SHIFT mag [n°5] - Can Europe save the Earth?

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[N°5] Can Europe save the Earth?

© Mi Ran Collin

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CONTENT >

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Population and the ecological crisis © Mi Ran Collin

Good Morning, Climate Change

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Europe’s Breaking the green calling boundaries of communication

PostScript

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Shifting with...

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Sweden, Europe’s green engine?

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Reservoir Blogs

Putting knowledge before profit >

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Biomimicry: nature knows best

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[N°5] $BO &VSPQF TBWF UIF &BSUI

© Mi Ran Collin

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EDITORIAL Welcome to the fifth issue of SHIFT Mag, which also marks the first anniversary of our magazine. It’s a small step for mankind, but a big step for us. A year on, we’re as hungry and determined to inject fresh ideas and perspectives into the European debate.

SHIFT Mag EUROPE TALKS TO BRUSSELS Avenue de Tervueren 270 1150 Brussels – Belgium www.shiftmag.eu

Juan Arcas SHIFT Mag Publisher Brussels

Publisher: Juan ARCAS juan.arcas@shiftmag.eu Editor: Victor FLEUROT • T. +32 2 235 56 21 victor.fleurot@shiftmag.eu Contributors to this issue: Rasmus BENESTAD (Oslo), Zoë CARON (Ottawa), Gauthier CHAPELLE (Brussels), Frédéric DARMUZEY (Brussels), John FEENEY (Boulder, Colorado), Mikael OLSSON (Brussels/Stockholm), Bruno TURNHEIM (Brussels), Laurent VAN BRUSSEL (Brussels) Illustrations: Mi Ran COLLIN, Brieuc HUBIN, François TACOEN, Emmanuel TREPANT, Roberto TRIOSCHI, Christophe WANLIN Photography: Brieuc HUBIN, Mikael OLSSON, International Polar Foundation, iStockphoto Special thanks to Alain HUBERT and Lise JOHNSON from the International Polar Foundation for the interview material, the Tipik models for the Reservoir Blogs photos, Ann MACPHERSON, Abigail ACTON and Maria GALLO for linguistic support Production & coordination: Nadine SCHWIRTZ nadine.schwirtz@tipik.eu Design & Graphics: Tipik Studio Printed by: Van Ruys, Brussels Administration & subscription: Gabriela OLSSON • T. + 32 2 235 56 44 gabriela.olsson@tipik.eu To advertise in SHIFT Mag contact: Guy DE SAN • T. +32 2 235 56 75 guy.desan@tipik.eu

To celebrate our sustainability, we’ve put together an exciting issue on what Europeans and others can do to save the planet. While planning for this issue back in 2007, we thought we’d be talking about the aftermath of the Bali conference. This gathering of the world’s leaders having been a muted success, you won’t read much about it in here.

What you'll get is an inspiring mix of new ideas and faces that try to help us change the way we perceive and live in our environment. Ever heard of biomimicry? Aware of the consequences of overpopulation? We all still have a bit of waking up to do.

Forget Bali, Antarctica was the place to be this winter. Two freshly returned, polar explorers share their views on climate change with us: Zoë Caron tells us about tomorrow’s climate leaders, while Alain Hubert is the first guest in our new series of high-profile interviews.

Our first anniversary issue also sees the launch of two exciting new features: Mr Shift’s Reservoir Blogs and Laurent van Brussel’s lyrical Postscript.

The overall message is: get up and go!

Enjoy the read and drop us a line at www.shiftmag.eu

SHIFT Mag • 2008

Tipik Communication – A SWORD Group Company.

Avenue de Tervueren 270 – 1150 Brussels – Belgium.

Free quarterly publication (cannot be sold). Published by Tipik Communication.

Reproduction in any form is prohibited without prior consent. The views expressed by contributors are their own and do not necessarily represent those of SHIFT Mag.

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© François TACOEN

GOOD MORNING, CLIMATE CHANGE I was sitting at the kitchen table at 6am last Tuesday morning, a loyal cup of dark coffee to my left and a notebook displaying my sporadic handwritten notes to my right. My co-author, Elizabeth May, in an identical set-up on the other side of the table. Staring directly at me were the notes from a scientist from the Nobel Prize winning International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), who is reviewing our manuscript “Global Warming for Dummies”. Track changes on my Word document sent a chill down my barely-awake spine as I focused my early-morning eyes: “Deleted: 379 p.p.m.”

“Inserted: 388 p.p.m.”

P.p.m is short end for parts per million, the measurement used for the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. 400 is the number we want to stay away from. It’s in between 400 and 500 that things get really messy. I hadn’t planned on getting to know number 388 until 2010 or 2011. Now here I was, as if I’d been shot into the future, and it was staring at me on a glowing screen, in 2008.

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“Good morning to you too, climate change”, I thought.

The climate generation Not enough has been done in the past 20 years to reduce emissions that are causing global warming. But in those 20 years, dedicated people built a base of international environmental awareness. And in those same 20 years, a new generation of people emerged taking a strong lead on climate change.

remembering being at the first meeting of the Kyoto Protocol at age 19.

And we break into a full grin when we realise we’re creating more changes than we ever thought possible at age 22. Meet my generation. The generation that woke up to climate change.

Raising global awareness

It’s a common sentiment among people my age - those of us who were born when the first consensus came out on climate change by the international scientific community. Who was watching when we were 5-years-old and the IPCC wrote the first major climate change report? Who was in charge when we were 10 and science showed that humans were changing the climate? And what was the world doing at the creation of the Kyoto Protocol when we were 12?

