Earthgauge Radio May 24 2012: Special program on Canada’s changing North

May 24, 2012

On Earthgauge Radio this week, we’re taking a look at issues facing Canada’s rapidly changing northern regions. I have three interviews for you on today’s special show:

Earthgauge Radio is broadcast every other Thursday morning at 7:00-8:00 AM on CKCU 93.1 FM in Ottawa. Click the audio player above to hear the full show. Right click here to download today’s full show. Scroll down to listen to individual interviews only.

Remember that Earthgauge Radio is podcast on iTunes if you type earthgauge into the search bar, you’ll find us. Contact us at earthgaugeradio@gmail.com. Facebook address is www.facebook.com/EarthgaugeRadio and Twitter handle @earthgaugeCA. Please do get in touch if you have story ideas, a comment on something you’ve heard or want to get involved or contribute to the show.

On today’s show, we also have our usual segment with Ecology Ottawa who update us on local environmental events.

The music off the top of today’s program is from a performance by the Inuit circus and multi-media production group called Artcirq. Based in Igloolik, Nunavut, a remote Inuit community in the Baffin islands, Artcirq is a unique Inuit circus and multi-media production group that aims to give youth the space, the skills and the opportunities to express themselves. I recorded this performance at the International Polar Year summit in Montreal a few weeks ago. The theme of the IPY summit was From Knowledge to Action and it was one of the largest and most important scientific conferences ever for polar science and climate change, impacts and adaptation.

While at the summit, I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with many inspiring individuals who are doing terrific work promoting the importance of the polar regions and trying to bring to public attention themes such as rapid polar change, communities and health, ecosystem services, infrastructure, resources and security. So on today’s show I have three interviews from the summit.

First I speak with Ed Struzik, author of The Big Thaw. He tells us about some of the dramatic changes happening up North and give us the big picture perspective on the importance of the polar regions.

Ed Struzik interview, right click here to download

Next we hear from the influential New York Times environmental journalist Andrew Revkin whose blog dot Earth is one of the mostly widely read environmental web sites on the planet.

Andrew Revkin interview, right click here to download

Finally, I was very pleased to have the opportunity to speak with Mary Simon, who is the President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami (ITK), the national organization representing Inuit from Nunavut, Nunavik in Northern Quebec, Nunatsiavut in Labrador and the Inuvialuit region of the Northwest Territories. Mary Simon is a very influential figure both here in Canada and abroad and I have a feature interview with her on the program today.

Mary Simon interview, right click here to download

Upcoming local environmental events (courtesy of Ecology Ottawa):

Tonight, May 24th, from 12:00 to 5:00 pm, you are invited to learn about Building Nigeria’s Response to Climate Change, a 5-year CIDA-funded project that is supporting both government and civil society to develop climate change adaptation policies and initiatives. Presenters will talk on a range of topics, including their experience in working with the Special Climate Change Unit to formulate a national climate change adaptation strategy, to supporting the implementation of adaptation initiatives in communities across the country. If you would like to attend, please RSVP at carolina.palacios@cuso-vso.org.

Starting tomorrow, May 25th, until Sunday, May 27th, the Permaculture Institute of Eastern Ontario will be holding a 2-day + 1 evening introductory course on Permaculture, Ecological Design and Gardening. The ethics, principles and design process of permaculture design are based on living systems and draws upon indigenous knowledge. They can be applied to physical systems, such as farms, gardens and cities; and to social systems such as organisational flows, business models or school curricula. This course focuses on permaculture as design, which can be broadly applied to land-based, urban, social or economic systems. For more information or to register, email info@eonpermaculture.ca.

And of course, don’t forget that this Saturday, May 26th, is the Great Glebe Garage Sale!
SATURDAY, MAY 26, 2012, 8am-4pm
680 & 690 Bank Street
Rogers Plus & Kunstadt Sports parking lots

It’s your favourite time of year again… Soon the entire Glebe will be abuzz with lawn-hawking like you’ve never seen. It’s this annual mecca of bargain-hunters from near and far that gave birth to Ecology Ottawa’s Great Glebe GREEN Garage Sale.

