Introduction

Today I am joined by Dr. John Cook. Dr. Cook is a Senior Research Fellow with the Melbourne Centre for Behaviour Change at the University of Melbourne. He obtained his PhD at the University of Western Australia, studying the cognitive psychology of climate science denial. His research focus is understanding and countering misinformation about climate change.

In 2007, he founded Skeptical Science, a website which won the 2011 Australian Museum Eureka Prize for the Advancement of Climate Change Knowledge and the 2016 Friend of the Planet Award from the National Center for Science Education.

John authored the book Cranky Uncle vs. Climate Change, which combines climate science, critical thinking, and cartoons to explain and counter climate misinformation. He also co-authored the college textbooks Climate Change: Examining the Facts and Climate Change Science: A Modern Synthesis, as well as the book Climate Change Denial: Heads in the Sand.

In 2013, he published a paper finding a 97% scientific consensus on human-caused global warming, a finding that has been highlighted by President Obama and UK Prime Minister David Cameron.

Links

John Cook: https://findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/profile/1028119-john-cook

Cranky Uncle: https://crankyuncle.com/

Skeptical Science: https://skepticalscience.com/

Timestamps

0:00 - Introduction
1:32 - Why can’t we ignore misinformation?
2:50 - What is the difference between misinformation and disinformation?
7:20 - How has climate change denial changed over the past 20 years?
8:46 - Who are the sources of misinformation?
9:41 - Science denial is not a unique challenge
12:55 - Cognitive psychology and its importance in tackling climate change
17:55 - What are the drivers of belief in climate change misinformation?
21:23 - What are the types of climate change misinformation?
28:51 - The persuasiveness of purveyors of misinformation
31:51 - How can we counter misinformation?
42:48 - F.L.I.C.C. - The climate change misinformation taxonomy
43:40 - F - Fake experts
44:41 - L - Logical fallacies
49:37 - I - Impossible expectations
54:50 - C - Cherry-picking
59:55 - C - Conspiracy theories
1:02:28 - Misinformation breakdown - Example 1
1:08:07 - Misinformation breakdown - Example 2
1:11:19 - Misinformation breakdown - Example 3
1:17:22 - Final takeaways

Dr. Roger Cohen is an entrepreneur, focused on addressing climate change through innovative solutions. He leads C2Zero and the Real Carbon Price Index (RCPI), initiatives aimed at reducing carbon emissions. Roger was part of the founding team at BetaShares and has held senior roles at Macquarie Bank, Deutsche Bank, and NatWest. Roger has lectured in risk management to engineering students at the University of Sydney and serves as a senior adviser at the Monash Centre for Financial Studies. A Fulbright Scholar in the USA in 1988, Roger holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Sydney and is a Fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australia. Links ____________________________________ Roger’s Profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/portablebeta/

Effectiveness of compliance market mechanisms: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2024.143761

Only 20% of emissions are covered by compliance schemes: https://www.realcarbonindex.org/

Less than 16% of carbon credits issued constitute real emission reductions.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-53645-z

Corporations creating demand for low-integrity carbon offsets: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-51151-w

Renewable energy offsets are no longer considered ‘high integrity’: https://icvcm.org/carbon-credits-from-current-renewable-energy-methodologies-will-not-receive-high-integrity-ccp-label/ Timestamps ____________________________________ 0:00 Intro

1:00 - Consilience and Siloed Thinking

3:55 - A brief overview of carbon markets

18:06 - What are compliance carbon markets?

23:00 - Example 1: Carbon Tax

26:45 - Example 2: Emissions Trading Schemes

34:22 - Are compliance schemes effective at reducing greenhouse gas emissions?

40:00 - Are compliance schemes reducing emissions fast enough?

46:22 - Summary of compliance carbon markets discussion

47:41 - What is the voluntary carbon markets?

49:31 - What are carbon offsets?

54:47 - What is the problem with carbon offsets?

1:04:07 - Do we need carbon offsets?

1:08:57 - Prognosis on the future of carbon markets