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hello from the Education Coordinator

Chris Borstad — Sun, 18 Dec 2005 12:58:17 -0800

hi everyone! My name is Chris Borstad, and I'm the new Education Coordinator for Post Carbon Institute. I grew up in Colorado, and got my Bachelor's degree in Physics at Colorado State University. I just finished a Master's degree in Civil Engineering at the University of British Columbia, and in January I will be starting my PhD (I am a glutton for punishment!).

My work with PCI will involve communication with outposts and individuals about a variety of issues loosely categorized as "Educational." Some of my plans and ideas include:

-establishing an indexed, searchable database of educational resources for both teachers and learners. We would like people to be able to come to our website and find specific information of interest, be it a graph or slide of natural gas prices in North America or or a technical paper on the environmental effects of oil sands extraction or a pamphlet on peak oil for school children.

Coordinator HUB

Holiday Gift Giving

xtraspatial — Tue, 27 Dec 2005 10:22:49 -0800

Giving gifts this year was a difficult proposition for me. How do I simultaneously honor my commitments to Corporate Disobedience and my desire to give tribute to those who are closest to me? I'm sure there are as many ways as there are people in this forum. I'd like to share my method:

I became enrapt with the PCI and its notions of sustainability, awareness of Peak Oil, and relocalization only recently, and most of my friends and family members had no idea that I started a Post Carbon Outpost in upstate NY. So the first thing I did was to share with them the passion I feel for my new endeavor. I didn't try to persuade them, or scare them, or even ask for their graces. I just explained that I haven't felt so motivated to action since, well, hmmmm... I guess I never felt so motivated to action! I then explained to them, if they didn't already know, the concepts of self-sufficiency in the context of resource depletion and the effects of continuing on with the status quo. Again, no prosthelitizing, just emitting my worldview.

Sustainable Saratoga Springs (NY)

Anyone with experience with Bokashi/Effective Micro-organisms?

xtraspatial — Wed, 18 Jan 2006 07:48:39 -0800

As a backyard organic gardener (about 40 sq meters), I found an article on Bokashi use in Nova Scotia quite interesting. I have a compost box here in Saratoga Springs, New York, but the breakdown of organic matter is quite slow. I'm not using worms or strictly adhering to the addition of green/brown matter. Is anyone familiar with Bokashi and its effectiveness in reducing composting times?

OM Shanti,
Jim Zack, Sustainable Saratoga Springs (NY)

Sustainable Saratoga Springs (NY)

marketing materials for PCI

Mary Dalton — Thu, 02 Feb 2006 12:09:45 -0800

hello,
are there any marketing materials on this website that we can download and copy to take with us to events?
many thanks,
mary

Coordinator HUB

PowerDown: Imposed by Nature (17 Feb 2006)

xtraspatial — Sat, 25 Feb 2006 07:12:02 -0800

As all of you in the Saratoga area are well aware, we experienced a natural Powerdown scenario Friday, 17 February, when winds, locally in excess of 55 mph, downed trees and powerlines, cutting power to many businesses and over 150,000 area residents. For most, grid power wasn't restored until Saturday night, but some were without power until Tuesday or Wednesday. While temperatures were seasonably mild, many were without a means for heating their homes and those without gravity-driven water systems had no running water.

There was one direct fatality in the Spa area: a DOT worker who was killed when a huge pine tree sheared 15 feet up and crushed his truck. There were house fires, including another fatality in a South Glens Falls house fire.

Sustainable Saratoga Springs (NY)

Model resolutions or legislation?

Ben on Maui — Mon, 10 Apr 2006 23:10:42 -0700

Suppose for a moment that a city, county, or state legislative body was open to considering a bill or resolution that could move us toward effective, sustainable relocalized economies and communities. What would be the most important aspects of that legislation?

Support or subsidies for local sustainable agriculture?
Subsidies, rebates, and effective rate structures to encourage renewable energy installation?
Support for public transit, bike trails, and centralized pedestrian-friendly communities?

