Latest News Webjam atom@webjam.com en 865cde9e-6279-4264-ac17-a976c67ae0c3 Realpolitik VS Geopolitic Future of our Earth [COP16 Mexico City 'GET' treaty] 21-Jan-2010 I believe that the importance of global Realpolitik is declining while the importance of Geopolitics is steadily increasing. Geopolitics are increasing along with the importance and the awareness of the necessity for a series of diverse Climate agreements and treaties to manage the planetary Commons for the benefit of all of us… and the assurance of the continuum of our species. This year the Nobel given to president Obama overshadowed all others – but perhaps more important – was the Nobel of Economics given to Elinor Ostrom for her analysis of the economic governance of the Commons. Elinor Ostrom is an American political scientist and she was awarded the 2009 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences, for “her analysis of economic governance of the commons”. Not only is she the first woman to win the prize in this category but she is also dealing with the most important aspect of managing our planet. After the wild excesses of incessant and mindless corporate privatizations and attendant environmental privations and destruction, for lack of clear governance treaties – we now get smart. We need treaties to manage and govern our Commons. Treaties such as those we started working out in Copenhagen. Many new ones are required now for the Climate warming mitigation, for the atmosphere and the Oceans and the glaciers and the rainforests and all sensitive ecosystems… treaties that challenge the sovereign aspect of many corporations and countries and emitters and bring back to the global governance Commons what rightfully belongs there.  You can’t solve global problems unilaterally. Partnerships and alliances and global treaties are needed to deal with Oceanic acidification issues. Same for the glaciers and the Rainforests. If Papua new Guinea or another weak state like Haiti cannot deal with it’s environmental degradation and that conclusively affects all of us – then the power of the global governance of the Commons – kicks in. The good thing is that the US President Barack Obama and the EU leaders have fully grasped this. They are pragmatic leaders. Realpolitik has been a good school to educate – those leaders willing to evolve – about Geopolitics. That is evident when these leaders, and especially Obama, described the Copenhagen Accord as just a “first step” to dealing with global warming. Although they admit that as it  stands, it isn’t enough to address the problem and a series of ongoing negotiations and treaties have to continue moving us closer and closer, to elusive and constantly moving targets. Thankfully, we have experience with this sort of rounds of negotiations resulting in  treaties that are translated into International policies and legally binding agreements actionable in world bodies from the ongoing negotiations for the NPT agreements. Most importantly this sort of treaty is resulting in laws that are entered in the constitutions of the country signatories. Thus the NPT is the simile with the Copenhagen Accord and it’s follow on rounds of what might develop in Bonn and Mexico city. Treaties as a series of negotiation rounds that will look very much like the NPT process that has taken 50 years to mature and is still ongoing as fresh as half a century ago. Generations of Diplomats, Politicians and Policy Makers have been weaned at t the teat of the NPT and have let go of their baby fetters and grew to be realistic and effective statesmen. Let’s hope the same happens now for the Global Environment Treaties; as succesful rounds of discussions will show us. GET is the outcome treaty from a round such as Copenhagen… The Diplomat leaders amongst you and the negotiators and policy makers, reading this Blog will understand the parallels and the vast importance of this slow & lengthy yet effective process. To give you an understanding of the scale of the NPT: The Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty - NPT, is a treaty to limit the proliferation of nuclear weapons globally. It was negotiated for years and finally opened for signatures on July 1, 1968. There are currently 189 countries as signatory parties to the treaty, five of which have nuclear weapons and vast arsenals of the same: the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, and China. Incidentally all five constitute the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. Only four recognized sovereign states are not parties to the treaty and for good reason. India, Israel, Pakistan and North Korea, specifically because they have nuclear weapons programs in violation of the treaty. India, Pakistan and North Korea have openly tested and declared that they possess nuclear weapons. Israel has had a policy of opacity regarding its own nuclear weapons program – although widely acknowledged as having at least five atomic weapons. North Korea acceded to the treaty, violated it, and withdrew from it in 2003. But we are still working hard to bring them back in the folds of the Treaty and to prevent others, like Iran, from falling foul of it. That is what’s all about… Many environmental stakeholders have been bitterly disappointed with the Copenhagen outcome, which they argue falls short of the ambitious legally binding commitments that the planet demands in the face of fatal climate change impacts. I have one thing to say: They don’t understand the Diplomacy necessary to achieve effective global Treaties for long lasting Geopolitical results. The fundamental requirements for a successful global climate change treaty will be: The all important need to ensure legally binding, mid- and long-term targets for emissions reduction to limit global average temperature  increases to at least 2 degrees Celsius, a sizeable and transparent funding package with strong  governance to address adaptation and mitigation in the most vulnerable countries, and support  technology transfer and low carbon developed among the least developed countries. The urgency for  an agreement which is implemented immediately to reduce costs and impacts of climate change must  be reflected in the ambitious deal adopted globally; and world leaders, delegates and NGOs at  COP15 are well versed in understanding the political contentions associated with reaching such consensus. If this is the criterion we were hoping to tick off in Copenhagen, then it is safe to say that COP15  hasn’t delivered the deal the world was hoping for – a legally binding treaty with emissions cuts for developed counties (as well as some measures for developing countries), and a detailed finance  package; and several contentious issues have simply been postponed and relegated to COP16 in Mexico. The success of COP15 may be better judged in hindsight at the end of 2010, and especially after the early summer Bonn meetings when it is expected that there will be a significant number of new signatories from  both developed and developing countries, that will have presented their pledges for tackling climate change, and the world may be closer to the possibility of a legally binding treaty developed from the Copenhagen Accord. However, the likelihood of taking this weak agreement to a stronger legal treaty is likely to be a challenging path full of hurdles, backholders, misguided friends, pure enemies of a climate process and saboteurs. And although globally countries could reach a binding agreement on climate change in Bonn and then in Mexico City this year - I think we have a very short period of time – in which the world has to understand that Realpolitik is irrelevant if we can’t get the Geopolitics right.  Let’s get our act together and step up. And if that happens, Mexico could produce a binding agreement as an ongoing series of negotiations and similar to the NPT rounds of agreements – it will be succesive Rounds of discussions and agreements that will guide our lives and provide us with a comfort level that we are managing the greatest threat of our lives and the survival of the species. NPT is the method for the ongoing Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaties that allowed us to survive the Cold War from becoming a Thermo-Nuclear war in an instant. It’s a daunting, but certainly a doable, prospect, as our friend Rajendra Pachauri said, referring to the next summit, planned for later this year in the Mexican capital. In reality although the Climate talks in Copenhagen last month ended with a non-binding agreement to reduce rises in global temperatures, a result that has been criticised as insufficient – they actually produced a critical treaty named Copenhagen Accord. This trety was the global accord, agreed to by the greatest and wealthiest emission producers along with the poorest and most vulnerable nations to cooperate and limit their emissions. It is but the first round of GET. A first round of a Global Environment Treaty as  a comprehensive treaty to limit global warming from making this planet a Venus like blast furnace. But if countries are to reach a binding agreement in Mexico City, “there are a few critical factors which would need a superhuman effort,” so said, Pachauri the current chairman of the IPCC. The main factors are the following: “One is a strong commitment from the US,” he said. ”Two is that countries would also need to take steps such as agreeing on an institutional framework by which funding for developing nations to address climate change could be effectively utilised”, he said. I fully agree: A binding agreement in Mexico City is within reach if we manage these factors for the stakeholders right through Bonn and lead with strength to Mexico City. I also agree with Chairman Pachauri second contention: that it’s doable – but I want to add – that it’s gonna be really hard. And we have to build on every positive outcome and bridge building experience from the Copenhagen Accord. Going forward is a matter of governance of the Commons and being realistic that it might take a generation or more to get it right… Naturally the challenges posed by climate change would not be resolved anytime soon and people will have to learn to manage this and live with the ills of the planet under management. Also time is running out to get this sorted… But we have to understand, that we, who are policymakers will deal with climate change every day for the rest of our political lives. We have to participate in the negotiating rounds eagerly for a treaty always shifting, always addressing new issues, urgent needs and global as well as regional challenges. We clearly ought to stop thinking that this is something we can solve at the next conference of the Parties. It’s part of an ongoing process. Well – Let’s think of it as – Earth under New Management – Negotiations and Treaties. COP15 and the Copenhagen Accord are but a precursor to the future rounds of Climate talks. Now we have to create the equivalent of the NPT for the future of Geopolitics. I propose herewith we call the treaties resulting from all of our COP – Conference of the Parties – negotiations as ”GET” agreements. GET as in ”Global Environment Treaty” Yours, Pano. PS: Let’s GET ourselves a good agreement in Bonn and a global GET  agreement treaty in Mexico City this fall. See you there.

]]> Published eb7574ab-1e58-42d4-a7e7-2107947a74d7 ''Be in Copenhagen'' because there is hope for a deal. 07-Nov-2009 Join the EP Global Leader 2009 award. Nominate your leader.