A new movement is happening, and it’s more than just a feeling, a thought, or an interpretation. In the past 4 years, 5 major youth coalitions have sprung to life: the Energy Action Coalition (US and Canada based), the Canadian Youth Climate Coalition, the Australian Youth Climate Coalition, the African Youth Initiative on Climate Change, and, most recently, the Chinese Youth Climate Action Network - arising in the areas most needed. My generation - from children to young adults in our 20s - is proving to be the international catalyst of a new focus and a new era of awareness.

But then we get a twinkle in our eyes as we remember that we dedicated ourselves to climate change at 18. We smile at each other when

Never before have we been able to connect around the world in networks as far-reaching as today. Never in the history of humankind has there

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© François TACOEN

“ been real-time communication on a global level. And never before has there been an issue as global, timedependent, and solution-based as climate change.

Youth are connecting to their local government representatives through Adopt-a-Politician programs to work on climate change at a national level.

These coordinated efforts encourage politicians to lead on climate solutions in sessions of parliament and to support major policies requiring large-scale improvements in lowering greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

Empowering from the bottom up We are taking up the issue in our own communities: our university and college campuses. Projects range from working with university governments to adopt clean energy policies to empowering fellow students to positively alter our day-to-day lives. As students we have a goal of institutionalising change at the level of our campus community. And when we move on from university, we will do the same in our cities and towns, our countries, our world. And for those of us not in college or university, we are changing whatever community we have found ourselves in.

Hundreds of international youth collaborate on an annual basis to represent our generation, and future generations, at international United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conferences. All of us come from diverse backgrounds - whether on the basis of religion, geography, experience, age, political views, or education - yet we all have the same goal of prioritizing immediate and pragmatic action on reducing GHG emissions

and effectively implementing projects that will help us physically adapt to the changes in climate.

On the home front these leaders are bringing together hundreds of colleagues on an annual basis to conferences in order to spur networking, the sharing of dialogue, and the basis for transcending each other’s silos. The piece that really glues us together, however, is the basic and primal understanding that we depend on one another - and will continue to depend on one another for decades to come - to make this world a safer place in which to live. We depend on each other for survival. But that’s how life on earth has always been.

Air, water and hope I could sit down with you and talk for hours about the climate change work of young people around the globe. But for now I just want to convey that, as I pause for a moment to reflect on this exact moment in time, I feel a sense of security I’ve never felt before. I can’t help but feel a surge of pride and independence as our generation moves on - seamlessly at times - influencing widespread changes to the best of our ability.

Never before have we been able to connect around the world in networks as far-reaching as today.

And never before has there been an issue as global, time-dependent, and solution-based as climate change.

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I know that much of this has been done before. I know what we are doing would never have been possible without groundwork laid before us.

And I also know we all have stories to share - and we should. Because we all breathe the same air. We all drink the same water. And we all crave the same thing: Hope.

Despite the past, we’re looking forward to the future.

Considering old barriers, we’re now watching change happen.

And no matter who it is, we are working together.

To simply reiterate what we said on the world stage at the UN Climate Change Conference in Bali last November: Join Us. •••

> Zoë Caron Co-author, Global Warming for Dummies Ottawa, Ontario Canadian

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS TOPIC, YOU CAN VISIT:

http://itsgettinghotinhere.org/ http://www.energyaction.net/main/ http://cydbali.org/ http://www.youthclimatecoalition.com/ http://ayicc.org/ [ N° 5 ] > SHIFT mag

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POPULATION AND THE ECOLOGICAL CRISIS John is a former psychologist who became an environmental writer on seeing that few environmentalists were speaking up about the problems of population and corporate economic growth. His passionate activism is driven by the belief that population is arguably the most important environmental topic today, and yet receives close to the least coverage.

No one wants to talk about it, but the size and growth of the human population is central to the climate crisis.

It's a simple equation: our total consumption of greenhouse-gas-emitting fossil fuels is the product of two factors: population size and average per capita fossil fuel consumption. The latter factor gets all the press. China's rigid one-child policy and and political pressures from activist groups who see the issue as a distraction from their own causes have made discussion of population taboo.

Ultimately, the subject will not be denied. When we consider the larger ecological crisis of which climate change is a part, it becomes clear that we cannot expect to solve our environmental problems without tackling both factors in the equation.

Living above the planet’s means From a human-caused sixth mass extinction (the fifth having wiped out the dinosaurs) to groundwater and oil depletion, the evidence speaks. Living as we do, we have outgrown the earth. Our numbers have exceeded the biosphere's resource-generating and waste-absorbing capacities, putting us into what ecologists and environmental scientists call "overshoot" of the earth's "carrying capacity" for humans. According to the Ecological Footprint data at

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the Global Footprint Network we entered into overshoot in the 1980s.

We now use the regenerative and absorptive capacities of 1.25 Earths clearly an unsustainable situation. The Ecological Footprint authors emphasise, moreover, that their methods are conservative; the reality is worse than the data suggest.

A lesser known fact emerging from the Footprint data is that we cannot realistically expect to return to sustainability merely by reducing per capita resource consumption. To converge at a consumption level low enough to ease us out of overshoot would require all developed nations to drop voluntarily to the level of Nigeria or Guatemala – an unlikely scenario, and even then not low enough given the data's conservative nature.

Yet the study of other species tells us overshoot can only be temporary.

Ultimately, we will return to living within Earth's limits, whether by purposeful, humane actions or at the hand of nature. The latter's methods, effective but dispassionate, include such corrective measures as famine and disease.

Shaking off the population taboo Fortunately, our own more compassionate approaches cost little. Better health care, women's education, and family planning services – the centerpieces of any program to reduce population growth -- come in at a fraction of the cost of technological solutions such as nuclear power plants and the development and construction of renewable energy facilities.

