Sustain Wales By Blog

The Wales Green List

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:36:00 +0000

Find a link here to the first ever Wales Green List which we announced on Tuesday 20th Oct. We had some great media cover in the papers, radio and TV, which is still continuing.

The judging panel consisted of Richard Jarvis, Helen Nelson, Mike Batt, Peter Davies, Chris Kelsey and Clare Sain Ley Berry. The final List was unanimous.
The Green List of 52 people (one for each week of the year) will be promoted by us and Media Wales over the forthcoming year. Seventy Five people in all were nominated. All are worthy of recognition and we hope next year a different list of 52will feature those who didn't make the list this time. We also hope that the public will continue to nominate people.

The evening event at the Senedd on Monday 19th October was a celebration of all 75 nominees and an opportunity to take stock of where we are in Wales when it comes to sustainable development. The event itself was a big success, with so many new faces and a great reaction to the photographs and film which will be touring venues across Wales to promote the list. We've had very positive comments from the people that were there - it was great to end a busy summer on such a high note!

But the importance of all this is that it shows that ordinary people - communities, businesses, charities and enterprises - understand that we have reached the end of a consumer-driven, resource-hungry economy powered by fossil fuel. We stand on the brink of a new age where human beings will draw on all their ingenuity and capacity for invention and change to grasp new technologies, new social structures, yes even new spiritual and philosophical outlooks. This isn't greenwash - The List proves that people out there get it and are taking action on their own initiative. The challenges still remain and they are daunting but in Wales for certain there is now a citizen-led movement that is gearing up to meet whatever a future of climate change and peak oil may bring.

Engineers Warn Governments About Climate Change

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:04:00 +0000

Not so long ago, engineers were part of the problem. Take the Cardiff Bay barrage as an example: biologists warned that damming two rivers and flooding a tidal delta would create long term management problems. Sure enough, at huge expense, air is now pumped into Cardiff Bay to keep the water oxygenated. Large-scale engineering projects have in the past contributed to climate change. It is therefore refreshing to be able to quote the following from the press release of The International Federation of Consulting Engineers:

"Without agreement at Copenhagen, consulting engineers believe the world faces starvation, poverty and war over resources. To avert these disasters, the world consulting engineering industry demanded a meaningful dialogue with governments. They also urged a conclusive agreement on carbon reduction levels between governments at the coming Copenhagen summit.

Over the last three days, the consulting engineering community met in London at the FIDIC 2009 conference to discuss the answers to the world’s problems. FIDIC intends to send an open letter to the governments attending Copenhagen that demands that they reach an agreement on climate change. The letter will also provide examples of how the industry can offer sustainable solutions to these global challenges.

The last days have brought together over 700 consulting engineers from around the world who have proposed critical engineering solutions to these issues. Sustainability is the most important issue facing humanity. Failure to act now will condemn many generations to come to prolonged hardships.”

Pembroke Can Make A Difference

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 08:16:00 +0000

Set against the backdrop of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December, key environment campaigners in Wales are meeting in Pembroke for the first time.

The event, to be held in Foundry House on Pembroke Commons on Thursday 15th October, is organised by Pembroke 21C Community Association’s Sustainable Energy Group to showcase their project designed to encourage behavioural change in Pembroke.

Pembroke Can Make a Difference! encourages individuals, households, schools and businesses to begin taking small steps to reduce their impact on the environment and to build a cohesive community approach so that Pembroke really can make a difference and plan for a sustainable future.

Starting at 5pm the evening will bring together national and local organisations who are working in the field of climate change. There will be a showing of the film Ecoworriers: An end of the road movie by Rhodri Thomas of Sustain Wales, who will later join a panel of experts to examine whether this small community project can affect the big picture.

The panel, to be chaired by Angela Burns AM, Shadow Minister for Environment and Planning, with Peter Davies of the Sustainable Development Commission for Wales, Gordon James from Friends of the Earth, and Andy Middleton of TYF Group, will examine the question Can Pembroke Make A Difference?

The event is free and refreshments will be served.

