Canon Frome
Having lived somewhat independently for most of June in Venezuela, I was reminded again of the importance and beauty of long term companionship and friendship when I was re-united with my partner Matthew and my family! I have spent the last 3 weeks on a co-operative farming estate 2 hours north-west of London, U.K. called “Canon Frome” with three major parental figures (my mom and Matthews parents). We have enjoyed each other’s presence, and appreciated the beauty of self-reliance together! It is wonderful to be able to grow my own food and to reconnect with the earth. I have learnt to milk goats, cows, make cheese, play the guitar ( i know 3.5 chords), I am tending carrots and eating organically & locally! It is very relaxing & refreshing. I have been in a comfortable space & frame of mind to work on becoming a better person through radical honesty, nonviolent communication, challenging negative thoughts/actions and accepting & forgiving myself. I’m trying to write a song about my fathers fruit farm but I’m having emotionally difficulty finishing the song. I have been thinking a lot about the need to constantly connect people, to reduce barriers, to feel the energy of those around us.
Climate Forgiveness
I ask for forgiveness for my past climate crimes. I am currently spiritually agnostic but I went to confess my climate crimes in a Catholic Church the other day.
One of my 2005 Summer Conclusions was that “I will challenge myself to be as effective an organizer as possible while keeping within my sustainability values. For example, I will be aware of how much I fly, how environmentally harmful communication technology is, and where the funding for my projects comes from. I will strive to seek a balance between these awareness and my desire to be an effective organizer who is both efficient and working for global systematic change.”
I don’t know how to calculate accurately how many CO2 molecules I have emitted into the atmosphere since my birth but this handy internet tool has helped me to roughly calculate my flight emissions.
Return Flights
- Toronto – Vancouver, Canada 0.73 Tonnes of CO2
- Toronto – Edmonton, Canada 0.59 Tonnes of CO2
- Toronto – Winnipeg, Canada 0.59 Tonnes of CO2
- Toronto – Quebec City, Canada 0.18 Tonnes of CO2
- Hamilton– Ottawa, Canada 0.11 Tonnes of CO2
- Buffalo – New York City, U.S. 0.15 Tonnes of CO2
- Toronto – London, U.K. 1.58 Tonnes of CO2
- Toronto – Winnipeg, Canada 0.59 Tonnes of CO2
- Toronto – Nairobi, Kenya 3.71 Tonnes of CO2
- Ottawa – Victoria, Canada 0.78 Tonnes of CO2
- Ottawa – Victoria, Canada 0.78 Tonnes of CO2
- Montreal – Vancouver, Canada 0.80 Tonnes of CO2
- Ottawa – Bangalore, India 3.70 Tonnes of CO2
- Montreal – Hong Kong, China 3.39 Tonnes of CO
- Toronto – Caracas, Venezuela 1.07 Tonnes of CO
- Toronto – London, U.K. 1.58 Tonnes of CO2
Total = approx. 20.33 Tonnes of CO2 from airplanes alone!
It is clear that I need to seek a better balance. For me traveling is a dirty vice that I am having trouble expunging from my life. I tell myself that everything is about balance and moderation. That I emit less CO2 than the average Canadian because I am vegetarian, I don’t own a car, I try to use recycled goods as much as possible, I buy local produce and green energy and I’m responsible with the way I use electricity. That arguement don’t seem to cut it anymore….
I’m University of British Columbia Bound!
I am registered for Bachelor of Science in Global Resource Systems at the University of British Columbia in the fall. Check out some of the cool courses that I will be taking!
- Sociology of Development and Underdevelopment
Processes of social change in the Third World and other developing countries. Major themes stress the relationship between urbanization and industrialization; modernization and ethnic conflict; imperialism, neo-colonialism, and foreign aid; and intra-national modernization problems such as regional underdevelopment in industrial societies. - Introduction to International Finance
Exchange rate policy regimes; international financial organizations; the interaction between monetary policy and exchange rate regimes; financial crises. - Introduction to International Trade
The determinants of trade patterns, trade policy, tariff and non-tariff barriers to trade, political economy of protectionism, bilateral and multilateral trade disputes, trade liberalization, trade and development. - Introduction to Global Politics
Applies conceptual tools to topics such as war, conflict management, the global economy, poverty, and civil society. - Land, Food and Community
Introduction to managed systems and concepts of sustainability; economic, ecological and social components; managed landscapes, agri-food systems, and communities; urban and rural systems; the land, food, nutrition and human health continuum.
