Keystone | July 2011
The Future of Water
04. Canaccord Genuity | Betting on Commodities 06. Youth Policy Summit | Laying Foundations: Water and Policy 16. Water | Facts, Opportunities, Risks 20. The 451 Group | The NOW for business in the green economy
Letter from the Publisher
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orking together seems harder today than it ever was. Rancorous debates and hostage holding over critically important policy has become fashionable.
It’s not new. Back when John Adams was President, public debate turned physical on the floor of the House. As Federalists and Republicans argued for and against war with France, Adams held a middle line: building up the navy and the army, while campaigning for peace. It didn’t make him popular. Both sides vilified him as either warmongering or weak. So today, we see something when we face important global competitiveness, a employment landscape, emerging nations putting pressure on fewer resources.
similar issues: bleak and more
Our challenges makes the Keystone Center’s approach to mediating public policy urgently needed. Having extended their expertise and methodology to teens, we applaud their program to train high school students in a process that promotes rigorous thinking on national policy. We can all learn from their process. THE GREEN ECONOMY is proud to support the Keystone Center’s 30 years of evolving public policy with leaders from government, industry and academia. In this issue, we chart the Keystone Center’s program on water policy in New Jersey, and listen to two leaders talk about the future of the green economy.
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t’s all about the future. For us and for our kids. It’s time we rolled up our sleeves and found the common ground.
A. Tana Kantor
THIS ISSUE
Policy & Water 04. Canaccord Genuity | Investment bank analyst talks about the value of
commodities and staying the course.
08. Keystone Center | Trains teens to think wide. 16. Water | Facts, Opportunities, Risks 20. The 451 Group | What companies are doing now.
THE GREEN ECONOMY July | 2011 Cover Image US Department of the Interior
John Quealy, CPA, is Managing Director in Equity Research at Canaccord Genuity, specializing in the
Resource Optimization and Sustainability sector. He joined the firm as an Associate in 2000, when he helped launch this franchise in the United States. Currently, John covers a broad array of companies in the Energy Technology, Water & Wastewater and Pollution, Recycling and Remediation Control sectors. John has created and developed several specialized investment themes within this sector, including Clean Coal and Advanced Metering research. Prior to joining Canaccord, John worked for Deloitte & Touche, where he was a manager in the audit and assurance practice. John received a B.S. in accounting and philosophy cum laude from Boston College and is a Certified Public Accountant.
This isn’t software.
Every six months there’s something new to buy for the iPad, but the kinds of changes we’re talking about, that are based on physical processes, take time. John Quealy, Managing Director in Equity Research, Canaccord Genuity
The other fundamental issue that people don’t focus on is the very volatile and constrained commodity environment. The real drivers are depleting resources—moving those around and searching for alternatives. That trend is not going away at all.
C
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Regulation helps the sector and expectations, but political regimes and regulatory policies change. Yet clearly a rising standard of living necessitates clean air, clean water, and more responsible and efficient practices. That‘s what sustainability brings.
China, India, Brazil, Russia—places that are expanding in different areas—clean water is a must, but that’s a very difficult problem to solve. Yet that’s one area where, regardless off what happens, the technologies are here and now and proven. It’s a question of where the demand is. But that’s one area where the trends will continue.
ommodities have rebounded very strongly on the resumption of growth throughout the world, and in some cases in very quickly in the developing countries. As they begin their own century of expansion with their own formidable middle classes and rising standards of living, they’ll require significant infrastructure, which in turn requires commodities.
What does the future hold for the green economy?
ater in most of the developed Western world is inexpensive commodity. In emerging parts of the world, where supply isn’t keeping up with demand, quality is an issue and water is scarce, that’s where you’re starting to see a focus in valuing water as the critical commodity that it is.
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n the energy side, there’s an interesting dynamic. In the Western world, the supply of a reliable electron gets more important, which
For consumer-based companies, the concept of green might be hybrid electric vehicle or reusable shopping bag, while for industry it’s apt to be more about infrastructure. It’s going to take time.
makes electricity very valuable because it powers server farms and websites. In the United States, we have more GDP driven by the electron—which we still can’t store well, cheaply or effectively. As a result, the focus on measuring and monitoring all the data around the electricity market is critically important.
So expectation setting is critical, as well as understanding just how long it will take to transform society in terms of physical assets. It will happen in the next decades, but we have to be clear about risks and timing. Otherwise there will be continued disappointment.
provinces have to deal with clean energy rules, they have electric grids that weren’t built to have a two-way flow. We’re now asking a 100 year old industry to accept electrons from different sources. That’s going to require a lot of networking ability on behalf of utilities, that haven’t done it that way. So we like a lot of technologies that focus on electricity because it’s so very critical.