If you live in or near Pembroke and want to get involved contact Pembroke 21C on 01646 680090 or e-mail foundryhouse@pembroke21c.org

The Rhythm of Life

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 11:48:00 +0000

EARTH RHYTHMS 350:
DRUM & DANCE FOR A SAFER FUTURE
350 minutes of drumming and dance in a zero-carbon celebration of earth rhythms as part of the www.350.org global day of action on climate change.

Call to Arms - Groove along for 10 minutes or more - free to join in - bring the kids to the seaside - look for the gazebo village!!

Sandy Bowl, Porthcawl, October 24th
Start time: 12.10pm, Ends: 6.00pm

See www.sustainablewales.org for updates on location and activities.

Is This It?

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 09:35:00 +0000

Every day for the last seven I have heard news reports about unusual weather patterns across the globe - dust storms in Australia, droughts in Africa and Iraq, floods in the Philippines. It is tempting to see these as evidence of anthropogenic climate change.

I did a web search on "east Africa drought climate change" and every item on the first page of the search linked climate change to the drought. So the link has been made at a populist level. Will this affect behaviour in the UK and the rest of the world? Probably not. Maybe a drought and apocalyptic dust storms turning day into night in Kansas City, Toronto, London and Paris would make a difference but so often history shows that only when the stormtroopers of crisis are hammering on the door do people wake up and realise "So this affects me too?!" Damn right.

At our conference this weekend we heard expert evidence on what is likely to change behaviour. We considered social norms and peer groups, resonant narratives and market psychology. All good stuff but when you read about the catastrophic change now taking place around the globe it does make you think that really there is only one issue here - survival. Surely that's something anyone can understand and respond to? Well yes, but not while the threat is perceived as "far away and someone else's problem". Its getting nearer everyday my friends. Just how near does it have to get?

For the thoughtful, here is an extract from The Guardian: Many people, in Kenya and elsewhere, cannot understand the scale and speed of what is happening. The east African country is on the equator, and has always experienced severe droughts and scorching temperatures. Nearly 80% of the land is officially classed as arid, and people have adapted over centuries to living with little water.

There are those who think this drought will finish in October with the coming of the long rains and everything will go back to normal.

Well, it may not. What has happened this year, says Leina Mpoke, a Maasai vet who now works as a climate change adviser with Ireland-based charity Concern Worldwide, is the latest of many interwoven ecological disasters which have resulted from deforestation, over-grazing, the extraction of far too much water, and massive population growth.

"In the past we used to have regular 10-year climatic cycles which were always followed by a major drought. In the 1970s we started having droughts every seven years; in the 1980s they came about every five years and in the 1990s we were getting droughts and dry spells almost every two or three years. Since 2000 we have had three major droughts and several dry spells. Now they are coming almost every year, right across the country," said Mpoke.

He reeled off the signs of climate change he and others have observed, all of which are confirmed by the Kenyan meteorological office and local governments. "The frequency of heatwaves is increasing. Temperatures are generally more extreme, water is evaporating faster, and the wells are drying. Larger areas are being affected by droughts, and flooding is now more serious.

Where's the climate changing?

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 08:20:00 +0000

Australia it seems it experiencing the affects of climate change more acutely than the UK.
Take a look at this report on the continent's record warm winter.

And footage of the dust storms is apocalyptic.

Local carbon footprints released

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 12:12:00 +0000

News Release issued by the COI News Distribution Service on 17 September 2009
Regional CO2 Emissions Results Released Today

New climate change stats revealing the carbon footprint of every single part of the UK are published today.

The statistics calculate the climate impact of the energy used by homes, businesses and road transport in each local authority area throughout England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

- The UK has already reduced its emissions by 21% on 1990 levels and is committed to a reduction of at least 34% by 2020

- In today’s results the UK’s overall CO2 emissions dropped by2% between 2005 and 2007

- Emissions have fallen in 335 out of the 434 local authorities in the UK

You can find a breakdown of the results for your own area at; http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/statistics/climate_change/climate_chang e.aspx

Who Are The Green Heroes?

