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COP26 Ends In Glasgow With Final Agreement; Climate Change Affects World's Poorest; Putin Disavows Involvement With Belarusian Migrant Standoff; Queen Elizabeth II To Miss Remembrance Sunday Service; Angela Merkel Urges Germans To Get Vaccinated; Using Space Technology To Save The Planet. Aired 4-5a ET

Aired November 14, 2021 - 04:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

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KIM BRUNHUBER, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Hello and welcome to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and all around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber.

A breakthrough deal on fighting climate change. Negotiators from nearly 200 nations managed to hammer out an agreement but many aren't happy with it.

Plus, COVID cases spiking in Europe as governments institute new rules.

And a lagging vaccination rate of Black students across the U.S.. The dire consequences that could be down the road.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE (voice-over): Live from CNN Center, this is CNN NEWSROOM with Kim Brunhuber.

BRUNHUBER: After two weeks of difficult negotiations, a final declaration of the COP26 conference in Glasgow came down to a single word. That compromise was enough to get India's agreement. A British official presiding over the conference apologized for the change but it was necessary to keep the fragile agreement alive.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALOK SHARMA, BRITISH BUSINESS SECRETARY: May I just say to all delegates, I apologize for the way this process has unfolded and I am deeply sorry. I also understand the deep disappointment. But I think, as you have noted, it's also vital that we protect this package.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: The document reaffirms the importance of holding global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. It requests that countries be more aggressive about their emissions targets at next year's conference in Egypt and it agrees to phase down coal instead of phase out, changing that one word to secure an agreement. CNN's Phil Black joins me now live from Glasgow.

Phil, take us through in a bit more detail what's in it and how it's being received.

PHIL BLACK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kim, I think you touched on some of the key points there. There is no doubt that the change in the language regarding coal has cast something of a shadow over the final outcome.

But I think there is still a view that just the mention of coal and the need to move on from it, even in that more qualified way, represents an important milestone in this long process.

It is profoundly disappointing, certainly to countries that feel most threatened by climate change, small island states, the most vulnerable. We heard that disappointment in the room.

But I think there is also a recognition and this is why the agreement ultimately was accepted by consensus, even with that extra qualification, the disappointing qualification on coal, because it contains important steps, important facts are accepted perhaps for the first time.

There is that very strong language surrounding the need to achieve a limit of global warming on 1.5 degrees on average. That is based on some strong scientific language which is in the document. And that's important because there are countries in the room who said again that they see anything beyond 1.5 as a threat to their existence.

They believe it is purely a matter for their survival. Again, the documents stress the importance of acting very quickly if we are to achieve that goal. Cuts this decade, that's what's necessary. So on the whole it has been accepted but it was a very difficult, long and, in the end, an emotional process to get there. Take a look.

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SHARMA: Adopt the decision entitled Glasgow Climate Pact, it is so decided.

BLACK: They got there in the end, applause but no real joy. The end result, an intensely negotiated agreement that at best achieves incremental progress and ultimately falls short for everyone.

But at a climate conference, that counts as a win. The final draft inspired passionate support from some wealthy countries.

JOHN KERRY, U.S. SPECIAL PRESIDENTIAL ENVOY FOR CLIMATE: And this is good. This is a powerful statement.

[04:05:00]

FRANS TIMMERMANS, EUROPEAN COMMISSION VICE PRESIDENT: I please implore you, please embrace this text so that we can bring hope to the hearts of our children and grandchildren. BLACK (voice-over): Vulnerable small island nations were more grudging

but they backed it because it clearly describes the importance of keeping average warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. And it recognizes the critical need to cut emissions dramatically this decade.

AMINATH SHAUNA, MALDIVAN ENVIRONMENT MINISTER: I would like to remind us all that we have 98 months to halve global emissions. The difference between 1.5 degrees and 2 degrees is a death sentence for us.

BLACK (voice-over): This COP also made history. For the first time, including texts that calls for countries to move on from coal. But there was a dramatic, last-moment twist. India and others teamed up to insist on weakening that section by changing one key word: phase out became:

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Escalating effort to phase down unlimited (ph) coal power.

BLACK (voice-over): It caused deep disappointment.

