TechKnow: Politics of Climate Change - Full Episode

February 8, 2016 5:00PM ET

WATCH: The debate over climate change and how one city is dealing with the effects now.

Topics:
Technology
Science

On this episode of TechKnow, the team looks at the contentious debate over climate change. 97% of published reports agree that climate change is fueled by man-made greenhouse gas emissions. There is wide consensus within the scientific community

Shini Somara travels to Miami, Florida where there simply isn't time for a debate over whether climate change is a legitimate threat. According to climate scientist Ben Kirtman, it's the epicenter for climate change impacts. With rising sea levels impacting the Miami coastline, residents and city officials are already experiencing the effects and are urgently responding to protect the city. This is all happening against the political intransigence of Governor Rick Scott who denies that climate change is happening. 

A similar tension is replaying at the federal level, where politicians fall in two camps: those who believe in climate change and those who don't. Later, Lindsay Moran meets with John Holdren, the senior advisor to President Barack Obama on science and technology policy, to get the pulse on Capitol Hill. 

Original Air Date: April 6, 2015