Gore, Branson Announce Climate Prize

[Mass]

Gore, Branson Announce Climate Prize
Former VP, British Tycoon Team Up On "Global Challenge" To Give $25M To Global Warming Innovator


LONDON, Feb. 9, 2007
Sir Richard Branson , left, throws a globe into the air watched by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore, right, at a presentation to announce the Virgin Earth Challenge, in London, Friday Feb. 9, 2007.


(CBS) Former presidential candidate Al Gore has joined forces with the British financial heavyweight Sir Richard Branson to offer up a $25 million reward to inspire innovations in the field of combating climate change.

In an exclusive London interview with CBS News Early Show co-anchor Harry Smith, Gore said: "What we are facing is a planetary emergency. So some things you would never consider otherwise, it makes sense to consider."

...

Branson, chairman of the wildly successful Virgin Group, said the prize will go to whoever comes up with the most innovative way of sucking harmful greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere.

"The Earth cannot wait 60 years. We need everybody capable of discovering an answer to put their minds to it today," Branson said at the news conference. "The Earth cannot wait 60 years."

[Jim Warren]

1. While it's difficult to point out a downside to this

and yes it's certainly magnanimous of Branson, it also seems at the same time to in a way say it's ok to sanction the continued gross consumer culture that helped create the problem rather than addressing the issue of runaway capitalism at it's heart.

[amitten]

3. No...it's only buying us time while we establish new energy

sources. We simply don't have time to wait for the entire world to change it's ways...it can't happen fast enough, no matter what.

As Gore knows, to reverse or slow climate change in our lifetimes, we need to reduce emissions and ALSO remove exsisting CO2.

That's because CO2 stays up there for a loooong time. If we don't eliminate some of what's already out there, the warming effect from exsisting CO2 will last for many many years, regardless of future emission reductions.

We absolutely need to approach it from both ends of the problem. As usual, Gore is on the right track!

[valerief]

2. Get rid of electronic voting so that ethical candidates can be elected to office.

Ethical national leaders can work to reduce carbon emission through laws and incentives.