What would such statutes look like?

Does anyone have sample legislation? It would be a shame to reinvent the wheel if some have already been developed. Is there a collection of them somewhere where we could tap into them? How about a forum to develop some?

Maui Post [cheap] Petrole (Hawaii)

Model resolutions or legislation?

Ben on Maui — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 00:33:08 -0700

Perhaps we can compile model language for bills / resolutions for submission to local governmental bodies and agencies, or political parties. Many exist [San Francisco's renewable energy initiative comes to mind] but I have not been able to find a compilation to peruse. Anyone interested in helping on such an effort to bring some of these together in one resource?

Ben on Maui
maui_relocalized@mac.com

Maui Post [cheap] Petrole (Hawaii)

Re: CoordinatorHUB- Yes, Andre's Presentation Was Great!

creekside — Wed, 28 May 2008 10:12:45 -0700

Hi-
I wanted to echo everything that Patricia said
(she's more eloquent than me-- isn't it strange
how we can be well-spoken and lack confidence?)

Andre's presentation was great. I hope he does another one,
and that folks consider tuning in.

Thanks to Andre for doing this, and to PostCarbon for supporting him
in doing this.

Best,
Jim
smithmillcreek.blogspot.com
* We had 35 people show up to hear Frank Cook's talk on transition towns in Britain, and I have sold all 25 copies of the Transition Handbook I ordered from Great Britain from GreenBooks (bought at $19, sold at $25)
************************
***********************

Patricia Greene wrote:
>
> Hello Everyone,
> There were four coordinators, and a few other participants, on the
> online conference with Andre last night. He ran through his excellent
> power point on peak oil, the one he presented at the luncheon to
> officials last week. We were able to ask all the questions that came up
> for us and that come up in our own talking with people about peak oil,
> and he answered them with his inimitable grace, creativity, and
> sureness. The graphically accomplished power point, unlike some others
> I've seen, does not beat around the bush, but is straightforward about
> what, and how fast, things are coming down and why. Andre believes
> people are ready to hear and that they deserve the unadulterated truth
> if we are to inspire the massive changes that need to happen soon. I
> have to agree with him and thought the whole presentation and his
> teaching about it was excellent. He also generously offered to let those
> on the call use his power point.
>
> I think all of us learned a great deal and gained some confidence from
> his coaching that maybe we, too, can make persuasive presentations. Some
> of us have given up on the teaching/educational end of our Post Carbon
> work. Although up here in NY state we've shown many of the dvds, I, for
> one, have worried about being a 'doomer' and turning people off rather
> than on. Also, we seem to get the same in crowd each time. I also lack
> confidence that I can answer all the questions thrown at me if I assume
> being a spokesperson. People in our group just want to dive into
> relocalization, sustainable personal practices, and local food, and
> forget about all the (is it really bad?) news that is one of the
> motivations behind our work and behind waking up the community to the
> need for change.
>
> I would highly recommend Andre's presentation and leadership training if
> future presentations happen through Post Carbon-- and I hope they do. We
> need solid information we can use, confidence building and leadership
> training such as Andre (and others) can offer. I would urge Post
> Carbon/Relocalization to initiate a series of coordinator group
> trainings as soon as possible.
>
> One of the other coordinators brought up
> the Transition Town movement, and I would hope we could have a session
> on that as well with someone who is skilled.
>
> Another topic might be how
> to prepare a good resolution and the process of presenting it to local
> officials.
>
> Sarah might approach this from the psychological perspective.
>
> In the meantime, thanks Andre for taking the initiative and for giving
> so generously of your time, wisdom, and expertise.
>
> Patricia
>
> aangel wrote:
> >
> > Hi, everyone. It's not too late to join the presentation:
> > https://lobby.mc.iconf.net/gcc/r.asp?ba=6&I=303682301
> > https://lobby.mc.iconf.net/gcc/r.asp?ba=6&I=303682301 -->
> > ----------------------------------------------------
> > André Angelantoni
> > Inspiring Green Leadership
> > Peak Oil, Climate Change and Business, Free Executive Briefing
> > "... very motivating...A very powerful presentation." - Sun Microsystems
> > "...fascinating, brilliant and important..." - Tim Black, Director,
> > Marie Stopes International
> > www.InspiringGreenLeadership.com/peak-oil-climate-change-and-business
> > http://www.InspiringGreenLeadership.com/peak-oil-climate-change-and-busi... -->
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > To view this group on the web, visit The Coordinator HUB Home Page
> > http://www.relocalize.net/groups/coordinate -->
> > To Unsubscribe from this list visit your My Subscription page for the
> > group http://www.relocalize.net/og/manage/1583 -->
>
> --
> Patricia Greene
> Energy Events Coordinator
> COMMUNITY ENERGY SERVICES, INC.
> 101 Main St., Suite 2
> Canton, NY 13617
> 315 379-9466
> patricia@
>