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 16:08:00 +0000

Only One Week Left to Nominate Green Heroes
There is only one week left to nominate green heroes for the Wales Green List. The Wales-wide search to identify 52 champions, deserving of recognition for tacking sustainability and climate change, ends on 14 September.

Despite the word ‘green,’ the search is not limited to environmental champions. Rather, the list seeks to identify people who are simply making a difference by working towards building a better, more sustainable Wales.

Nominees could be tackling environmental and social issues in their own village or town, at a regional, national or international level. And candidates can range from artists to politicians, from campaigners to company directors, from business leaders to community groups, staff members or project promoters.

The Green List will feature 52 green champions – one for every week of the year – selected by a panel of people from business, media, the voluntary sector, social enterprise and sustainable development fields.

Helen Nelson, Executive Director of Cynnal Cymru – Sustain Wales, said:

“There are so many amazing people doing great work to ensure a sustainable future for Wales and it’s time to recognise their efforts. We are searching for people who are making a positive impact on their communities, the environment and, ultimately, other people’s lives.”
Visit www.sustainwales.com to find out more and nominate. The closing date for nominations is 14 September 2009.

For more information, case studies, images and interviews, please contact Roz Robinson or Gwenllian Evans on 029 2019 2025 or email roz@sustainwales.com / gwenllian@sustainwales.com.

Arctic 'warmest in 2,000 years'

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 13:31:00 +0000

Sometimes a piece of scientific evidence emerges that is a gift to headline writers (and bloggers).

A study of ice cores, tree rings and sediments in the arctic has produced a climate reconstruction that indicates that the arctic has warmed dramatically in recent decades against a background of global cooling, the BBC reports.

What is striking about this new evidence is the appearance of the contentious 'hockey stick' shape made famous by Al Gore. Bar room sceptics like to tell you all about the medieval warm period and how "all this global warming is due to natural variation" but according to this reconstruction, the earth has been steadily cooling since the medieval period due to natural variation and this sudden rise is despite the natural processes that cause cooling. There must be some other variable forcing the warming. What else has changed as dramatically in the last 100 years? Mmmm....

Its not scientifically proven but its very tempting to link this summer's bad weather to climate change. Models of global warming predict higher rainfall in the northern hemisphere with storms of increased ferocity and intense rainfall pulses. So news that Wales was drenched by a 44% increase in rainfall this summer, tempts one to claim this as evidence of a longer term trend in motion. The latest projections from UKCIP however suggest drier summers in future.

Its always worth remembering that natural systems share a common trait - tipping points. Things can seem stable and unvarying for a long time as the system absorbs change and then suddenly the capacity to absorb change is exhausted and BAM! the system tips into a new energetic state via a period of chaos. If you have time you should watch this lecture on line by Martin Scheffer

Real people feel the same way as us!

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 10:14:00 +0000

When you work for an organisation like Cynnal Cymru-Sustain Wales you tend to meet other environmental scientists, politicians, green activists and academics who broadly share your view.

It is therefore very encouraging and refreshing to meet people who are not 'green' professionals but citizens who have through their own experience and observation reached the same conclusion as the scientists.

One such person is Linda Ware who lived without a bin for three months and has embraced the challenge of living without plastic and is determined to escape the snares of the consumerist economic culture which is addicted to energy consumption and perpetuates the fantasy that continual infinite growth is possible in a finite universe.

Have a look at her blog Auntie Plastic and be inspired!!

Rules to make micro-generation easier in Wales come into force

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 15:42:00 +0000

Installing micro-generation equipment such as solar panels in Welsh homes becomes easier from today (1 September) as new planning rules come into force.
Environment Minister Jane Davidson hopes the changes will give households the opportunity to minimise their carbon footprint and to reduce fuel bills.

The aim of the changes is to remove certain types of micro-generation equipment from requiring planning permission, making it easier for individuals and local communities install equipment that will contribute to tackling climate change and lower energy bills.

There will be no requirement to pay planning fees, also reducing the financial burden.

Equipment that comes under the new rules includes:
- small scale solar panels
- ground source heat pumps, and
- biomass flues.

Ms Davidson said:
“A key part to tackling climate change will be lessening our reliance on carbon based energy. This is where micro-generation has a major role to play. It gives households the opportunity to produce their own clean, green energy.

