Archive for Ecology & sustainability

Wednesday, 2010 September 15
5:30pm science presentation by James Hansen
7pm James Hansen, Naomi Klein, Clayton Thomas-Muller
McMillan Theatre, 80 Queen’s Park, Univ of Toronto

From the Science for Peace website:     Read more »

Is this beautiful?  Yes, it is beautiful.  Patricia made it.

Climate Change Conference 2010 is less than two weeks away.

In order to know how much food to order, we’re offering discounted rates if you register by this Monday, 2010 August 9.

You should visit ccc-2010.ca now to reserve your spot.

Climate Change Conference 2010
Unflinching science.  No-spin solutions.
Friday – Sunday, 2010 August 13 – 15
Hart House, University of Toronto

Climate Change Conference 2010: scientists and community leaders will reveal the latest on climate change challenges and explore extreme solutions

Toronto, July 26, 2010 — Climate Change Conference 2010 is three full days of climate challenges, questions and solutions, with no spin and no sugar-coating. Held at Hart House, at the University of Toronto, from Friday, August 13 to Sunday, August 15, the conference will provide an unflinching look at the world’s climate challenges as explained by climate scientists.

Featured speakers include Bill McKibben, founder of 350.org and author of Eaarth, Andrew Weaver, lead author for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and author of Keeping Our Cool, and Elizabeth May, leader of the Green Party of Canada.

“We’ve gathered some of the leading climate scientists in the world to discuss bold initiatives to help Canada and countries around the world to meet emissions targets and effect positive change,” says Adriana Mugnatto-Hamu, Green Party Climate Change Critic. “The conference will also focus on the latest directions in global negotiations on climate change and explore some ethically challenging solutions with potentially extreme side effects.”

The Friday afternoon forum, Across Borders and Generations, is youth-oriented and free to all. Saturday evening’s panel on Working Together is devoted to bridging divides between various groups working on the issue of climate change.

“And throughout Saturday and Sunday, we’ll have scientists and experts speaking on specific challenges, impacts, and solutions, covering everything from transportation and green buildings, to the status of the tar sands and ocean acidification,” says Adriana. “It’s a chance for anyone interested in learning more about the current state of climate change to hear the most up-to-date information from the scientists themselves.”

Climate Change Conference 2010 is presented jointly by University of Toronto Greens and the Toronto-Danforth Federal Green Party. The conference is non-partisan and open to all.

What Climate Change Conference 2010 speakers are saying

“We are at a critical crossroads as a human race. We have an opportunity to turn things around like never before and this conference will inspire action on the climate change challenges we’re facing right now.” — Andrew Weaver

“Time to screw around is over. Either we learn to survive together or we will all drown.Hope this conference will address that point.” — Afsan Chowdhury

“In order to move beyond oil, the fatal fuel that is driving the world towards economic and environmental collapse, Canada is going to have to break with decades of inaction and launch an electric mobility revolution. Necessity will provide a tremendous  opportunity to connect our natural advantages in generating electricity from renewable power, chiefly hydro, wind and tidal sources, so that we can move people and freight without oil aboard electrically powered trains, buses, and motor vehicles. I hope that participants at the conference will help Canadians seize the moment to advance electric mobility and thus enhance the odds of a peaceful and productive future.” — Anthony Perl

“The reality of climate and ocean change calls people of all political and faith communities to bring hearts and minds together to confront the most critical moral challenge of our lifetime.” — Mardi Tindal

“The conference’s focus on solutions will help us move climate change action past the pre-contemplation and contemplation phases, where many official organizations have stalled. My talk will introduce people to the Transition concept and what it has to offer, as well as Transition Toronto as a local theatre of climate change action with opportunities for all to contribute.” — Andrew Knox

“It’s been a dynamic and monumental year in terms of global mobilization around the energy-climate-crisis. This weekend is a chance to recharge and once again call all hands on deck.” — Gracen Johnson

Speaker profiles and a conference program can be found at ccc-2010.ca. To find out more about Adriana Mugnatto-Hamu, please visit danforthgreens.ca. For more on the U of T Greens, visit uoftgreens.wordpress.com.