Coordinator HUB

Should County Governments establish an ordinance giving first preference to local businesses?

Steve Hamm — Mon, 15 May 2006 12:33:24 -0700

INTRODUCTION: This forum subject is offered as a topic for discussion to determine if people think creating a County ordinance giving preference to local businesses in the competitive bidding process is an important issue.

Local 20/20 (Port Townsend, Jefferson County, WA)

How to measure behavioral change?

cellodon — Tue, 16 May 2006 13:14:19 -0700

Hello everyone,

In the fall I'll be teaching a "break petroleum dependence" class at Elgin Community College (Illinois). I'd love to do a pre-test/post-test to measure students' behavioral change, i.e., in what ways and to what degree they are making the transition away from oil. The findings might help us identify what teaching strategies are most effective in getting members of the general public to use less petroleum.

Does such an inventory already exist? If so, please send me a signal

donna dot askins at gmail dot com

Many thanks.

Donna.

Alliance for a Post Petroleum Local Economy (APPLE) - Elgin, Illinois

Do you teach peak oil at a community college?

cellodon — Tue, 20 Jun 2006 12:34:56 -0700

Or any college for that matter. I know of 3 of us so far: me, John Rawlins, & Annie Dunn Watson. I'm thinking we might find a way to post our resources (lesson plans etc) in 1 place, or talk about what we have found to be effective teaching techniques, etc.

I found it remarkably easy to get the local community college personnel to let me teach the class. I think they are always looking for fresh, timely ideas (and this certainly is). Also to their advantage, they can turn on a dime. Big 4-year universities (like my day job) typically must go thru endless committees and procedures before they can approve this or that. Meanwhile, tick tick, petroleum is slipping away and most of the population is uneducated and unprepared.

Your thoughts?

Donna Askins.

Coordinator HUB

Daily Updates from ASPO - 5

Anita Laurin — Wed, 19 Jul 2006 08:22:49 -0700

These folks have gone to Italy for ASPO-5 and provide a daily synopsis of the world's most important conference.

Here is their website:
http://www.oilposter.org/blog/aspoblog.html

Coordinator HUB

Congress is currently working on the 2007 Farm Bill and contemplating CONTINUING THE CORN SUBSIDIES

Anita Laurin — Fri, 12 Oct 2007 13:48:47 -0700

The Congressional Research Service's March 2007 report on biofuels (http://collinpeterson.house.gov/PDF/ethanol.pdf) and the Clean Cities, August 2007 Fact Sheet (http://www.eere.energy.gov/cleancities/pdfs/41834.pdf) reveal some alarming facts and a lot of good information.

Clean Cities is a program of the Department of Energy, which was launched in 1993 in response to the Energy Policy Act of 1992. This program's primary mission is to "displace petroleum" and they are avidly promoting corn ethanol. Our tax dollars are being distributed through this program. There are almost 90 groups across the country who have become Clean Cities Coalitions including Clean Fuels Ohio. They are granted a 501 (3) c nonprofit status making donations to the organization tax deductable. This program was never set up as a response to either peak oil/gas or global warming - there was little awareness in Washington in 1992 of either problem.