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What about clean tech?
But in the last couple of years, we’ve seen major companies make big investments in clean tech. I think it started with fleet sales with the Toyota Prius. Hybrids are one way big companies are showing their conservation of resources and efficient, clean products. For the public and all of us to move to a Toyota, or for automakers to make cleaner cars, it take several years, design cycles, focus groups.
What trends do you see? You see, not only do states and
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hen you mention green/ sustainability/clean tech—these are all different and mean different things to different people. For consumerbased companies, the concept of green might be hybrid electric vehicle or reusable shopping bag, while for industry it’s apt to be more about infrastructure. It’s going to take time.
he adoption rates are blindingly fast in other technologies, but the adoption rates in clean tech take more time. Expectations need to be set properly about time frames. For the last 10 years, green and clean companies have mainly been small, speculative, high growth start-ups. Failure rates high, and there’s been a lack of profitability.
What about greenwashing?
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here are examples where the concept of green has disappointed consumers. The good news is that green is finally in society’s conscious and expectations are for rapid adoption and cost leveraging. In come cases that is happening, but dealing with infrastructure and physical attributes—you just can’t fight the laws of physics. And now we’re caught with sovereign debt concerns around the world, so subsidies are under attack. With the political change and the disappointment with Copenhagen, the common perception is that these technologies, like solar or wind, aren’t competitive without subsidies. In some cases it’s getting better. That’s just he way it goes. We’re trying to get a cost curve down in short order against an industry with centralized power stations that are over 100 years old. It’s hard to overnight compete against that on the basis of cost.
Links Canaccord Genuity Canaccord Genuity ResearchJohn Quealy
LayingFoundations The Keystone Center’s Youth Policy Summit used water to train high school students to develop public policy. By examining the issues, they incorporated the views of multiple stakeholders.
If they can do it, so can we.
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On June 18th, 37 high school students from New York and New Jersey public educational institutions arrived at Montclair State University. From the Bronx and Queens in New York, and Northern New Jersey, the teens spent a week researching, exploring
issues, building teams, talking with experts and developing water policy. Lead by Keystone Center staff, they gained a unique insight not only into the complexity of public policy, but also into each other and the possibilities for their futures.
Succeeding in an environment where projects require the cooperation of industry, entrepreneurs, regulatory agencies, technologists, private capital and communities requires the ability to balance multiple stakeholders’ needs and interests.
The Keystone Center is a nonprofit
whose mission is to find solutions to the complex issues challenging environmental, energy, and public health problems.
The “green” or “clean” or low-carbon economy—defined as the sector of the economy that produces goods and services with an environmental benefit —remains at once a compelling aspiration and an enigma as the nation and its regions search for new sources of growth. Sizing the Green Economy: a National and Regional Jobs Assessment, The Brooking Institute
Unemployment: Ages 16-24 30.5% No diploma 19.8% High school only 12.6% Bachelors or other Employement Policy Institute,
Michael Saltsman, Research Analyst
A Green Economy
Jobs
As Yogi Berra is reported to have said, “The future ain’t what it used to be”.
A recent Brooking Institute report pointed out that “Innovation… remains a crucial driver of economic growth, and so clean economy innovation—motivated by the unprecedented environmental and resource challenge… appears a likely source of future economic development as firms of all kinds seek to invent new, environmentally friendly ways to decrease the world’s carbon and resource intensity.”
One of the most significant differences between the green economy and the internet revolution is that, in the past, innovators had technical skills that required little collaboration or social interaction. A high value could be placed on a programmer in her cubicle, writing code for a specific task or project. The brilliant “cowboy” who might be the creator of the next Amazon, Facebook or eBay was sought after by eager of investors. But the future of the green economy is more complex, more interactive and more global. Succeeding in an environment where projects require the cooperation of industry, entrepreneurs, regulatory agencies, technologists, private capital and communities requires the ability to balance multiple stakeholders’ needs and interests. Developing the skills needed to succeed is important both for the teens who participated in the Youth Policy Summit (YPS), and also for us, who will need these bright minds if we are to compete successfully in the new economy.
