The animation Jon posted yesterday at one point mentioned positive feedback loops.  It's mighty scary when the news headlines start picking up on new scientific evidence of those same positive feedback loops.  Here's what Bill McKibben had to say in response to an article in today's issue of The Independent:

There are moments when the sheer sense of urgency of this work overwhelms us. Today is one: a research ship in the Arctic has come back with the first real evidence that, by warming the world, we've begun to let methane vent from the oceans. Read the article: the ship found 'methane chimneys' carrying this global warming gas straight from the ocean floor--the concentration in the air was a hundred times normal. We have so little time to solve this problem--Copenhagen in December 2009 is the last real chance that the world will do what needs doing.  Which is why we need to be doing everything we can this year to force leaders to make Copenhagen real.  Everything.

Here at 350.org, we're a big fans of the power of video/animations to get the point accross. Lee Murray at "Wake Up Freak Out" have produced quite the shocking piece here, starting from the premise that "It’s much, much later than you think. This really isn’t about polar bears any more. At this very moment, the fate of civilization itself hangs in the balance." While it seems a little doom and gloomy, it breaks down the science of "Climate Tipping Points" in a 10 minute clip that is edgy, accessible, and well-worth your time. Check it out:

Wake Up, Freak Out - then Get a Grip from Leo Murray on Vimeo.

Here's a guest post from Kelechi Okezie and Kenneth Okoro, founders of the Enyidda Neighborhood Environment Watch (NEW) and 350 organizers in southern Nigeria:

More than 1000 people attended the Enyidda 350 event organised by Neighborhood Environment Watch. The Deputy Governor of Ebonyi state, Prof. Ogbu and an adviser to the Governor came to the event and spoke on the need to reduce carbon emissions and become part of the global movement. The community wrote an eight-point communique promoting a pollution free environment and recognizing the 350 target.

This is cross-posted from our friends at Think Progress.

During the Republican National Convention, delegates repeatedly demonstrated their obsession with offshore oil drilling by chanting “drill, baby, drill!” It turns out they were literally describing the relationship between Department of Interior royalty collectors and the oil industry.

Multiple reports released on September 10 by the Department of Interior Inspector General found that the Mineral Management Service officials responsible for collecting royalties from oil and gas producers are accused of accepting gifts, trips, and special favors from producers. The report described “A culture of ethical failure… [and] a culture of substance abuse and promiscuity.” These government overseers also abused alcohol and cocaine with officials from energy companies that they were supposed to collect royalties from, and “had sexual relationships with oil and gas company representatives.”

The MMS employees are responsible for collecting royalties from producers for oil and gas produced on public lands, which can be paid in cash or “royalty in kind.” The latter allows the producer to pay its royalties by delivering oil and gas to the federal government, which is either stored in government reserves or sold on the open market. The total royalty tab is about $10 billion annually, and is one of the largest sources of federal revenue aside from taxes.

Our good friends at Greenpeace UK tried to shut down the Kingsnorth coal-fired power plant not long ago. The bobbies didn't much care for that, and six of them were arrested as they tried to paint a message on the giant smokestack. But you know what happened today? A jury of their peers acquitted them. Our hero Jim Hansen weighed in, testifying that they were protecting property of greater value--that would be this sphere we call the Earth--with their actions. In fact, he reminded the court that until we get back down below 350 there can be no rest--we need many such inspired protests! Our congrats to the good people on the stack--and on the jury.

As we speak, Members of European Parliament are debating the future of the EU climate package behind closed doors. Industry lobbyists are poised to water down the agreement by saying 4°C is an acceptable level of warming, despite scientific evidence that it would have disastrous consequences like droughts, floods, hurricanes, billions of refugees and a multi-meter sea level rise.

That is unacceptable -- we must reverse our current path and bring CO2 levels below 350 parts per million in the atmosphere, the only safe level. In addition, the EU is a key actor in international climate negotiations and if Brussels won't take leadership then it is hard to tell who will.

The final vote on the climate package will take place early next week, so we urgently need you to take action by sending a message to a few key MEPs. Let them know that you will not accept a package that does not put us on the path to 350ppm and a safe, just, prosperous future. Tell them that they are responsible for how our lives and our planet will look like and that this is the key issue for the Parliamentary elections next year. It's time for them to lead.

Calling all Wikipedia fans: today marks the release of Wikia Green, a project to build a community generated online resource that is home to the best information about green topics and issues. Based on the wiki platform, Wikia Green is an ever-evolving, community-focused repository of content that can be instantly molded or changed by anyone to reflect the most current topics of interest and latest information in the green arena.

You can check out our favorite entry here. We encourage you to share your particular knowledge!

As we often say here at 350.org, climate change is a global problem -- a civilizational issue that will require unprecedented international collaboration to solve. Solutions are going to need to come from the ground up as well as from the top down, from every country around the world. And yet international leaders are dragging their feet: Countries like the US and Australia say that without China and India on board, they won't reduce their emissions; China and India say that without industrialized nations taking responsibility for their own greenhouse gas emissions that have created the problem, they won't decrease their own emissions significantly.

For the past few years, it has seemed a deadlock, a wall that climate and justice organizers and concerned citizens around the world have been trying to chip away at (but mostly just banging our heads against). But recently, a few cracks have developed in the wall.