Leave a Comment » | Climate breakdown, Earthgauge radio, Economics, Education, Global warming, Oceans and fisheries, Oil, Podcasts, Politics, Pollution, Sustainability | Tagged: , , , , , | Permalink
Posted by Mark Brooks

Tune in to Earthgauge Radio tomorrow at 7:00 for a special program on Canada’s Arctic

May 24, 2012

On Earthgauge Radio this week, we have a special show on Canada’s North. We discuss the rapidly changing Arctic environment and the social, political and economic changes that are also taking place. Interviews with author Ed Struzik (The Big Thaw), New York Times journalist Andrew Revkin and President of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, Mary Simon. Tune in Thursday mornings at 7:00 AM on CKCU 93.1 FM in Ottawa, listen on demand online at ckcufm.com or earthgauge.ca.

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Posted by Mark Brooks

Fossil fuel subsidies vs renewables: WTF?

May 22, 2012

Check out this article from the Guardian. We all know that the fossil fuel industries continue to be subsidized but did you have any idea of just how much money the oil, gas and coal industries are receiving from governments the world over? It’s a lot.

In fact, the International Energy Agency estimates that fossil fuel industries receive 5 times the subsidies than those received by renewable energy companies.  To quote the Guardian article:

It’s worth pausing for a moment to take in the sheer amount of money we’re talking about here: more than half a trillion dollars in 2008 (when energy prices hit record highs), equivalent to the total GDP of Sweden or Saudi Arabia. The figure was lower in 2010, but so far there’s no obvious sign of a downward trend, seemingly because reductions in subsidies in some countries have been offset by rising energy prices, which can ratchet up the cost of the remaining subsidy schemes.

It seems like a no-brainer to eliminate cash giveaways to companies whose products  cause global warming. Not only are we not internalizing the environmental costs of fossil fuels, subsidies make fossil fuels artificially cheap thereby encouraging more of them to be consumed. The chief economist at the International Energy Agency (IEA) has even said that eliminating these subsidies could provide half of the carbon savings needed to stop dangerous levels of climate change.

So why aren’t we doing it? After all, this demand is completely reasonable — so reasonable that the leaders of the big countries have already agreed to it. The G20 promised in 2009 that fossil fuel subsidies would be phased out in the “medium term.” But the political power of the corporate polluters scares them, and so no nation has yet followed through.

In the run up to the Rio +20 Summit in June, 350.org is organizing a campaign to pressure world “leaders” to end fossil fuel subsidies. Sign the petition at www.350.org/rio to lend your support.

 

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Posted by Mark Brooks

New details of Canadian government’s tar sands cheerleading campaign

May 16, 2012

This article is not new but I felt it was important to mention it given the shocking length to which our federal government is willing to go to lobby on behalf of the tar sands. As you likely know, the European Union has proposed classifying crude produced from Alberta’s tar sands as much dirtier than other fuels. The Canadian government is well known to be fighting this move but now an examination of hundreds of pages of documents obtained under access to information legislation in both Brussels and Ottawa show just how extensive the government’s lobbying efforts have been.

Remember, lobbying efforts by corporations are nothing new. What’s important to keep in mind here is that this is a sovereign state fighting on behalf of some of the largest corporations in the world. Here is an excerpt from the article:

The governments of Canada and Alberta, along with Canadian companies, have wooed dozens of European parliamentarians, offered trips to Alberta and sponsored conferences in an effort that Chris Davies, a British Liberal Member of the European Parliament and a backer of the EU proposal, said “has been stunning in its intensity.”

Satu Hassi, a Finnish MEP for the Greens and another backer of the EU proposal, said the thing that sets Canada’s campaign apart is not its size but its official backing. “There have been massive lobbying campaigns by the car industry, by the chemicals industry, banks, food giants, etc. But so far I have not seen such a lobbying campaign by any state.”

Emails from Canadian diplomats and other documents show Canada feared negative publicity could hit tens of billions of dollars of investment in its industry by such European majors as Royal Dutch Shell, BP, France’s Total and Norway’s Statoil.

