James Hansen is considered the top climate scientist in the United States. He first testified to Congress about the dangers of global warming as far back as 1988, and he has taken up the cause of ending the devastating practice of mountaintop removal coal mining in West Virginia. On June 22 in Yale e360, he published a “Plea to President Obama” on the subject, and yesterday he took it a step further: he joined in an act of civil disobedience by attempting to trespass on the property of Massey Energy near Coal River Mountain in West Virginia, and was arrested along with other protesters including Darryl Hannah and former US Representative Ken Hechler (D-WV).

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About 500 activists blocked coal shipments into Australia’s Hunter harbour yesterday by paddling kayaks and homemade rafts made from milk crates and innertubes into the water.

The action, which lasted 11 hours, is the fourth successful blockade against shipments of coal into Australia. More coal is received at that particular harbor than any other in the world.

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Did the Capitol Climate Action succeed before it even began?

Well, sort of.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid sent a letter to the Capitol Architect asking the Capitol Power Planet to switch from coal to natural gas by the end of 2009. The proposal has been made in the past, but shut down by pro-coal legislatators.

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Friday February 27^th will begin the four day Powershift 2009 conference, which is set to become the largest ever youth conference on climate change. But history will be made on Monday, March 2^nd, when thousands of youth lobby Congress and thousands of others march to the Capitol Coal Plant to take part in what should become the largest ever act of climate change related civil disobedience.

Over 10,000 high school and college aged students are expected to turn out to this year’s Powershift conference. 2007’s conference had thousands of attendees and speakers such as Van Jones, Ralph Nader and Nancy Pelosi. This year is expecting some of the same big names, and more.

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Power Past Coal has been putting together an extensive list of actions across the country that are happening in the next 100 days to put an end to our coal-dependent economy. As the slew of recent coal disasters has shown us, the time to put an end to coal use is now.

NASA Climate Scientist James Hansen has put it eloquently:

“We must halt all new coal plants now, and we must begin shutting down existing ones as soon as possible. Otherwise, we should face up to the truth– as a world, we are driving off the edge of a cliff with the accelerator pressed to the floor. Power Past Coal is the wake up call we need to put on the brakes.”

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Hundreds of activists are currently blocking a departure gate at Heathrow Airport in England. The group is protesting the planned third runway at the airport, which is expected to be approved by the government this week.

The peaceful act of civil disobedience was organized by Climate Rush, the same group that shut down Parliament when they rushed the building in October. In addition to environmental activists, residential neighbors to the airport have been vocal in their opposition to the third runway.

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[Creative Commons photo by Wolfgang Staudt]

DeChristopher infiltrated a Bureau of Land Management auction on December 19th. Because the agency threw the auction together so hastily, he was able to get inside, grab an auction paddle and bid against the oil companies. He successfully raised the $45,000 by today in order to hold onto his claim.

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On March 2^nd, 2009, over 1,000 activists are poised to take part in a mass sit-in in Washington DC at one of the nation’s most prominent coal plants. The action will coincide with PowerShift 2009, a demonstration and conference being put on by Energy Action Coalition, which is expected to draw over 10,000 people in an effort to make climate action a priority of the incoming administration.

The act of civil disobedience will take part at The Capital Coal Plant, which provides power to the Dictrict’s Capitol Complex and to Congress. The House of Representatives has resolved to get their power from cleaner sources, but the Senate continues to obtain their power from the coal plant.

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In what is becoming an annual ritual of civil resistance and direct action in Germany, more than 15,000 anti-nuclear protesters turned out along the route to Gorleben on Sunday—twice the number at a similar protest at the site two years ago—in the largest and most violent anti-nuclear protest in Germany since 2001.

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Addressing attendees at the Clinton Global Initiative, Gore called on the young people in the United States to reject new coal-fired power plants. “It’s time for civil disobedience to stop the construction of new coal plants,” implored the former Vice-President.

After introductory remarks by former President Bill Clinton, Mayor of New York Michael Bloomberg, and cyclist Lance Armstrong, Al Gore launched a familiar-sounding polemic against carbon-based fuels with an intensified focus on the dishonest - and perhaps illegal - actions of the “carbon lobby.” Al Gore joined the discussion begun by the high-profile collection of heads of state, corporate leaders, and one very well-behaved rockstar/activist.

Joining Clinton on stage was former Vice-President Al Gore; the Queen of Jordan Rania Al-Abdullah; the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Coca-Cola, E. Neville Isdell; the President of Liberia, Ellent Johnson-Sirleaf, and Bono.

Gore takes on big carbon

Gore said for the carbon lobby to be trying to convince their stockholders that renewable energy is risky business and that climate change is a hoax, they are purporting a type of stock fraud that should be addressed by attorneys general across the country.

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Shirley: Fake blood tossed onto socialites wearing fur coats. Late-night liberation of laboratory animals. Wholesale destruction of Hummers and gas-guzzlers in California parking lots. The lists of exploits by some radical animal-rights and extreme environmental groups reads more like rap sheets than a honorable curriculum vitae. For reasonable stewards of the Earth, breaking and entry, theft, destruction of physical property and other mayhem serve no purpose.

Or do they? I don't condone violence or criminal acts as a means of conveying a message, however well-intended the message might be. But I have to admit that, sometimes — just sometimes — a crazy or even slightly illegal (as if there is such a thing in the eyes of the law) act by a group like, say, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) brings to light a practice that's been kept in the dark largely because it's unpleasant, harmful or cruel. The act of sneaking hidden cameras into poultry processing plants, for example, opened a lot of people's eyes to just how unnecessarily inhumane the methods of turning chickens into wings and nuggets actually are. So is there an argument to be made that maybe, just maybe, the occasional whack attack by radical vegans or Luddites is a justifiable act of civil disobedience? I'd have to say, cautiously, yes.