But the world needs a nudge to shake off the population taboo. And a

glance at fertility rates tells us the EU is poised to set an example for other developed countries, and ultimately the rest of the world, to follow.

A country's "total fertility rate" refers to the number of children born, on average, to a woman in that country.

A rate of 2.1 leads in time to a stable population size. At lower rates, barring immigration levels high enough to compensate, a country's population will eventually shrink - however, it should be noted that there is considerable lag time between the drop below 2.1 and the actual shrinkage.

Low fertility rates: a blessing in disguise?

All EU countries now have fertility rates below 2.1. Belgium and Germany, for instance, are now at about 1.6 and 1.4 respectively. Though some countries such as France and Norway are close to 2.0, others including Italy, Spain, and Poland are under 1.3.

Those fertility rates may be the best news in the world today. They mean the EU could be among the first areas of the world to return to living within the earth's limits. But you would not know it from listening to economists.

They hear about low fertility rates and complain of economic challenges ahead as the younger, working age population declines.

They would probably stop complaining if they took a class in environmental science. They would learn that our overshoot of the earths' limits threatens hundreds of millions and possibly more human lives as problems such as climate change, mass extinction, and oil depletion converge. We are already on track to extinguish half of all species by the end of the century. The

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The study of other species tells us overshoot can only be temporary. Ultimately, we will return to living within Earth's limits, whether by purposeful, humane actions or at the hand of nature.

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economic implications of a shrinking population are a mere inconvenience compared to the ecological impacts of a population continuing to grow under these conditions.

Lower growth to avoid catastrophe

http://growthmadness.org/ http://www.appg-popdevrh.org.uk/ Publications/Population%20Hearings/ Population%20Hearings.htm http://www.populationmedia.org/ http://www.optimumpopulation.org/ http://www.actionbioscience.org/ environment/worldscientists.html

economic worries, EU citizens should welcome the prospect of population decline and embrace the challenge of learning to live well, but within natural limits. Now is the time to show the rest of the world the path to sustainability. •••

The complaining economists should consider that no economy can exist without an intact biosphere. Maybe then they would more easily listen to natural scientists who call for worldwide population stabilisation and even reduction to ensure the survival of millions of species including our own.

Unfortunately, some EU leaders are paying more attention to the economists. Some governments have enacted policies designed specifically to boost fertility rates. France, Poland, and Italy, for instance, have all instituted monetary incentives encouraging larger families. At a global level, such policies can ultimately be seen as suicidal. By encouraging population growth they push us closer to a global ecological collapse threatening all life.

We humans are an inventive species.

Surely we can learn to maintain a good quality of life, avoiding economic hardship in the context of declining populations. But we cannot undo extinctions, provide sufficient water when aquifers have run dry, or easily turn back climate change as it passes certain thresholds. Instead of listening to complaints about short-term

> John Feeney Environmental writer Boulder, Colorado, USA American

© Emmanuel TREPANT

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EUROPE’S GREEN CALLING, A NEW RAISON D’ÊTRE?

internal drivers and local leaders, eventually diffusing standards worldwide. It is a great opportunity for Europe to shine as a normative power, especially given the ethical appeal of the cause and its high symbolic value.

From local to global

© Mi Ran Collin

Local environmental solutions have targeted effects that may benefit local communities directly. When it comes to global problems such as climate change, the rationale for domestic action is not as simple. The results of local efforts are very hard to trace and such efforts may not seem to pay off.

The European Union is increasingly active on the international scene in promoting global action against climate change. The necessity for strong leadership in a context of international reluctance is clear. The reasons for the EU's willingness to engage in a first-mover position with such vehemence are less straightforward. Let us have a closer look at them.

Green Europe, a reality and a great prospect EU Member States such as Scandinavian countries and Germany have long been involved in environmental issues. To this day, they still offer the most progressive environmental policies and have the highest public awareness of all European countries. These pioneers have contributed to raising environmental

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issues at European level since the early beginnings of the EC, with most EU developments in the field being a result of the uptake of their ideas.

They have given Europe as a whole a strong platform to build on.

Behind the EU’s ambitions as a global leader also lies the fact that environmental protection and sustainable development are attractive issues for its member states. EU environmental legislation – one of the least controversial areas regulated at community level – serves internal cohesion, which is always welcome. Unlike other areas such as foreign policy, the EU has, from very early on, acted as a single force in international climate negotiations.

There is therefore a clear case for a “green” political Europe, pushed by

Yet in view of recent scientific evidence and projected catastrophes due to greenhouse gas emissions, it is clear that concerted global action is necessary. The EU seems to have understood that “to wait and see” is not an option. But curbing emissions alone will not prove very fruitful, as Europe’s emissions only amount to 14% of global emissions.

Transatlantic divide Since the US withdrawal from the Kyoto protocol, the EU has had an ever-stronger drive to take the lead in international climate negotiations.

The transatlantic divide is an occasion for the EU to re-establish its identity and to seize a niche role on the international scene.

The EU needs a new raison d’être now that it has secured peace and relative prosperity for Europe. This could be its chance: after having saved itself from human destruction, why not rescue the planet from environmental suicide?

The EU’s position is to push for the application of the precautionary principle and international law, as opposed

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“

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to that of the “unwilling” coalition centered around the US (and including China, Australia, etc.). These actors are involved in multi-lateral agreements but have until now rejected the conditions of the Kyoto protocol.

When to step in?

From a European perspective, taking climate change seriously implies pushing for concerted global action.

Domestic response is ineluctable, whether jointly implemented or not. It is in fact just a matter of timing and efficiency. Part of the game international actors are playing consists of choosing how long to maintain the traditional economy based on cheap fossil fuels and low energy savings, and when (if ever) to drastically reconsider the carbon-intensity of their economies.

