Skip to content
The Climate Summit Blues episode artwork

Nov 17, 2021 20 min

The Climate Summit Blues

from On the Media Hosted by WNYC Studios

The U.N. climate summit in Glasgow, Scotland concluded last weekend—the 26th “Conference of Parties.” After more than two decades of these promises, it’s worth wondering how much of this is all just hot air. According to the non-profit Climate Action Tracker, not a single country is on target to meet the COP21 pledge, also known as the Paris Climate Accords, and many aren’t even on target for their COP3 pledge, the Kyoto Protocol. And yet, these summits are often still covered with breathless play-by-play analysis: all the juicy details about diplomatic attaches, late-night negotiation, and backroom deals. Which is not without value, but it’s worth asking: what are the stories being missed when all eyes are on the summit? To answer that, we called Nathaniel Rich, writer-at-large for the New York Times Magazine, who takes a markedly different approach. On the Media is supported by listeners like you. Support OTM by donating today (https://pledge.wnyc.org/support/otm). Follow our show on Instagram, Bluesky, TikTok and Facebook @onthemedia, and share your thoughts with us by emailing [email protected].

Episode details come from the podcast's RSS feed.

Embed this episode

Ready to play

The Climate Summit Blues

0:00 20:54

No transcript yet.

Requests help us decide what to transcribe next.

Frequently asked questions

How long is this episode of On the Media?

This episode is 20 minutes long.

When was this On the Media episode published?

This episode was published on November 17, 2021.

Can I download this On the Media episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.