Climate Change in Portugal (2026): El Niño, Storm Kristin, and Building Local Resilience
In a 2026 conversation based in Portugal, Stewart and Carl discuss human-induced climate change, how the topic has become politically polarizing, and why they look to climate science - especially IPCC reports - while acknowledging public distrust of “science.”
They compare their environmental backgrounds and focus on practical implications of worsening extremes, referencing Storm Kristin (power and internet outages, water issues) and an incoming heat spike into the 40s. Stuart explains weather vs climate, outlines how El Niño works and why its current intensity is unprecedented, and links rising greenhouse gases to increasing uncertainty and extremes affecting Portugal (including drought risk in the south).
They emphasize balancing local action with political engagement, suggesting resilience measures like solar lights, backup generators, water storage, community networks, and alternative communications (Meshtastic), while noting Portugal’s renewable progress and ongoing energy pricing/regulation issues.
00:00 Naming Climate Change 00:09 Early Activism Roots 01:53 Friends of the Earth Era 03:11 Portugal Extremes Today 05:00 Host Climate Journey 06:19 Weather Versus Climate 08:11 Trust and the IPCC 10:01 El Nino Explained 12:03 Greenhouse Gas Basics 13:23 Local Resilience Actions 13:50 Pragmatic Not Evangelical 15:49 China and Renewables Shift 17:26 Storm Kristen Lessons 18:24 Backup Power Basics 18:55 Water and Community Barter 19:40 Off Grid Communications 20:15 Blackouts as Lessons 22:20 Climate Upsides and Tradeoffs 23:29 Post Industrial Disruption 24:45 Lifestyle Change Reality Check 26:54 Portugal Renewable Potential 29:12 Politics Prices and Regulation 32:05 Wrap Up and Community Plug 33:59 Portuguese A Team Outro
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