The report added that emerging economies, of mostly urbanized consumers, will purchase energydemanding appliances for the first time, demand land and water intensive diets with more meat, and generate increasing amounts of waste. As Daniel Burrus, author of Flash Foresight said, these are not reversible trends. People are not going to give back their refrigerators nor high protein eaters go back to a diet of rice. Preparing for a future that is evolving to meet these challenges will demand a nimble workforce, capable of examining issues from many sides, incorporating new paradigms, social mores, economies and customs. These are skills that are critical when using
technology to solve environmental problems.
Experience Providing an opportunity to engage in a collaborative process early has many benefits. First of all, getting teens involved in the job market has shown to be important. Adults who have been employed or engaged in internships and programs, like YPS, earn an average of 20% more than teens who don’t work in the summer. They also have jobs with better pensions and benefits, according to Michael Saltsman, a research analyst at the Employment Policies Institute (EPI). “People assume that kids are just missing out on cash for movies, but it’s really a big deal, “ he said. While the Great Recession isn’t helping, Saltsman credits the high teen unemployment rate on a transformative shift in the economy. He noted that many service sector jobs, where teens typically start, are being replaced by technology or being eliminated all together. He mentioned a McDonalds in Paris using touch screens instead of staff, and restaurants letting customers bus their own tables. While the value of service jobs may seem low, Saltsman says that such
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“I deal with young people all the time, both as a parent and in community organizations. What made the Keystone youth summit participants stand out was a high level of ambition, clearly not content with letting life go by without making a contribution to it.“
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Participating School jobs provide critically important “soft skills”: customer relations, appearance and so forth. As these jobs disappear, he believes there will be a growing demand for alternatives—even if unpaid—in order to get that preparation.
government, industry, and the public sector—The Center for Education provides students and teachers with original opportunities to acquire the skills that will allow them to excel in their professional and civic endeavours.
The Keystone Approach Youth Policy Summit The Keystone Center is a nonprofit whose mission is to find solutions to the complex issues challenging environmental, energy, and public health problems.
Founded in 1986, The Keystone Center saw the need to promote cooperative solutions in major policy areas with an eye toward creating enduring agreements and improved relationships. By bringing together multiple stakeholders— along with expert science, careful convening, skilled process design and management—their approach results in tangible actions, new partnerships, and reduced conflict. Their experience in high-level mediation has put them at the proverbial cat-bird seat when examining issues in the clean and green economy.
Education In addition to the policy center in Washington DC, where they work on high-level issues with key national stakeholders, the Keystone Center has an educational division in Keystone Colorado. Because today’s students will someday lead our communities—throughout
In 2004, the Center dramatically expanded their educational efforts through the Youth Policy Summit™ (YPS), aimed at high school students in under-served schools. Going beyond their Colorado base, YPS goes directly to states, partnering with Universities—who host the students for a week—and working with public high school programs. Recruiting public schools and programs is one of the challenges the program faces. YPS requires the participation of teachers to recommend appropriate students, direct the first stage research, and attend during the week. For some schools, with already over extended staff, this can be a difficult commitment. Liz Roush, the New Jersey coordinator for Keystone, said that recruiting schools was one of her biggest challenges.
Program Benefits For students who do attend, YPS provides an opportunity to expand researching skills, listen to multiple points of view, and engage highlevel stakeholders. This aspect of the program is particularly important, as adolescents get a
Burlington County Institute of Technology
A public vocational and tech adult students. The foremost prepare adolescents and adu labour market and/or to cont learning.
Academy for Environmental Leadership
The Academy for Environme York City schools system. A s science, mathematics and tec to become environmental lea on critical thinking skills, whic college study and careers.
Liberty LEADS
A program of the Banks Stree nonprofit successfully serving including high-achieving stud them to become competitive universities, and students wh out of school.
Bronx HS of Science
Founded in 1938, The Bronx reputation as one of the fines The school trains both future humanities.