The good news for the EU, both as an economic competitor and a global advocate, is that green growth has formidable potential. Green economies and markets are already emerging from the successful combination of environmental concern and promising technological innovations. Europe’s renewable energy industry, with the help of strong state protection in some countries, is growing steadily and becoming competitive. There is thus evidence of an alternative growth

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model, conciliating environmental concern with the traditional industrial paradigm.

A strategic argument for engaging early in environmental modernisation is the resulting competitive advantages it would give the EU in the global market. Scholars refer to the Porter hypothesis: under the assumption that stringent environmental regulation will eventually diffuse worldwide, forerunners are likely to benefit from a head start.

Political leverage and system inertia Taking the lead in international negotiations also implies greater leverage and political influence in shaping the climate regime. Initially opposed to market-based instruments, the EU is now advocating a mixed approach combining flexible mechanisms (carbon trading, offset mechanisms, etc.) and binding emissions targets.

The European Trading Scheme (EU ETS) is one of the EU’s policy innovations and red lines – it looks like it will be defended at any cost, if only for the amount of energy and competence that have been invested in it.

Interestingly enough, there is no sign of organised resistance from businesses and major industries. However, technical details, such as the modalities of permit allocation, are being thoroughly debated.

Presented as a necessity in the current context of international immobilism, European leadership on climate change is therefore promising to bring a wide range of benefits. Yet the real excitement of the ongoing negotiations for the post-2012 period will most probably not come from the European side (as most choices seem already made), but rather from the wind of change the US elections might blow on the “unwilling” coalition. •••

> Bruno Turnheim Associate researcher, Institute for European Studies Vrije Universiteit Brussel French-American

© Brieuc HUBIN

There is a clear case for a “green” political Europe, pushed by internal drivers and local leaders, eventually diffusing standards worldwide.

It is a great opportunity for Europe to shine as a normative power.

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PostScript

Laurent van Brussel

© Roberto TRIOSCHI

P.-S: It’s time to forgive the winter. A time for forgetting, a time for remembering. If we were to enumerate the things to be kept from “our” good or bad start to 2008, which picture, phrase or word would come first? That was the initial purpose of this text. But while everybody can follow the world’s pace page after page, minute after minute, does writing the story again still make any sense? In the end, is the essence not to be found in the current relationship people have with their times? Here is the verdict: we are not the architects (artisans) of our common destiny. But if the phenomenon has been going on for a long time, its rhythm has kept on accelerating, making us passive consumers of our times. We skim through each daily episode as if the world was other people. With our bread and circuses, we are living our own “Roman empire’s death”. Just like a bride choking on her wedding cake, we are not able to distinguish good from bad taste anymore. Just like traders frenetically gambling with the stakes of climate change, poverty, demographic ageing, sustainable energy or human rights, we don’t know where or what our true purchasing power is. “Work more to earn more”, says the slogan.

But what’s the use? To consume more? When human heat is used for heating buildings, what is left of human warmth? So it might be true: Moses’ Ten Commandments are in fact a junkie’s transcript. Too intoxicated, it seems the lawgiver (prophet) didn’t get God’s essential message: “It’s up to you…”

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ALAINHUBERT

© International Polar Foundation

SHIFTING WITH To launch our series of high-profile interviews with Europeans making a difference, we are glad to publish the views of Alain Hubert, the leading Belgian explorer and environmentalist who co-founded the International Polar Foundation.

We met him days after his return from Antarctica, where he built the world’s first “zero emission” polar station to research climate change. He gave us his take on what we can do to fight climate change, from EU leaders to individual citizens.

Visit http://www.polarfoundation.org/ for more information on polar research, the Princesse Elisabeth station and related climate issues.

Our role is to reap concrete benefits from this, by using the momentum to move things the right way. Most people see Al Gore’s film as the turning point, but I believe the IPCC report in early 2007 was even more significant in exposing the “inconvenient truth”.

For the first time in history, scientists gave us unquestionable evidence that man had negatively affected the planet. And they clearly showed that this was linked to our consumption pattern.

But the world as a whole, including us Europeans, still hasn’t fully gotten the message. And yet it is clearly in our social and economic interest to invest in a green economy. It’s where Europe’s future growth lies…

NINE MONTHS AFTER THE PUBLICATION OF THE IPCC REPORT, IN DECEMBER LAST YEAR, THE BALI CONFERENCE WAS HELD. WERE YOU DISAPPOINTED WITH THE OUTCOME?

Well, as you know, in December I was still in Antarctica building the first “zero emission” polar station. This more or less cut me off from the rest of the world for four and a half months, and I’ve only just come back and started to catch up with things.

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We have a very complex equation here you know; there are a lot of things we neither control nor understand yet. So we have to stay positive and not discourage people. The key is to act, using all the energy and support there is available. Someone like Al Gore has played a very important role, no matter what his own agenda was. Here was someone putting his political weight in the balance, and it certainly paid off.

THE EU HAS POSITIONED ITSELF AS A GLOBAL LEADER IN THE FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE. CAN IT LIVE UP TO THIS TASK AND WILL IT BE SUCCESSFUL?

First of all, I’m really proud of being European. I think the principle of different people finding a way to live together, the way they do in Europe, is key to our future on this planet.

Antarctica is another inspiring example of this principle: here’s a territory twice the size of the US managed by an international treaty representing two-thirds of mankind…

As for Europe’s role against climate change, I believe it should do much more. Not only for the planet, but for its own interests. Europe has all the assets to lead a green industrial revolution, from technologies to a mature public opinion. Now is the time to capitalise on this.

We shouldn’t accept people saying: “We have identified the problems. It’s up to the next generation to find the solutions”.