Environmental Parliament has asked world leaders to go to Copenhagen and fight to reach a just and equitable climate deal.
So far only 17 leaders have accepted the Environment Parliament challenge. Yet the Environmental Parliament will award this December
13th in Copenhagen, the ENVIRONMENTAL PARLIAMENT GLOBAL LEADER 2009
AWARD. - A Merit award of Global Leadership in International Relations
for ''Being in Copenhagen'' and working Internationally towards a just
climate deal. The leader with the greatest aspirational impact on
reductions of CO2 emission globally will win the EP Global Leader 2009
award. After all the carbon in the atmosphere is everywhere the same.

 Take the pledge: Start Your very own Environmental Parliament
campaign here with the name of your country and sign people up with
the intent of lobbying and signing up your leader to a simple pledge:
"Be in Copenhagen''. Nominate your country leader and ask other
environment activists to sign up for the campaign and lobby your
leaders. The more people support one leader the greatest their chances
of winning the award of EP Global Leader 2009.

The Nominees are the only elected global leaders, who committed to
''Be in Copenhagen.''

Listing priority is based solely upon the time of their pledge:

1) President Nicolas Sarkozy - France

2) President Mohamed Nasheed - Maldives

3) Prime Minister Navinchandra Ramgoolam - Mauritius

4) President Manuel Baroso -  European Union

5) Prime Minister George Papandreou - Greece

6) President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva - Brazil

7) Chancellor Angela Merkel - Germany

8) Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi - Italy

9) Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama - Japan

10) President Felipe Calderón - Mexico

11) President Dmitry Medvedev - Russia

12) Prime Minister Gordon Brown - Great Britain

13) President Rafael Correa - Equador

14) President Lee Myung-bak - South Korea

15) President Jacob Zuma - South Africa

16) President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono - Indonesia

17) Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan - Turkey

18) President Obama - USA

The group of PMs bellow are the stand out ones we lobby to ''Be in
Copenhagen'' for a successful summit that will bring us a fair
agreement. They are crucially important to 'Be in Copenhagen' if we
are to get an effective deal. Like Climate Prima Donnas they want to
arrive in Copenhagen only if they are ensured of a success - Therefore
please work and lobby hard to get them to pledge on the EP campaign
''Be in Copenhagen''. Being there will ensure a real deal. Success has
many fathers. So let them father for us, a great happy deal. But first
they got to show up. So ''Be in Copenhagen''.

President Obama is the most likely one to arrive early in Copenhagen
as he will be in Scandinavia on the same time for the Nobel Prize. A
short hop to Copenhagen is his duty to the world.  Obama can deliver a
deal for all - We believe He will. But only if the rest of the world's
leaders are there as willing participants to a fair climate deal.
Bellow are the hold outs that need to be swayed and moved:

Argentina: President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner

Australia: Prime Minister Kevin Rudd

Canada: Prime Minister Stephen Harper

China: President Hu Jintao

India: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh

United States: President Barack Obama


It would be vitally important to lobby also your local leaders bellow,
to join the campaign of EP  ''Be in Copenhagen" and to live up to
their commitment ''Be in Copenhagen''. The greater the number of
Premieres there - the greater the chances of a deal. A well attended
Climate Bazaar is the best reward for all.... and the best chance for
a good deal. Show your initiative here.

Take the pledge: Start Your very own Environmental Parliament campaign
here with the name of your country and sign people up with the intent
of lobbying and signing up your leader to a simple pledge: "Be in
Copenhagen''. Nominate your country leader and ask others to sign up
for them. The more people support one leader the greatest their
chances of winning the award of EP Global Leader 2009.


Please lobby your local leaders bellow to come to ''Be in Copenhagen".


Country:
Prime Minister:

Albania
Sali Berisha

Algeria
Ahmed Ouyahia

Andorra
Jaume Bartumeu

Angola
Paulo Kassoma

Anguilla
Osbourne Fleming

Antigua and Barbuda
Baldwin Spencer

Armenia
Tigran Sargsyan

Aruba
Nelson O. Oduber

Australia
Kevin Rudd

Austria
Werner Faymann

Azerbaijan
Artur Rasizade

Bahamas
Hubert Ingraham

Bangladesh
Sheikh Hasina

Barbados
David Thompson

Belarus
Sergey Sidorsky

Belgium
Herman Van Rompuy

Belize
Dean Barrow

Bermuda
Ewart Brown

Bhutan
Jigme Thinley

Bosnia and Herzegovina
Nikola Špirić

Brazil
Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

British Virgin Islands
Ralph T. O'Neal

Bulgaria
Boyko Borisov

Burkina Faso
Tertius Zongo

Cambodia
Hun Sen

Cameroon
Ephraïm Inoni

Canada
Stephen Harper

Cape Verde
José Maria Neves

Cayman Islands
Kurt Tibbetts

Central African Republic
Faustin-Archange Touadéra

Chad
Youssouf Saleh Abbas

China (PRC)
Wen Jiabao - or- Hu Jintao

Congo (Brazzaville)
Isidore Mvouba

Congo (Kinshasa)
Adolphe Muzito

Cook Islands
Jim Marurai

Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)
Guillaume Soro

Croatia
Jadranka Kosor

Cuba
Raúl Castro

Czech Republic
Vaclav Klaus

Djibouti
Dileita Mohamed Dileita

Dominica
Roosevelt Skerrit

East Timor
Xanana Gusmão

Equatorial Guinea
Ignacio Milam Tang

Estonia
Andrus Ansip

Ethiopia
Meles Zenawi

Faroe Islands
Kaj Leo Johannesen

Fiji
Frank Bainimarama

Finland
Matti Vanhanen

Gabon
Jean Eyeghe Ndong

The Gambia
Yahya Abdul-Azziz Jemus Jammeh

Ghana
John Atta Mills

Georgia
Nikoloz Gilauri

Germany
Angela Merkel

Gibraltar
Peter Caruana

Greece
George Papandreou

Greenland
Kuupik Kleist

Grenada
Tillman Thomas

Guernsey
Lyndon Trott

Guinea
Kabiné Komara

Guinea-Bissau
Carlos Gomes Júnior

Guyana
Sam Hinds

Haiti
Michèle Pierre-Louis

Hungary
Gordon Bajnai

Iceland
Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir

India
Manmohan Singh

Indonesia
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

Ireland
Brian Cowen

Israel
Benjamin Netanyahu

Italy
Silvio Berlusconi

Jamaica
Bruce Golding

Japan
Yukio Hatoyama

Jersey
Terry Le Sueur

Jordan
Nader al-Dahabi

Kenya
Raila Odinga

North Korea
Kim Yong-il

South Korea
Han Seung-soo

Kyrgyzstan
Igor Chudinov

Laos
Bouasone Bouphavanh

Latvia
Valdis Dombrovskis

Lebanon
Fouad Siniora

Lesotho
Pakalitha Mosisili

Libya
Baghdadi Mahmudi

Liechtenstein
Klaus Tschütscher

Lithuania
Andrius Kubilius

Luxembourg
Jean-Claude Juncker

FYR of Macedonia
Nikola Gruevski

Madagascar
Charles Rabemananjara

Malaysia
Najib Tun Razak

Mali
Modibo Sidibé

Malta
Lawrence Gonzi

Isle of Man
Tony Brown

Mauritania
Moulaye Ould Mohamed Laghdaf

Mauritius
Navin Ramgoolam

Moldova
Zinaida Greceanîi

Monaco
Jean-Paul Proust

Mongolia
Sanjaagiin Bayar

Montenegro
Milo Đukanović

Montserrat
Lowell Lewis

Morocco
Abbas El Fassi

Mozambique
Luisa Diogo

Namibia
Nahas Angula

Nepal
Madhav Kumar Nepal

Netherlands
Jan Peter Balkenende

Netherlands Antilles
Emily de Jongh-Elhage

New Zealand
John Key

Newfoundland
Danny Williams

Niue
Toke Talagi

Niger
Seyni Oumarou

Norfolk Island
Andre Nobbs

Norway
Jens Stoltenberg

Pakistan
Yousaf Raza Gillani

Palestinian National Authority
Salam Fayyad

Papua New Guinea
Sir Michael Somare

Peru
Yehude Simon

Philippines
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo

Poland
Donald Tusk

Portugal
José Sócrates

Qatar
Sheikh Hamad ibn Jassim ibn Jabr Al Thani

Romania
Emil Boc

Russia
Vladimir Putin

Rwanda
Bernard Makuza

Saint Kitts and Nevis
Denzil Douglas

Saint Lucia
Stephenson King

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Ralph Gonsalves

Samoa
Tuila'epa Sailele Malielegaoi

São Tomé and Principe
Joaquim Rafael Branco

Senegal
Cheikh Hadjibou Soumaré

Serbia
Mirko Cvetković

Singapore
Lee Hsien Loong

Slovakia
Robert Fico

Slovenia
Borut Pahor

Solomon Islands
Derek Sikua

Somalia
Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke

South Africa
Jacob Gedleyihlekisa Zuma

Spain
Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero

Sri Lanka
Ratnasiri Wickremanayake

Swaziland
Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini

Sweden
Fredrik Reinfeldt

Syria
Muhammad Naji al-Otari

China (ROC)
Liu Chao-shiuan

Tajikistan
Okil Okilov

Tanzania
Mizengo Pinda

Thailand
Abhisit Vejjajiva

Togo
Gilbert Houngbo

Tokelau
Pio Tuia

Tonga
Feleti Sevele

Trinidad and Tobago
Patrick Manning

Turkey
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan

Turks and Caicos Islands
Galmo Williams

Tuvalu
Apisai Ielemia

Uganda
Apolo Nsibambi

Ukraine
Yulia Tymoshenko

Vanuatu
Edward Natapei

Vatican
Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone

Vietnam
Nguyễn Tấn Dũng

Yemen
Ali Muhammad Mujawar


Take the pledge:

Take the pledge: Start Your very own Environmental Parliament
campaign here with the name of your country and sign people up with
the intent of lobbying and signing up your leader to a simple pledge:
"Be in Copenhagen''. Nominate your country leader and ask other
environment activists to sign up for the campaign and lobby your
leaders. The more people support one leader the greatest their chances
of winning the award of EP Global Leader 2009.

Start an Environmental Parliament site here with the name of your country and sign people up with the intent of signing up your leader to a simple pledge: "To be in Copenhagen''

]]> Published 2778b526-cb86-4493-8b74-5a50405b26b5 Vaclav Havel Campaign 29-Oct-2009 Vaclav Havel will be the best person as the first President of Europe. Support the Campaign...in your family, village, borough, community, town, city, school, university, company and country. Create your own Environmental Parliament site here and start campaigning representing your interests for a decent man for Europe. Thank you, EnvPar [at] gmail.com

]]> Published f16453fe-3957-4880-b157-a60d606db24b VACLAV HAVEL FOR EUROPEAN PRESIDENT 29-Oct-2009 Published 77c3b9fa-182d-4acf-8466-df110e6fc603 VACLAV HAVEL FOR EUROPEAN PRESIDENT 29-Oct-2009 Published 81a3b55b-d7e2-4548-bb42-1aff68704a3b Like what we do here? Join us - Become a blogger with the Environmental Parliament - Email: envpar[at]gmail.com 15-Oct-2009 Published 34c6e055-7a79-45b8-96a5-01575887b40f Like what we do here? Join us - Become a blogger with the Environmental Parliament - Email: envpar[at]gmail.com 15-Oct-2009 Published 0314e591-bc07-4f0e-a169-c948785806e2 EP wants you to act for a low carbon economy 13-Oct-2009 Environmental Parliament (EP) is a volunteer social, economic and
political organization. EP is an NGO registered with the UN.
We invite you to volunteer for the environment. Our meetings, are
attended by scientists of all stripes and colours, devoted to the
serious debate of Ecological impact and we address the most imminent
environmental issues of global dimensions. Theories such as
Paleofuture, Climate forcing dangers and Consequences, Ice cap
science, and most importantly the EP-SMC (EP - Science Media Centre).
We  collect the volunteer think tank scientists, who contribute the
necessary rational debate materials and then we formulate Policy. Non
sectarian policy initiatives and public campaigns such as the 10x10
climate campaign. Reduce the CO2 foot print by 10% by the end of the
year 2010. It is a huge success and an imminent tipping point for the
health of the Environment we share with the other living beings of
this planet. Then the policy initiatives are translated into
Government policy and are offered in a non partisan fashion to all the
political parties to sign on them. If we reach consensus then we can
offer it to the government as ready made policy initiative to be acted
upon... Or be a virtual participant. Invite others - spread the word.
The Environmental Parliament is build on consensus.
Consensus building amongst the mosaic of the various environmental
organizations to reach consensus on the top issues and advocate policy
changes from the member political parties and observers. All the
environmental NGOs have member status as well as the political
parties.  However the state governments can have only observer status.
The London Meet up group meets at Kensington Hall, or at the Friends
House or at the Museum of Science and Technology and the Imperial
University; rotating amongst the four main facilities respectively in
the same calendar order, every Sunday afternoon at 3pm. Therefore
there is one meeting in each facility at least once a month. Meetings
are always Sundays at 3pm.  Please ask the organizer for an
invitation.

You can get started by becoming a free member of the Environmental
Parliament and then start contributing your ideas, theories,
scientific insights and socio-economic policy initiatives to the
Science Media Centre at : www.environmentalparliament.org/smc

]]> Published 0bd02c96-a05e-40cf-b5fb-2b6fd6b94021 Leaderless Bangkok process - Kyoto markets - Copenhagen looms large 13-Oct-2009 The EP is in Bangkok attending the UN meetings and supports the
process of a just Carbon Pricing and a Climate agreement. For a
comprehensive global agreement to be reached in Copenhagen, this
December, the priority should be to agree on the following
essentially basic elements:

 - Measure and reward with equitable Carbon pricing the Natural Earth
Ecosystems of forests, wilderness, national parklands  an  rainforests
as Carbon Sinks.

 - Agree on binding emission reductions for all industrialised
countries based on energy intensity reductions greater than 3% per
year and  just carbon pricing for energy use.

 - Measurable, committed and appropriate change action by developing
countries to limit emissions and reduce energy intensity.

 - Reduce intensity of energy globally and enact framework for action
on renewable alternative energy and adaptation to climate change.
 - Reduce deforestation, forest degradation and promote sustainable
forest management in all regions and especially the tropics.
 - Account for agricultural biomass burning and update accounting
rules for changes in emissions, due to land-use changes & forestry.
 - Expand international carbon markets to generate financial support
for developing countries and promote cost-effective emission cuts.

 - Desubsidize the entire energy sector so all energies compete on
merit and honest prices.

- Provide international finance to developing  countries to supplement
financial flows from the carbon market and domestic investment.
- Create Personal Carbon allocations for capital flows and Technology
transfer cooperation and funding to accelerate development of a
 global low-carbon  economy.

]]> Published e6fa8c74-4594-44f5-8040-da5068136016 Global 10x10 campaign launch vs Climate Change - World Business Finance and Government Forums 2009 13-Aug-2009 The EP & the UN launch the GLOBAL 10x10 CAMPAIGN in NYC and across the US, this September 2009. 

 

1) United Nations EP World Forum and 10x10 campaign of the Environmental Parliament in NYC September 23rd at Columbia University.

 

2) EP World Business and Finance Forum vs Poverty at the Clinton Global Initiative Sep. 24th in New York City.

 

3) United Nations, EP and First Nations Forum on the Paleofuture Climate Initiative at Columbia University Sep 26th NYC. 

 

4) World Business & Government Forum on Sep. 27th in Washington DC. Georgetown University.

 

5) World Technology and Business Forum in San Francisco 29th Sep. Stanford University.

 

6) Carbon Show - London - September 30th - Carbon Allocation and Offsets for the people. The Carbon Show 2009 to promote the EP 10x10. campaign for CO2 reductions. The timings for the session will be 30 September 11.45-12.30

 

7) Politics of Climate Change vs Greenwash. Town hall Meeting and Debate at Friends House, London, High Holborn, Sunday Sep 13th at 3pm.

 

(Green Carbon Allocation

and Offset)

 

 



Press Release: The 2009 ''World Business Forum'' of EP, in London on August 15th, concluded with a resounding Consensus Commitment to the 10x10 campaign for Britain and the UK starting in London this September. The movement is spearheaded by the Entrepreneurial Business Community and funded by leading VC & PE firms and innovative Investment Banks. It will be supported by News Media organizations and the Innovative Green Capital Global Fund.

 

 

 

10x10 campaign launch vs Climate Change

World Business Finance and Government Forum 2009

Technocrat Challenge for Green Tech and Green Finance

World Business Forum 2009

Programme - Agenda - August 15th 2009

11:00 Registration

 11:00 Press Briefing – Coffee – Tea – Enterprise Meetings - Networking

 11:30 Buffet Lunch

 11:30 Welcome and Introduction Speech

Formal welcome to the Environmental Parliament at the University of London 

The Chairman of the Environmental Parliament  Pano Kroko.

An introduction to the purpose and aims of the EP World Business Forum

on Climate Change, Enterprise and the Environment.

‘’Business, Technology and New Enterprise models for low carbon growth’’

A how to Primer for the Green Web.