According to the Congressional Research Service report, the "total annual U.S. ethanol production capacity in existence or under construction as of February 2, 2007, was 11.7 billion gallons. This production capacity is well in excess of the 7.5 billion gallon supply required in 2012 by the Renewable Fuel Standard (Energy Policy Act of 2005 [P.L. 109-58])." That is 4.2 billion gallons annually MORE than Congress mandated.

And according to the Clean Cities Fact Sheet, their goal is to displace 2.5 billion gallons of petroleum annually by 2020. That goal has already been exceeded by 368% - 13 years before their target.

Last year we subsidized the corn industry (and related government programs and trade organizations) with $6 billion. The Congressional Research Service found that corn ethanol for most of 2006 was profitable, making these subsidies unnecessary. We are depleting our soil and contaminating our water for this corn frenzy and there is no end in sight as long as subsidies are available. When you realize that the Ohio Corn Marketing Program gets $$$ from each bushel sold (check-off program), you begin to realize the more corn sold the more $$$ they receive to promote corn ethanol.

There is no mechanism in place, as the above figures reveal, to put the brakes on corn ethanol production.

If we want to reduce food miles and move toward sustainable agriculture, we have to STOP Congress from the continuation of corn subsidies. In Washington they are currently working on melding the House and the Senate's versions of what will become the 2007 Farm Bill. Now is the time to contact our Senators and Representatives and request that they

* Discontinue corn subsidies and tax credits - biofuels are not the answer and corn ethanol is bankruptring the soil for our children's future
* Allocate monies to reestablish our passenger rail system - Amtrak
* As we are currently engaged in deficit spending, we should ask that they stop funding programs that have achieved their goals, such as the Clean Cities Program (who has exceeded their goal by 368%)
* Remind them that they represent the interests of Ohio citizens - not corporations like ADM or any other corn industry lobbyist

They are more apt to listen to a polite and respectfully expressed message, I have been told. Contact information:

Senator George Voinovich
Phone: 202-224-3353
Fax: 202-228-1382

Senator Sherrod Brown
Phone: 202-224-2315
Fax: 202-228-6321

Representative Patrick J. Tiberi
Phone: 202-225-5355
Fax: 202-226-4523

Representative Deborah Pryce
Phone: 202-225-2015
Fax: 202-225-3529

If your representative is not listed, you can locate his/hers contact information at: http://www.visi.com/juan/congress/

This could be a really important call, as groups like 25x25 are currently lobbying very hard to expand federal subsidies and corn ethanol production. The current rise in the cost of food is one of the many "unintended" but predicted consequences of the rapid expansion of corn ethanol production. And, the Greek Islands are a good example of crop subsidies contributing to soil depletion.
http://www.ekathimerini.com/4dcgi/_w_articles_politics_100010_04/02/2006...

Anita Laurin, Coordinator
Central Ohio Relocalization Effort

Central Ohio Relocalization Effort (CORE), Columbus, Ohio

Canada in 2020: your scenario?

grahamia — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 22:13:20 -0700

Canada in 2020 is a joint project by the Star, LaPresse, the CBC and the Dominion Institute aimed at highlighting what Canadians think will be the single most important issue facing Canada in the year 2020.

From July until November, the Star and LaPresse will publish a series of essays by 20 leading Canadian commentators on the issue or event they believe could transform Canada by 2020.

The CBC will broadcast interviews with the authors and documentaries about their ideas.

Canadians can add their voices to the debate through thestar.com/2020 or the project's website, twenty-twenty.ca. There, they can also enter an essay contest conducted by the Dominion Institute on what issue or event could have the greatest impact on Canada by the year 2020.

You can add your comments and read what others are saying in response to the essays. Log on at their Forum http://www.twenty-twenty.ca/forum.