TINA STEGE, MARSHALL ISLANDS CLIMATE ENVOY: This commitment on coal had been a bright spot in this package. It was one of the things we were hoping to carry out of here and back home with pride. And it hurts deeply to see that bright spot dimmed.

BLACK (voice-over): The conference president couldn't hide his emotions.

SHARMA: I apologize for the way this process has unfolded and I am deeply sorry. I also understand the deep disappointment. But I think, as you have noted, it's also vital that we protect this package.

BLACK (voice-over): Outside the room, activists and experts predicted real change is coming after Glasgow.

BLACK: Phasing down versus phasing out, what does that mean in practice?

JENNIFER MORGAN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, GREENPEACE: Well, I actually don't think the change that the change of that word changed the signal, changes that signal. The signal is that coal is on its way out.

NICK MABEY, E3G CLIMATE THINK TANK: The big change here was people finally got the scale of the challenge and the urgency and we finally got a plan that meets that. And that was great but it's -- now it's roll up your sleeves time.

BLACK (voice-over): Scientists say the world needs transformational change. This conference just succeeded in keeping the process alive. That's not enough to ensure hope survives, too.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BLACK: Over the course of the two weeks, India played both hero and villain. The prime minister said the country will transition to renewable energy by 50 percent by the end of the decade. That is the big ambitious move a lot of people wanted to see more of.

It's emblematic of the general sense of achievement here. Some progress was made but simply not enough. There is a view that this put the world back on the path to a low carbon future.

Is there time?

BRUNHUBER: Many mixed feelings for sure. Phil Black, great reporting from Scotland. Thank you so much.

Worsening climate disasters displaced more than 30 million people last year. Jagan Chapagain is secretary general of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and he joins us from Geneva.

Thanks so much for being here with us. Your organization put out a statement. I characterize it as supportive in general but critical of a number of things. Let me start first with regard to hitting that critical target of 1.5 degrees of warming. And the statement that said that specific commitments to meet this target remain too vague.

So what's missing?

What would you have liked to see on that score specifically?

JAGAN CHAPAGAIN, SECRETARY GENERAL, INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF RED CROSS AND RED CRESCENT SOCIETIES: Thank you for having me and thank you for mentioning that report, that climate has displaced more than 30 million people, which is three times higher that was specified by conflict.

This aspect has not been talked about enough and that's why we wanted to highlight the plight of those people. On Glasgow itself, many of the commitments are vague and also they are too hard (INAUDIBLE) for us and the (INAUDIBLE) impact of the climate crisis is happening already now.

The climate crisis is not for the future for people as we saw in the small island of developing states and many other part of the world, the climate change had already happened. So we did not see a concrete actions there.

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CHAPAGAIN: Of course, we talk about a lot on the coal and oil and gas but we also didn't see the commitment that had been promised many years ago to fund $100 billion a year on adaptation.

We also didn't see action on funding loss and damage for some small countries. They have already faced significant impact of the climate crisis. While there have been some incremental positive steps toward achieving 1.5 degrees but what we have seen now will not get us there.

BRUNHUBER: On the issue of loss and damage and helping some of the smaller nations, people in this country might not see helping smaller nations as a top priority even in the context of climate change.

But your organization, they did a lot of research on the effects on displacing people in vulnerable countries. That can have a direct effect on things like illegal immigration. People might not draw the link between climate change in Honduras and the migrant crisis at the U.S. border.

CHAPAGAIN: Yes, what we have found is, so far, most of the people that have been displaced because of climate related disasters have been displaced internally, within the national borders. Very small number of people have actually crossed the border because of climate.

But for the people who have been displaced, their suffering is the same, whether they are displaced within the country or they have crossed the border. If they cross the border, they have bigger challenges because there is no legal framework for those who migrate.

So there is a huge legal gap if people cross the border. But when we see this vast number of 30 million people displaced just in 2020, it will only very feasible that in a few years' time, there will be more people crossing the borders and actually adding to already the high number of people who migrate because of various reasons, not only because of conflict but because of climate related disasters.

So this aspect needs to be very high on the agenda, too, because people suffer mostly in developing countries.

BRUNHUBER: As you say, this isn't theoretical for your organization; it's happening right now and you're being called more and more to help people. This past year, in the U.S., we saw devastating change on both coasts with the unprecedented fire and droughts and the Red Cross being called to help with those emergencies.