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© International Polar Foundation

I don’t think this hype is an obstacle to rational debate. These issues have been around for a long time, and although some clearly try to use them for commercial ends, at least the debate is emerging.

From what I’ve gathered, there was an opening at Bali and that’s about it. But it’s already a positive step. These highprofile summits are necessary, even if they don’t lead to concrete results. Remember that this is the only forum where world leaders can discuss the future of the planet.

© International Polar Foundation

CAN THE RECENT HYPE SURROUNDING CLIMATE CHANGE AND ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ALSO HAVE NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES, SUCH AS CORPORATE APPROPRIATION OR DISTORTION OF THE DEBATE?

© International Polar Foundation

© International Polar Foundation

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And we shouldn’t blame other countries for following our old economic model either. We invented (and benefited from) the fossil fuel economy, so we’re responsible for finding a way out of it before the Earth runs dry. The good news is that this will also help our economy.

WE’RE BEING DROWNED WITH MESSAGES ON WHAT WE CAN DO AS RESPONSIBLE CITIZENS TO HELP PRESERVE OUR ENVIRONMENT. WHAT DO YOU THINK PEOPLE SHOULD KEEP IN MIND ABOVE ALL?

Two things: first, everyone should try to understand their consumption level and environmental impact. We need people to move from small day-to-day initiatives to really questioning themselves and adjusting their lifestyle.

Where is my consumption carried out? What do I consume and in which quantities? How can I minimise my environmental impact without reducing my satisfaction? This is the next step people have to move to.

And the second most important thing is civil responsibility. People should expect and demand more from their politicians, punishing them electorally when they don’t do enough for the environment. If we can make this the number one electoral criterion, we will automatically make huge progress.

HOW CAN WE CHANGE PEOPLE’S CONCERNS AND BEHAVIOUR?

Through education, positive campaigning and good coverage. The media and politicians must go further than they have so far. It might be a bit easier with young people, but it takes immense time and effort to get someone to change their lifestyle (think of someone wanting to change his/her spouse’s habits).

© International Polar Foundation

© International Polar Foundation

And if the EU wants to stay ahead, it needs to set a 60% reduction target now. We can’t afford another generation of passive passengers waiting for a crash to take hold of the wheel…

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SWEDEN, EUROPE’S GREEN ENGINE? For a few days in February this year, the following message was played in the Brussels subway: “Due to exceptional weather conditions, air pollution has reached a peak in our capital today. We thank you for using public transports and for encouraging your friends and colleagues to do the same”.

Gas in the city According to the IBGE (Institut bruxellois pour la gestion de l’environnement), the quality of the air in Brussels has shown an improvement over the past 20 years. Still, and worryingly, they have also found that the levels of greenhouse gases are growing. This is due to a gradual increase in energy consumption linked to heating, transport and industrial activities.

As a Swede who has been living in Brussels for almost 8 years, it is interesting to compare this situation with that in my home country. As a matter of fact, I often get the question about why I left Sweden for Belgium: “Your country is such a clean country, with such a high quality of life!”. At the same time there is another, less flattering, image of Sweden: that of a rather distant and cold country, with a peripheral role in European affairs.

though the temperature is gradually rising due to climate change). It is also true that Sweden has a good track record in environmental protection. For example, Sweden is ranked 41st in the world when it comes to the amount of carbon dioxide emissions per person, while its neighbour Finland is 9th and Belgium 18th.

Even though a major reason for the low greenhouse gas emissions from Sweden is that it has a close to 0% dependency on fossil energy for its electricity generation (using hydro and nuclear power instead), there is also a heap of other reasons including an active environmental policy with green taxes, information to increase awareness on climate change, climate investment programmes, etc.

Sweden’s long term goal is to diminish its emissions of greenhouse gases by up to 50% by 2050. And a Swedish professor, Mr Bert Bolin, was one of the first scientists to warn of the threat of global warming.

Sweden’s European coming-out Could Sweden, be it geographically peripheral and sparsely populated, transfer its experiences in the environmental field, in particular its policies against climate change, to the rest of Europe? For this to happen, Sweden would have to move to a more central

position in European affairs. This would mean that both Swedish politicians and the Swedish people would have to get more involved in what goes on in Brussels. And the good news is that, at least when it comes to Swedish politicians, this might be taking place as we speak.

In a speech before the European Parliament in Strasbourg on 19 February, Swedish PM Fredrik Reinfeldt started by saying that Sweden should belong to the core of European cooperation and went on to announce that climate change would be one of the major issues during the Swedish presidency of the EU in the autumn of 2009. He presented Sweden as an example of a country which has succeeded in combining economic growth with a sustainable environmental policy.

A leading green economy The Swedish economy has grown by 44% since 1990, while its emissions of greenhouse gases have diminished by 9%. Mr Reinfeldt continued by saying that he was convinced that the EU could reach its climate and energy targets, as long as we introduce the correct steering mechanisms that will push our societies and companies into making the right choices. He also talked of the necessity of shared

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A warm place for environmental protection Of course, there is some truth in both.

It is true that Sweden is geographically rather peripheral and that it is, at least sometimes, quite cold (even

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http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/5745/a/21787 http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?type=IM-PRESS&reference= 20080215STO21489&language=EN http://www.ibgebim.be/Templates/Particuliers/Informer. aspx?id=1684&langtype=2060

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In Sweden, the top-down approach that characterises the present environmental policy has long been combined with a bottomup approach with popular environmental movements.

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responsibility of politicians and citizens, in a kind of a social contract, in order to achieve a real change.

© Brieuc HUBIN

The possibility to combine economic growth and successful environmental protection is of course good news for the EU. This is nothing less than what the Lisbon strategy aims to achieve.

