I am not a fan of electronic books. I like being able to take notes in my books, and make my own index. I like being able to put them on shelves and lend to friends.

I also disagree with the DRM-laden approach being used with the Kindle. The international version of the Kindle also has limited wireless capabilities.

It might be worth investing in something like a a Pelican 1500 Case as a hard-backed supplement to that Domke bag.

An idea worth considering, though a Pelican case would be bulkier and I would still need to bring the Domke bag along somehow. I know Greyhound has a 25kg limit on baggage. Is there a size limit as well? If not, stowing the Domke inside a larger bag or suitcase might work.

I draw three major lessons from the report.

1. Keep trading transparent. Ownership of RGGI permits are registered in a public tracking system. Futures and options are exchange-traded on the Chicago Climate Futures Exchange and the Green Exchange. Smart, because:

Public exchanges are attractive to firms that need a simple way to trade standard products. Moreover, public exchanges effectively eliminate the risk of default by counter-parties, since the exchange constantly monitors the account holdings of each participant to ensure that they have posted sufficient financial security to meet their obligations.

RGGI does allow over-the-counter (OTC) trades (trades between two private parties) for futures, options, and other derivative products. While OTC markets do provide some benefits for certain firms, they are murkier than public exchanges. And even the public exchanges may not require all the details that are important to understanding a transaction. (Potomac identified one instance in which a small quantity of allowances was traded at a price that seems too high—and though there are a number of perfectly reasonable explanations for the trade, the exchanges did not require sufficient information from the trading parties to allow the market monitor to draw conclusions.)

2. Keep a level playing field. RGGI publicly announces the “clearing price” of its auction at a pre-specified time so that all participants have access to the same information and the same time. Similarly, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission publishes a weekly report documenting the positions, both long and short, of firms trading futures and options on the commodity exchanges. Once again, market participants operate with shared information, which curbs manipulation.

3. Keep an eye on the ball. Frequent analytical reports, like this one from Potomac, are key to ensuring that the carbon markets are well-functioning and fair. Good market monitoring can enable government regulators and administrators to act in a timely fashion if something goes awry. And they can fine-tune their policies and procedures based on good information.

As the final preparatory talks wound up in Barcelona at the end of last week without finalizing a negotiating text for Copenhagen, almost everyone had accepted that a new agreement would not be finalized in the Danish capital, thanks to the United States’ failure to deliver on last year’s hopeful signals.

Martin Kaiser, Greenpeace’s policy director, said U.S. intransigence was “threatening to kill the prospect of a legally binding Copenhagen treaty.” Oxfam added: “The U.S. shadow is looming large over the climate talks.”

Key delegates vented their frustration by breaking with protocol to point the finger towards Washington. “Clearly, the U.S. has been slowing things down,” said Artur Runge-Metzger, the European Union’s chief climate negotiator. Alicia Montalbo, chief negotiator for Spain (the next country to hold the rotating European Union presidency), echoed Kaiser’s sentiments more indirectly, saying: “There’s a certain level of frustration in seeing that not all countries share (the) vision.” More of the same came from Denmark’s climate minister, Connie Hedegaard: “We can’t imagine having an agreement without the United States, they have to be a part of it,” she told Agence France-Presse.

After visiting President Obama last week, Frederik Reinfeld, the Prime Minister of Sweden (and current EU president) said the slow progress of the U.S. Senate’s climate bill made adopting a legally binding agreement in Copenhagen impossible. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, addressing both houses of Congress on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, devoted most of her speech to the need to address climate change, stressing: “We have no time to lose.””

oliderid sends along a BBC report on progress toward Europe’s home-grown GPS system. The Galileo concept will get an initial test via four “pathfinder” satellites that will be the first in the Galileo constellation. Galileo is intended to be complementary with the US GPS system — when all 30 Galileo birds are flying, a receiver with both GS and Galileo capability should enjoy 1-meter positional accuracy, vs. the several meters available through GPS alone, according to the article.

I will be bringing several thousand dollars worth of photographic equipment with me. It will be in a Domke F2 bag.

Naturally, it is something I will want to have up in the cabin with me. Is it too large to count as a ‘personal item’ like a purse? It is 12 x 6.5 x 9 inches. Would drivers be more understanding because I am going on such a long trip, and because the contents are delicate and valuable?

As for accessing checked baggage, this seems pretty necessary in terms of books. It is quite plausible that I will be reading a book a day, or more. It doesn’t seem all that plausible that I will be able to bring photo gear, food, and all my books into the cabin simultaneously. During stops lasting one hour or more, would it be possible to access my main bag to switch books?

As a space-saver, I really doubt I will bring my laptop, but food, books, and photo-gear are all pretty critical. As for earplugs, they are an absolute necessity if I am going to sleep. I have already spent more than one night on a bus or in a hostel sleeping with my photo gear cradled in my arms or tucked behind and tied to my legs.

Thank you for the extensive and excellent information. A few specific responses:

Don’t bring a lot of food. Other parts of the country have food too, and you’ll get tired of carrying it around everywhere.

It might be especially challenging for a vegetarian such as myself to find adequate food at the various stops. I plan to bring along a fair amount.

As for the headlamp, please don’t – that little light bouncing all over the place will drive your neighbours (and the driver) nuts

I use a Petzl Tactikka Plus headlamp. It has a red filter and is thus much less annoying for everyone. In my experience taking buses to Toronto and Montreal, the overhead light only works about 80% of the time, and the headlamp is far easier to read by.