And yet even in the face of all of this, a surprisingly high number of Americans, about seven in 10 Republicans say climate change isn't an emergency, even in the face of all of these disasters.

How do you go about changing those entrenched attitudes?

CHAPAGAIN: Yes, this is a very important work (INAUDIBLE). The community based organizers who are rooted, deeply rooted in the communities, I think that's where we prioritize a lot.

We saw that also in the heart of Europe here. I was there last month in Belgium and we see people displaced because of the climate related disasters.

In Germany, in Australia, the impact of the climate crisis is not only in the developing world; it's actually impacting everybody.

Now I think there are a few things we can do. And one of our calls to the young people has been that they continue to challenge the leadership, continue to protest and they should also continue to work toward changing the mindset.

The young people can play a very, very important role in changing behaviors and bringing the science in the front line. Although I belong to the Red Cross, so I don't want to talk about politics, but it is also very important for the general public to elect the leaders who trust on science and who take action based on science.

And I think this is a very important role that the young climate activists are playing and they should continue to play. And we strongly support those initiatives by the young people.

BRUNHUBER: We saw a lot of that energy from young people at COP and we'll see it again. We really appreciate it.

CHAPAGAIN: Thank you so much for having me.

BRUNHUBER: World leaders and activists spent the past several weeks in Scotland looking for ways to help alleviate climate change with the view of this growing problem as seen here on the Earth pales in comparison to how it's seen from space as one astronaut explains.

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THOMAS PESQUET, EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY ASTRONAUT: We had unbelievable sights of entire regions, entire states in the U.S., entire countries, covered in smoke and ashes. That was actually pretty painful to watch.

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BRUNHUBER: Later this hour, how technology used in space can provide answers to the biggest environmental problems facing this planet.

Members of former president Donald Trump's inner circle are being put on notice after Steve Bannon was indicted for contempt of Congress. He refused to comply with a subpoena. In seeking his cooperation, the lawmakers highlighted the reports that he spoke to Trump in leadup to the riot and mentioned comments he said the day before.

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STEVE BANNON, TRUMP ADVISER: All hell is going to break loose tomorrow. Just understand this. All hell is going to break loose tomorrow. It's not going to happen like you think it's going to happen, OK? It's going to be quite extraordinarily different. And all I can say is strap in.

The war room posse, you have made this happen and tomorrow it's game day. So strap in.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Bannon's lawyer had argued that he was shielded by former Donald Trump's executive privilege. But that didn't hold water with the grand jury. It sent a clear message to other witnesses who are avoiding testifying and that includes former Trump White House chief of staff, Mark Meadows, who failed to show up for a deposition on Friday just hours before Bannon's indictment was announced. More details from CNN's Evan Perez.

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EVAN PEREZ, CNN SR. JUSTICE CORRESPONDENT: Podcaster and Trump ally Steve Bannon is set to self-surrender to the FBI on Monday after a grand jury in Washington, D.C., indicted him on charges of obstruction of Congress.

The House committee investigating the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol has sought his testimony for months, in part, because Bannon was heavily involved in drawing the thousands of Trump followers to Washington on the false premise of a stolen election.

Bannon is charged with one count for failing to appear for his deposition and a second count for refusing to turn over documents that the committee says are key to understanding the Capitol riot on January 6th.

If convicted, he faces up to a year in prison. The bipartisan committee issued a statement says that the Bannon case is a message to other Trump allies, that the days of defying subpoenas with impunity are over.

Attorney General Merrick Garland called the rare prosecution of this kind a reflection of his promise to adhere to the rule of law. Bannon has claimed that he is protected by claim by a former president Donald Trump that their communications are shielded by executive privilege, even though Trump isn't president anymore.

President Joe Biden says that Bannon and other Trump allies are not shielded by privilege. Now this is an issue that is being fought over in the U.S. courts, where Trump is trying to claim that he still has these powers in perpetuity.

A federal judge in recent days rejected that idea, saying presidents are not kings and Trump is no longer president. That ruling is now under appeal -- Evan Perez, CNN, Washington.

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BRUNHUBER: On Saturday, former U.S. attorney Preet Bharara spoke with CNN over what Bannon's indictment means for other witnesses and whether former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows could face the same fate. Listen to this.