“Here in Wales we have a large share of off gas-grid homes where micro-generation could provide an alternative. We want these new rules to encourage people to consider micro-generation and make it easier for them begin producing their own energy.”

Walking Away From Nature?

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 13:26:00 +0000

The UK Royal Society - the scientific body founded at a previous time of profound change - has reviewed the technological solutions to climate change that are currently being proposed and has concluded that many are technically possible. See here.
These include: a giant mirror on the Moon; a space parasol made of superfine aluminium mesh; and a swarm of 10 trillion small mirrors launched into space one million at a time every minute for the next 30 years.

The numbers of suggested technological fixes for the earth system crisis are steadily increasing. Although many of them remain only ideas and the time and investment to realise them is just not being made available, they are significant in what they represent. Human beings are ingenious and creative. A crisis always brings out this trait. Many environmentalists advocate a down-sizing return to nature, a turning away from technology which has been the cause of pollution, species loss, climate change and an over-reliance on finite resources. What may happen however is the exact opposite.

The future, on the other side of the inevitable crisis, may well be more technological not less. The technology may be more subtle and more in tune with natural processes - see biomimicry for example - but it will nevertheless be one more step away from our origins, enabling us to maintain our unique position on the planet.

If human bio-engineering, mirrors in space, carbon capture, GM farming and robotics increase our chances of survival then is that what people will go for even if it increases our disconnect with nature or even changes the understanding of what it is to be human?

New Build Old Build Green Build

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:18:00 +0000

I wonder what Redrow, Wimpey and Barrett would think of this:

"Ancient Ways To Build A Green Home"

Peak Water?

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 10:13:00 +0000

The earth system crisis is about so much more than climate change and yet this has been latched onto by politicians and commentators alike so much so that one might assume it is the only challenge we face.

The point of a holistic approach to sustainable development is that there are no simple solutions or singular threats.

New data from NASA satellites suggests evidence for impending water shortages that could in some parts of the world be compounded by climate change while in others be alleviated by higher levels of current rainfall. In the case of this latest data, the assumption is that groundwater depletion is due to human over use rather than a long term trend of lower precipitation locally or in the Himalayas.

While the report from NASA focuses attention on the mining of groundwater reserves in North West India, there are similar concerns in the USA, China and other parts of the world.

In addition to recharge from rain, groundwater and climate change are linked by the threat of rising sea levels which are increasing the salinity of coastal aquifers.

Where human society is indulging in mismanagement of environmental resources, climate change could be the source of further stress that tips local ecosystems into chaotic behaviour leading to total collapse.

Development Trusts - The Future Looks Communal

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 14:06:00 +0000

On the 10th July, Development Trusts Association Wales held their annual conference. Inspiring speeches were made by Michael Pyner, Steve Wyler and Peter Williams of the DTA and by Mal Williams of Cylch. Their conclusion, and its a view increasingly held by others, is that the social enterprise sector offers hope for not only a way out of the current recession but for a renaissance in community economic development that is sustainable and ethical.

The credit crunch has been an early sign that the age of consumer-driven global capitalism is coming to an end. Even as the far east seeks to emulate the materialism of the west, the immanent decline in oil production, the exhaustion of mineral resources such as phosphorus and the increasing exploitation of finite reserves of fresh water means that we can be certain of one thing - our world will change. Either we will reconstruct global capitalism based on so far unknown technological advances that will free us from our dependence on fossil fuels or our world will shrink to a global network of localised economies that subsist rather than grow indefinitely. As nothing in nature grows indefinitely I suggest you put your money on the latter scenario.

This means then that the future will be low energy, low carbon, technologically efficient and non-materialistic. While individual entrepreneurs will still continue to emerge, they will have to compete or co-operate with a co-operative and communal enterprise sector that is growing in confidence.

Declassified Satellite Images Reveal Truth Bush Tried to Hide

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 13:47:00 +0000

A report in the Guardian makes very interesting reading. Is this suppressed evidence of climate change?