Only about half of the 20 prominent Canadians have posted their essays so far, and this is late in September! The total list is Andrew Cohen, Richard Hétu, Daniel Stoffman, Pierre Fortin, Don Drummond, Jennifer Welsh, Roger Gibbins, Rachel A. Qitsualik, George Elliott Clarke,
(from here on, no essays yet) David Suzuki, Joseph Facal, Mark Kingwell, Jim Stanford, John Ralston Saul, Stéphane Kelly, Chantal Hébert, David Foot, David Walker, Irshad Manji, and Neil Bissoondath.

I can't say I recognize enough of them to say how well balanced this list is. Can you?

Postcarbon and relocalization groups could usefully get on the bandwagon and post to the forum for Canada 2020, so far only one post out of 250+ has anything to do with energy depletion.

Ian

Coordinator HUB

"Time Dollars"

KenSolar.com — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 14:39:20 -0700

Not sure if you folks have heard about this yet, but the new Time Dollars idea is gathering a lot of interest here in Florida, and now that people have somewhere that they can turn for help, it's catching on like wildfire. The local paper (islandsandpaper.com) just did a front page story on our Localization Committee here, and wow, that was a great way to get some free advertising out there. So, if you want to start promoting a currency-less environment in your town too, let the local media know about. Their itching for a story like this, so show them your stuff.I have 4 different officials from town hall interested here now too, so I can tell you first hand that the Time Dollars idea is a great way to rally your local townspeople. See also: http://timebanks.org for ideas.. Cheerz! :)
-ken

Fort Myers Beach Localization Committee

Rain catchments and cisterns..

KenSolar.com — Tue, 26 Sep 2006 14:43:49 -0700

Localized water production is very important. In a blackout, most cities can only continue to pump water for a matter of hours, so as long as you have your own water collected (cisterns and catchments are cheap) you'll survive it just fine. What's even better is the fact that you can eliminate your water bill too :)
-ken

Fort Myers Beach Localization Committee

Relocalization and Community Food Security

bewing — Wed, 27 Sep 2006 19:53:52 -0700

Community food security advocates and activists are possible allies in our efforts to encourage the development of regional relocalization networks. The process of relocalizing the food distribution newtrok will enhance community food security.

Saint John Relocalization Network

Community research plan?

Ben on Maui — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 08:50:40 -0800

I would like to reinvigorate our group, but I want to have a structure or plan going in. I think pulling together data - a picture of the current status of our community - is a good project to start with, and it could give participants specific roles to play. I'm stressed for time, and would love any sort of help along this line that you may have.

Perhaps this is already answered on the site and I haven't found it.

I am looking for any sort of checklist or framework for doing a sort of community energy audit. I'm thinking of a guide for how to gather a picture of the energy status of a community - sort of a 'how-to' for researching the status of a city, county, state [island?], etc.. These are things that come to mind, in a very brief brainstorm, that might be included in such a checklist:

1. A list of what topics to research/cover
a. types & amounts of energy imported;
b. types and amounts of locally generated energy,
c. existing statutory enticements or obstacles,
d. recent trends in energy usage,
e. local energy resources available, but untapped
d. etc.

2. A list of who, or what groups, to contact for what type of data, and what types of reports to look or ask for
a. utilities,
b. regulatory or governmental agencies,
c. university researchers,
d. environmental groups,
e. etc.

3. all the rest. - I know there are a lot of ideas I am missing.

Or perhaps a group has compiled a report for the local city or legislature that we could use as a model?

Thanks,
Ben on Maui

Coordinator HUB

Get the Washington Post to cover peak oil

Erica Etelson — Sat, 22 Sep 2007 14:24:40 -0700

I got a response from the Washington Post to my request that they cover peak oil--no promises of coverage, just an acknowledgement that they would alert their energy reporter to the issue. Now would be an ideal time to turn up the pressure by getting other people concerned about peak oil to contact the Post ombudsman. Here's a sample message people can send to Deborah Howell at ombudsman@washpost.com.