 12:00 Keynote Speech and the Launch of 10x10 UK campaign

Pano Kroko - Chairman of Environmental Parliament -  ’Business, Global Governance and Climate Change’’

'The Politics of Climate Change"  Presentation of ideas influenced from Lord Anthony Giddens of LSE new book

Introduction of the EP 10x10 global campaign www.environmentalparliament.org/10x10  

and the www.yes10x10.com 

 12:30 Plenary Session – Business of Climate Change – Multinational Enterprises

A low carbon economy will only be achieved through Technology, Business and Cultural change,

with focus on technological developments, strategic institutions and global agreements such as the UN, Copenhagen accords and the WTO. New enterprises will have to interpret and monetize this change,

for the rest of the society.

Chair: Mr Robert Tobin, Green Capital, UK

Panel of Speakers: Anu Sismani, Carlos Redding, Myriam Hopper, Albert Kallio.

 12:30 Parallel Worksession 1) Bringing About Change – Greening of Asset Management -

 Green Private Equity

What are the great opportunities I converting and greening assets.

Potential barriers and what is required to make traditional targets of

Private Equity green and thus reap the stimulus packages for climate change.

Chair: Professor Joe C. Smilly, Harvard University, US

Panel of Speakers: Lillian De Tomasso, Pano Kroko, Cecile Thompson, Dr Fred Persis

 12:30 Parallel Worksessions 2) Venture Capital - Technological Change – Web3.0 – Green Tech

What are the New successful Business Models and the new web Innovations to monetize the

Technological Change and fuel a low carbon growth? The case of GreenCarbon.mobi

Green Carbon Ltd : A Revolution in the making for popularizing Climate Change action and Offsets. A new Green carbon company: the Google of the Climate Change world. 

Chair: Ms Helen Bittwer of Juniper Research Management

Speakers: Pano Kroko, Raj Kakarlapudi, Mayur Sri Raja, Yan White, Helen Sutton, Suresh Nagam

 12:30 Parallel Worksessions 3) Multinationals - Strategic Institutional Change

The role the Multinationals, Corporations, NGOs, Civil Societies and strategic institutional private and public  leaders can play to enable change towards a low carbon economy.

Chair: Professor Ms Melissa Lines, University of Washington, US

Panel of Speakers: Carlos Selimm, Dimitris Manos, Richard Cameron, Anthony Gibbs.

 12:30 Parallel Worksessions 4) Global Governance - Politics

Leadership and Management changes to make global low carbon growth a reality.

Chair: Professor Jason Bogdanovich, Stanford University, US

Speakers: Lilian Helmut, Fiona Asperberg, Klaus Henry, Victoria Small.

 14:30 Break - Coffee - Tea - Networking

 15:00 Heads of Corporations Session

The Frozen Middle: Middle management engagement need for Climate Change corporate adaptation and

Societal change. The critical need to work towards low carbon growth.

Leaders and Heads of Corporations from the UK, the US and EU as well as from developing countries,

will present individual case studies on the profitable business generation from impacts of climate change.

 15:00 Parallel Worksession 1) Corporate Governance

There will also be a parallel opportunity to see a documentary and follow a presentation

about the Greening of the Corporation, a Documentary project on the lessons learnt from the

rehabilitation of the environmentally challenged Forestry and paper giant of Japan.

 15:00 Parallel Worksession 2) WEB3.0 is the Green Web

A selection of forward Technology companies in the areas of agriculture, finance, Offsets,

Web, Biotech, Internet, Mobile Communications, Energy, Clean Tech, Nano tech and Stem cell

Commercial applications and entrepreneurial market ready solutions, products and services,

competition for the award of the 2009 EP World Business Forum, Technocrat Challenge Winner.

 15:00 Parallel Worksession 3) Gift Economy

 Discussion of the Book ‘’Gift Economy’’ by Pano Kroko.

‘’Gift Economy -  Frozen middle Climate thaw - Change Leadership’’

‘’A little green book manual by Pano Kroko’’.

It is a unique leadership manual for Corporate, Civil and Political leaders to manage the

Frozen middle layer of all organizations that prevents change. A cultural revolution prescription

to the area of organizations and human institutions, that holds the greatest resistance to change.

Book introduction and the interview of the author will be conducted by General Laurentis Marmant.

 16:30 Closing Speech Ceremony

 Closing Speech by HH Lama Gumpta Rinposhe

 A social wine reception will follow and book signing of the ‘’Gift Economy’’ book by Pano Kroko.

 

 

]]> Published f81dde86-2959-4025-aeaa-c6529f343eb6 BUSINESS CLIMATE SUMMIT. Business, Finance, Tech Innovators, Thinkers, Doers @ LSE on August 15th at 3pm. 10x10 Parliamentary Demo July 15th @ 6pm. TEN BY TEN = 10% CO2 reduction by 2010 - Westminster parliament. Vote for a CO2 reduction of 10% by 2010 in London. Economics of Climate Change Copenhagen, Meeting August 29th - Paris on August 1st @ Sorbonne in Marais = Summit of Philosophy of Climate Change Activism 20-May-2009

''TEN BY TEN'' campaign unveiling at LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS DEBATE and Press Conference in TOWN HALL MEETING ON JUNE 25TH AT 3PM. Unveiling the ''Ten by Ten'' carbon emissions reduction campaign for London...

100 Scientists support ten by ten campaign call

The Environmental Parliament calls for ten per cent reduction

of CO2 emissions in London by 2010

10x10 campaign launched at LSE Summit

More than a hundred scientists specialising in climate change, the environment and ecology came together in London to support the Environmental Parliament's launch of the TEN BY TEN campaign.

The Chairman of the Environmental Parliament, Pano Kroko announced the campaign after a Summit meeting at the London School of Economics considered ways to reduce London’s CO2 emissions by 10per cent by the end of next year.

“The 10X10 campaign seeks a 10per cent reduction in London’s CO2 emissions by the end of 2010,” said Pano Kroko. “We believe this saving is realistic and will help the city take a giant step towards meeting its goal of reducing CO2 emissions by 60per cent by 2025.”

The assembled scientists and environmentalists agreed that only a combination of taxation, public policy and resource management can meet the 10 per cent reduction target.

The Environmental Parliament also unveiled a campaign website which will serve as a focal point for news and activity concerning the campaign - http://www.environmentalparliament.org/10x10

“Today most of London's electricity comes from coal fired power generating plants,” said Kroko. “One in three children in London suffers from some form of asthma and London has the lowest air quality among European capitals. The first step towards CO2 emission reductions can be among the most difficult – in London however it is very achievable.”

The Summit endorsed the Environmental Parliament’s 10x10 plan as a first step in community action which aims to galvanise political response.

“It is a gauntlet to the politicians and the rulers thrown to them by empowered citizens,” said Kroko.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson has pledged to achieve 60per cent CO2 savings and the Environmental Parliament believes this pledge needs to be broken down into a series of achievable benchmarks.


Pano Kroko said: ''We can make significant progress to the long-term plan by breaking the target down and committing to cycles of 10 per cent reductions. It simply takes political will and a commitment to the necessary legislation.”

Kroko called for the London Olympics to be the focal point of a green push to achieve a further reduction of 10per cent by 2012. He added that by providing encouragement and support for Green industry initiatives to reach a total reduction of 30per cent by 2015.

Kroko added that higher energy prices coupled with the certainty of CO2 emission taxation would provided economic stimulus that would lead to a greening of the economy.

“With a robust & changing economy and a growing green industry,” said Kroko, “we can save an additonal 10per cent every three years and reach the Capital’s goal of a 60 per cent reduction by 2025.

“The regeneration of the city's economy and the creation of Green legacy from the 2012 Olympics will see London move into the Gold Medal position of global Environmental leadership.”

Ends

For more information about the Environmental Parliament and to keep up to date with the 10x10 campaign visit www.environmentalparliament.org

Press enquiries to: envpar{at}gmail.com

All content Copyrighted on behalf of Environmental Parliament and the 10x10 Campaign and Ten by Ten Campaign logos and trademarks and content of ''10x10'' and ''Ten by Ten'' are trademarks and Copyright of Environmental Parliament 1999-2012

TEN BY TEN = 10X10 = 10% REDUCTION OF CO2 IN LONDON BY 2010. Join the Campaign to save a tithe. A savings of CO2 of 10% by end of 2010 is realistic by using taxation, public policy and resource management as the only easy and fastest method to start on the road to healthy ecosystem. The beginning step towards CO2 emission reductions is also the most difficult. However it is rather achievable in the city of London. If the starting point of 10% carbon emissions reduction cannot be achieved by the end of 2010, then the rest of the targets for London and the UK are rather meaningles. Further examination reveals that in order to achieve progressively the 60% savings of CO2 by 2025 as is the London Mayoral environmental pledge and the citizen's promise. The first step to take is to break down the ultimate goal of CO2 emissions reduction in bite size tasks and achievable benchmarks. In simple terms if we approximate the reductions to economic savings and regeneration of the city's economy into Green infrastructure and devise a technologically Green Olympics of 2012, we will succeed to reach the mantle of London being the first city on earth to move in the position of achievable CO2 reductions and environmental leadership.