All We Ask For Is Commitment

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 07:53:00 +0000

Jonathan Porritt and Andy Middleton gave a qualified endorsement of the Welsh Assembly Government's commitment to reduce CO2 emissions by 3% on radio Wales this morning.

Jane Daidson, minister for Environment Sustainability and Housing, will announce Wales is to spend £300m cutting carbon emissions as part of its commitment to tackling climate change.

The BBC Wales report emerges the morning after a Newsnight report on the Obama administration's problems in honouring the election commitment to pass a radical climate change bill.

With no big oil and coal lobby to grapple with, perhaps the Welsh Assembly finds it easier to make progress on climate change. Similarly US state governments have provided progressive leadership on GHG emissions while the federal Bush administration failed.

The Newsnight report and subsequent discussion suggested that the Obama administration has been thwarted and the climate change bill, if passed, will be considerably weaker than was proposed by the man himself during his election campaign.

We all know that politicians who are supposed to represent us are often compromised by powerful lobbies. We the electorate know its tough at the top but like in any relationship all we ask for is a bit of commitment.

We could make it easier for politicians to remain faithful to their ideals by demonstrating in that we want leadership on climate change and that we are prepared to live with the consequences of difficult decisions.

A Time For Heroes Like You

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 15:01:00 +0000

I recently went to a session in which Dr. Chris Johnstone and Sue Weaver tried to help a group of environmental professionals come to terms with the burden of knowledge that the earth system is in crisis.

Chris works a lot with helping people overcome addiction. I am struck by the fact that our society is addicted to oil and cheap energy. Cold Turkey is going to be interesting to put it mildly. Frankly the prospect terrifies me but that's what Sue and Chris were trying to help us with.

I recently encountered the story of Tricia Morgan, a voluntary worker in Swansea who through her work on Swansea Community farm underwent transition from an ex-addict on probation to director of a community regeneration trust. The message is clear: individuals can change. Their efforts are heroic. As society is made up of millions of individuals, it too can change.

Chris publishes a newsletter called Great Turning Times. Through this he develops ideas of positive visions giving routes through adversity, creating resilience.

Often what is needed for change is a positive vision to aspire to. This is true for individuals and societies. That's the most important thing I got out of the day. The burden of knowledge that climate change and peak oil threatens our way of life can result in a paralysis of despair. But while we fail to act, others will. A political solution is part of the answer. A positive political vision that recognises that salvation will come from what we have in common not from that which divides us. The battle lines are drawn - recall the results of the recent Euro elections. Sustainable Development is the movement towards a more equitable, less greedy, slower, more peaceful and harmonious way of life. Lets work on that vision and learn to articulate it so that it can inspire others and overcome fear.

As Chris says, 'this is the time of the Great Turning'. We are all heroes in this epic struggle.

Information Age

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 08:25:00 +0000

Information exchange is central to the work of Cynnal Cymru-Sustain Wales. As explained in previous blogs, information is rich in embodied energy and a key component of any sustainable system is fluid information exchange.

Information and communication precedes change. All agree that in the face of rising global temperatures and falling supplies of easily accessible oil, change is needed on a major scale.

Events in Iran dramatically illustrate this point. Read here how mobile phones, and internet communication platforms such as Twitter are being used to co-ordinate protest. The same technology has been used by Ant- Globalisation protestors in the West and by President Obama’s team during his election campaign.

The sustainable development movement needs to use this technology as effectively. Cynnal Cymru has a Facebook and Twitter page. But we and our partners could go further. Ultimately, the power to bring about change resides in individuals not organisations. I await the day when a critical mass of citizens demanding change develops. This may not be until the price of oil and rising sea levels curtail the freedoms we in the west all take for granted.

Surfers View of Climate Change

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 14:26:00 +0000

Surfers are people embedded in the coastal environment. If the climate is changing or if the water quality is deteriorating they should know.

A new film "On The Push" by young Welsh surfer and award-winning film maker Ann Gallagher gives a surfers perspective of climate change.

You don't need planning permission to start an allotment

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 13:52:00 +0000

Some local authorities in the UK have expressed reluctance to release land for allotments saying that planning permission would be required. This is apparently not the case as is concisely explained here.