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PREET BHARARA, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: the last time someone was indicted by the Justice Department for criminal contempt of Congress was 38 years ago, and there are a lot of witnesses in play here.

There are a lot of people who have a lot of different kinds of information, documentary information, communications that could shed light on what happened on January 6th, and also their testimony. And I think that early in the process, it is pretty early in the

process still, to bring a criminal indictment against someone who has been defiant of the subpoena should put a little bit of nervousness into the hearts and minds of some of these other witnesses, particularly the ones who are being completely defiant, not even giving enough respect to the committee to come in to invoke with some specificity, the privilege that they want to invoke, engage in some kind of negotiation about parameters with the Committee.

Now, Steve Bannon, it looks like, that's also Mark Meadows. So yes, he should be a little bit nervous.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Migrants remain trapped in limbo at the Belarusian Polish border and Russia is accused of helping drive the crisis. We'll explain what Russian president Vladimir Putin is saying.

And European leaders are imposing new COVID restrictions and pleading with residents to get vaccinated. We'll have a live report on efforts to fight the spread of coronavirus on the continent. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: It's now mid-morning in Eastern Europe where thousands of migrants are trapped in limbo on the Belarusian border with Poland. The Russian president is washing his hands of any responsibility.

Vladimir Putin says his country has nothing to do with the migrants trying to get into the E.U. But Russia is one of Lukashenko's only allies, and he is accused of using the migrants to change sanctions.

E.U. and NATO member Lithuania is also bracing for a migrant influx. Poland's responded by sending troops to the border and that may have led to the death of a Polish soldier. A service member was killed and an investigation has been launched.

It looks like the result of an accidental shooting. Meanwhile, Polish police say the body of a Syrian man was found near the border on Friday. Cause of death wasn't clear.

Migrants are braving freezing forests and the lack of food to reach the E.U. Many are fleeing conflicts in the Middle East. For the latest, Nada Bashir is tracking the story from London.

The E.U. is meeting tomorrow.

What kind of measures are they contemplating?

[04:25:00] NADA BASHIR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. The E.U. foreign ministers will be meeting tomorrow for the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels. They have tweeted that they've been in touch with foreign ministers in both Poland and Lithuania.

They will be focused on the next steps that they need in order to quell the crisis between Poland and Belarus. We heard earlier from the German foreign minister that the talks will focus on the potential sanctions on Belarus. There are already sanctions over the Belarusian government.

These could be expanded to target companies and individuals that E.U. accuses of human trafficking, that is driving this migration crisis on the border. We heard from the E.U. representatives of the U.N. Security Council and they've accused Belarus of trying to distract attention away from Belarus' own human rights abuses.

The situation on the ground is particularly dire. We've heard from our team on the ground there that, on the Polish side, people near the border have received text messages, warning them they won't being committed to move on from Poland.

Many of these vulnerable refugees making the desperate journey, hoping to access the European Union But many of them are trapped in freezing temperatures, desperate shortages of medicine and food and many traveling with young children, many from the Middle East and Asia.

Humanitarian aid workers are calling for action. That will be the focus for the European Union foreign ministers. Many of these refugees are caught in the middle of the political standoff, unable to advance into the E.U. but also unable to return home-- Kim.

BRUNHUBER: All right. Nada Bashir, thank you so much.

Coming up on CNN NEWSROOM, young children have been getting their first COVID shots. We'll find out what it's doing for overall vaccination numbers in the U.S.

Plus a California's Bay Area report shows students lag behind their peers when it comes to vaccinations. We'll talk to an expert about the possible consequences. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: Welcome back to all of you watching us here in the United States, Canada and around the world. I'm Kim Brunhuber. This is CNN NEWSROOM.

We have breaking news here: Buckingham Palace says Queen Elizabeth II won't make a public appearance as originally planned. It was to be the first time she was to be seen in public since doctors advised her to rest. Our Nina dos Santos joins us from London.

We were just set to talk about how this was to be her first appearance. Now this news.

What are we to make of it?

NINA DOS SANTOS, CNNMONEY EUROPE EDITOR: That's right. Let's talk about what the palace has actually said.

The queen having sprained her back has decided with great regret she will not be able to attend this morning's Remembrance service at the Cenotaph. The release coming from Buckingham Palace just a few moments ago.