But still we need to take the first baby step: ''Ten by Ten'' is reduction of 10% of CO2 by end of 2010. The matrix is as follows for the city of Greater London and the whole of UK.

''Ten by Ten'' campaign FIVE SIMPLE STEPS :

1) Achieve the simple goal of a 10% reduction in CO2 by the end of 2010. Use the reductions caused by the economic recession as the conduit to achievable targets.

2) Restructure the planning and focus on making the Olympics as a green push in 2012 for a further reduction of 10%, to bring the carbon savings to a total of 20% off the 1990 baseline.

3) Another 10% savings in the next three years will help us reach a 30% reduction in CO2 by 2015 with the green industry and economy coming on it's own.

4) With a robust & changing economy and a growing green industry, we can save an additonal 10% and thus reach 40% reduction in 2018 in the midst of a green industrial revolution in full swing fuelling further, faster reductions in London as well as elsewhere in the UK and the world.

4) Reach a 50% reduction in CO2 by 2021 cuting off an added 10%.

5) Thus we can reach the legally binding goal of the 60% reductions in CO2 emissions by 2025. This matrix allows us to have a sensible and progressive reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere for the near future while rebuilding and refocusing the economy.

We have sixteen years to achieve this but only a year and a half to get the start of 10%.

We can achieve this if we put our minds to it.

As an example: President Kennedy challenged the people of the USin 1962 ''to go to the moon not because it is easy but because it was hard.'' The US quest for a lunar mission was fullfilled in 69 and they never looked back. Does the environment deserve any less enthusiasm? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYb_mhiE-qU

Now the many benefits of the CO2 reduction laws and the effects to the markets aren't that obvious and yet they are far reaching. An economic axiom is that higher energy price expectations in the marketplace along with the certainty of the taxing of CO2 emissions will lead to an economic stimulus. It will certainly also lead to a greening of the economy. And that is what Nobel laureate economist Paul Krugman agreed with me in our last conversation at LSE.

We can thus focus to achieve the objective a 10% reduction in CO2 emmissions by the end of the year 2010 as that most important first step.

The Ten by Ten campaign started with the Press Conference on June 25th at the LSE in London.

We will unveil the policy of the Environmental Parliament and announce the methodology of achieving this simple goal.

Of course Public policy and the taxation mechanisms are at the heart of this. The price of energy is the obvious way to reduce consumption. A tax on energy would do this. Accordingly the emissions will be reduced. Now which political party vying for leadership in the UK will actually deliver this mechanism?

We will ask them on the 25th of June at the LSE debate to position the Environmental Parliament policy.

Environmental Parliament has a simple plan.

There are the usual three main points:

1) It is essential an energy tax is a replacement for other taxes, not an additional tax. For example, if the tax was set at 10% of revenue (national and local), business rates, council tax, vehicle excise duty and insurance premium tax could all be abolished. The average person would overall gain as much as they would lose. Those who waste energy would be worse off, while those who use little energy would be better off -- which is the whole point.

2) The tax should be levied on the end user. Waste heat from fossil fuel and nuclear power stations should not be excluded from the tax. This has two benefits. If the power station operators are taxed on the waste heat -- of which they are the end users -- and have to recover that from their customers, it transforms the economics of renewables vs non-renewables, since renewables in general produce no waste heat. It makes renewables much more price competitive. The second benefit is that it encourages the use of waste heat in CHP systems, since then the power station operator would not be the end user of the waste heat, and the tax would be paid by the person whose property is being heated.

3) The methods above will also reinvigorate the economy by creating jobs in the building sectors where energy efficiencies will be sought by weatherizing old homes to making them more efficient and in the new building sector. This will lead to an economic stimulus and a greening of the economy. These are all green jobs and businesses that are set to progressivelly decrease the CO2 emissions. Additionally all the savings can be redirected to alternative sustainable technologies and energy generation as well as sustainable environmentally friendly finance and services.

As for the figures, a 10%-of-revenue tax would mean roughly 2.5p per kWh on renewable electricity and domestic gas, 21p per litre on oil fuel products; and 8p per kWh on fossil and nuclear electricity where the waste heat is not reused.

There are also international measures the Environmental Parliament could call for.

A) Climate Change, once it starts disrupting global food production, will kill a significant proportion of the human population of the planet. Depending on which books you read, forest clearance accounts for between 25% and 40% of human carbon emissions to the atmosphere. People who destroy mature native forest are therefore committing a crime against humanity on a far larger scale than anything seen in, say, Rwanda. They should be treated exactly as other war criminals fpr crimes against humanity. Appropriate punishment constitutes proper balance of interests with the environment and allignment od society's norms, goals and laws.

B) The sweetener should be a fund administered by the UN and contributed to by each country in proportion to its fossil fuel emissions. This fund should be of sufficient size to rent mature native forest worldwide under threat of destruction, and to do so at such a price that the owner, be they government, corporation or individual, cannot make more money than they're paid in rent by converting the forest land to agricultural use.

C) The world spends just over a trillion dollars a year on defence. That makes for a hugely powerful vested interest and a lot of jobs. Suppose Climate Change were declared to be a "threat to national security" (which it soon will be) and the defence industry were given the task of tackling it. Say for example a defence contractor was asked to build a geothermal power plant instead of an aircraft carrier. Would they really object? By defining Climate Change as a defence issue it would enable the defence budget to be tapped while permitting the military-industrial lobby to keep their budgets and their workforce. Suppose every country pledged to spend 50% of its defence budget incrementally on defence against Climate Change by 2020. That'd be over 2.5 trillion dollars worldwide over the next decade. It would buy a prodigious amount of green technology. Furthermore, since defence is an expenditure, not an investment requiring a pounds-and-pence payback, the cost of developing green energy sources through the defence budget would not need to be paid back, any more than the cost of a jet fighter or a battle-tank has to be. This would have a large positive effect on the economics of renewable energy. It will also admittedly raise the bar on all industries to massively promote change towards sustainability and greening of their works.

We are sure there are a lot of other ways to reduce our stated goal of 10%. let's explore the ways this makes sense.

See You all at LSE at the 25th of June to question your politicians and specifically the Environment ministers and shadow secretaries as well as the city of London administration.

Notes: Climate Change Act 2008 - key provisions/milestones

Rationale

Two key aims underpinning the Act:

    • to improve carbon management and help the transition towards a low carbon economy in the UK; and

    • to demonstrate strong UK leadership internationally, signalling that we are committed to taking our share of responsibility for reducing global emissions in the context of developing negotiations on a post-2012 global agreement at Copenhagen next year.

Key Provisions

  • Legally binding targets: Green house gas emission reductions through action in the UK and abroad of at least 80% by 2050, and reductions in CO2 emissions of at least 26% by 2020, against a 1990 baseline. The 2020 target will be reviewed soon after Royal Assent to reflect the move to all greenhouse gases and the increase in the 2050 target to 80%.
  • A carbon budgeting system which caps emissions over five year periods, with three budgets set at a time, to set out our trajectory to 2050. The first three carbon budgets will run from 2008-12, 2013-17 and 2018-22, and must be set by 1 June 2009. The Government must report to Parliament its policies and proposals to meet the budgets as soon as practical after that.
  • The creation of the Committee on Climate Change, a new independent, expert body to advise Government on the level of carbon budgets and where cost effective savings could be made. The Committee will submit annual reports to Parliament on the UK’s progress towards targets and budgets to which the Government must respond, thereby ensuring transparency and accountability on an annual basis.
  • International aviation and shipping emissions - the Government will include international aviation and shipping emissions in the Act or explain why not to Parliament by 31 December 2012. The Committee on Climate Change is required to advise the Government on the consequences of including emissions from international aviation and shipping in the Bill’s targets and budgets. Projected emissions from international aviation and shipping must be taken into account in making decisions on carbon budgets.
  • Use of International credits - Government is required to “have regard to the need for UK domestic action on climate change” when considering how to meet the UK’s targets and carbon budgets. The independent Committee on Climate Change has a duty to advise on the appropriate balance between action at domestic, European and international level, for each carbon budget. The Government also amended the Bill in its final stages to require a limit to be set on the purchase of credits for each budgetary period, by secondary legislation requiring debate in both Houses of Parliament, and taking into account the Committee’s advice.
  • Further measures to reduce emissions include powers to introduce domestic emissions trading schemes more quickly and easily through secondary legislation; measures on biofuels; powers to introduce pilot financial incentive schemes in England for household waste; powers to require a minimum charge for single-use carrier bags (excluding Scotland).
  • On adaptation the Government must report at least every five years on the risks to the UK of climate change, and publish a programme setting out how these impacts will be addressed. The Act also introduces powers for Government to require public bodies and statutory undertakers1 to carry out their own risk assessment and make plans to address those risks.
  • An Adaptation Sub-Committee of the Committee on Climate Change, in order to provide advice to and scrutiny of the Government’s adaptation work.
  • A requirement for the Government to issue guidance next year on the way companies should report their greenhouse gas emissions, and to review the contribution reporting could make to emissions reductions by 1st December 2010. Requirement also that the Government must, by 6th April 2012, use powers under the Companies Act to mandate reporting, or explain to Parliament why it has not done so.
  • New powers to support the creation of a Community Energy Savings Programme, as announced by the Prime Minister on 11 September 2008 (by extending the existing Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme to electricity generators).
  • New requirement for annual publication of a report on the efficiency and sustainability of the Government estate.