real time experience of talking to—and be listened by—leaders who can provide role models for their futures. The program culminates in presentations by student team before a diverse audience. But as Jeremy Kranowitz, Director of the Center for Education, said, the students “do not just produce a nice report”. He said that alumnae of the program graduate with a sense of urgency about the the topic they study, as well as new
“They even reminded me how there are tools they are better able to use than many of the panelists, like social networking. In fact, they inspired me to expand my own outreach to our young leaders so we can continue learning from each other.” YPS Expert Panelist: Stan Kaczmarek, PE National Practice Leader,
Research Areas
hnical school district serving high school and t mission is to fully and comprehensively ults of Burlington County, NJ, to enter the tinue their education in schools of higher
Water Utilities and Treatment for Consumption
ental Leadership (AEL) is a part of the New small learning community, they focus on using chnology to develop the capacity of students aders. Their challenging curricula is based ch prepare students for Regents diplomas,
Water Transport Systems & Infrastructure
et College of Education, Liberty LEADS is g a remarkably diverse group of students, dents at under-resourced schools, preparing e applicants to selective colleges and ho are struggling and/or at risk of dropping
Planning & Development (urban planning, Landscaping, architecture) Water use for Resource Extraction (shale gas and hydraulic fracking) Residential & Home Water Use
High School of Science has earned a st public secondary schools in the country. e scientists and mathematicians, as well as
Watersheds & Ecosystems
confidence in their ability to make an impact. Past graduates have talked to communities, met with legislators, CEOs and mayors. One group made a presentation to Lisa Jackson, the Administrator of the US Department of the Environmental Protection (US EPA).
College Life In addition to the training in policy analysis, they experience the realities of college life: living in
dorms, meeting people from very different backgrounds, being away from home, and managing their time in order to meet program expectations. For students who may be the first generation to go to college, this can be an important step in planning their futures. Kranowitz added that most partnering Universities wave the application fee for YPS attendees, and one offered a $10,000 scholarship to any YPS graduate accepted by the school. The
program has already engaged over 60 high school programs, 20 colleges and Universities, and produced over 550 alumnae. In addition to water policy, YPS has focused on energy innovation, nutrition and obesity, and youth violence prevention.
Future
Kranowitz has big plans for YPS. The first program was hosted at Western Michigan University, giving students from Detroit and upper Michigan experience with WMU over the better known Michigan State. YPS expanded to 6 universities, then 8 and this year 12. At around $2,000 per attendee, Keystone is examining all options for the program. As Kranowitz noted, the students “Like to eat three meals a day and take a bath!” The future is indeed not what it used to be. Providing an experience with real world, complex problem solving is a critical step. The mediation process that Keystone Center has developed over 25 years, is being used to train a generation of adolescents to do the work that will be needed. The Youth Policy Summit approach, outlined on the next two pages, is a needed model for our futures.
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Youth Policy Summit staff worked with participating schools, selecting topics which teachers helped students research. (see chart on previous page) When the students arrived at Montclair State University, they made presentations that introduced their schools. Over the next few days they presented their research, so that the group could start with multiple perspectives.
In order to create teams from the very diverse student body—made up of groups from four schools— the staff used a variety of activities, from arm wrestling to building a tower from marshmallows and spaghetti to hold an egg. By interspersing activities with research presentations, students became more comfortable asking questions and working with people they did not know .
Links Keystone Center Youth Policy Summit The Brooking Institute “Sizing the Green Economy” Employment Policy Institute
Throughout the program, Keystone staff lead discussions on the key topics that were emerging from the research. As the teams gained more knowledge, the conversation became more focused. Lead by the YPS staff, the group picked six topics that they initially saw as areas to explore in working groups.
The students talked to experts from industry, government, education and non-profit advocacy groups. Because they had researched and discussed topics, they were able to ask insightful questions and get answers. Students came away with a perspective on job opportunities in engineering, policy and water, as well as information about real world issues and solutions that they had not considered. (see the heading on the previous page for feedback from a panelist.)
Using coloured dots, the students picked topics to be explored, narrowing down to a few critical issues. The YPS staff then randomly selected final teams to write up reports on the selected topics. The selection process broke up cliques and brought fresh perspectives to the task.
The final task was to distil and simplify the policy conclusions. Although they had much less time to research and write than for the final project than they had while at school, their final presentations were much better. They had stronger visuals, more clarity to their discussions, and new insights.
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water ocean lake stream river trickle pond storm water waste water best friend worst enemy H2O two hydrogen one oxygen ice steam flood tsunami drought rain precipitation rainwater drizzle downpour
Water: Facts, opportunities, risks.
snow flurry blizzard dam osmosis reverse osmosis salination desalination membranes algae clean refresh parched water bourn downstream water ocean lake stream river trickle pond storm water waste water best friend worst enemy H2O two hydrogen one oxygen ice steam flood tsunami drought rain precipitation rainwater drizzle downpour snow flurry blizzard dam osmosis reverse osmosis salination desalination membranes algae clean refresh parched water bourn downstream flow pressure
[C]entralized water treatment facilities generate a single grade of water for every use, whether it will be used as tap water or to fill a toilet. This practice uses significant energy and materials and generates significant waste. Water 101: A Primer for Corporate Executives The Artemis Project for Kachan & Co.