She appears to have strained her back and has pulled out, we have to say here, really at the last minute.

This was set to take place in almost exactly an hour from now. And presumably she would have been getting ready to get into the motorcade to make that journey from Buckingham Palace, which is quite close to where this Remembrance service is taking place.

Still, we now know she will not be taking part in these events. This will be a real disappointment for royal watchers, who wanted to see the monarch for the first time in two weeks since she had to pull out of other engagements.

You remember in mid-October she was recommended to spend one night in hospital for exploratory tests. Then she was told that it would be best if she spent some time not undertaking those public engagements, especially in public, with concerns about COVID-19 as well as you can imagine around this time of year.

But this was supposed to be the first time we'd see her since COP26, when she gave a virtual address there to the crowd. But big disappointment now. This will also rekindle concerns about Her Majesty's health. Her own son, Prince Charles, tried to allay those on November 11th, when he was doing a walkabout in south London and was asked how the queen is doing.

He said, she is fine. She's been resting. Now we hear she has sprained her back and will not be taking part in these celebrations. This Remembrance service was set to attract far more crowds than in years gone by because, of course, things were curtailed last year by the pandemic. The palace said her son, Prince Charles, as well as the Duchess of Cornwall and other senior members of the royal family with be taking part.

BRUNHUBER: Thanks so much, Nina dos Santos in London.

And we'll be right back here at CNN NEWSROOM.

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BRUNHUBER: If you live in Berlin, you'd better have a COVID shot or proof of recovery before heading out on the town. The German capital is banning the unvaccinated from restaurants, bars, cinemas and other public venues.

Germany has been hard hit with the recent surge of COVID infections in Europe and hospitals are near capacity in some regions. Now Angela Merkel is addressing vaccine hesitancy, telling those who are skeptical it's time to get the shot.

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ANGELA MERKEL, CHANCELLOR OF GERMANY (through translator): Difficult weeks lie before us and, as you can see, I am worried as I am sure that many of you are, too. But let us part from it.

A year ago, we were in a similar situation. But back then, we didn't have the most effective means against the virus, the vaccine. Now it is here and we must not only access it but quickly. I ask of you, please do it and try to convince your relatives and friends as well.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BRUNHUBER: Much of the continent is seeing a similar surge in new COVID infections. The World Health Organization said Europe reported nearly 2 million infections in the last week alone. And there were nearly 27,000 new deaths from the virus last week accounting for more than half of the deaths worldwide during that time.

For more on the escalating crisis in Europe, let's bring in CNN contributor Barbie Nadeau, live from Rome.

What's the latest?

BARBIE NADEAU, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It's not just Germany that's having a struggle. The Netherlands have said they will institute a three-week partial lockdown that includes curfews and other restrictions.

In Austria, they are locking down people who aren't vaccinated. All of this is ahead of what everybody thinks is going to be a brutal winter. People are just tired of it.

Here in Italy you've got about 90 percent of people have been vaccinated at least once but they're slow to get the booster campaign going. That's caused a great deal of concern as well because it's not just people who aren't vaccinated, it's the waning immunity of those who have, that will contribute to that.

BRUNHUBER: In terms of the response again, here in the U.S. we're hoping making those booster shots available to all Americans, which could be on the table shortly, will help us going into the winter.

Is that the hope in Europe as well? NADLER: Well, it depends on the country because, of course, every country has its own campaign in terms of the first vaccine and the boosters.

Here in Italy, they're not going to start offering the booster shot to people between 40 and 60 until December. A lot of people were vaccinated here but they were vaccinated a long time ago.

In Germany they have a much lower percentage of people fully vaccinated. You've also got things like protests that have been happening across Europe, that have become superspreader events.

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NADEAU: You have no vax protests spreading it to those who are vaccinated and whose immunity has started to wane. So it's complicated. And it's not even winter yet.

BRUNHUBER: We'll keep an eye on that situation. Barbie Nadeau, thanks so much.

China is making progress and getting its young people immunized against COVID-19. They've vaccinated half of the child population between 3 and 11. That's over 84 million kids. Beijing hopes to vaccinate all children in this age group by the end of the year.

The U.S. is making progress in getting young children vaccinated. Since emergency use of Pfizer was authorized for 5-11, nearly 1 million kids have received a dose. That's helping to drive up overall vaccination numbers, a 62 percent increase compared to a month ago.