>
Dear Ms. Howell:

I am writing to encourage the Post to undertake an in-depth investigation into the woefully underreported issue of peak oil and gas, a looming crisis that has the potential to cause severe economic damage in coming years. Although the Dept of Energy and the General Accounting Office have urged the government to immediately mobilize a "crash" program to retool our economy so that it can function without fossil fuels, there has been no action whatsoever on this issue. Like global warming, if we do "too little, too late" to conserve fossil fuels and to mitigate the anticipated impacts of impending shortages on our economic, agricultural and transportation systems, we are condemning the next generation to unimaginable hardship.

I urge the Post to vigorously investigate this issue and feature it prominently in the pages of your distinguished newspaper. There are dozens of angles for reporters to examine, including agriculture, water pumping and purification,
transportion, shipping, unemployment, health care, global trade, home heating oil, sewage treatment, waste management, housing/construction, potential military responses, the timing/rate of oil and gas depletion, "relocalization" campaigns (many are springing up all over the world), etc.

Thank you for your consideration of this critical issue.

Sincerely,

Coordinator HUB

Regional Adaption Map

pekadillo — Sat, 11 Nov 2006 16:21:26 -0800

At our last meeting, someone outlined a very interesting idea which seems to have generated some excitement in the group. I'd like to run it by you all to see if anyone's tried this before, and if you have any suggestions on how to implement it.

The idea is to host an interactive map on our website, showing the local region in high detail. We then collect data from the community and show it visually on the map, eg:

Home vegetable gardens
Organic farms
Green innovations
Businesses that buy local produce
Solar panels
Biofuel producer
Grey water system
Designated permaculture 'zone'
- Zone 1: Home garden
- Zone 2: Town infrastructure
- Zone 3: Small farms
- Zone 4: Forestry
- Zone 5: Native habitat
etc

Once some of the map has been marked, people in the community moving towards sustainability can identify each other. This could facilitate the creation of 'green clusters' and business networks which could make progress more effectively than they could alone.

The map & data could also be used as the basis for an Energy Descent Action Plan.

There are some technical hurdles to jump before we can implement such a scheme. While I have some web development skills, I don't have any GIS experience and the learning curve may be steep. There seems to be a lot of open source GIS systems out there but it will take a lot of time and work to research to find the most suitable one and to learn how to use it.

Google Maps is not usable in our area due to the low-resolution coverage. Our local council (Caloundra City) already hosts an impressive online map with excellent resolution and numerous useful layers. Perhaps we can leverage this in some way.

Any ideas out there on a way to take this forwards?

Barry
http://www.blackallrangerelocalisation.org

Sustainable Maleny Project

Things are looking up in Monterey County

Decal — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 18:46:12 -0800

Well, what is going on in Monterey County?
Whatever it is, it’s BIG.
It’s Bigger than BIG, it’s the paradigm shift we’ve been waiting for….
It’s the move to a more sustainable (viable into the future) mind-set and it has infiltrated this entire Monterey Bay region.