The point about shared responsibility is also essential, since a lot of the responsibility for reducing climate change lies with the “ordinary” citizen.

Mobilising citizens and global partners One of the key issues therefore concerns awareness, taking responsibility and changing habits. That is perhaps another area where the rest of Europe can learn something from the Swedes. Swedes were among the first Europeans to react to environmental threats such as acid rain. In Sweden, the top-down approach that characterises the present environmental policy has long been combined with a bottom-up approach with popular environmental movements.

In the fight against climate change, time is running out and we have to act swiftly. The EU has already made far-reaching commitments and the Swedish experience can be very helpful in their implementation. In order

to achieve real results, the EU would however also need to influence the big polluters, i.e. the US, China, Russia, India and Japan to make quick moves towards drastically reducing their emissions. It is possible that Sweden, with its long commitment to work within the UN framework, might also play an important role in that endeavour. At least that is what a Swede living in the still-a-bit-too-polluted heart of Europe would hope. •••

> Mikael Olsson Translator Brussels Swedish

”We cannot despair of humanity, since we ourselves are human beings.”

Albert Einstein

”We know the science, we see the threat, and we know the time for action is now.”

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger

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RESERVOIR BLOGS WELCOME TO RESERVOIR BLOGS. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS IS? IT 'S EUROPE’S WEIRDEST BLOG REVIEW, GATHERING, JUST FOR YOU, ALL THE STRANGEST TIDBITS FOUND ON THE EUROBLOGOSPHERE. FROM NOW ON, MR SHIF T WILL WHIP OUT HIS FINGER AND STICK IT ON BLOGS TO SQUEEZE THE JUICIEST AND CRACK OPEN THE NUT TIEST FOR YOUR DISCERNING PALATES. What is it with petitions nowadays?

Jon Worth and Jan Seifert created a blog called whodoicall.eu. These two bloggers think it’s time to answer Henry Kissinger’s famous question: “Who do I call if I want to call Europe?”.

© Brieuc HUBIN

They say: “We stand for openness, accountability and democratic legitimacy […] It would be possible for there to be one person to call – the same person as President of the Commission and the European Council”.

Best Original Insult to an MEP And the winner is… Gawain Towler, for having called Dublin MEP Mary Lou McDonald a “blithering ninny” on englandexpects. blogspot.com. Mr Towler doesn’t understand why politicians believe a signature on a piece of paper can save “the part of the world that has temporarily grabbed their attention”.

months, and bugger me there are still homeless people on the street. How damned ungrateful they are not to have cleared off”.

Poor Ms McDonald, she’s doing her best to tackle street homelessness and gets insulted for it. Gawain, you’re the ungrateful one.

Please refrain from insulting MEPs or they’ll stop spamming our inboxes with petitions and declarations. We wouldn’t want that, would we?

They think that an additional and powerful European Council President would damage the EU through “competing power bases in Brussels (European Council, Commission), and less democratic legitimacy (the Commission president is at least chosen according to the results of the European Parliament elections; the European Council President simply appointed)” .

They end by saying: “If you agree that the European Union needs one person to call – One President – sign our petition below.”

Does Gawain Towler have anything to say about that? Maybe it’s worth a try. If you think this would save

Mary Lou McDonald sent an e-mail announcing “55 more signatures to end street homelessness”. Gawain answers the MEP by saying: “No they won’t, you blithering ninny. No amount of MEPs queuing up to salve their well-fed consciences will end street homelessness.”

Gawain continues his post by referring to another sentence in McDonald’s e-mail: “The European Parliament called twice for urgent action to tackle homelessness this year”. His reply: “So the Parliament has made this call twice in the last three

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B Bruges-Europe, Henri Védas posted what an auditor said p on The Now Show (BBC) when o he was asked to give three h things he liked in Europe. The th aanswer: 1. “The” 2. “English” 3. “Channel” When the same person was W as asked three things in Europe he disliked, he answered: 1. “The” 2. “European” 3. “Union” Europe, feel free to sign it. However, Mr Shift is afraid it takes a little more than a petition to change such political issues… But who knows?

“Two legs good, four legs bad” Joe Noory drew our attention to the following piece of news on no-pasaran.blogspot. com: “The police’s National Diversity Expertise Centre (LECD) wants sex allowed in all public parks in the Netherlands. The police institute has advised the cities to follow the example of Amsterdam […] In Amsterdam’s Vondelpark dog owners who let off the leash can be fined, but sex will shortly be permitted.”

Authorities say sex in public parks brings much pleasure to a certain group. Joe Noory answers: “There’s “group pleasure” which in previous generations was expressed as a passive acceptance of mass slaughter and waiting in bread lines, and other forms of meagerness with some kind of literary potential”.

Interesting, isn’t it? Mr Shift suggests this person should learn how to count.

On Re: Europa (reeuropa.blogspot.com), a blogger posted what some British Eurosceptics told him. One of them said: “The EU is the new Socialist Block dedicated to central control and the power to decide their own future has been taken away from the people because you believe that that power is better off in the hands of a few, who know best, in Brussels.”

Another one said: “The EU is worse than Russia. At least there are SOME kind of elections for the President of Russia. Who elected Barroso?”

Don’t know, but watch out! You’re right! The autocratic EU is watching YOU! And if you do something wrong, Barroso will whip you!

Harry, Britain’s new secret hero No, not Harry Potter, you “blithering ninny!” (sorry, Mr Shift loves the insult and needed to end the first Reservoir Blogs entry the way he started it).

