I have a few moments before I start cooking (Dad joke there if you look for it given the thread).
I was at a Christmas party with neighbours last night (I'm going to bash my hangover with some champagne when I start cooking) and met another neighbour that I haven't seen for a couple of years.
He is an Oceanography professor that lives in the USA and only comes down to NZ for a month or so a year, to stay at his property as he is a Kiwi originally. A very positive, optimistic, individual but he was struggling to be that way when I questioned him on climate change. He is well into his sixties but loves his work so hasn't retired. He is also one of the blokes that does all of the research on ice, sea temperatures, etc. Has been down to Antarctica many times and returned from a trip to the Arctic on a Russian icebreaker a couple of weeks ago. They got all the way to 85deg north and the news wasn't good from the data collected, nor was it when he was in Antarctica earlier. Rate of polar melt is increasing and the ice was thin enough for them to keep going North.
This from a guy who has no political agenda, isn't being reported in the press, just collects data. He has nothing to prove to me, is well off enough to retire, so all conspiracy theories aren't really relevant. He just has collected data, no papers being produced, grants being given, theories to be completed, someone else will handle all of that later on if you really want to believe that it is all corrupt. The Russians funded it I think, so you can start a conspiracy there usually. He also mentioned that people just don't want it to be true so it is hard to win in a court of public opinion in spite of the numbers.
The rate of change is escalating as he said was predicted 40 years ago by many scientists. A few of of us here have said it won't be changed by governments making promises and having meetings, but by individuals taking action, he agrees. He, as I said, is a positive guy, and thinks that with a concerted effort and the technology available, carbon release and storage could be managed.
So that is from the horse's mouth, not filtered through a media organisation or political party. Just me of course, and I'm not going to enter a debate, I have just reported what was said.