Let’s go down the list of leaders, shall we?
We’ve got Sustainable Monterey County, promoting energy-independent communities.
We’ve got Sustainable Pacific Grove, and newly elected Mayor Dan Cort, who recently signed the Urban Environmental Accords and the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, leading the way as a demonstration city for sustainability.
We’ve got Big Sur Power Down, with a Biodiesel co-op, and regular workshops on re-ruralization.
We’ve got sustainability meetings in Carmel Valley, discussing issues such as Power of Community.
There’s KRXA 540 AM’s weekly show, “Tomorrow Matters”, addressing global climate disruptions and Peak Oil, and there’s Access TV’s “Inklings” program airing local environmental lectures and demonstrations.
We’ve got MIIS, and CSUMB environmental committees, with many teachers and students embracing new green building and sustainable living programs.
MIIS hosts Earth day in April and CSUMB has an alternative building project in Salinas, next to Dorothy’s kitchen with organic gardening and straw bale structures, and they have an amazing Farm to School Program through the Watershed Institute.
We’ve got Laura Strohm and the Sustainability Academy bringing green consciousness to businesses and teaching about the “triple” bottom line: Profit, People and Planet.
We’ve got LandWatch, League of Women Voters: Natural Resources Committee, AMBAG, U.S. Green Builders, Fort Ord Environmental Justice Network, Sustainable Base Reuse Institute, The Monterey Bay Aquarium, Sea Studios, The Sierra Club, Save Our Waterfront, HOPE, ALBA, Liquid Books, The Last Chance Mercantile, Jane Parker, Leon Panetta, John Laird, and Sam Farr, all working to make this region more livable tomorrow than it is today. We’ve got teachers like Connie St. Amour at Santa Catalina teaching middle school kids how to be Global Warriors, and Roland Saher at Anzar High School in San Juan Bautista teaching climate change policy.
And we’ve got students like Arwyn Sherman, head of the Environmental Committee at York, creating on-campus workshops on Environmental and Corporate Accountability.
We’ve got Laughing Onion and other Community Supported Agriculture farms, we’ve got Farmers Markets, we’ve got wind credits at Whole Foods, we’ve got restaurants like Passion Fish and Montrio supporting sustainable fishing practices and fast food chains like Chipotle in Del Monte Shopping Center which do not use Styrofoam containers and reject factory farming.
We’ve got authors such as Pierre Chomat, “Oil Addiction and the World in Peril,” speaking locally on the global energy crisis,… and if we include every single person who has changed a light bulb to compact fluorescent, ridden a bike to work, or has reduced their consumptive ways by 3% each year to match the global predicted oil decline rate … then we can add tens of thousands of efforts and actions to the list of what’s going on in the Monterey County.
This is the true look of the new millennium. This is us doing what needs to be done to leave a rich legacy for future generations; this is us becoming stewards of the Earth. This is what’s really going on in Monterey County! There’s no gap to be filled, only wagons to jump on. So jump, my friends, ‘cause this is where it’s at!

Sincerely,

Deborah Lindsay

Big Sur Powerdown

It May Not Be Too Late: A year-end perspective from Worldwatch President Christopher Flavin

Larry Menkes — Thu, 28 Dec 2006 18:28:30 -0800

From: Christopher Flavin: WorldWatch President

If the world succeeds in avoiding ecological collapse, historians may one day look back on 2006 as the “tipping-point” moment.

Around the globe, the past year has produced a remarkable series of indicators that human societies are waking up to the precarious state of our world. If current trends are not reversed—and soon—we will hand the next generation not only a natural resource base on the verge of collapse, but a global economy on the edge of failure.

Even though 2006 was marked by its share of acute crises, led by the conflicts in Iraq and Darfur, the less acute but more profound crisis of global climate disruption reached the top rungs of public attention for the first time. Scientists warn we may soon cross a threshold of no return as dying forests and warming tundra release additional carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, enabling climate change to feed on itself. In fact, some believe it could already be too late.

This urgency is being reflected in public opinion. In tallying the results of 2006 elections and opinion polls in several countries, the news service Reuters adapted an old James Carville phrase, “It’s the environment, stupid.” In Europe, which has long eclipsed the United States in such matters, even conservative parties have taken up the environmental banner. And in the pivotal U.S. mid-term elections, analysts were surprised to find that global warming played a role in many races, often at the expense of incumbents who had ignored the problem. As a result, climate policy will be high on the agendas of both Democratic and Republican legislators in 2007.

The awakening of the United States from years of fitful hibernation is my nomination for the most momentous environmental development of the year. Without the leadership of the world’s leading superpower—and biggest polluter—it is impossible to mobilize the global consensus needed to tackle this daunting problem, or to galvanize the second and third most important countries, China and India.

