Climate Talks Hike Carbon Footprint in Copenhagen

The UK Telegraph provides a seriously amusing redux of the first day of the Climate Talks and is well worth a read. Private jets, private cars, a carbon footprint that displays no serious effort to contain itself - these are the earmarks of a great party. However both critics from the Left and Right wrangle with the Cap n' Trade of this junket. Will there be serious negotiations?

The Obama Administration declared yesterday that, yes - greenhouse gasses including carbon dioxide emissions "threaten the public health and welfare of the American people," thus empowering the agency to regulate a wide range of CO2-emitting industries under provisions of the Clean Air Act. President Obama intends to drop-in on the Climate Talks after receiving his Nobel Prize in Norway, a photo op which is likely to draw all sorts of praise and criticism.


From Americans for Prosperity

The provided video from Americans For Prosperity, critical of the Climate Talks and its impact on American capitalism, displays the mega-use of private cars carrying delegates while public transportation stands unused. Of course, there is the excuse that delegates must be concerned with security, but the irony is nonetheless delicious.

The Story of Cap and Trade

The Story of Stuff meteored to international success and has fueled the next chapter in Annie Leonard's animated series on the environmental impact of our policies and practices, " The Story of Cap and Trade." Ironic and amusing, this animation points a finger at the troubles with using a market-based system to control the amount of carbon emissions we create because, as Leonard says, "there are a lot of devils in the details of the cap n' trade proposals on the table."

Future chapters include more animated storytelling on the life cycle of Plastic Bottles and electronics. Check it out on The Story of Stuff website.

"Awakening the Dreamer" Symposium Stirs Up Faith in Future

Awakening the Dreamer Symposium Trailer from Pachamama Alliance on Vimeo.

The Pachamama Alliance, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting a spiritual path that embraces environmental sustainability and social justice, continues itsw series of international symposiums introducing a new video in Ocotber. These meetings held all over the world lead people in a conversation about personal choices and its impact on our environment.

From the "Awakening the Dreamer" Website:

In the mid-1990's, through a mysterious set of circumstances, a group of North Americans visited a remote and intact group of indigenous people - the Achuar - located deep in the Amazonian region of Ecuador.

This relationship that was to become The Pachamama Alliance, was actually initiated by the indigenous elders and shamans themselves who, out of their deep concern for the growing threat to their ancient way of life, and their recognition that the roots of this threat lay far beyond their rainforest home, actively sought the partnership of committed individuals living in the modern world.

From the beginning, our indigenous partners have reminded us that one of the most powerful actions that can be taken in support of the rainforest and its inhabitants is to “change the dream of the North,” since it is our dream—our desires and appetites—that is driving the destruction of the rainforests around the world. Ultimately, to assure the long-term survival of our rainforests, and indeed of the natural world and even ourselves, we need to address the core values and ways of seeing the world that are deeply imbedded in our modern worldview.

For events in your area, go to Awakening the Dreamer.

Diverse Communities Team UP to Clean UP

Diverse Communities Team UP to Clean UP from Polidoc on Vimeo.

On a uniquely beautiful August day in San Francisco, a handful of community , government, job training groups and neighborhood volunteers joined to tackle the grit on the urban facade of the complex Fifth District.

Festooned with rakes, brooms, shovels and garbage bags, over 300 people fanned across the district's widely dispersed neighborhoods.

Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi was on hand to celebrate and put some muscle in. Interviews with organizers and volunteers lend a real taste of the event in this video.

"The Cove" Wipes Smile off Flipper's Face

"The Cove" is a powerful piece of film activism. Done mostly in secrecy, these filmmakers devised multiple camouflaged cameras in order to capture the round-the-clock activities of the town's fishermen serving the multi-billion dollar industry of dolphin harvesting for export to sea parks (e.g.).

The dolphins that aren't quite smiley or friendly enough? They are then pushed into another cove for slaughter. Subsequently, the dolphin meat is served to the town's school children, with unfortunate side effects caused by the high levels of mercury. Look for this film at a theater near you.

Vancouver's 6 Acre Living Roof Grows on City Officials

Vancouver's 6 Acre Living Roof from Dave Budge on Vimeo.

The roof of the Vancouver BC Convention Centre is covered with over 2.5 hectares (6 acres) of native grassland. Usually closed to the public, we were able to get a tour and interview with the landscape architect of the project, Bruce Hemstock.

