UrbanWorkbench

From the category archives:

Science

It is really convenient as a society to assume that no action is required on the part of individuals to change their habits outside of market driven forces, but the economy (and associated markets) as we know it is a recent invention that has been fuelled by the very energy it seeks to control the sale of. Relying on consumer preferences in the markets to change energy consumption behaviour is like trying to steer an oil tanker by sticking your iPod into the wake as a rudder – the impetus is slow to react, and driven by selfish assumptions that believe that someone else is working to solve the problems. Is anyone actually working to solve problems, or are the agendas of each group getting in the way?

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Oil Optimists

by Mike Thomas on October 7, 2009

in Energy, Science, Sustainability

Fifty years ago, you could be forgiven for thinking that this generation would be living in outer space, in bubble shaped colonies, transported by hyperdrive-powered futuristic spaceships.

Just because we knew there were moons and planets out there did not make the technological challenges of getting there surmountable. Sure, we have stuck a few guys on the moon, (but not for decades), and we’ve got a few poor souls tinkering with life in orbit on the International Space Station, but for all practical purposes, reality has missed the dreams of previous generations.

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Peak Health

by Mike Thomas on August 24, 2009

in Community, Health, Science, Sustainability, Transitions

Health Care services are entirely dependent on petroleum products – just about every book on the subject of our energy situation has pointed this out, and acknowledged that the level of health care we enjoy today is not sustainable without plentiful oil.

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Choosing to Save Humanity

by Mike Thomas on July 21, 2009

in Energy, Science, Sustainability, Technology

Image via Wikipedia

The battle to prevent the effects of climate change have been compared to the Apollo space mission of the 60’s. A recent report and various articles around the web have picked this idea up again, this from Joseph Romm, writing at Salon.com…
Goodnight, moon travel | Salon
Kennedy ended his speech with an appeal to [...]

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I often get asked how to present the information of climate change, peak oil, the economy and the future of humanity. Saul Griffith, one of the founders of Wattzon a tool to measure the energy impact of your everyday choices presented at the PopTech conference at the end of 2008.

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There is a sizable community of energy pundits who, after reviewing oil production records, believe that world oil production peaked last year (2008) at 81.73 million barrels of oil per day. Many in this community follow the discussion at a site called The Oil Drum, where no topic is off limits – as long as it relates to energy future, which if you haven’t worked out yet, just about everything we do or touch exists because of cheap abundant energy. Unfortunately, this number and the impacts on society, culture, the economy and development are being ignored by the media and the general population.

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This situation should be a concern for us in North America, just as it appears – we are hanging out there in terms of agricultural reliance on oil without any policies in place to reverse the trends of the 20th century where oil replaced human labour and expertise in the fields. Castlegar is in a prime position to convert unused and underutilized lands into agriculturally productive lots.

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Earth Hour

by Mike Thomas on March 3, 2009

in Castlegar, Energy, Science, Sustainability

The City of Castlegar has shown its support for Earth Hour this week in their Regular Council Meeting- Earth Hour 2009 is dubbed the election between the Earth and Global Warming. It all began in Sydney Australia in 2007 and has spread to become a global initiative to raise awareness of climate change and issues [...]

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