Common Sense
My friend Emmanuel Prinet wrote this a few months ago in an email. It sums up what I have been thinking lately in accessible language.
“A lot of “economists” and “development thinkers”, having studied neoclassical economics, are programmed to think “economy” in whatever they do. So if there’s a problem with the “environment” (ie. over consumption of natural resources or ecosystem degradation), they suggest these be internalized into the economy so that suddenly they are taken into account (and this is also a way to get economic growth, since the GDP will increase). If people are hungry, they think it’s because they have no money and can’t buy food, so the idea is to widen the economic sphere to include these people in the formal economy, when actually what they need is access to land and water to grow food. A lot of relations in low-income countries are non-economic, ie. they do not involve money transactions. Family and community members help each other out, and the work undertaken by women (such as fetching water) is unaccounted for in the GDP, yet these are essential!
The “market” logic has clear limits, and it’s actually a threat when people want to expand the market to include everything such as health, education, meeting basic needs, etc., because basically, if you can’t pay, you get nothing. That’s why we have to fight the WTO, and that’s why NGOs always talk about the ‘rights-based approach’–because all the basic necessities are basic Human Rights, and as such, governments have the prime responsibility to ensure that all their citizens can have access to these things.”
I’m Doing My Inconsequential Part For The Environment
This is the funniest article I have ever read. I love the onion.
By Peter Keim May 10, 2006
“…Scientists inform us that the combined effects of fossil-fuel consumption, land clearance, and overfishing the planet’s seas have already ushered in a period of “mass global extinction,” the sixth so far recorded in Earth’s history, and the only one to be entirely man-made. In the next century, between two-thirds and three-fourths of all plant and animal species now in existence could become permanently extinct. But by carefully conserving water with the specially designed low-impact toilet I had installed, I can take comfort in the knowledge that I did what I could do to delay this inevitable global death-age by as many as several nanoseconds. Won’t you join me in this ongoing effort to foster an imperceptible improvement to this doomed and dying planet? You’ll be rewarded with the knowledge that, despite the irreversible effects of centuries of sustained environmental abuse by the human race, individuals, working together, can fight this inevitability in a real, concrete, tiny, and totally ineffective show of unity. Together, we can make an unbelievably negligible difference…”
Youth Action on Industrial Development
I said this statement this morning at the UN during a discussion about “Investing in energy and industrial development: challenges and opportunities.
“Youth advocate industrial development that ensures the safety of human health and the ecological integrity of our planet. Industrial Development often contributes to environmental problems, but industries that are aware of their social and environmental responsibility can also be part of the solution. Small-scale and youth led initiatives, financially supported through micro credit schemes, play a vital role in poverty eradication. Continue reading
Church Taking Climate Action!
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Rowan Williams, speaking with environment correspondent Roger Harrabin of BBC Radio 4′s Today program, said the public has a moral responsibility to change lifestyles. The consequences if they do not, Williams warned, would be the deaths of billions of people worldwide from the effects of extreme climate change. He said the Bible made it clear that God would not forgive people who had been warned they were doing wrong. And he said US President George W Bush’s stance of refusing to cut emissions because it might compromise American jobs was not compatible with a Christian point of view.
Read more for the full text of the interview.
Montreal’s Carolyn Walsh-Dawson (centre) protests global warming with Rev. Wendy Eyre-Gray and David Dranchuk of New Westminster.
Yesterday the United Church of Canada sent a letter to the Prime Minister Stephen Harper, Minister of Environment, Rona Ambrose and Minister of Natural Resources Gary Lunn reminding them that climate change is a Canadian problem, as an arctic country we are very vulnerable to climate change impacts. The letter also strongly encouraged Stephen Harper to maintain expand programs whereby all Canadians can make a positive contribution to reducing emissions such as the One Tonne Challenge program.
Read more for the full text of the letter.
Google accused of bio-piracy
According to an article in Slash Dot Google has been accused of being the biggest threat to biodiversity this year for its plan to create a searchable database of genetic information. From an article in Znet: ‘Google was presented with an award as part of the Captain Hook Awards for Biopiracy in Curitiba, Brazil, this week.
The organisers allege that Google’s collaboration with genomic research institute J. Craig Venter to create a searchable online database of all the genes on the planet is a clear example of biopiracy.
Farms are For Family
All of my parental figures live on farms. My mother and step-father live on a farm in Wainfleet, Ontario. My father, step-mother, and grandparents live on a farm in Grimsby, Ontario. My parents-in-law live on a farm in Canon Frome Court, England. I’m planning to visit and help out on all three of my farms this summer!