The most intriguing part of the U.S. story involves my home state of California, which in September adopted landmark legislation to limit greenhouse gas emissions. Notably, venture capitalists and Silicon Valley entrepreneurs played a key role in pushing the new climate bill through. Today, renewable energy technologies like solar power and biofuels are growing at nearly 20 times the rate of fossil fuels, and major institutions and investors like Wal-Mart, DuPont, and Goldman Sachs are channeling billions of dollars in their direction.

In the more than three decades that Worldwatch has tracked global environmental trends, there has never been a year like the one now coming to a close. We have entered a period of rapid, non-linear change, not only in our planet’s ecosystems, but in the worlds of business and politics as well. The question now is whether humanity will continue to mobilize—before it’s too late. 2007 will provide a test of whether this incredible new momentum can be maintained.

Philadelphia Organic Democracy

Urban Agriculture

bewing — Sat, 30 Dec 2006 10:41:03 -0800

http://peaknik.blogspot.com/

For those that believe mankind needs to re-evaluate and change the role one plays in our ecosystem of finite resources and our impact on future generations and their way of life. Check out the video on urban agriculture

Saint John Relocalization Network

Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement and Peak Oil Resolutions

Anita Laurin — Sun, 14 Jan 2007 10:58:10 -0800

Many groups are actively supporting local initiatives regarding two very pressing issues impacting society in the United States: global warming and the peaking of global oil production. The Post Carbon Institute's Relocalization Network is focused on helping municipalities prepare for the impact of fossil fuel depletion and to mitigate its effect on their community. Two organizations, Stop Global Warming.org and the Sierra Club, are actively promoting the Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement as a plan to reduce greenhouse gasses emitted by municipalities across the country. The Relocalization Network is promoting efforts to help cities and bioregions become more locally self-reliant and much less consumptive; thereby reducing much of the need to burn depleting petroleum supplies. We believe that proposals regarding relocalization will (and must) reduce local CO2 emissions, but that the Mayor's Climate Protection Agreement does not take into consideration the serious impact depleting petroleum supplies is likely to have on our community.

Here is a comparison of the two initiatives. The purpose is to advance understanding regarding their similarities and differences.

http://www.relocalize.net/files/MayorClimateAgreement_PeakOilResolution....

Central Ohio Relocalization Effort (CORE), Columbus, Ohio

Artificial Peak the World Over?

lifetree76 — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 06:30:44 -0800

I wonder as I watch world events as to whether we will see an artificial peak dropped on us as a result of the drum beats of war going on in the Persian Gulf. It is difficult to see the future with so many factors at play, however if hostilities do break out as they seem more and more likely to do, what will the effect be on world oil flows and prices?

Many that are members of Post Carbon have seen Frank Senso's We Were Warned concerning a sudden supply shock due to a combination of weather and terrorism related events. However when the resources of nation-states are brought to bear and destruction is wide spread and intentional, it is a truly frightening equation.

Many of the preparations we have contemplated, dicussed, begun to put into practice may be the only option for our communities if the price of oil were to suddenly jump in excess of $200 plus dollars.

A price jump could easily occur at the first whiff of open conflict in the region. Iran is firmly in the camp of China and Russia and would likely find their position bolstered by those two states in particular. The build up of Western forces in the eastern Med combined with the increased build up of forces in the Gulf is too great a powder keg and cannot be disregarded.

Getting back to the original thrust of this entry, for members of Relocalize/Post Carbon, I would advise examining the most practical and immediate measures that can be taken in the case of a sudden fuel crunch and be prepared to engage your local officials with your advise. You will likely be the only ones in your communities with the off the shelf methods to cope with a sudden oil shock.

I hope it doesn't come to war. I hope that we are in a position to have a few years to prepare for peak oil, if however the artificial peak comes, peak oilers with a mind to their communities like members of this site, might be the only ones with relevant, locally minded solutions to a very bad situation.

Hope and pray for peace but prepare nonetheless.

Coordinator HUB