But several school districts in northern California say they'll defy the governor's vaccine mandate. Districts that don't comply risk losing millions of dollars in state funding.

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BRUNHUBER: Tyrone Howard is a professor of education and the director of Black Male Institute at UCLA. He joins me from Los Angeles.

Thank you so much for being here with us. Vaccine mandates in schools, almost every physician I've spoken with on this program said it's a great idea to fight COVID.

But we've never talked about the effect it might have on students, especially students of different races. I want to use some statistics as an example.

The "Mercury News" analyzed county health department data. And in the Bay Area about 85 percent of all students age 12 to 17 had at least one shot. When it comes to African American students, that number drops to 52 percent. And the numbers are similar for Latino students.

So are we facing a scenario here, if those numbers don't improve fast, a disproportionate number of Black and Brown students will be shut out of their schools later this fall or early next year, when the vaccine mandates kick in?

TYRONE HOWARD, DIRECTOR, BLACK MALE INSTITUTE AT UCLA: That is precisely the fear. That is precisely the concern because part of what we know is that many Black adults, many Latino adults had a vaccination hesitancy because of safety concerns, because of the quickness in which the vaccine was created.

And also because of a long and ugly history of medical racism in our country. If the adults have that type of hesitancy, it doesn't surprise us they will be hesitant to have their children vaccinated.

I do think there are some consequences that can come with it. As schools start to move to a mandate, saying students cannot come to school unless they've been vaccinated, that can be very, very unfavorable for Black and Brown children. Those children will essentially be locked out of schools.

These are also the various students who are also academically behind because of the pandemic. So you take a group of students who are already struggling and behind academically, if they're not allowed in schools or given an alternative that may not rise to the level of caliber of regular instruction, it can be really tough.

BRUNHUBER: Yes, absolutely. Not just in the short term; in the longer term as well this might grow even larger when they include younger kids eventually when the FDA approves vaccines for the younger kids.

Looking down the road, if this isn't changed, what might happen?

HOWARD: Yes, the consequences could be really, really devastating. When you talk about our younger children, that's the foundation of their educational development. If they don't get those core literacy skills, they really struggle for the rest of their academic careers.

If we already have achievement gaps that's been in place for decades, I think you can see those gaps get even wider. I think you can see higher dropout rates. I think that ultimately has lifelong consequences, lower employment opportunities, higher unemployment rates and a host of other negative indices that we see in young people that don't have a high school education.

That's why we have to figure out a way to address the problem because if not I think you're going to see our most vulnerable students become even further marginalized.

BRUNHUBER: It's not like the kids will be kicked out of school but they'll be moved to online schooling and so on. And this isn't just an abstract fear. We already know from the past 1.5 years, two years, about the effect that not going to in-person schooling has disproportionately on Black and Brown students.

HOWARD: Yes. So the data's been clear. There's been study after study that has shown, overwhelmingly, online learning does not work for most of students. There is a small number of students that it did work for. But the academic support they get and interacting with peers, the social dynamic, also contributes to learning. [04:45:00]

HOWARD: So we know the benefits coming from being in person are not going to be there. So you're talking about separate but again unequal, which is a long history we've dealt with in this country.

BRUNHUBER: For the last minute that we have here, let's get the important thing, which is how to turn this around.

Is it about access to vaccines for the kids?

I mean, they are available in pharmacies, doctor's offices, drive- throughs, mobile clinics.

Is it giving the kids access or is it you have to work through the parents to get them on board?

What's -- what can be done here?

HOWARD: Yes. I think we have to take a three-pronged approach. Number one, we have to continue to educate parents about the benefits of the vaccines, to lower fears and decrease anxiety.

The second thing is access. We're still seeing in lots of parts of our country, rural areas in particular, poor areas, that we see that Black and Brown families still don't have the access to the vaccine that they deserve. These are parents who want their children to have access but can't get the vaccination.

The third part, we have to begin thinking creatively in schools, about what will it mean and look like if you still have parents who are uneducated about the vaccine, have access to the vaccine but still don't want their children to have the vaccination?

I think schools have to figure out an in-person alternative that gives students the benefits without the alternative with the online format.

