Technology U
by Glynn Wilson

I’m just going to come right out and say it. I know how to save the press and democracy — and the right to sue in this country.

The question is will the right people listen? Will they listen in time?

For an excellent discussion on where we are, check out this post from David Campbell, a professor of cultural and political geography at Durham University in the United Kingdom associated with the Durham Centre for Advanced Photography Studies.

Revolutions in the media economy: The context of crisis

Many of the points he makes have already been discussed here, but perhaps people will listen to him.

“The way news and information is reported and delivered to citizens is undergoing profound transformations, especially in the United States and Europe,” he starts out. “In the last 12 months commentary has been rife with claims about ‘the death of newspapers,’ the end of journalism, and the impact this crisis will allegedly have on democratic politics.”

I won’t take the time or space here to summarize all his points. If you are interested in this information, go read his piece and then come back to see how I am going to fill in some gaps he’s missing in answer to the question: “How do we fund the good stuff?”

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ATLANTA, Ga. — On coastal North Carolina’s federal wildlife refuges, shorelines are receding and barrier islands are narrowing.

In the Florida Keys, the sooty tern, a sea bird, is showing up to breed three to four months earlier than usual.

Inland, invasive plants such as Alligator Weed are crowding out more desirable food for ducks and geese on refuges in Tennessee and northern Alabama.

These signs, and many others, are consistent with the science on global warming. And the climate models predict far worse, including the extinction of 20 to 30 percent of the world’s species by the end of this century.

As part of the Interior Department’s commitment to building a coordinated strategy to respond to the impacts of accelerating climate change on the nation’s natural resources and safeguard the nation’s fish and wildlife, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released a draft strategic plan that will guide its efforts to respond to the unprecedented threat posed by global warming.

When finalized, the plan will guide the agency’s response to impacts such as changing wildlife migration patterns, the spread of invasive species, changing precipitation patterns and rising sea levels. It is a key part of the Interior Department’s commitment to building a coordinated response.

“The growing impacts from climate change on wildlife, plants, and watersheds are a call to action,” said Tom Strickland, Assistant Secretary of the Interior for fish and wildlife and parks. “These impacts call for a coordinated and strategic response from the Department and its bureaus. We will help lead a national response that is grounded in sound science, an adaptive, landscape-scale conservation approach, and collaboration with partners. This is a crucial first step in that direction.”

The plan, which can be found on the Web here has three key elements:

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