Euros du Village (eurosduvillage.com) comments on last month’s big news: Harry was in Afghanistan with the army since 14 December 2007 and no one knew about it, apart from the press. Harry has instantly become Britain’s secret hero! How cute… After having made a fool of himself a few years ago wearing a nazi costume at a fancy dress party, Harry is now a superhero representing his country in Afghanistan. Everyone is happy: the public, the queen, the media (who surprisingly managed to keep the secret for 6 weeks), the army and the government, who always benefits from a positive trend in public opinion…

But for all this well-orchestrated piece of royal bravery, Harry will be back for the Easter egg hunt at Buckingham Palace Garden now that his presence was revealed – for understandable safety reasons given the soldier’s high profile as a target for terrorists. The other lads from his regiment will probably have their own (and rather more intense) egg hunt in the land of the Talebans…

See you next time!

Mr Shift

From now on, dogs may not be able to run freely anymore in parks in the Netherlands and Joe Noory gets offended: “I will give them this: this is the first evidence of two legs good, four legs bad that’s been heard of from the continent of divine wisdom in decades”.

Joe, Mr Shift has one piece of advice: why don’t you create a petition to save these dogs?

England good, Europe bad Now that we’re done talking about petitions, let’s talk about Eurosceptics. On

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PUTTING KNOWLEDGE BEFORE PROFIT There has been scientific consensus about anthropogenic global warming since the 1970s. So what has happened since? Why has the world not acted upon this information since then, apart from world summits and talks? All the (supposedly advanced) western world has done in the meantime is to increase its energy consumption and reliance on cars.

matter for our future, and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM), introduced by the Kyoto Protocol, can be seen as both good and bad. On the one hand, CDM may spawn a new “carbon-imperialistic” trend – shifting the burden on less developed countries. But it may also go hand in hand with actual development in third world countries.

Is the free market economy sustainable?

The need for free science

The current situation probably has something to do with the way we think about the “economy”.

Remember that the Kyoto protocol is supposed to destroy the US economy… I actually believe that the free market economy has a mixed record in organising our society in a more optimal and sustainable way. Its main failure is that economic interests often inhibit new developments that are not profitable for those in power in the short term. No other logic can explain why there have been subsidies for oil production while renewable energies have had a much harder time finding a break-through.

Economic growth through economies of scales is unsustainable over time if it relies on ever-increasing consumption. Sooner or later, we will have to find answers to the question: is a free-market economy able to deal with mitigating climate change and securing sustainable development?

It should not be assumed that an economic model that has worked well in the past will continue to do so in the future when conditions change radically.

The track record is not too encouraging if we look at the North-South divide in terms of wealth and poverty either. Trade is an important

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However, such schemes will not suffice as emissions do not stop automatically because of economic incentives. Substantial reduction requires reorganisation, innovation, and ground-breaking research.

We urgently need brilliant scientists and innovations. Can Europe provide those?

European science is being increasingly taken over by the so-called European Research Area (ERA), which is widely seen as unnecessarily bureaucratic. I have witnessed colleagues turning down suggestions to apply for EU funding simply because of the prospect of the bureaucratic load it entailed. It seems that the EU is trying to turn researchers from scientists into accountants and managers. In the accountants' regime, there is a collision of different cultures. Hardly an environment in which to excel.

So does free and basic science still exist? Or are we blinded by our own illusion that the world can only function properly under market conditions? I believe the problem regarding climate change has some connection with how science is increasingly

being conducted. The trend seems to be short-term projects and detailed auditing, with scientists competing for funding as if they were operating in a competitive industrial market.

Perhaps we need to get out of this spiral of predominantly economic thinking?

No easy solution, but some promising leads But there is also a more optimistic take on the future of environmental action when one looks at the number of promising technological solutions already emerging. The main focus is currently on fusion, but fuel pellets from waste is another interesting idea, while renewables are making an entrance.

Another question is whether the thorium reactor is a viable solution.

Politicians should also look into changing infrastructure and traditional patterns of mobility. The internet offers a new wealth of opportunities: perhaps daily commuting is not all that necessary anymore?

Houses can be made more energy efficient, CO2 can be sequestered into the ground, etc.

At present, there are no real alternative to cars. We are still too wasteful.

But biofuels are not necessarily the right direction, as land area must be divided between growing food, natural ecosystems and making fuel.

Preserving and taking care of forests and other natural habitats will also contribute to the mitigation of climate change.

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EUROPE TALKS TO BRUSSELS

Getting the media and other countries on board Another element that is key to promoting technological advances is communication, in order to increase public understanding and appreciation of environmental issues. We must engage with public opinion and inspire a culture for sustainable living. One problem here is the media themselves and their interest in maximising profit rather than informing and enlightening the public.

The strong economic interests at play often get mixed up in the reporting, which can add to the confusion instead of improving public understanding.

One can suspect that we are the targets of systematic propaganda from special interest groups that aim to sow doubt and inhibit action against global warming. Cynics could argue that since the industry provides more ad revenue to newspapers and TV stations than NGOs and think tanks, we should not expect the media to go against the former’s interests in their editorial lines.

This influence on the media partly explains why we are in the state that we are today, looking back to the 1970s wondering why we did not take action then. Maybe it has been profitable for some to conceal the explosiveness of the issue until the last minute.

In the end, the question of whether we will solve the problem of global warming – as well as the other pressing issues – boils down to a question of will. Can we work miracles? Just look at the pyramids built 4000 years ago; is the EU capable of building such magnificent constructions? But Europe is not alone. The only way it can have a real impact on the planet is by initiating a concerted global effort with all major carbon-emitting economies. If it can lead the way in innovative research and its implementation, the EU will be halfway there. •••

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> Rasmus Benestad Senior scientist, Norwegian Meteorological Institute Oslo Norwegian

Rasmus E. Benestad, D.Phil, is a senior Scientist at the Norwegian Meteorological Institute and a contributor to www.RealClimate.org.