This is part 1 of the “Growing Cities” documentary series shot while traveling in the USA and Canada – June 2009. 2 person crew. Canon 5DmkII and Zoom H4n. Music is “Andvari” by Sigur Rós

Download the full 22 minute interview as an mp3 at children-of-dome.com/growing_cities/bruce_hemstock_interview.mp3

Cameron Diaz Delivers Her Green Message

Long-time environmentalist Diaz criss-crosses the country in this documentary asking people basics like do you know where your water and food comes from to provoke conversation. What will it take for you to get involved, she querries.

What will it take?

Food, Inc. Opens

"You'll never look at dinner the same way."

Opening throughout coastal cities in the nation, "Food, Inc." features critic/philosopher and food lover Michael Pollan who takes the viewer on a trip through the food chain. If you are on the coast, see it. If you are living in the bread basket states, well, you'll have to wait for the DVD release.

For more background, listen to this NPR story.

Greenpeace and Supervisor Take Off Gloves to Fight Global Warming

San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, who champions many city-based green initiatives, most notably the ban on plastic bags in San Francisco, spoke at City Hall on May 27 where Greenpeace presented a new report that showed the green-leaning state of California is still a leading emitter of global warming pollution. After the press conference, the organizers marched over to the office of House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi to deliver 30,000 petitions urging Congress to implement stronger measures to prevent global warming.

Calling the situation “urgent” in this video, Mirkarimi gave a rallying cry to Californians to reduce our carbon footprint. “California is the poster child for what is not going right in terms of carbon emissions, the Supervisor said. "It is our responsibility socially, culturally, philosophically, feduciarily and environmentally that we lead the pack.”



State Assemblyman Tom Ammanio provided a statement calling for leadership from Congress. “Despite California's efforts, we are still ranked second in the nation for the highest amount of global warming emissions. Giving lip service to renewable energy or simply talking green will not be enough – we need strong committed leadership that will call for significant reductions and progressive environmental standards. This report should act as a wake-up call to all of us.”

The America's Share of the Climate Crisis report released by Greenpeace reveals that California emitted more global warming pollution from fossil fuel consumption between 1960 and 2005 than 170 of the 184 countries studied. The report also finds that the US:

• exceeds all other nations in cumulative emissions since 1960, accounting for nearly 26 per cent of all the global warming pollution emitted in that period.
• emitted more CO2 than 171 of 184 countries combined.
• in California alone produces 6.7 times higher emissisons than China and 60 times more than Kenya.

The Greenpeace report states that despite President Obama's calls for stronger climate legislation and $80 billion of economic stimulus funds to develop clean, renewable energy, these measures fall short of meeting the requirements necessary to avert a climate catastrophe.

Earlier this month, Greenpeace called out these "conservative" Democrats for supporting the whittling away of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) to relieve dirty energy providers of a capital crunch that would otherwise likely kill the coal-energy industry.

Greenpeace USA Executive Director Phil Radford issued the following statement:

“Despite the best efforts of Chairman Waxman, this bill has been seriously undermined by the lobbying of industries more concerned with profits than the plight of our planet. While science clearly tells us that only dramatic action can prevent global warming and its catastrophic impacts, this bill has fallen prey to political infighting and industry pressure. We cannot support this bill in its current state. We call on President Obama and leaders in Congress to get back to work and produce a bill, based on science, which presents a clear road map for significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions, transforms our economy with clean, renewable energy technology, generates new green jobs and shows real leadership internationally.”

One of the chief concerns that critics of the American Clean Energy and Security Act (ACES) have is that it gives legacy energy providers, such as coal, 60 per cent of the money generated in a carbon market compared to the 18 percent allotted to renewable providers such as wind and solar. This higher allowance to traditional energy providers disincentivize a quicker shift to renewable energy from a monetary point-of-view.

We are actually pretty worried about it,” says Matt Cheney, CEO of Renewable Venture. “It’s basically saying that by virtue of having polluted you now have the right to pollute in the new cap and trade program,” Cheney says.

According to the graph below, amendments to the ACES have had a coincidentally beneficial impact on the stock prices of the coal industry, as this graph show.




Links:

• America's Share of the Climate Crisis Report
• Aces Low for the Solar Industry
• Critique of Waxman-Markey Climate Bill
• Coal Stocks Surge Mirrors Climate Bill Concessions
  

Food Philosopher Pollan Hopeful about Obama's Take on Big-Ag Practices

"We are eating oil and spewing greenhouse gas"

The Long Now Foundation presents author and philosopher Michael Pollan, who holds both an immediate and long term appreciation for food and its relationship to a sustainable world.