“The oil sands are posing a growing reputational problem, with the oil sands defining the Canadian brand,” London-based Canadian diplomat Sushma Gera wrote in a confidential e-mail on August 20, 2010, which like many of the documents acquired through Freedom of Information legislation has been redacted. “With (a) recent increase in the NGO campaigns targeting (the European) public, we anticipate increased risk to Canadian interests much beyond the oil sands.”

Last year, Natural Resources Minister Joe Olive sent a letter to European officials implying that if Europe pressed ahead with tagging tar sands dirtier, Canada would take its case to the World Trade Organisation.

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Posted by Mark Brooks

Canadian government will be up to old tricks at Rio+20 Earth Summit

May 16, 2012

In case you were wondering how the Canadian government is preparing itself for the upcoming Rio +20 Earth Summit, a small excerpt from an otherwise unrelated article in Grist provides some indication. The article is about Earth Summit bureaucracy but in illustrating her point about the mind-numbing multilateral meetings going on behind the scenes at the United Nations, the author provides this paragraph as an actual example of what is currently being negotiated:

We reaffirm support for the implementation of [national – Canada delete; Russian Federation retain] [and sub-national – US, Russian Federation] [energy – Norway] policies and strategies, [based on individual national circumstances and development aspirations – US delete, Belarus retain] [to combine as / using an – US, Belarus, Norway, Russian Federation] appropriate [the – US Norway delete] energy mix to meet development needs …

Need I point out the very first phrase? The sentence provided is incomplete but what we can ascertain is that Canadian officials, no doubt on the orders of their government masters, seem already to be objecting to the implementation of national energy policies and strategies. To be fair, we can only speculate what follows but I think it is safe to assume that, at Rio +20, Canada will once again be assuming its now renowned role of obstructing international efforts to confront global environmental problems.

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Posted by Mark Brooks

No Earthgauge Radio show this week

May 16, 2012

For listeners of Earthgauge Radio (those kind Ottawa folks who set their alarms extra early Thursday mornings to listen to the show at 7:00-8:00 AM on CKCU 93.1 FM), there will sadly be no show this week.

I’m away on the lovely French River near Georgian Bay where I’m seeing and experiencing exactly why a show like Earthgauge is needed. We have a fabulously beautiful country, one that we too often take for granted and that some are inclined to despoil in the name of economic “progress” and “development”. Sometimes it’s important to get out there to see for ourselves just what it is we are fighting for and what others (such as our current federal government for example) seem to be so determined to destroy.

We’ll be back next week. Hope you can tune in. For those out of town, remember that Earthgauge Radio is now available for on-demand listening, whenever and wherever you want to hear it. Just go to the Thursday Special Blend page, click on the show you want to hear, then click the big blue CKCU on-demand play button. Earthgauge Radio is also podcast on iTunes if you type Earthgauge into the search bar, you’ll find us.

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Posted by Mark Brooks

Connecting the dots on climate change

May 11, 2012

The international day of action to Connect the Dots between extreme weather and climate change took place on May 5 in locations all around the world, including many events here in Canada. Check out this great video from 350.org, which captures the highlights of some of these events.

As Bill McKibben, the founder of 350.org, said in this article in the Guardian last week, “new data (pdf) released last month by researchers at Yale and George Mason universities show that a lot of Americans are growing far more concerned about climate change, precisely because they are drawing the links between freaky weather, a climate kicked off-kilter by a fossil-fuel guzzling civilization, and their own lives. After a year with a record number of multibillion dollar weather disasters, seven in ten Americans now believe that “global warming is affecting the weather.”

Have we reached a tipping point at which people are finally starting to “connect the dots”? Perhaps but there is still much work ahead.

