Green Power’s Recent Comments

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  vested interests

  All sounds great but we need to start with the future movers and shakers. Start them young! Current movers and shakers will be slower to change the status quo. We need initiatives which impact on our current adult populations and on our children (future change).

  Within this initiative the need to internalise the externalities of environmental damage  are essential.

  Add local environmental literacy as a community intervention strategy. Quality information which pinpoints for the public the "best foot forward" environmentally speaking. Use an environmental accounting tool locally to pick up on actual local global warming issues. Design an action campaign involving promulgation of environmental literacy. Show the community the best way forward from within by using a local school as the focus for the project.

  If the current adults do not pick up on the lessons learned then the children will eventually as they grow older. All your suggestions are good but we need to make sure we maximise impact by varying the age of the audience.

  This environmental information is relevant and local. Replicate the accounting tool to monitor the impact that the environmetal literacy is having. We have produced big changes and are only after completing our second assessment in Ballina, Tipperary, Ireland; http://www.volvoadventure.org/site/829.asp.

  Waste volumes have been reduced significantly and thats good; now we are moving onto household energy use and car transport which represent 80% of our current ecological footprint in Ballina.

  Its practical, educational, meaningful and reduces green house gas emissions. The information garnered is owned locally and thus represents a real stimulus to change. This converts real change whereby changes in attitudes are followed by changes in behaviour. It is a bottom-up initiative. Rules, regulations and directives so often find their way into bureaucratic filing cabinets from where they represent aspirations; top-down needs to be accompanied by sufficient bottom-up initiative. Otherwise control and command becomes removed from reality on the ground. Subsidiarity is essential to sustainability as in LA21.

  The above local initiative has subsidiarity, sustainability, local-control and monitoring, community ownership and youthful input. Along with all your low and zero carbon suggestions that may go a long way.
  

  go ZED!

  On Albert, Martin, and ... Ralph? Solving the real energy crisis posted 3 years, 2 months ago 26 Responses

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  water and energy intensive

  Speaking to South African friends recently who see no water shortage or problem with europeans importing bottled wine? Export of the water brings in much needed money. Money vs water; now there's a problem.

  Also food especially food miles are so energy intensive. Buy local, conserve water. Recent project showed 7,000 food miles had accumulated on a strawbwerry yoghurt bought in Germany. Energy and water issues can not be over stated going forward.

  go ZED!

  On Eat it up posted 3 years, 2 months ago 9 Responses

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  alternatives to capitalism

  No need for a C change. Keep your capitalism but inject it with a high concentration of environmental cop-on. The ever narrowing pyramid of specialisation which depicts capitalism and economic success has simply lost sight of its own impact on the environment. It needs a check, perhaps this will slow the profit margin's slightly but heck guess who profits. The need to internalise the externalities of capitalism and industrial development are essential. I believe there is a need to internalise a new meaningful brand of information for the community/public essentially showing man his/her local impact on their environment.

  Add local/community environmental literacy. Quality information which pinpoints for the public the "best foot forward" environmentally speaking. Use an environmental accounting tool locally to pick up on actual local global warming issues. Design an action campaign involving promulgation of environmental literacy. Show the community the best way forward from within by using a local school as the focus for the project.

  If the current adults do not pick up on the lessons learned then the children will eventually as they grow older. This environmental information is relevant and local. Replicate the accounting tool to monitor the impact that the environmetal literacy is having. We have produced big changes and are only after completing our second assessment in Ballina, Tipperary, Ireland; http://www.volvoadventure.org/site/829.asp.
  Waste volumes have been reduced significantly and thats good; now we are moving onto household energy use and car transport which represent 80% of our current ecological footprint in Ballina.
  This removes the necessity to make c changes. Its practical, educational and meaningful. The information garnered is specifically local in context and thus represents a real stimulus to change. This converts real change whereby changes in attitudes are followed by changes in behaviour. It is a bottom-up initiative. Rules, regulations and directives so often find their way into bureaucratic filing cabinets from where they represent aspirations; top-down needs to be accompanied by sufficient bottom-up initiative. Otherwise control and command becomes removed from reality on the ground. Subsidiarity is essential to sustainability as in LA21.

  The above local initiative has subsidiarity, sustainability, local-control and monitoring, community ownership and youthful input. Along with your capitalism that may go along way!
  

  go ZED!

  On Capitalism posted 3 years, 2 months ago 33 Responses