Key milestones

  • 1 December 2008: Committee on Climate Change established as an independent body
  • 1 December 2008: Committee on Climate Change provides advice to Government on the level of the first three carbon budgets and its full review of the 2050 target - see www.theccc.org.uk
  • Spring 2009: Government to announce proposals for the level of the first three carbon budgets alongside the (fiscal) Budget 2009
  • 1 June 2009: deadline for Government to set the first three carbon budgets through secondary legislation agreed by both Houses of Parliament
  • Mid 2009: Government will publish policies and proposals to meet the first three carbon budgets

 

 

The future actions and debates of the Environmental Parliament can be found at www.environmentalparliament.org and London planning and debates are usually taking place in the Town hall Meetings in London's Friends Centre on Sunday's and in Copenhagen's Christiania town hall. SW London - Kingston environmental Debates at Kingston University taking place every last Friday of the month at 3pm at Clattern Amphitheatre on Penthryn Road Campus during the summer.

Invitation to the International meeting for Climate Justice Action on the 15th till the 19th of August in Copenhagen.

When: Friday 15th Sunday to Wednesday 19th August 2009.
Where: Copenhagen, Denmark (Fabriken Building Christiania)
To Register, email : envpar{at}gmail.com
You are invited to the next international meeting of Climate Justice Action in Copenhagen Denmark on the 15th to the 19th of August.

On the 6 December, 2009 the governments of the world will come to Copenhagen for the fifteenth UN Climate Conference (COP-15). This will be the biggest summit on climate change ever to have taken place. Yet, previous meetings have produced nothing more than business as usual.
The network has already started to discuss how to mobilize and what to do in Copenhagen but we are still in the planning stages. We have time to collectively decide what these mobilizations will look like, and to begin to visualize what our future can be.

Our previous meetings have included a lot of political discussion, setting up various international working groups, developing common ground, and deciding our principles and strategic goals.

Our first common ground was the Call to Action, which can be found at
We believe in the necessity of global action for climate justice and a plan for one of the mass actions at the Summit in December has already started.

We are trying to link and unite climate activists from across the world, despite diversity of culture and different locations.

We invite anyone who agrees with our Call to Action, principles for working together and strategic goals to participate in the next International Meeting of Climate Justice Action.

Join the Environmental Parliament Now.

LONDON SCHOOL OF ECONOMICS DEBATE AND TOWN HALL MEETING ON JUNE 25TH AT 3PM.

TEN BY TEN = 10X10 = 10% REDUCTION OF CO2 IN THE UK BY 2010. Come join the debate to save a tithe. A savings of CO2 of 10% by taxation, public policy and resource management is the only easy and fast method to achieve progressively the 60% savings by 2035. The matrix is as follows. 10% by 2010, 20% by 2015, 30% by 2020, 40% by 2025 and so on to 60% by 2035. It is a sensible and progressive reduction of CO2 in the atmosphere for the near future. An economic axiom is that higher energy price expectations in the marketplace along with the certainty of the taxing of CO2 emissions will lead to an economic stimulus. It will certainly also lead to a greening of the economy. And that is what Nobel laureate economist Paul Krugman agreed with me in our last conversation at LSE this past Thursday.

We can thus achieve the objective of a 10% reduction in CO2 emmissions by the end of the year 2010.

Of course Public policy and the taxation mechanisms are at the heart of this. The price of energy is the obvious way to reduce consumption. A tax on energy would do this. Accordingly the emissions will be reduced. Now which political party vying for leadership in the UK will actually deliver this mechanism?

We will ask them on the 25th of June at LSE.

Environmental Parliament has a simple plan.

There are the usual three main points:

1) It is essential an energy tax is a replacement for other taxes, not an additional tax. For example, if the tax was set at 10% of revenue (national and local), business rates, council tax, vehicle excise duty and insurance premium tax could all be abolished. The average person would overall gain as much as they would lose. Those who waste energy would be worse off, while those who use little energy would be better off -- which is the whole point.

2) The tax should be levied on the end user. Waste heat from fossil fuel and nuclear power stations should not be excluded from the tax. This has two benefits. If the power station operators are taxed on the waste heat -- of which they are the end users -- and have to recover that from their customers, it transforms the economics of renewables vs non-renewables, since renewables in general produce no waste heat. It makes renewables much more price competitive. The second benefit is that it encourages the use of waste heat in CHP systems, since then the power station operator would not be the end user of the waste heat, and the tax would be paid by the person whose property is being heated.

3) The methods above will also reinvigorate the economy by creating jobs in the building sectors where energy efficiencies will be sought by weatherizing old homes to making them more efficient and in the new building sector. This will lead to an economic stimulus and a greening of the economy. These are all green jobs and businesses that are set to progressivelly decrease the CO2 emissions. Additionally all the savings can be redirected to alternative sustainable technologies and energy generation as well as sustainable environmentally friendly finance and services.

As for the figures, a 10%-of-revenue tax would mean roughly 2.5p per kWh on renewable electricity and domestic gas, 21p per litre on oil fuel products; and 8p per kWh on fossil and nuclear electricity where the waste heat is not reused.

There are also international measures the Environmental Parliament could call for.

A) Climate Change, once it starts disrupting global food production, will kill a significant proportion of the human population of the planet. Depending on which books you read, forest clearance accounts for between 25% and 40% of human carbon emissions to the atmosphere. People who destroy mature native forest are therefore committing a crime against humanity on a far larger scale than anything seen in, say, Rwanda. They should be treated exactly as other war criminals.

B) That's the forest "stick". The "carrot" should be a fund administered by the UN and contributed to by each country in proportion to its fossil fuel emissions. This fund should be of sufficient size to rent mature native forest worldwide under threat of destruction, and to do so at such a price that the owner, be they government, corporation or individual, cannot make more money than they're paid in rent by converting the forest land to agricultural use.

C) A new take on an old chestnut! The world spends just over a trillion dollars a year on defence. That makes for a hugely powerful vested interest and a lot of jobs. Suppose Climate Change were declared to be a "threat to national security" (which it soon will be) and the defence industry were given the task of tackling it. Say for example a defence contractor was asked to build a geothermal power plant instead of an aircraft carrier. Would they really object? By defining Climate Change as a defence issue it would enable the defence budget to be tapped while permitting the military-industrial lobby to keep their budgets and their workforce. Suppose every country pledged to spend 50% of its defence budget incrementally on defence against Climate Change by 2020. That'd be over 2.5 trillion dollars worldwide over the next decade. It would buy a prodigious amount of green technology. Furthermore, since defence is an expenditure, not an investment requiring a pounds-and-pence payback, the cost of developing green energy sources through the defence budget would not need to be paid back, any more than the cost of a jet fighter or a battle-tank has to be. This would have a large positive effect on the economics of renewable energy. See You all at LSE at the 25th of June to question your politicians and specifically the Environment ministers and shadow secretaries as well as the city of London administration.

Environmental Parliament Demonstration July 15th London

GET OUT OF FACEBOOK AND GET IN FRONT OF PARLIAMENT'S FACE.

Westminster Parliament Square - London - Wednesday 15th July at 6.00 pm - All are invited

Our current UK parliament is failing to respond to the Climate Emergency. Same as all the other parliaments all over the world and all other governments who fail to address the pressing environmental degradation. It is time to act. We will convene as an environmental parliament to respond with the degree of urgency required.

Come and join us: www.environmentalparliament.org

The five Bills before the Environmental Parliament will include measures for the top five concerns in the UK :

1) 10% reductions in UK Greenhouse gases by the end of 2010
2) A million Green Jobs and emergency insulation program
3) Banning all domestic flights by the end of 2010
4) A 55 mph national speed limit
5) Halving (on average) the cost of public transport and terminating the new roads program

Come to the People's Parliament.