 

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Posted by Mark Brooks

Earthgauge Radio May 10: Pedal power! The two-wheeled revolution is coming…

May 10, 2012

On Earthgauge Radio this week, we’re talking bikes. After all, May is Bike to Work month so I have three cycling-related interviews for you on today’s program:

  • Jess Wells, Program Coordinator at Envirocentre, which is coordinating activities for Ottawa Bike to Work month.
  • Caron Cheng of Mountain Equipment Coop, who tells us about the MEC BikeFest on Sunday, May 13.
  • Seb Oran, co-found of the Ottawa chapter of Bicycles for Humanity. B4H as they’re known is an amazing movement that enables people to raise funds andcollect unwanted bicycles to send to partners in developing countries.

    Biking is a political act… and it’s darn fun

Earthgauge Radio is broadcast every other Thursday morning at 7:00-8:00 AM on CKCU 93.1 FM in Ottawa. Click the audio player above to hear the full show. Right click here to download today’s full show. Scroll down to listen to individual interviews only.

Remember that Earthgauge Radio is podcast on iTunes if you type earthgauge into the search bar, you’ll find us. Contact us at earthgaugeradio@gmail.com. Facebook address is www.facebook.com/EarthgaugeRadio and Twitter handle @earthgaugeCA. Please do get in touch if you have story ideas, a comment on something you’ve heard or want to get involved or contribute to the show.

On today’s show, we also have our usual segment with Ecology Ottawa who update us on local environmental events. And we hear the week’s round-up of intl eco-news from Deutsche Welle Living Planet.

Did you know?

— A cyclist can travel 1,037km (644 miles) on the energy equivalent of one litre of gasoline.
— A cyclist consumes 1/50th of the oxygen of a car making the same journey.
— A twice daily half-hour commute will, over a year, consume the energy equivalent of 24lbs of fat.
— In 1949, 34 per cent of all mechanized journeys were made by bicycle. Fifty years later that figure had fallen to 2 per cent.

In 2006, Transport Canada reported that, while cycling is a fairly popular form of recreation in Canada, its use for non-recreational purposes in most cities – i.e. as a mode of urban transportation – can at best be described as marginal. The bicycle occupies a distant fourth place after the automobile, public transit, and walking in terms of modes of transportation.

As May is Bike to Work month, it got me thinking about how Ottawa  is doing in terms of promoting cycling and how we can get more people using their bicycles. As mentioned above, only 2% of Canadians use their bike to commute, this despite the obvious benefits of cycling, including…

  • Environmental benefits, through reduced emissions of toxic pollutant and greenhouse gases;
  • Health benefits related to higher levels of physical activity, including improved cardiovascular health and lower risk of obesity;
  • Health benefits related to the reduction of airborne pollutants, including lower incidence of respiratory diseases;
  • Economic benefits, such as reduced household expenditures on transportation, reduced work hours lost in traffic jams, and reduced healthcare costs thanks to the effects of regular exercise and reduced pollution.

So what is stopping us? Is it the cold weather in Ottawa? The long distances? Safety concerns? Or maybe the thought of arriving all sweaty in our work clothes. Whatever it is, we can and surely need to do better. After all, the bike is such a simple and inexpensive way to address a number of urban problems. Is Ottawa a bike friendly city? To find out, I spoke with Jess Wells, the Program Coordinator of the Ottawa EnviroCentre and the organizers of Bike to Work month in Ottawa. EnviroCentre is a non-profit organization that works to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by delivering energy-efficiency goods and services, such as energy audits and weatherization services,primarily in Eastern Ontario.

Jess Wells interview, right click here to download:


Next on today’s biking special program, we hear from Caron Cheng of Mountain Equipment Coop. The annual MEC BikeFest is happening this Sunday, May 13 at LeBreton Flats in Ottawa so Caron kindly came into the CKCU studios recently to let us know some more about this year’s event.

Caron Cheng interview, right click here to download:

Finally on today’s show I speak with Seb Oran of Bicycles for Humanity.  I love to showcase and publicize ideas and initiatives on Earthgauge that are simple yet powerful and can really make a lasting impact for positive change. This is what B4H is all about. This is a  movement of concerned groups started in 2005 with the simple goal of raising funds and collecting unwanted bicycles here in Canada and other countries to send to partners in developing countries where the bikes can be put to good use. Seb Oran is the founder of the Ottawa chapter of B4H.

