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The bad math of the fossil fuel industry

2,645,497 views | Tzeporah Berman • Countdown Summit

We currently have enough fossil fuels to progressively transition off of them, says climate campaigner Tzeporah Berman, but the industry continues to expand oil, gas and coal production and exploration. With searing passion and unflinching nerve, Berman reveals the delusions keeping true progress from being made -- and offers a realistic path forward: the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. Learn more about the global initiative for transparency and accountability in phasing out fossil fuels forever, supported by the Dalai Lama, Nobel Prize laureates and many more.

We currently have enough fossil fuels to progressively transition off of them, says climate campaigner Tzeporah Berman, but the industry continues to expand oil, gas and coal production and exploration. With searing passion and unflinching nerve, Berman reveals the delusions keeping true progress from being made -- and offers a realistic path forward: the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty. Learn more about the global initiative for transparency and accountability in phasing out fossil fuels forever, supported by the Dalai Lama, Nobel Prize laureates and many more.

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Join hundreds of thousands of others and endorse the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty today.

Listen to Tzeporah Berman discuss the fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty and why fossil fuels are the new weapons of mass destruction on the TEDxLondon podcast, Climate Curious.

About the speaker

Tzeporah Berman

Tzeporah Berman

Environmental campaigner

See speaker profile

Tzeporah Berman is the Chair of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative and the international program director of Stand.Earth.

| Explore

Production Gap Report

First published in 2019, this annual report measures the gap between Paris Agreement goals and countries' planned and projected fossil fuel production. The latest issue suggests countries plan to produce more than double the amount of fossil fuels in 2030 than would be consistent with a 1.5°C temperature limit.

Alex Rafalowicz | World Economic Forum, 2021 | Article

"This is why we need a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty"

How can the treaty be a complementary mechanism to the Paris Agreement? Alex Rafalowicz, director of the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty Initiative, outlines the need to directly address the fossil fuel industry and prioritize a just transition.

David Roberts and Tzeporah Berman | Volts, 2021 | Listen

"Treating fossil fuels like nuclear weapons"

Today, wealthy fossil fuel-producing countries are making grand emission reduction commitments while continuing to ramp up fossil fuel production. Berman speaks with David Roberts about the need to address fossil fuel supply, the motivations behind the treaty and where it might go in the future.

Damian Carrington | The Guardian, 2021 | Article

"Fossil fuel industry gets subsidies of $11m a minute, IMF finds"

Trillions of dollars a year are "adding fuel to the fire" of the climate crisis. This is at a time when scientists are raising the alarm on fossil fuel expansion being incompatible with Paris Agreement goals.

Mark Campanale and Tzeporah Berman | Responsible Investor, 2020 | Article

"Decarbonizing the economy through a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty"

International cooperation is needed to accelerate an equitable transition to low-carbon energy. Campanale and Berman explain how the fossil fuel industry has grown and why the treaty is the path forward.

Climate Curious | TEDxLondon | Listen

"Why fossil fuels are the new weapons of mass destruction"

On the TEDxLondon podcastClimate Curious, Tzeporah Berman sheds light on the immense power of the fossil fuel industry, how it's skewing the way we see our role in the climate crisis and what a fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty could look like.

Learn more

This talk was presented at an official TED conference. TED's editors chose to feature it for you.

Join hundreds of thousands of others and endorse the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty today.

Listen to Tzeporah Berman discuss the fossil fuel non-proliferation treaty and why fossil fuels are the new weapons of mass destruction on the TEDxLondon podcast, Climate Curious.