The Oil Crunch

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 15:48:00 +0000

The Oil Crunch is a report by the UK industry taskforce on peak oil and energy security.

It is backed by ARUP, The First Group, and Virgin amongst others. It reports reliable and respected analysis that predicts peak oil as occurring between 2011 and 2015. After this point the depletion of existing oil reserves can no longer be replaced by additions of new capacity.

The result will either be a gradual descent as oil becomes increasingly scarce or a sudden collapse in supply.

Descent is maintained by the exploitation of alternative "not-so-easy" oil sources such as tar sands and ultra deep water reserves. Exploitation of some of these have serious ecological implications.

The report argues that the threat to our society of an oil crunch is more imminent and therefore more deserving of a priority policy response than climate change. The current policy perspective, the report says, prioritises climate change and so the time scale for bringing in alternative energy sources is too long for the 2011-2015 window.

The report makes a number of recommendations. A brief summary can be read here.

Precious Information - the gift that keeps on giving

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 09:38:00 +0000

I make no apologies about using this blog spot to promote the work of Howard T. Odum. As mentioned previously I am reading “A Prosperous Way Down” – a book in which Odum succinctly explains his theoretical world view of how human society and the environment interact at the energetic level. Since all matter is energy, this amounts to ecological theory of everything. This may sound glib – well a blog is not the place to explain Odum’s thinking in detail – you’ll have to buy or borrow his books and read the many scientific papers written by his former students.

Odum offers the observation that the most energy-rich material we have on this planet is information. Energy-rich is to be understood as rich in embodied energy, rich in the sense that a great deal of effort by nature and humankind has gone into producing it. A seed is rich in information. All the information needed to make a mighty oak tree is contained in an acorn. The genius of Einstein (and Odum), the magnificence of our greatest athletes and artists is contained in a single cell.

With this stated Odum considers modern societies – highly powered with fossil fuels, highly structured, complex and overflowing with resources. What characterises such a society – our society - is that it overflows with information. We live in an information age, they say.

Of course, most of this information is useless. Hello magazine contains information as does the chat show of Jonathan Ross but does that compare to the wisdom to be found in books, professional journals or even humble blogs?! And yet a profusion of information sources and outlets is what Odum’s theories predict for highly powered societies. If we removed cheap energy (peak oil) there would be a fall off in inane chatter as people sought out the most vital, useful information. In hunter gatherer societies for example, all information is instructional and essential for survival – read Jay Griffiths’ wondrous book “Wild” in which she fully explores the deep and resonant worlds of so called primitive savages – our ancestors.

In a hunter gatherer society there is little or no surplus energy. All information is valuable and highly prized. Stories instruct. Gossip cements social bonds or gives tips on where the best food is to be found.

Useless information is quick and adaptable. It spreads easily. The more useful information is, the more embodied energy it contains, the slower it is to impart and explain. Think how long it takes to train a doctor or for someone to become a master craftsman or that genetic information is the product of millions of years of evolution.

Two examples of the role of information are in the news this week. The one is MPs expenses, the other is calls for compulsory MMR vaccinations. What makes the headlines is pretty low grade stuff. In both cases there is a more complicated set of facts behind the headlines that require sober, reasoned analysis. One story raises questions about the fundamental structure of our system of governance and the values upon which it is founded, the other raises questions about the role of drug companies in our medical system and our perceptions of risk.

We need politicians so how do we get ones motivated by principle and not material gain?
At what level of risk do we rely on naturally acquired immunity over commercially produced vaccinations?

And all of this presents the sustainable development movement with big questions. We know that society needs to change in order to survive. We know that the spread of information precedes major social change. Ayatollah Khomeini distributed tape players and cassettes to spread his revolution in Iran. Joseph Goebbels distributed radios tuned to the state controlled station.

This summer and autumn, Cynnal Cymru-Sustain Wales will be addressing the issue of social behavioural change. We have invited leading thinkers to submit essays on the topic and it will be the theme of our annual public conference in Carmarthenshire on the 25 and 26th September. Our colleagues in BBC Wales are also addressing the same issue later this year.

