Category: Environment

Energuide Resurrected

A pilot program has been announced by Ontario’s Chief Energy Conservation Officer to offer private low income home owners energy audits, education programs and upgrading or replacing ineffecient equipment and appliances. This $2.9 million initiative will target private single, semi-detached and row houses in 16 communities across the provinces. The low income housing sector was the hardest hit by the death of the Energuide program as the poor use the least amount of electricity, but pay a disproportionate amount since the price of electricity in Ontario is tied to capacity and peak consumption by large users.

If you interested in energy issues come out with the Young Environmental Proffesionals this Tuesday (Nov 28th) at the Duke of York pub to discuss the Portland Energy Center.

GO DAVID!

suzpic.jpegCanadian Environmentalist, David Suzuki, has a foundation that researches and follows most pressing issues on climate change and anything environment related. I thought it was only fair to give this guy some props for his consistantly amazing work at bringing these kinds of important issues to the public in a way that is understandable and inspires involvement from the community. On the foundation site, you can sign up for a newsletter which sends you frequent (but not too frequent) information on issues involving the Canadian Government and programs that are in effect by David’s crew working toward solutions.

Sound vague? Check it out for yourself! The last newsletter that showed up in my e-mail was addressing The Government of Canada, who failed to deliver a credible and effective climate change action plan at the United Nations climate change conference held in Nairobi, Kenya.

This part really sparked my interest…….

Contact Prime Minister Stephen Harper

By mail (postage-free): House of Commons, Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6;
fax: 613-941-6900; or e-mail: pm@pm.gc.ca

Economist Magazine Looks at Green

coverThere has been a lot of investment in the field of energy production in the past couple years with a huge increase in the renewable energy sector. The Economist magazine wonders why this is. They openly state that this trend is good for society, but not so good for money.

My copy of the magazine arrived in the mail, and I noticed that the main article is not available on their site, thus no direct link. You may have to take my word that the Economist is unsurprisingly skeptical of renewable energy, apparently British economists are afraid of change. The Economist does provide a different angle than what I’m used to when thinking of renewable energy – the profit motive.

Save the Environment While Helping the Poor

Van Jones, 38, wants to know: Why aren’t environmentalists and social justice activists already working together? He insists this is possible when building an environmentally sustainable economy and healthy environment for all.

Jones is working with politicians, business leaders, educators and community activists to develop such cooperation in Oakland, Calif., where he founded the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights in 1996 to tackle criminal justice issues.

“We are working with community colleges and labor unions and prison re-entry organizations to create a green job corps, where urban youths and workers will be taught to install solar panels, do organic gardening or retrofit buildings so they don’t leak energy.”

Jones believes that the safest communities have the best education and jobs for young people, and is “calling on environmentalists and human rights activists to join in a national drive to save the environment and improve the lives of the working poor”.

2006 A.D. Latornell Conservation Symposium

“Why did the chicken cross the road? Because global warming shifted the climate and the only suitable habitat for chickens is up North.”

“We spent all this money developing tools to identify conservation areas, learning how to manage these areas and trying to acquire enough of them to have some sembelance of an ecosystem, and it was all for naught because of climate change.”

“How do you conserve a species, lets take a bird that eats caterpillars as an example, when climate change causes caterpillars to lay their eggs early and by the time the young birds hatch all the caterpillars are now butterflies?

These are just some of the questions I heard at the 2006 A.D. Latornell Conservation Symposium. This year’s theme was – Creating a Climate for Change – refering to the actions that conservationists are taking in order to meet the challenges of climate change. A lot of really good discussion happened at this conference . Tough questions were asked and the people on the floor stood up to answer them. Canada might not have a government that is working against climate change, but it has at least one dedicated group doing it.