]]> Published 5f9f7cba-7b18-46e7-b3df-d8aadb5324c1 Climate Change - Energy - Economics 13-May-2009 CLIMATE CHANGE:

Climate change is a threat greater than any we have faced before. It eclipses all other environmental issues in magnitude, and it threatens the survival of humanity. But it also represents an unprecedented opportunity to transform our societies. Your own actions and your society’s social and environmental actions now; will determine your future survival. The greatest scientific effort in human history is working to understand the changes we are causing to the climate system. As the sophistication of our understanding continues to increase, we realise more clearly the enormous scale of the challenge. Climate change holds the threat of overwhelming our efforts even before we can fully understand them, let alone marshal our resources to combat them. The task ahead requires a paradigm shift in political thinking and political courage. It requires the redesign of how our societies are structured – how our economies function, how our energy needs are met, what values we consider important, how we design our habitat and most importantly - how we live. Ensuring our future survival and wellbeing will require many shifts in our lifestyles - how we think about energy, how we feed ourselves, how we trade amongst ourselves, how we build things, how and when we travel. However, these changes, motivated by a need to address climate change, can also bring substantial social and lifestyle benefits. We have a window of opportunity which is narrowing rapidly – we must act now. We are already feeling the impacts of man-made climate change. Currently, our ability to address it is very real. We have a window of opportunity which is narrowing rapidly – we must act now.

 

ENERGY:

The current abundance of cheap energy rests on the burning of concentrated fossil fuels. As these become scarce, managing reduction in energy use and investing in renewables can bring greater energy security and environmental benefits.

Transport networks which deliver global trade and cheap travel are built upon the ready availability of oil. However, we know that fossil fuels are finite. Although we are some way from exhausting our global stock of oil, we may already have passed the point where global production flows have peaked.

As supply constraints lead to rising fuel prices, and transport costs rise, the physical globalisation of trade and travel we take for granted will become more expensive, and is likely to be brought into question.

Depletion of oil reserves is not in itself a problem, and can even bring some environmental benefits. Managing a reduction in fossil fuel use to avoid disruption as oil supplies dwindle would also help mitigate climate change.

The key is the management of reduction - resource depletion will present problems only if we are not prepared for it. As oil’s availability declines, we will have to redesign many aspects of our society. In a world of depleting oil reserves, we must ask what our energy needs are, and how we will meet them.

It is possible to meet our energy needs by utilising renewable technologies

We see this as an opportunity to embrace the principles of relocalisation, enhancing our community life and rediscovering a connection with our sense of place. The challenge is one of education and of planning – educating our societies about limited fossil fuel resources and the timeline in which they will become scarce, and planning a reduction in fossil fuel use to shift the means by which we generate power. Because it is possible to meet our energy needs by utilising renewable technologies, we can overcome this resource constraint.


ECONOMICS:

Our relationship with the environment and our use of energy are both shaped by our economic systems.

For every barrel of oil that is burnt, and for every emission of greenhouse gases, there is a corresponding financial transaction - a transaction which fails to account for true environmental and social cost.

Economic systems also have profound effects on social issues – inequality, poverty and consumption, which in turn impact on how we can address environmental problems.

Because of these essential connections, our work includes an economic analysis of climate change and energy use. We direct our research towards understanding how well-designed economics can encourage sustainable use of energy and the environment.

We examine the features of currency design which can encourage a responsible interaction with the environment

Historically, economics has developed without a proper appreciation of the true cost of burning fossil fuels. But economics has always been about the management of scarce resources - and so we can use an improved understanding of true environmental costs to develop current economic structures, ensuring they promote responsible use of the environment.

We examine the features of currency design which can encourage a responsible interaction with the environment and the use of renewable energy sources, and we seek to develop work on alternative systems of currency and innovative economic institutions which work for the social and environmental good.

 

]]> Published fa43b985-5d11-4bd8-a253-9e04f2b78ea1 Environmental Parliament - The future - The debate 30-Apr-2009

Copenhagen - Environmental Parliament COP15 Consensus Meeting - September 20th  

Kristiania Town Hall - Copenhagen - Sunday 20th September at 3.00 pm - All are invited

Our current UN Bonn process and the expected December COP15 meetings are failing to respond to the Climate Emergency. Same as all the other parliaments all over the world and all other governments who fail to address the pressing environmental degradation. It is time to act. We will convene an alternative UN Meeting as Environmental Parliament to respond with the degree of urgency required and to pre-empt the arguments of member nations of the UN who wish to fudge come December.

Come participate in the drama and serious Pre-enactment of the December meetings of the UN in Copenhagen.

Come and join us: www.environmentalparliament.org

Come to the People's Parliament.

All are welcome - just turn up and take your seat.

 Hear about what we should be doing in the UN now, to avert climate catastrophe - and bring your own ideas representing your country!

The gap between what the science demands and what the politicians are offering is vast - whilst there are signs of faltering political progress (and much greenwash), the updated science gets more scary day by day.... Add your voice to the demand for radical action now - we should not just be on the defensive saying 'no' to airports, new coal, road building etc.. etc.. we should be pushing forward our own positive agenda for real solutions to the climate crisis !

We in the world cannot deal with this problem on our own but our best chance of influencing the critical international Climate Talks in Copenhagen at the end of the year is by committing to really radical measures in order to lead by example.

And the time to do that is RIGHT NOW

ACT NOW.

 

PAST DEBATES

Environmental Parliament __________________________________________________

INVITATION TO INFORM, DEBATE & EDUCATE

 

On May 31st we will debate the Carbon Trading Schemes, the Clean Coal energy and the UK carbon economy basis of the new budget promoting clean coal energy generation. The presentation of the first Clean coal factory of Vatenfall will be discussed. And we will delve deep into the economics of the street value of emissions ws the assigned value of the Kyoto system. We will hold a magisterial panel on assigning fresh values in light of the  Copenhagen conference in December.

On May 31st, we will debate Energy, Carbon Economies and the Earth's capacity to absorb CO2. The earth engineering systems and the economics of pollution, the case for airline emissions vs the land based emissions and the upper atmosphere rapid CO2 release and the tentative ozon hole relationship. Debate about the Fossil fuel economy and impacts to local habitat, species, animals and peoples. Positive and negative outcomes. We will also introduce the agenda for the future Environmental Parliament Debate on the the cost of Carbon trading and CO2 emissions. The increased planetary warming due to greater CO2 levels in the upper atmosphere could not  be sustained at a warming level of 1.5 - 2 degrees Celsius - or not.  It is a CO2 multiplier effect, by a whole order of magnitude, as the increased warming reduces the carbon sinking facility of earth's natural eco-systems. Our earth systems ability to repair and cool the earth is failing due to the increased strains...

Sunday May 31st 2009 at 3pm in London

Friends House & Conference Centre, Euston - St Pancras international Train Station.

173 Euston Rd - NW1 2BJ - London

AGENDA QUESTIONS

1) What are the 5 top issues and tipping points for CO2 in our environment? Airtravel impact on upper atmosphere CO2 release. Terrestrial CO2 release. Carbon capture and sequestration.

2) What is real and meaningful in environmental action against the warming trends? Methods of economic investment to halve the warming problem.

3) What fossil fuel economic practices cause increased CO2, global warming and loss of carbon sinks. How do we estimate the real GDP. How do we calculate and annualize the net carbon emmissions of major CO2 producers? Countries? Industries? Corporations? Militaries? Developed vs underdeveloped peoples?

4) What is the Truth about the green GDP ecosystem: What, where, when, why, how and who? Which nations have engaged? Nobody yet. Which airlines? None yet.

5) Geoscience & Geoengineering Solutions.... a) Focus on a warming planet. b) Alternative energy technologies to address the plight of the ecosystems. c) What are the programmes of US government and the UN? d) Is there any agenda item for the Copenhagen meetings about the people's proposals away from Cap & trade? e) What are the most effective geoengineering and geoscience schemes tosay?

We will discuss and debate our energy and carbon economy impacts on warming, pollution, and the vicious cycle of increased energy inputs to just survive as a species.

Introduced and moderated by Pano Kroko, founder of the Environmental Parliament.
www.environmentalparliament.org {Invitation to join the EcoParliament Network}

All major Environmental Organizations have been invited to participate in the debate.

HOW TO GET THERE : Tube to Euston Square or for those coming from Europe, the St Pancras International train Station (London station of Eurostar).


http://www.environmentalparliament.org {Invitation to join the Parliament Network}

 

 

PAST DEBATES

Environmental Parliament's last debates and consensus building conferences

Environmental Parliament

INVITATION TO INFORM & DEBATE

 On May 24th,

we will debate Energy, Carbon Economies and the Earth's Photosynthesis. Debate about the Fossil fuel economy and impacts to local habitat, species, animals and peoples. Positive and negative outcomes. From Niger delta to Equador and the Amazonas oil patches. We will also introduce the agenda for the future Environmental Parliament Debate on the the cost of Carbon trading and CO2 emissions. The increased planetary warming due to greater CO2 levels in the atmosphere could or should be sustained at a warming level of 1.5 - 2 degrees Celsius - or not. The remaining fossil fuels at the rate of burn today will result in a 5-7 degree warming. It is a CO2 multiplier effect, by a whole order of magnitude, as the increased warming reduces the carbon sinking facility of earth's natural eco-systems. Our earth systems ability to repair and cool the earth is failing due to the increased strains...

