Event - Carbon Professional Path: Fast Track

Carbon Professional Path – Fast Track will take place on Feb 26 to Wed Feb 27, 2013, in Toronto, Ontario. The 2-Day program offers CSA Groups globally recognized, professional GHG Inventory Quantifier Certification. Completion of  ‘Carbon Professional Path – Fast Track’ program builds competence to develop, quantify, assess and report GHG Inventories.

British PM Says Investment in the Green Economy is a Competitive Necessity

On February 4, 2013, British Prime Minister David Cameron made a speech in which he spoke to the competitive necessity of his government's investments in the green economy. Speaking at the official launch of the Department of Energy and Climate Change's (DECC) new Energy Efficiency Mission, Cameron boldly addressed his critics by saying

"So to those who say we just can't afford to prioritize green energy right now, my view is we can't afford not to. Far from being a drag on growth, making our energy sources more sustainable, our energy consumption more efficient and our economy more resilient to energy price shocks – those things are a vital part of the growth and wealth that we need."

The Green Economy is the Right Solution for our Troubled Times

The green economy offers a powerful solution to both a warming planet and economic volatility. There are a host of political and economic crises in the world today. The Eurozone crisis is expected to be followed by a European recession. In China we are seeing strong evidence of a slowdown and many are calling for major economic reforms. Finally, the hope and promise of the “Arab Spring’ has given way to a winter of discontent, as the Arab world suffers due to a weak economy and high unemployment.

The Cycle of Climate Change Acceptance

Like all major socio-economic revolutions the acceptance of climate change takes time. Although reluctance to fully engage the battle against climate change may seem painfully slow, it is consistent with the theoretical stages in what is known as the cycle of acceptance.

The popular attitude towards climate change, must go through various stages before the bitter truth can be inculcated into the public psyche.

Organizations and individuals who are confronted with facts about global warming have been thrown into a cycle of acceptance. The stages in the process of acceptance are part of a well known process first introduced by Elisabeth Kübler-Ross in her 1969 book, On Death and Dying. The Kübler-Ross Model is commonly known as The Five Stages of Grief, it is also referred to as the Cycle of Acceptance. In essence it involves 5 steps:

1. Denial
2. Anger
3. Depression
4. Bargaining
5. Acceptance

Denial, although a waste of valuable time, is the first step on the road to acceptance. Over the last couple of years we have seen a lot of denial and anger surrounding the issue of climate change, but there are indications that we may be moving towards acceptance.

People are at different stages when it comes to climate change. While some are still stuck in the denial phase, there are others who feel hopeless and depressed due to the slow acceptance of climate change in North America. While many polls indicate that American support for climate change declined in 2009 and 2010 there may be a positive trend beginning to develop in 2011.

Popular support for the issue of combating global warming has languished over the last couple of years, however, according to a May 2011 Yale Survey titled Public Support for Climate and Energy Policies, an increasing number of Americans now believe that tackling climate change should be a national priority.

We are currently experiencing an upswing in a cycle that will entrench environmental issues into the popular psyche.

The Pembina Institute provides policy research leadership and education on climate change and energy issues. Clare Demerse, acting director for climate change at the Pembina Institute’s Ottawa offices, believes it’s only a matter of time before we are all talking about global warming.

“All issues go through a cycle where they are at top and then fall off and that’s where we are now. It will be back up there again.”

However, the amount of time it takes a person or an organization to complete the cycle of acceptance is critical. The longer they take to come to the stage of acceptance, the less likely they are to ever fully complete the cycle, and the less likely they are to make the difficult decisions to deal with the problem wisely.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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The False Choice Between the Economy and the Environment

In debates on the issue of climate change we are often asked to make a false choice between the environment and the economy. However, an intelligent discussion of climate change cannot be framed as a choice between the environment and the economy.

The rise of sustainable business is making it abundantly clear that we can have it both ways. Businesses are adopting new models that both contribute to the economy while minimizing their environmental footprints.

According to a May 2011 Yale Survey, 56% of Americans now believe that protecting the environment improves economic growth and provides new jobs.

Previous polemics argued that you can either have the economy or the environment. Contemporary wisdom reveals that you can have both.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

Related Posts
Belief in Global Warming is Tied to the Economy
The Cycle of Climate Change Acceptance
A New Survey Shows that Americans Now Want to Address Climate Change