What type and quality of information will convince people that it is necessary and possible to plan for and develop a low carbon, resource efficient, environmentally harmonious society? Is the situation so desperate that we should resort to the cunning of Khomeini? When an idea’s time has come, it spreads like a virus. But by then it may be too late. What follows is revolution not evolution. Instead of reasoned, planned change based on high quality complex information you get rapid and destructive change based on slogans and fear.

One point that Odum makes that we should all consider: he says that information is too valuable to be held and used for profit. Good quality information is vital to our survival. The stories of our ancestors told around the camp fire were given freely and with love. They were necessary for survival. Having read the chapter on information in Odum’s book, I now understand why a colleague and fellow Odumite gives books away to those he knows will cherish them.

Trees Trees Trees! Lets plant them!

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Wed, 27 May 2009 14:16:00 +0000

I met a lady at the recent Community Climate Change events who wants us to plant more trees. She is setting up an organisation called:
FREETREE
Freetree`s purpose is to get trees planted. She would like to put growers like herself in touch with people who want to plant them. This would range from someone planting a tree in their garden (which they get free from Freetree) to persuading government to plant anything from a solitary tree to community orchards and woodlands. Ideally each community would grow their own trees to plant locally.
FREETREE NEEDS BRANCHES –ONE COULD BE GROWING NEAR YOU
Freetre Website is being developed meanwhile:-

Contact Jules Newman for more information
jules@freetree.info

After The Descent

noreply@blogger.com (Rhodri@Cynnal) — Fri, 22 May 2009 14:32:00 +0000

I am reading "A Prosperous Way Down" by Howard and Elisabeth Odum.

Howard Odum's work on ecological systems and how environmental limits interact with human economic systems should be better known.

Odum describes the way natural systems (and human socio-economic systems) pulse in a frequency determined by the availability of resources - just think about the four seasons on the Northern hemisphere if you are wondering what this means. This pulsing appears as a rise in productivity proportional to the consumption of a resource. Once this resource has been used up, productivity falls. This fall could be gradual or sudden and catastrophic. In most systems there is no choice but for we humans, currently coming to the end of a number of resources which have fuelled our recent growth, there is some choice - we have knowledge and we have technology but do we have the will? Take a look at a presentation by Dr. Steven Harris of Science Shops Wales for more on this.

So with Odum's work fresh in my mind I yesterday visited the Creation Trust in the Garw Valley South Wales.

The Garw was one of those iconic coal valleys in the last century. Hills rise vertically from the narrow flood plain, roads and houses cling to the sides in narrow terraces. At one time the narrow valley echoed to the sounds of steam and clanking machines. Engines and aerial ropeways disturbed the ancient peace, slicing the sky and the flesh of the place in a frenzy of industrial greed. Human beings were dwarfed by the industry. Coal (and the elites who controlled it) was king.

Before coal there were only five farms. Now, though the houses remain, there is no industry, no machinery - it is once more a rural, beautiful place.

Blaengarw is a living example of the pulsing phenomenon that Odum describes. Coal was the resource that fuelled the rapid, rabid growth - a brief pulse in time. Before coal, a peaceful low energy state where the only pulsing was that brought by the seasons. After coal....? What?

Well the descent, when it came was sudden and catastrophic. Socially, economically, environmentally, the valley landed with a bump. Now, thanks to the Creation Trust and the residents who support it, the community and the ecosystem in which it is embedded are recovering. It is reaching a new kind of steady state - not that of five farms but of a community in harmony with nature and itself, pulsing with the seasons once again. There is a lot more work to do but the achievements and aspirations of Creation Trust and the people of Blaengarw offer hope that with commitment, patience and vision, regional, national and even global society can negotiate the descent and reach a new, low energy existence that pulses not with the insane fever of stock markets dependent on oil, gas and coal but with the natural pulses that have always existed and will remain as long as the sun shines and the earth rotates. These can be devastating in their own way - who can predict the eruption of the next super volcano - but if human society is obliterated at least it will be by some natural perturbation and not as a consequence of our own folly and greed.