Attainable Sustainability

Google Earth is a profound 3-d snapshot of the Earth.  You can travel the world on your computer.  Go home.  Go to Paris.  Go to Rome.  Go to Hawaii Volcano National Park.  You can even go to the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kasakhstan (just enter name into search box).  You can put placemarks, view places from different angles and times, see interesting places, photos, illustrated buildings, change the weather, even fly or swim in certain locations.

Go0gle created the first global climate tour, and from there can go to anywhere.  What would be great is to have forms you can fill in to play with the numbers and see an apocalyptic Earth.  That’s probably coming in the future.

And now, Global Warming?  Google is adding tours to show the effects of global warming on the planet using data from climate research computer models.

Google is on to something.  A visual way people can relate to Global warming, and also be reminded that the entire globe is interconnected.  Which is why fighting Global warming will require people in many different nations to do the same things, diligently, for decades to come.  Lots of people use this, but the big question is, do lawmakers and leaders?  Do the proponents of clean coal use this?  Or Oil company CEOs?  And if they do, are they cackling ‘kill the fish!  kill the frogs!  chop them trees! Woohoo!’.

Pluses – visual, emotional connection to globe, wow factor, display complex data in ways anyone can understand.  Google Earth is a social network.  Impact on scientists uncertain, but could have profound impact on global policy-makers.  Unsticky – using this will not have significant impact on environment – some, but not significant.

Minuses – need a computer, need Google Earth, need to know about the Global Climate tool.  Only small number will stumble into it, the rest would be using it because they’re already involved in Global Warming.

Thanks to:

http://www.greenlivingideas.com
http://ow.ly/15Shec

http://www.twitter.com/twilightearth

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