AGENDA QUESTIONS

1)What are the 5 top issues and tipping points for CO2 in our environment?

2)What is real and meaningful in environmental action against the warming trends? Methods of economic investment to halve the warming problem.

3)What fossil fuel economic practices cause increased CO2, global warming and loss of carbon sinks. How do we estimate the real GDP. How do we calculate and annualize the net carbon emmissions of major CO2 producers? Countries? Industries? Corporations? Militaries? Developed vs underdeveloped peoples?

4)What is the Truth about the green GDP ecosystem: What, where, when, why, how and who? Which nations have engaged? Nobody yet.

5)Geoscience & Geoengineering Solutions.... a) Focus on a warming planet. b) Alternative energy technologies to address the plight of the ecosystems. c) What are the programmes of US government and the UN? d) Is there any agenda item for the Copenhagen meetings about the people's proposals away from Cap & trade? e) What are the most effective geoengineering and geoscience schemes tosay?

We will discuss and debate our energy and carbon economy impacts on warming, pollution, and the vicious cycle of increased energy inputs to just survive as a species.

Introduced and moderated by Pano Kroko, founder of the Environmental Parliament.
www.environmentalparliament.org {Invitation to join the EcoParliament Network}

On May 17th we shall debate the Deforestation and Despeciation. The loss of Habitat and resultant ecosystem changes.Measures to reverse it and costs of stopping it. Brazil's example vs Indonesia's method of timber harvest. Tropical rainforests to northern rainforests. Forestry and Soil Discussion. Earth's loss of forests signifies an unatural environment and causes increased planetary warming due to greater CO2 levels in the atmosphere. It is a CO2 multiplier effect, by a whole order of magnitude, as the carbon sinking facility of earth's natural eco-systems is failing. The loss of forests is resulting in direct loss of earth's fertility, increased ocean salinization, increased land desertification, continental unsustainability, global droughts, unseasonable warming temperatures and migrating population pressures. Further species extinction and habitat loss leads to bee population disappearing and loss of insect pollination services. Any upsides? Maybe...

We will discuss the Amazonas ecosystem and the Northern rainforests. The benefits of tree planting, permaculture and one straw revolution. Forestry vs Agriculture - Debate & Consensus - Geo Engineering and Action. Agricultural forestry? Mixed growth and multispecies cohabitation.

AGENDA QUESTIONS

1)What are the 5 top issues and tipping points for Deforestation and Despeciation in our environment?

2)What is real and meaningful in environmental action against the deforestation hotzones and other sensitive areas. Methods of economic investment to halve the deforestation problem.

3)What deforestation and loss of habitat mechanisms cause increased CO2, global warming and loss of carbon sinks. How do we estimate the real GDP. How do we calculate and annualize the net carbon emmissions of major CO2 producers? Countries? Industries? Corporations? Militaries? Developed vs underdeveloped peoples?

4)What is the Truth about the green GDP ecosystem: What, where, when, why, how and who? Which nations have engaged? Nobody yet.

5)Geoscience & Geoengineering Solutions.... a)Focus on desertification and warming. b)Address the plight of the temperate zone and the great equatorial deserts. c) What are the programmes of US government and the UN? d) Is there any agenda item for the Copenhagen meetings about the people's food production? e)What are the most effective geoengineering and geoscience schemes to address?

AGENDA

We will discuss and debate deforestation and despeciation impact on warming, pollution, and increased energy inputs to just survive as species.

Introduced and moderated by Pano Kroko, founder of the Environmental Parliament.
www.environmentalparliament.org {Invitation to join the EcoParliament Network}

All major Environmental Organizations have been invited to participate in the debate.

HOW TO GET THERE : Tube to Euston Square or for those coming from Europe, the St Pancras International train Station (London station of Eurostar).


http://www.environmentalparliament.org {Invitation to join the Parliament Network}

 

Environmental Parliament's prior debates ___________________


Agriculture Food production and Soil Discussion. Earth's loss of fertility, salinization, desertification, unsustainability, drought, warming temperatures and population pressures. Species extinction and habitat loss leads to bee population disappearing and loss of insect pollination services. Upside? We will discuss the benefits of aquaculture, permaculture and one straw revolution. Agriculture - Debate & Consensus - Geo Engineering and Action

 

                                                                               

AGENDA QUESTIONS

1)What are the 5 top issues and tipping points for the Agriculture and Soil environment?

2)What is real and meaningful in environmental action for the hotzones and other safer areas.

3)What agricultural methods cause warming, depletion and acidification of the oceans.

4)What is the Truth about the food production ecosystem: What, where, when, why, how and who?

5)Geoscience & Geoengineering Solutions.... a)Focus on desertification and warming. b)Address the plight of the temperate zone and the great equatorial deserts. c) What are the programmes of US government and the UN? d) Is there any agenda item for the Copenhagen meetings about the people's food production? e)What are the most effective geoengineering and geoscience schemes to address?

Introduced and moderated by Pano Kroko, founder of the Environmental Parliament.
www.environmentalparliament.org {Invitation to join the EcoParliament Network}

All major Environmental Organizations have been invited to participate in the debate.

HOW TO GET THERE : Tube to Euston Square or for those coming from Europe, the St Pancras International train Station.


http://www.environmentalparliament.org {Invitation to join the Parliament Network}

Environmental Parliament

The inaugural debates of Easter Sunday 12th of April, 2009 reached Consensus on the top five issues facing the planet, the people and the environment.

We convened, debated and agreed that the top issues facing the earth, it's inhabitants and all of us are: 1) Deforestation 2) Despeciation 3) Human caused climate change 4) Oceans & water 5) Fossil Fuel Energy & Carbon Economics

Consensus: Direct Action needed for Alternative Parliament of the people globally to foster bottoms up change. Change in Mindsets. Change in Habits. Change in our economies and goals. We adhere to Geo political environmental action and further debate to be centered around these subcategories: a) Habitat destruction - deforestation - despeciation. b) Agriculture & Soil erosion, salinization, desertification, loss of fertility. c) Overpopulation and increased per capita impact on the environment. d) Water management e) Buildup of Toxins in the environment f) Ocean acidity, warming, salinity, carbon sinks, pollution & overfishing. g) Earth's photosynthesis and energy. h) Human caused climate change reversal. You are invited to create your debate and local or international action group here and also hold the real debate in your local community as a town meeting in meet up style.

On our global web and presently in London and Amsterdam we hold weekly debate and action meetings. We will continue building education, consensus, debate and environmental action and we are dedicated to supporting you and your local groups.

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Past Debates:

April 12th: We convened, debated and agreed that the top issues facing the warming planet and all of us are: 1) Deforestation 2) Despeciation 3) Human caused climate change 4) Oceans & water 5) Fossil Fuel Energy & Carbon Economics

Consensus: Direct Action needed for Alternative Parliament of the people globally. Change in Mindsets. Change in Habits. We adhere to Geo political action and further debate to be centered around these subcategories: a) Habitat destruction - deforestation - despeciation. b) Agriculture & Soil erosion, salinization, desertification, loss of fertility. c) Overpopulation and increased per capita impact on the environment. d) Water management e) Buildup of Toxins in the environment f) Ocean acidity, warming, salinity, carbon sinks, pollution & overfishing. g) Earth's photosynthesis and energy. h) Human caused climate change reversal.

On our global web and London and Amsterdam weekly debate meetings we will continue building education, consensus, debate and action.

On April 19th we debated and agreed on the warming earth system as a direct result of the fossil fuel economies. The 26th we held the Arctic debates and Earth's warming. May 3rd we held the Ocean debates. On May 10th we debated Agriculture and Soil depletion, loss of fertility, salinization, desertification, sustainability in food production and aquaculture-permaculture and one straw revolution.

 

FUTURE DEBATES

 

On May 31st we will debate the Carbon Trading Schemes, the Clean Coal energy and the UK carbon economy basis of the new budget promoting clean coal energy generation. The presentation of the first Clean coal factory of Vatenfall will be discussed.

 

Please join up the Environmental Parliament Community to support your Ecosystem and voice your concerns for the planet.

Become a member here and now. It is a free and Direct Action for the Environment. Invite your organization to make a presence in this community and to participate in the debates.

All earth's members are citizens represented in the Environmental Parliament. That means you. Join up and be counted. Make your vote here. By your actions and daily choices. All earths' peoples, nations and species share the same planet. We are all connected in this - here and now.

Join up - set up - act now.

Create an event on this site and invite your friends and family to act.

Create your own 15th of July demonstration group in your country and your community with your own bills in front of the parliament.

Create an event for the alternative Environmental Parliament on July 15th 2009.

Join up and make your mark.

PS: Act now. Set up a debate an education event in your community. Or create an event here on the site of EP as a nexus , a blog and a wiki of your organization, group or community.


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