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hen we talk about energy, we often use water analogies: watts are the diameter of the pipe, voltage the rate of flow. But water is not oil: because there is no substitute. Without clean water, people cannot survive. In the US, water is distributed, cleaned, and managed through water utilities. Dallas Kachan, Managing Partner of Kachan & Company, said that we have
become dependent on that single source, but that the future of water will be more distributed, the infrastructure smarter, and businesses will develop solutions that work with or are independent of water utilities. Consumers and businesses are already making plans for their future, installing water controls, capturing rain water, controlling storm water runoff with green roofs and permeable surfaces, and more. Kachan has seen savvy investors moving into water technologies since the
early 2000ds, and the Fortune 500 embracing water technologies that have a positive ROI in two to three years. A report commissioned by Kachan, “Water 101: A Primer for Corporate Executives”, notes that “Water scarcity, infrastructure breakdown and climate change will make water a critical issue for business operations worldwide over the next three years.” The opportunity for business is huge, and the risks can be huger.
Percent of rivers in the province of Shanxi, China rated unfit for human contact Percent of China’s population that lacks safe drinking water Pounds of organic pollutants emitted into Chinese waters very day Pounds of organic pollutants emitted into US waters very day Pounds of organic pollutants emitted into South African waters very day Percent of earth’s surface covered in water Fresh water available if the all the world’s water were to fit into a gallon jug Percent of the world’s potable water in the U.S. Great Lakes Depth if water in the Great Lakes was spread evenly across the continental U.S. Years that the overall amount of water on our planet has remained the same Rate at which the US consumes water compared to other industrialized nations Gallons of water Americans flush down their toilets every day Year that 7 people died and 2,300 became ill from E. coli bacteria in Ontario Increase in water consumption compared to population growth in the 20th Century Number of people worldwide who do not have access to clean water The time that most of the world’s people must walk to fetch water Amount of water that one acre of a corn field gives off per day in evaporation Amount of water to grow a single serving of lettuce Amount required to produce a single serving of steak Average gallons of water is needed to make an automobile, tires included Number of households that lie in flood prone areas in the US Amount of property that lies in flood prone areas in the US Rate of urban growth on floodplains compared to the rest of the country
80 50 11.7 million 5.5 million 0.6 million 75 1 tablespoon 20 10 feet 2 billion double 6.8 billion 2000 double 1.2 billion 3 hours 4,000 gallons 6 gallons 2,600 gallons 39,090 9.6 million $360 billion double
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Companies are redesigning their operations for “water resilience” and are already seeing business benefits. Water 101: A Primer for Corporate Executives The Artemis Project for Kachan & Co.
18 Opportunity There’s a wide range of opportunity from saving costs now, anticipating issues in the future, and growing revenue on water technologies, including:
Long term water management policies.
Green designs for buildings
Reducing and cleaning water used in the manufacture of current products.
Collaborating with water technologists to develop new products or services.
Investing corporate portfolios in water technologies Water management means measuring and analysing use to develop long term strategies to become more efficient in the way that water is used. At the most simplistic level are smart faucets and low flow toilets. Corporate offices especially those with large footprints, are building or remodeling to include green roofs or permeable surfaces that allow water to drain into the ground as opposed to running off into storm drains. As Kashan notes, companies are redesigning their operations for “water resilience” and are already seeing business benefits. As an
example, companies that use water intensively, particularly food and chemical companies, are looking to make the water that leaves their process cleaner than when it entered. Companies from Veolia to GE Water are actively looking for new or improved products to add to their portfolio of water technologies. Since water processes includes cleaning, disposal, disinfection, nutrient removal and desalination, there is a wide margin for new business. Larger projects, which can be part of a corporate investment portfolio, are in the growing area of Infrastructure, including pumps, pipes and valves, as well as products that clean pipes, regulate and measure flow, and manage water overflows. New technologies include algae (one company has a process that cleans water while producing oil) and nano technologies that “eat” pollutants such as bacteria.
Risk Management The risks of ignoring water issues include new regulations. In the US, the SEC requirements for reporting on climate change risk includes water. This will force many companies to examine their water quality and dependency issues.
One of the other major issues is storm water management. Large storms can cause storm drains to overflow, which results in a mixture of sewage and storm water being released into water ways. As public funds for water infrastructure decline, municipalities and states are mandating storm water containment or high fees for storm water that is discharged into the system.
