"The Copenhagen Diagnosis: Climate Science Report
It is more than three years since the drafting of text was completed for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (AR4). In the meantime, many hundreds of papers have been published on a suite of topics related to human-induced climate change.
The purpose of this report is to synthesize the most policy-relevant climate science published since the close-off of material for the last IPCC report."
http://www.ccrc.unsw.edu.au/Copenhagen/Copenhagen_Diagnosis_HIGH.pdf
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Monday, November 23, 2009
Making things
Sustainable Minds
Very interesting product design/prototyping software:
http://www.sustainableminds.com/
One of their partners is another company to watch in the greening of business: Autodesk
http://usa.autodesk.com/company/sustainable-design
Very interesting product design/prototyping software:
http://www.sustainableminds.com/
One of their partners is another company to watch in the greening of business: Autodesk
http://usa.autodesk.com/company/sustainable-design
Friday, November 20, 2009
Not exactly a rosy view
The view of the future of industrial society is a hot (pardon the pun) topic nowadays, with many views. Here is a report from the Post Carbon Institute. Not recommended for sharing if you do not want to "scare the horses" as the saying goes.
http://www.postcarbon.org/new-site-files/Reports/Searching_for_a_Miracle_web10nov09.pdf
http://www.postcarbon.org/new-site-files/Reports/Searching_for_a_Miracle_web10nov09.pdf
Monday, November 16, 2009
World Development Report 2010: Development and Climate Change
World Development Report 2010: Development and Climate Change
http://go.worldbank.org/BKLQ9DSDU0
Suggested reading...
Thanks for the heads up Jason.
http://go.worldbank.org/BKLQ9DSDU0
Suggested reading...
Thanks for the heads up Jason.
Thursday, November 12, 2009
Hollowing Out the Middle: The Rural Brain Drain and What It Means for America
I am currently reading a book that might be of interest to anyone living and working in a rural county.
"Hollowing Out the Middle: The Rural Brain Drain and What It Means for America ", by Patrick Carr and Maria Kefalas.
http://hollowingoutthemiddle.com/
From the website:
"In 2001, with funding from the MacArthur Foundation, sociologists Patrick J. Carr and Maria J. Kefalas traveled to Iowa to understand the rural brain drain and the exodus of young people from America’s countryside. Articles and books-notably Richard Florida’s The Rise of the Creative Class-celebrate the migration of highly productive and creative workers to key cities. But what happens to the towns that they desert, and the people who are left behind?
To answer that question, Carr and Kefalas moved to “Ellis,” a small town of 2,000. Ellis is typical of many small towns struggling to survive, and Iowa is typical of many states in the Heartland, aging rapidly. One reason is that many small towns simply aren’t regenerating, but another is that its educated young people are leaving in droves.
In Ellis, Carr and Kefalas met the working-class “stayers,” struggling in the region’s dying agro-industrial economy; the high-achieving and college-bound “achievers,” who often left for good; the “seekers” who head off to war to see what the world beyond offers; and the “returners,” who eventually circled back to their hometowns. What surprised them most, was that adults in the community were playing a pivotal part in the town’s decline by pushing the best and brightest young people to leave, and by under-investing in those who choose to stay, even though these young people are their best chance for a future.
The emptying out of small towns is a national concern, but there are strategies for arresting the process and creating sustainable, thriving communities. Hollowing Out the Middle is a wake-up call we cannot afford to ignore-not only because 60 million Americans still live in rural communities and small towns, but because our nation’s economic health and future is tied to the Heartland."
"Hollowing Out the Middle: The Rural Brain Drain and What It Means for America ", by Patrick Carr and Maria Kefalas.
http://hollowingoutthemiddle.com/
From the website:
"In 2001, with funding from the MacArthur Foundation, sociologists Patrick J. Carr and Maria J. Kefalas traveled to Iowa to understand the rural brain drain and the exodus of young people from America’s countryside. Articles and books-notably Richard Florida’s The Rise of the Creative Class-celebrate the migration of highly productive and creative workers to key cities. But what happens to the towns that they desert, and the people who are left behind?
To answer that question, Carr and Kefalas moved to “Ellis,” a small town of 2,000. Ellis is typical of many small towns struggling to survive, and Iowa is typical of many states in the Heartland, aging rapidly. One reason is that many small towns simply aren’t regenerating, but another is that its educated young people are leaving in droves.
In Ellis, Carr and Kefalas met the working-class “stayers,” struggling in the region’s dying agro-industrial economy; the high-achieving and college-bound “achievers,” who often left for good; the “seekers” who head off to war to see what the world beyond offers; and the “returners,” who eventually circled back to their hometowns. What surprised them most, was that adults in the community were playing a pivotal part in the town’s decline by pushing the best and brightest young people to leave, and by under-investing in those who choose to stay, even though these young people are their best chance for a future.
The emptying out of small towns is a national concern, but there are strategies for arresting the process and creating sustainable, thriving communities. Hollowing Out the Middle is a wake-up call we cannot afford to ignore-not only because 60 million Americans still live in rural communities and small towns, but because our nation’s economic health and future is tied to the Heartland."
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
The Budget Approach?
German Advisory Council on Global Change (WBGU) 2009 special report on the "budget approach" to climate change mitigation.
http://www.wbgu.de/wbgu_sn2009_en.pdf
http://www.wbgu.de/wbgu_sn2009_en.pdf
Tuesday, November 03, 2009
Wal-Mart and its Suppliers
It is very interesting to watch the development of sustainability aspect of Wal-mart's supply chain. A couple of new things:
Supplier Sustainability Assessment document:
http://walmartstores.com/download/4055.pdf
Supplier Assessment FAQ:
http://walmartstores.com/download/4057.pdf
Supplier Sustainability Assessment document:
http://walmartstores.com/download/4055.pdf
Supplier Assessment FAQ:
http://walmartstores.com/download/4057.pdf
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