"We find ourselves in an uncomfortable place," says Pollan, who muses that he, along with others invested in sustainable practices, is now sitting at the table of federal government influencing food and agricultural policy. He declares that Obama understands the problem, but more importantly, will soon be forced to deal with the food system because it is at the heart of the creation of greenhouse gasses (CO2, methane, Ne).

Pollan applauds Michelle Obama, who recently planted an organic plot on the White House Grounds. For that effort, she received a few slaps. One such criticism came from the Mid-America CropLife Association (MACA), which represents the companies producing the pesticides and fertilizers underpinning "conventional" American agriculture who wrote:

"We really think by making this garden organic, you have cast aspersions on conventional foods in our industry. We really hope you consider, buying and using some of our wonderful crop protection products."

Pollan acknowledges the accomplishment of the modern agricultural system of providing massive amounts of cheap food, but questions its true cost. The U.S. subsidizes only five crops and has encouraged the creation of monocrop farms which are excessively vulnerable to pest infestation, thus requiring more pesticides; however, the government does not subsidize the growth of broccoli.

source: FORA.tv

Small Town Mayor Boosts Plastic Bag Ban

Fairfax just enacted its ban or plastic bags in retail locations on May 4, 2009.
Larry Bragman, Mayor of the northern California town of Fairfax, discusses the need for and commercial benefit of banning plastic bags in this video.

Advocates of the ban, including fellow city council member Lew Tremaine (Green Party) and lifelong resident Andy Peri, first brought the resolution forward to the city council last June. However, two bag manufacturers threatened to sue the town because the council had not conducted an environmental review. The council decided to make the ban voluntary. By the fall, an anti-plastic bag measure was on the ballot and passed with 79 per cent of the vote, thus evading the need (and expense) of an "environmental review".

Related Links:

Sierra Club Podcast: San Francisco Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi and Sierra Club Bay Chapter Political Director John Rizzo talk about bringing solar power to San Francisco and the surprising wave of excitement over the plastic bag ban initiative.

Marin IJ: May 4, 2009 article describing history success of effort in Fairfax to ban plastic bags.

RTE News: Ocean clean-up yields 700,000 plastic bags

Story of Stuff Enriches School Discussions and Hits the NYT

The New York Times ran a front-page piece today on how the runaway viral video success, "The Story of Stuff," has become a part of curriculum in some schools. The 20 minute animation describes the history of consumerism as a lifestyle choice using humor and simplicity.

While teachers favor its use over say that other hit, "Inconvenient Truth" for a few reasons, one of which is duration, some parents aren't so happy about the results. When one daughter came home with a lesson plan for her family, her dad took it to the board.

The New york Times reports that:

Most parents take such needling with humor. But Mark Zuber, a parent of a child at Big Sky High School in Missoula, had a stronger reaction when a teacher showed the video to his daughter last year. “There was not one positive thing about capitalism in the whole thing,” Mr. Zuber said.

Corporations, for example, are portrayed as a bloated person sporting a top hat and with a dollar sign etched on its front.

He described the video as one-sided. “It was very well done, very effective advocacy, but it was just that,” he said.

Mr. Zuber argued before the Missoula County School Board that the way in which “The Story of Stuff” was presented, without an alternative point of view, violated its standards on bias, and the board agreed in a 4-to-3 vote.

Makes us wonder whether the number of hours our kids consume of commercials on television should count as homework.

The Story of Stuff blog reports that:

Toni Rehbein, the School Board chair, who confirmed that the board’s intention was not to prevent use of The Story of Stuff in classrooms or to squelch much needed attention on environmental issues, as long as such discussions welcome diverse opinions. She told us that the emails of support for Story of Stuff which the Board received from around the world had made a big impact and she assured us that the Board planned to issue a statement clarifying their position. We look forward to seeing that statement.

Meanwhile, in School Board elections on May 4th, Missoula citizens removed incumbent Rick Johns, one of the School Board members who had supported Mr Zuber’s concerns, further securing the majority of those who welcome environmental discourse and promote academic freedom.

Wiki Man Ward Cunningham Talks Sustainability and Software

Alt.net Conference in Seattle pairs up Wiki Man Ward Cunningham with Eduardo Jezerski who work launching agile software laboratories devoted to sustainable innovation to humanitarian ends in this video.

Captain Planet and the Planeteers Returns

You can watch full episodes of Captain Planet and the Planeteers, the 1990 animated series produced by Ted Turner over the next 12 months on the Mother Nature Network.

