Cristobal Spielmann

How to tell if there’s climate misinformation on your feed

22Aug

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

How to tell if there’s climate misinformation on your feed

Climate misinformation has permeated the online discourse in a way that can be difficult to parse through. How can we accurately call it out? Graphic by Cristobal Spielmann. By Cristobal Spielmann Living in the social media age means getting bombarded with misinformation on a daily basis, whether that information comes in the form of videos, memes or poorly researched and written news articles. With climate change, that misinformation can be both pernicious and dangerous. It perpetuates myths about climate change not being real and not being caused by humans. Patrick Moore and PragerU Take the 2015 video “The Truth about [Carbon Dioxide],” presented by Patrick Moore, whose title is “co-founder of Greenpeace,” and produced by Prager University. On the surface, ...

Opinion: Could climate change play a role in the California recall?

2Aug

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

Loyola Marymount University, Opinion

Opinion: Could climate change play a role in the California recall?

As California experiences the wildfires, drought and extreme heat, it’s possible that gubernatorial candidates could touch on the problems of climate change in the recall campaign. Graphic by Cristobal Spielmann. By Cristobal Spielmann California has been experiencing two major upheavals this year. The first of these is political: a gubernatorial recall election set to take place in less than eight weeks against current Democratic governor Gavin Newsom. The other, much more important upheaval, is the one faced by the impact of climate change. From wildfires to droughts, this summer has proved itself historic by showing how dismal the future of unmitigated climate change would look in California. The Dixie Fire has burnt over 200,000 acres and become one of the...

Three alarming facts you need to know about the Pacific Northwest heatwave

13Jul

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

Loyola Marymount University, Science

Three alarming facts you need to know about the Pacific Northwest heatwave

2021 has been defined by catastrophic events related to climate change. The heatwave in the Pacific Northwest has broken several heat records and been defined by triple-digit temperatures. Graphic by Cristobal Spielmann. By Cristobal Spielmann 2021 has proven to be a year of noteworthy climate change-related events, none more evident than the recent heatwave sweeping over the northwest U.S. and parts of Canada. Here are some of the reasons why this heatwave should worry you. These heat records are indicative of an important measurement of climate change. One misunderstanding of climate change is that, because of increasing average temperatures, cold temperatures and record colds won’t happen or that the existence of colder days somehow ...

Opinion: Why you can’t blame the Pemex oil fire on capitalism

13Jul

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

Loyola Marymount University, Opinion

Opinion: Why you can’t blame the Pemex oil fire on capitalism

The fire in the Ku-Maloob-Zaap field in the Gulf of Mexico spurred tons of memes and comments about the failures of capitalism. The pipeline belonged to a nationalized state monopoly. Graphic by Cristobal Spielmann. By Cristobal Spielmann If you’ve been on social media lately, you’ve likely seen the striking image of a massive, hellish oil fire burning on the surface of the ocean. The fire began on July 2 as the result of a pipeline leak in the Ku-Maloob-Zaap (KMZ) offshore oil field in the Gulf of Mexico before being extinguished over 17 hours later. The KMZ field has been the major producer of Mexico’s crude oil since 2009, contributing to 46% of its national production, according to a column in the online Mexican news magazine&nbs...

How climate change is creating the new normal of California wildfires

5Jul

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

Economy, Loyola Marymount University, Morgan State University, Science

How climate change is creating the new normal of California wildfires

Climate change’s impact on California cannot be understated. Businesses and homes are preparing for a more wildfire-prone future. Graphic by Cristobal Spielmann. By Cristobal Spielmann, Brian Jeffries Wildfires are getting bigger and wildfire seasons are getting longer as a result of the impact of climate change. The recent massive heatwave across the Western United States set new heat records on top of a decades long megadrought. The high temperatures and dry conditions makes California the perfect environment for massive wildfires. Businesses integral to the California economy, like the nearly $10 billion wine industry, are bracing for an increasingly drier, more fire-prone climate. “It seems like the weather’s more dr...

Four questions about harmful algal blooms, answered

25Jun

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

Loyola Marymount University, Science

Four questions about harmful algal blooms, answered

Algae are a crucial part of many ecosystems, but they can also overrun and choke out other organisms in the environment. There are many ways for people to combat the rise of these algal blooms before they become too destructive. Photo credit: Carol M. Highsmith via the Library of Congress. By Cristobal Spielmann What are harmful algal blooms? Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are large outgrowths of algae in bodies of water that result from an excess of nutrients, sunlight and other conditions that allow for such growth. Humans have a direct hand in causing some of these conditions. These blooms are fed by nutrients, like phosphorus, from fertilizer runoff in agriculture operations. Increasing temperatures from climate change only add to the growth. Le...

The Battle over Ballona: Wetlands, SoCalGas and Protestors

22Jun

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

Community, Energy, Loyola Marymount University, Video

The Battle over Ballona: Wetlands, SoCalGas and Protestors

https://youtu.be/frRi643dfQU Edited by Cristobal Spielmann. Just outside the front gate to LMU, the Ballona Wetlands are the site of more than just flora and fauna. A SoCal gas reserve on the wetlands is drawing concern from activists and L.A. politicians alike. Watch to learn more about natural gas and the battle at Ballona. Check out more about the use of natural gas here, and why people oppose it here.

22Jun

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

AUTHOR

Senior Correspondent, LMU My name is Cristobal. I'm a Senior Correspondent for the LMU team, an assistant opinion editor for the Los Angeles Loyolan since 2019 and a junior environmental science major from Brentwood, Tennessee. I previously served as a reporter on the 2020 election cycle for the Loyolan. As part of Climate 360, I plan to dissect environmental issues relating to local communities and histories while being proud to work alongside a team of dedicated student journalists.

Opinion: Brace our campus for perpetual fires

11Jun

By Climate 360 NewsNo Comments

Loyola Marymount University, Opinion

Opinion: Brace our campus for perpetual fires

By Cristobal Spielmann This piece was originally published on April 19, 2021, by the Los Angeles Loyolan. Fires near the University could be the norm if we don't intervene. Even if they don't ignite on campus, we still have a responsibility to prevent them from happening. Cartoon: Alexandra Linhardt | Loyolan With finals on the horizon and the stresses of returning to campus after over a year of COVID-19, many Lions likely couldn't care less about anything else, no matter how urgent a problem it might be. This is especially true for hyper-local environmentalist issues. Before campus closed down in 2020, there were movements like Divest LMU holding on-campus demonstrations and the LMU chapter of Herbicide Free Campus doing in-person activities related to sust...