BRUNHUBER: It's a big problem and not a lot of time to turn it around. Appreciate your insights, professor Tyrone Howard. Thank you very much.

HOWARD: Thank you.

BRUNHUBER: Severe storms unleashed high winds and hail on the New York City area Saturday. Have a look at this.

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BRUNHUBER (voice-over): This is the Long Island community of Levittown. You can see the winds toppled a massive tree, nearly cutting this home in half. The area had been under an unusual tornado warning at the time. The ferocity of the storm rattled nerves.

Look at this as a driver got a little too close to the storm.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're in it. We're in the tornado. Oh, my God, we're in it. The video, the video, the video. Holy (INAUDIBLE) holy (INAUDIBLE).

We're in it right now, crossing right -- right in front of my (INAUDIBLE) --

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Just crossed (INAUDIBLE). (INAUDIBLE) right front of us. Look at all of these. Look at all of these (INAUDIBLE). Oh, right here. (INAUDIBLE), 3:25 (ph), crossing the road right in front of us, right in front of us. Tornado on the ground. Tornado (INAUDIBLE). Oh, my God.

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BRUNHUBER: For weeks climate change has been on the agenda at the COP26 summit. But when it comes to Earth, can some of the answers be found in outer space?

That's next. Stay with us.

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BRUNHUBER: As experts and activists look for ways to stop climate change here on Earth, astronauts have been getting a unique and disturbing view of the problem from space. Now there's hope that some of the technology used out there could lead to some solutions down here. Michael Holmes has more.

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MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN ANCHOR AND CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A view with a purpose: scientists say data collected from satellites and the International Space Station could provide insight and potential solutions to some of the planet's most critical problems, like climate change.

NASA recently revealed cutting-edge imagery from its Landsat 9 satellite, part of a joint program with the U.S. Geological Survey, which has captured images of the Earth's surface for nearly 50 years.

But experts say the details with this latest technology of coastlines and forest canopies could help officials track extreme climate events, like wildfires, melting glaciers and tropical deforestation.

European Space Agency astronaut Thomas Pesquet, who just returned from the International Space Station, is part of NASA's SpaceX Crew 2 mission, said he saw firsthand how urgent the climate crisis has become.

THOMAS PESQUET, EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY ASTRONAUT: We had unbelievable sights of entire regions, entire states in the U.S., entire countries, covered in smoke and ashes. That was actually pretty painful to watch.

HOLMES (voice-over): The Biden administration wants to increase NASA's budget in 2022 by a $1.5 billion. NASA administrator Bill Nelson says he envisions the agency will, one day, have a command center to monitor key data like sea levels, weather patterns and toxic emissions.

BILL NELSON, NASA ADMINISTRATOR: We are exploring the idea of a climate and mission control, just like you have seen in the launches and since you've seen, since the old Apollo days, a mission control for climate change.

HOLMES (voice-over): NASA says many innovations that were designed for spaceflight have already helped reduce energy consumption back on Earth, like allowing machinery like escalators and elevators to power down when not in use or upturning the ends of airplane wings to reduce fuel usage, which reduces CO2 emissions.

Astronauts on the ISS grew Hatch green chiles from seeds in space. The experiment not only providing fresh food for the crew but also showing ways vegetables can grow where there is limited water --

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HOLMES (voice-over): -- which could be useful as heat waves increasingly damage crops back on Earth.

Researchers hope the sky isn't the limit, how space can help the study and mitigation of the effects of climate change.

One recent space traveler says the stakes couldn't be higher for what could be learned from this final frontier.

WILLIAM SHATNER, ACTOR AND ASTRONAUT: But until you are up there, you see the blackness, the starkness. But in that moment, is blackness and death. In this moment down here, as we look down, there's life and nurturing.

HOLMES (voice-over): Michael Holmes, CNN.

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BRUNHUBER: And finally, this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree arrived in New York City Saturday morning. It's a 12-ton Norway spruce that's 79 feet or 24 meters tall. The tree will be decorated with more than 50,000 colored lights and topped with a massive Swarovski crystal star.

The official lighting ceremony takes place December 1st. This tree traveled from Elkton, Maryland, donated by a couple who said it stood in their yard for 85 years after it was cut down. A sprouting baby tree was planted in the same spot.

That wraps this hour of CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Kim Brunhuber. I'll be back in a moment with more.