Seb Oran interview, right click here to download:

Upcoming local environmental events (courtesy of Ecology Ottawa):

This Saturday, May 12, 2012, Fair Trade Ottawa presents its first annual wine-and-cheese fundraiser
to celebrate the bounty of Fair Trade in Canada’s Capital. Tickets $25 in advance, $30 at the door
and Includes one free Fair Trade cocktail! You can buy your tickets at http://fairtradeottawa.ca/take-a-
sip-for-fair-trade/

There will be a Work Bee as part of the the Feast of St. Isidore on Tuesday May 15 th at the Galilee
Centre in Arnprior. Contact Ken Mansefield at kmansfield@galileecentre.com for more information.

Also on May 15 Ecology Ottawa will be hosting a Volunteer Orientation at 6:30 pm at the Ecology
Ottawa office on Nicholas Street. Come find learn more learn more about what the organization does
and how to get involved. Please RSVP to volunteer@ecologyottawa.ca .

On Tuesday May 22, from 5 to 6:30 Just Food will be hosting their first Annual General Meeting.
While Just Food has had a strategic board for eight years, and many open community meetings, the
organization has recently become incorporated as an independent, not-for-profit. This meeting will
allow you to hear in more detail the work that is happening on several projects Just Food is involved
with and take part in discussions of our future plans. Light refreshments will be served and RSVP is
required.

Upcoming local environmental events (courtesy of Ecology Ottawa):

Leave a Comment » | Activism, Earthgauge radio, Greening our cities, Podcasts, Politics, Pollution, Sustainability, Transportation | Tagged: , , , | Permalink
Posted by Mark Brooks

May is Bike to Work month in Ottawa!

May 9, 2012

In case you’re looking for additional reasons to jettison your car and haul out the bike, the video below from EnviroCentre Ottawa makes a convincing case. Save money, improve your health, help reduce pollution, the list goes on (and on). May is Bike to Work month so let’s get to it.

Continuing on this theme, on Earthgauge Radio this week, we have a special program dedicated to cycling. May is Bike to Work month so we’re celebrating the beautiful bicycle on our May 10 show. Interviews with Jess Wells of EnviroCentre about Bike to Work month; Caron Cheng of Mountain Equipment Co-op about MEC Bike Fest this Sunday; and Seb Oran of Bicycles for Humanity. Tune in, turn on and tune up your bike!

Earthgauge Radio is broadcast every other Thursday morning at 7:00-8:00 AM on CKCU 93.1 FM in Ottawa. You can also stream online or listen on demand (whenever you want!) at www.ckcufm.com.

 

 

 

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Posted by Mark Brooks

Global greenhouse gas emissions linked to economic growth

May 5, 2012

“A new study from the University of Michigan’s Institute for Social Research suggests that a transformation of the world’s economies or a limit to economic growth may be needed to curb the rise of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations.”

This comes from a recent article about the fundamental incompatibility of an economic system based on endless growth and the problem of climate change. And therein lies the fundamental paradox of our times. Our modern, industrial, capitalist economy depends upon endless growth to function. We celebrate every uptick in the growth rate and fret when growth is “sluggish”. Yet as this study demonstrates, more growth leads to more greenhouse gas emissions and consequently an accelerated rate of climate change. So we can have one or the other, it seems, but not both. What will it be? More growth or less climate change?

“The researchers found that for each trillion in U.S. dollars that global GDP deviates from the trend, there is an accompanying deviation in CO2 levels of about half a part per million (ppm), reported LiveScience.

Noting that the study “more or less” echoes 1972′s “The Limits to Growth,” author and environmental activist Bill McKibben told HuffPost in an email, “We should change the meaning of ‘business-as-usual’ to focus on building more resilient, localized, community-focused economies, instead of the sprawling ones that for the last few decades have been awarding their bounty to the 1%.”

Climate Change And Sustained Economic Growth Link Observed In New Study.

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Posted by Mark Brooks

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