyoto Protocol. Continuing our long-standing presence at these negotiations, Environmental Defense is sending a team of experts to Bali. Here's what we'll be working on.
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This post is by Keith Gaby, communications director for the national climate campaign at Environmental Defense.

When politicians hesitate to act on global warming, one of the concerns we hear is that cutting the pollution that causes global warming could cost too much. More and more evidence is piling up to show that's just not true. For one, we have to take into account the cost of not doing anything.

But just as important, the cost of doing what we need to is much less than people fear. A study released today by researchers at McKinsey & Company shows how much is already in our reach.

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This post is by Gerald Karnas, Florida Climate Project Director at Environmental Defense.

Florida stands to lose big-time unless Congress enacts strong climate legislation, soon. The longer Congress delays, the harder climate change will hit Floridians. Damage to just three sectors—tourism, electric utilities, and real estate—together with hurricane damage would shrink the state’s gross domestic product by more than 5 percent by the end of this century.

That’s the key conclusion of a new report by Tufts University economists. Environmental Defense commissioned the report and is helping to launch it today via a press conference in Tallahassee.

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This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.

With Thanksgiving approaching, we got to thinking about what we're grateful for, and we wanted to tell you how very grateful we are to you - our online readers, activists and donors. Your support means everything. We even made a video about it!

We're all heading out for Thanksgiving now so we won't be posting again this week. See you again on Monday. Have a great holiday!

This post is by Lisa Moore, Ph.D., a scientist in the Climate and Air program at Environmental Defense.

A common refrain here on Climate411 is that we need to cut greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible. One of the reasons we’ve cited numerous times is that, even if we could stabilize greenhouse gas concentrations at today’s levels, some global temperature increase is already locked into the system. This is sometimes called the "warming commitment" or the "warming in the pipeline".

What’s behind this phenomenon? The short answer is: water, water everywhere.

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This post is by Lisa Moore, Ph.D., a scientist in the Climate and Air program at Environmental Defense.

This past week, IPCC’s Nobel Prize-winning scientists met in Valencia, Spain to write a synthesis of their three-volume report. The Summary for Policymakers of the Synthesis Report [PDF] makes it very clear that we need to act immediately to avoid the worst effects of global warming.

IPCC Chairman Dr. Rajendra Pachauri summarized the main message as follows: "Climate change is a serious threat to development everywhere. Today, the time for doubt has passed. The IPCC has unequivocally affirmed the warming of our climate system, and linked it directly to human activity. Slowing or even reversing the existing trends of global warming is the defining challenge of our age."

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This post is by Vickie Patton, Deputy General Counsel at Environmental Defense.

The 9^th Circuit Court of Appeals just issued a 90-page opinion overturning major aspects of the Bush administration's flawed fuel economy standards for light-duty trucks. Sean Donahue argued the case for Environmental Defense and Susan Fiering for the California Attorney General's office - on behalf of a larger group of state and environmental petitioners.

Among other things, the court held that the Department of Transportation (DOT):

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This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.

Yesterday, Environmental Defense President Fred Krupp testified before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works about America's Climate Security Act (ACSA). "There is no more important legislation that this Committee will ever consider than comprehensive climate change policy," said Krupp in his written remarks [PDF].

Krupp focused on four main points:

1. Time is of the essence; we must not delay.
2. This bill has all the essential elements needed to tackle climate change.
3. We have the technology we need to get started.
4. The bill's system of carrots and sticks will prompt international action.

He also recommended some improvements the Senate can make going forward, and alerted Senators to amendments that we would oppose. The bill is scheduled for "mark-up" on December 5 (more on the legislative process in upcoming posts).

This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.

It's no surprise the U.S. Chamber of Commerce opposes the Lieberman-Warner bill (see their new ad). They've been one of the loudest voices against global warming action for years.

The problem is, their claim that a firm climate bill will cripple our economy is simply wrong. See our previous post on Green Technologies for a more realistic assessment of the costs. There is also a cost to inaction. A recent study by the University of Maryland found that the most expensive option is to do nothing.

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This post is by Sheryl Canter, an Online Writer and Editorial Manager at Environmental Defense.

What do the Republican Governor of California, the Democratic Governor of Montana, and the Republican Governor of Utah have in common? A desire for Congress to take action on global warming. Check out our new Governors' Ad: