A Shadow Delegation Stalks the Official U.S. Team at Climate Talks by NY Times

“The dueling American delegations here mirror a larger division within the United States over climate change. Mr. Trump’s decision in June to withdraw from the Paris agreement was popular with his supporters. On Thursday, the State Department and the Interior Department sent high-level political officials to address a conference in Texas sponsored by the Heartland Institute, which rejects the scientific consensus that climate change is occurring and primarily caused by human emissions. Scott Pruitt, the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, sent a video message of support.”

“Wine writer Jon Bonné‘s latest, The New Rules of Wine, navigates a complicated wine world by offering tips to ease any trepidation or confusion, and in some cases, even remind you that there are no rules…Bonné, who is the former wine editor and critic for the San Francisco Chronicle, author of The New California Wine, and the forthcoming book, The New French Wine (detect a theme here?), says that with a new generation of wine drinkers and an increasingly diverse dinner menu, much of what we’ve learned about wine in the past no longer applies. (Even the role of wine experts is changing, says Bonné.)” Read the full interview from NPR here. Personally, if I had to follow the old wine rules, I would never get to drink a full bodied red wine, since I don’t eat meat! (I was never a rule follower!)

Is It Time To Catch The Wave Of Rebounding Atlantic Bluefin Tuna? by NPR

“Fishermen up and down the New England Coast say it has been decades since they’ve been able to catch so many Atlantic bluefin tuna so fast. Once severely depleted, populations of the prized sushi fish appear to be rebounding. Now the industry, and some scientists, say that the international commission that regulates the fish can allow a much bigger catch. But some environmental groups disagree.”

Back when the Atlantic bluefin recovery plan was implemented around a decade ago, the plea of conservation advocates was to not let politics get in the way and to follow the scientific advice. Now that the scientific data is not precautionary, conservationists feel they are in an awkward position.