New Markets Emerging Markets, which are seen as the potential for growth, are driving corporate innovation. for these companies, water is both an opportunity and a risk. Risks because existing pollution in waterways can create both physical and regulatory barriers. Opportunities because that same pollution will hinder further growth until it is managed. Similarly, water shortages provides a great venue for new technologies that distribute or manage resources better, but can pose a problem for processes that require water that is not available.
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Water 101: A Primer for Corporate Executives http://www.kachan.com/
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While it is true that there is an environmental time bomb ticking, it was never realistic for anyone to expect economies to change dramatically in five or ten years.
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Andy Lawrence, Research Director, Eco-Efficient IT The 451 Group
The most encouraging aspect of the green economy is in the actions of individual companies—whether it is the way that multinationals are now building energy efficient data centers, or in the development of improved generating technologies. Even the rapid evolution of the electric car could become far more popular, far more quickly, than most are expecting.
What does the future hold for the green economy?
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t is always difficult to define what is meant by the green economy. Any assessment of its progress, status or future depends not only on our basic terms and definitions, but on which sector we are concerned with. Further, if you take a global view it is geographically dependent. In other words, there is no green economy to speak of today, but there are many green strands and sub-strata which have some goals and attributes in common.
Many people, especially those with a largely environmental stance, have been very disappointed by the slow progress of green ideas, technologies and strategies in business over the past several years. But it is important to take a long term view: over time, a combination of factors—the cost of consumables and polluting technologies, the growing number of compliance issues, and to a certain extent, public attitudes—will drive change and create opportunities for businesses with innovative ideas and products.
What has been the most disappointing aspect?
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rom an over arching international perspective, the most disappointing aspect of the green economy is that too much faith and emphasis has been put on the role of intergovernmental action, such as Kyoto, the emissions trading system in Europe, and the whole notion of cap and trade schemes. Most of these initiatives have had little effect. The failure of the Copenhagen summit appeared catastrophic, but the truth is that many green economists have been thinking for some time about different ways to change behavior without relying on international accords and Kyoto-like agreements.
The fate of the democrat led cap and trade laws in the US is really a symptom of what is going on everywhere—cap and trade laws in Australia and in the UK have also run into trouble. At present, governments are not willing to jeopardize economic recovery or growth by pushing up energy prices—and they are unable to secure the majorities to take the risk.
Do you think dubious green marketing has tarnished green?
M
arketing people have behaved a little cynically in the way they have adopted green sloganeering and messaging. But this is much to be expected—and arguably, they have helped keep green issues at the forefront of people’s minds. It is perhaps more concerning that the press and other informed critics do not police this area more thoroughly. The main reason for this is not, I think, complicity and a lack of governance, nor is it laziness by the media. Rather, it is complexity— as the case of biofuels and nuclear energy have shown—that requires a lot of time, thought and knowledge to reach defensible, sensible positions.
What aspect might have started turning people off?
T
he economic stimulus bill and various other initiatives will definitely encourage the
development of the green economy. But the real impact is not in jobs or structural changes today, but in longer term shift towards greater efficiency and the adoption of greener technologies. This will take many years, even decades. The problem with the stimulus bill is that a lot of its effects are invisible, and it won’t deliver enough in the short term to stave off critics. It is unlikely that the current government’s support for the green economy will be understood or rewarded by the electorate within the period of two administrations, let alone one.
In your opinion, is the green economy dead?
N
o, definitely not. The green economy will advance in spurts in some years, and stall in others. But it will inevitably grow— it already has—dramatically, if you look over, say, two decades rather than over the past five years. In recent years, the financial crisis and recession in Europe and the US, and roaring expansion of China and India, have provided some huge economic issues for businesses and governments to deal with. This has pushed green issues down the agenda, but this is temporary. In particular, rising energy prices and associated energy security issues are going to provide a very strong driver for energy efficiency and a host of innovative investments.
Links The 451 Group Andy Lawrence
Andy Lawrence leads the eco-efficient IT research practice at The 451 Group, a New York based analyst firm. His team focuses on how IT and business can monitor and reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions. Andy also covers datacenter resource efficiency projects and is the program director for the Uptime Symposium on Datacenter Efficiency and Green Enterprise IT. Andy is the author of several major reports covering Eco-efficient IT, power management, policy, legislation and compliance; and datacenter management and energy efficiency software. Before joining The 451 Group to focus on ecoefficiency, Andy was a technology editor and publisher, founding his own publishing company and launching several influential magazines and information services.
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