Monsanto Seeds Sustainable Agriculture Greenwash

This Greenwash moment is brought to us by Monsanto who intends to meet the challenges of tomorrow by redefining "sustainability".

From the Monsanto website:

By 2030, Monsanto commits to help farmers produce more and conserve more by:

• Developing improved seeds that help farmers double yields from 2000 levels for corn, soybeans and cotton, with a $10 million grant pledged to improve wheat and rice yields.
• Conserving resources through developing seeds that use one-third fewer key resources per unit of output to grow crops while working to lessen habitat loss and improve water quality.
• Helping improve the lives of all farmers who use our products, including an additional five million people in resource-poor farm families by 2020.

That’s sustainable agriculture. And that’s what Monsanto seeds are all about.

Monsanto was primarily a chemical company, prior to focusing on the seed market. It helped us keep our lawns green with toxic herbicides now known to be carcinogenic. In 1980, concurrent with the Reagan Administration, the United States Patent and Trademark Office began to grant patents on seeds. Since then, Monsanto has purchased seed companies worldwide and has become the leader in genetic modification of seeds, monopolizing control of food production through a combination of its seed and pesticide sales. It systematically uses legislative pressure and lawsuits to fight the blocking efforts of farmers and stores who reject their products.

This Vanity Fair article, "Monsanto’s Harvest of Fear" provides a fascinating and well-researched piece on Monsanto's march to monopolize the seed market. It illustrates that Monsanto's definition of "sustainable" is about sustaining itself.

Banana, Blood and Fungus Describe Unregulated Corporatism's Weakness for Greed

Huffington Post contributor Johann Hari offers a metaphor for unsustainable corporate practices in a telling of the history of the world's most popular fruit: the banana.

Is there a parable for our times in this odd milkshake of banana, blood and fungus? For a hundred years, a handful of corporations were given a gorgeous fruit, set free from regulation, and allowed to do what they wanted with it. What happened? They had one good entrepreneurial idea - and to squeeze every tiny drop of profit from it, they destroyed democracies, burned down rainforests, and ended up killing the fruit itself.

Read more of Why Bananas are a Parable For Our Times.

Michael Pollan Discusses Impact of Food Production Facing New Administration

In this video, Michael Pollan offers a new plan for America's food production in this Web 2.0 2008 discussion held in San Francisco in early November. Pollan, gifted with a great sense of humor as he exposes hard truths about our food production and eating patterns, suggests that President-Elect Obama use the bully pulpit to:

• replace 5 acres of pristine Whitehouse lawn and replace it with organic crops, providing a backdrop for all those news segments that sends a new message to Americans;
  
• appoint someone like Alice Water, who values organic and sustainably grown food, as head chef;
• additionally, appoint an organic farmer to a Whitehouse post, in order to elevate the perceived value of farming.

Redford Speaks Out on Bush's Attack on Environmental Protection Regulations

San Francisco Green Festival Exhibitors Talk about Seriously Green Matters

What does it take to be "Seriously GREEN"? Exhibitors at the San Francisco Green Festival help us wade through the greenwash to underlying issues like worker's rights, human rights, ecology and interconnectedness in this five minute video.

Former Republican Challenges Coal-Energy Producers to Reform Strategies for Growth

Allan Tweddle Urges Coal Industry to Reconsider Energy Investments from Polidoc on Vimeo.

Allan Tweddle, business entrepreneur, environmental activist, faced off with pro-coal energy representatives and academicians at the Coal Energy Industry Forum held at West Virginia University on October 15, 2008. His opening remarks demonstrate clearly his skepticism that his audience will be receptive to his findings or concerns. While he sits on the West Virginia Governor's Public Energy Authority, he is critical of mountain top removal and its environmental degradation of the state.

Tweddle, who calls himself a "Recovering Republican", points out that West Virginia will not be able to compete with other energy producers unless a switch to sustainable practices is made. The expense of silicone has dropped far enough that solar voltaics has become an energy solution within reach, making it more feasible to profitably build solar powered plants. In the meantime, coal-powered plants are becoming increasingly more expense to build and the resource of coal is finite. He shares how successfully other countries have adopted conversion enticements to its citizens; and cites that even South Africa, with one of the most polluting coal-burning power plant, is in the process of shifting its energy policy.

Jesse Johnson, Mountain Party candidate for Governor along with supporters attended the forum as well and offered a standing ovation to Tweddle after his presentation. In a state where coal is King, it will take many strong activists to switch this light bulb.