For more information or to arrange a media interview with Adriana Mugnatto-Hamu or any of the speakers quoted above, please contact:

Bob Cook
bobcook665@hotmail.com
416-406-6711

I’ve been spending a lot of time recently organizing the climate change conference to be held at Hart House next month.  We have a great lineup of speakers to lay out the challenges we face, discuss the range of possible solutions and promote the cooperation we will need.

Climate Change Conference 2010
Unflinching science.  No-spin solutions.
Friday – Sunday, 2010 August 13 – 15
Hart House, University of Toronto

Agenda, speakers, and registration: http://ccc-2010.ca
RSVPing on Facebook will help spread the word: http://facebook.com/event.php?eid=140438325981746

The conference is a non-profit, non-partisan event open to all.

…please, whatever you do,     Read more »

The main item on the G-20 agenda was whether to cut debts or invest in more financial stimulus, with Stephen Harper strongly advocating the need to cut debts.

We need to cut debts.  Large public debts leave governments at the mercy of interest rates.  Double the interest rates and suddenly the debt load becomes completely unmanageable and we’re worried about our credit rating, forcing us into all kinds of nasty measures like privatizing health care, education and even basic services like water.  So in the interest of securing high quality public services, we need to make sure we keep the debt down.   The problem is that Stephen Harper proposes to cut debts not by raising taxes or trimming perverse subsidies to favoured industries, but by attacking the very services I desperately want to protect.  I have no interest in cutting the debt to have more money to fork over to the oil industry while basic services get gutted.     Read more »

This evening I attended the launch of Canada’s climate calendar.  It’s an interactive tool you can see online which compares Canada’s per-capita emissions with those of other countries in the world.  It is horrifying.     Read more »

Last week, I attended a speech by former Governor General Ed Schreyer, who predicted that the moratorium on deep-sea drilling would be shortlived – embraced briefly while attention focused on the devastation of the gulf but enduring only to the time that fuel prices began increasing again.     Read more »

Jim Harris will be speaking on “How cutting carbon can cut cost, raise revenue and mitigate risk of peak oil and rising gas prices” at the Post Carbon Toronto Annual General Meeting tonight.

Post Carbon Toronto AGM
Committee room 2 (on 2nd floor)
Toronto City Hall, 100 Queen St W
Suggested donation: $2

RSVP at MeetUp.com.  The description from that site:     Read more »

It has been many years since I’ve had a moment of true pride in my government but yesterday I had such a moment.     Read more »

Climate Progress reports on the recent paper “Sequestering carbon dioxide in a closed underground volume” in the Journal of Petroleum Science and Engineering.     Read more »

“I’ve got an idea — let’s play hide and seek!” Mary Travers spoke, as I recall, on the 33-rpm vinyl record by Peter, Paul and Mary called “Peter, Paul and Mommy”, an anthology of some of my favourite children’s songs. Songs I love.

Well, I have an idea: let’s save humanity so that many more generations of children will sing children’s songs. Not an original idea but let’s stay with it.     Read more »

“Send forth your spirit,
And renew the face of the Earth.”

Missa Gaia
Sunday, 2010 May 2, 7:30 pm
Eastminster United Church
310 Danforth (at Jackman)

“Missa Gaia” is a contemporary ecumenical and ecological mass in celebration of Mother Earth.  This dynamic choral work sets traditional mass and biblical texts to lyrical melodies with vibrant rhythms from African, Brazilian and American gospel traditions and interweaves the voices of wolf, whale and harp seals.     Read more »

Earth Day Event
Thursday, 2010 April 22, 7 pm
Koffler House, Room 108
569 Spadina Ave, U of T

Speakers:

• Dr. Pieter Jugovic, CommunityAIR
• Angela Bischoff, Ontario Clean Air Alliance
• Lin Grist, Clean Trains Coalition

Sponsored by OPIRG and Toronto Climate Campaign.  For more information, call 647-230-3257.

Two great events the night before Earth Day.     Read more »

On Thursday, March 11, WATERFRONToronto held an open house to discuss their proposed new soil recycling facility on the Portlands.  I’m cautiously supportive of this one, with some reservations.

The good news is that all the soil in question is already on the Portlands.  The other good news is that it’s being cleaned up from its current toxic state in order to enable more human uses of the Portlands area.  This includes making way for the Don Mouth revitalization project that’s really kind of inspired.     Read more »