His main area of work include climate analysis, seasonal forecasting and climate change, and is the author of "Solar Activity and Earth's Climate" (Praxis/Springer, 2002) and "Empirical-Statistical Downscaling" (World Scientific Publishing Co., in press).

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© Mi Ran Collin

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It should not be assumed that an economic model that has worked well in the past will continue to do so in the future when conditions change radically.

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BIOMIMICRY: NATURE KNOWS BEST As part of our quest to build a sustainable future for our planet, we would perhaps do well to first sit down and listen to the most established expert in sustainability: nature itself.

A natural evolution “Innovation inspired by nature” is the way American expert Janine Benyus describes her area of expertise – biomimicry. This principle draws inspiration from what it considers to be the genius of nature and its inhabitants.

But you wouldn’t be wrong in thinking that there is nothing new to this.

Man’s first attempts to fly spring to mind – comical images of men attached to bird-like contraptions falling from the sky. Think also of the invention of Velcro. It was inspired by the burdock plant which so readily attaches itself to passers-by through a system of hooks and loops.

What’s new about Ms Benyus’ and her colleagues’ work, is that it compares nature and the natural way of doing things to man and man’s way of doing things. It contrasts the sustainable approach used by nature with the wasteful approach used by man. After 3.8 billion years of natural evolution, only nature’s fittest now survive. These are the champions of sustainability and those that hold the key to survival.

Whether it’s knowing how to adapt to a specific environment or finding strategies for sharing this environment with others, nature is the expert.

Innovation inspired by nature’s shapes Who would have thought it? The shapes found in nature can be used to solve man’s problems. Japan’s bullet train, the Shinkansen, was inspired by the kingfisher. The initial challenge was to optimise the train’s penetration

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into the air when it entered and exited tunnels in the Osaka-Hakata line.

Engineers turned to nature for the answer – diving birds have to make rapid transitions between atmospheres of varying densities, such as air and water. By recreating the shape of the kingfisher’s beak, engineers found

© Christophe WANLIN

a solution to the problem of compressed air in tunnels. The discovery led to a 15% reduction in electricity consumption, a 10% increase in speed and less noise for travellers and residents.

These engineers and designers who were faced with a technical problem adopted the biomimcry approach.

They asked biologists: which other creatures have the same problem and how have they solved it?

Innovation inspired by nature’s processes It’s not just nature’s shapes that can be inspirational. Biomimicry also offers fertile ground for developing new materials. Several laboratories across

the world are studying the specific mechanisms involved in photosynthesis. They are looking, in particular, at the sensors which transform sunlight into electricity and how these could be replicated in a biodegradable paint. Other teams are in the process of producing ceramics using a similar technique to that seen in mollusc shells.

Each of these new ways of producing materials share a common denominator: they reject, in no uncertain terms, what in English is called the “heat, beat & treat” methods. These methods - developed over the last few centuries to manufacture fossil fuels quickly and cheaply - often resort to

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FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS TOPIC, Y OU CAN VISIT:

EUROPE TALKS TO BRUSSELS

www.biomimicry.eu

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After 3.8 billion years of natural evolution, only nature’s fittest now survive. These are the champions of sustainability and those that hold the key to survival.

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who were looking for inspiration from the natural world. Nature has many mature ecosystems – such as primary forests and coral reefs which function exactly how they wish. These ecosystems, known as Type III, organise themselves as part of a community of diverse organisms. These organisms all share the common goal of looking after their given environment, by using the resources available in the best way possible and over the longest period possible.

very high temperatures, pressures and chemical substances which are frequently toxic. Chemical reactions inspired by nature, however, take on the ambient temperature and pressure, use water as a solvent and leave nothing behind that isn’t biodegradable.

Innovation inspired by nature’s organisation When American ecologist William Cooper was invited to a meeting on industrial ecology for the first time, he was the only biologist in the room. He had good news for business experts

However, Mr Cooper also had bad news.

Because seen through the eyes of an ecologist, our current industrial civilisation behaves in exactly the opposite way to the Type III ecosystem. Instead it operates like a pioneer ecosystem known as Type I. In nature, these pioneer ecosystems are normally in the minority and are ephemeral. They generally emerge after certain events that create new areas to invade or re-invade - after the birth of a volcanic island, or after a forest fire or mudslide. Their characteristics include weak diversity, and the excessive use of key resources such as water and food. Type I ecosystems favour rapid growth,

www.biomimicryinstitute.org www.biomimicryguild.com www.archiborescence.net

prefer quantity to quality, produce lots of waste and use up lots of energy.

Through agriculture and the industrial revolution man chose how he would operate. Overwhelmed by the seemingly limitless resources and energy available, he thought this would always be the case and that there would always be somewhere he could migrate to. The nature of this Type I colonisation strategy was not taken into account. And, today, all colonisable places have been colonised. Mankind must make the move towards a mature ecosystem.

By observing nature’s mature ecosystems, perhaps we can learn a few lessons in sustainability and in turn find a more harmonious way to live and adapt to our environment.

The article is a compilation of excerpts from Archiborescence by Luc Schuiten, Pierre Loze, Gauthier Chapelle and Fabrice Wagner (Pierre Mardarga, 2006). Translated from French by Ann Macpherson. ••• > Gauthier Chapelle Biologist and Executive Director of Biomimicry Europa, aisbl Brussels Belgian

Biomimicry Europa strives to promote biomimicry as an innovative process encouraging the transfer of ideas, concepts and strategies from the living world to human applications aimed at sustainable development.

Education, research and communication about biomimicry are the main objectives of the association, in order to acclimatise the concept in Europe.

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EUROPE TALKS TO BRUSSELS

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