The three discussion panels brought together numerous local social
democrats, top decision-makers and experts who committed themselves
to help build a coherent socialist and social democratic programme
with a distinct local and regional perspective relating to the EU's
environmental, institutional and external challenges.
Major consequences for global economy
Opening the conference,
read more
Socialists are pushing for
more action on climate change, since it is necessary to act now,
leaving aside the disastrous “business as usual approach”.
Socialist MEP Linda McAvan (Labour UK) hosted the WWF debate “EU
Climate action : Do 30% NOW!” on 6 May 2008. Here are a few
conclusions from the meeting:
EU has proven to be on the right path in fighting against climate
change but more has to be done. Achieving deep emission reductions
in Europe by 2020 is not only a question of available technologies
but rather one of taking right political decisions. At national
level, governments have to create the right incentives to support
energy efficiency and promote investments in low carbon
technologies and renewables, while at the European level, the
European Emissions Trading Scheme should form the central part of
the overall European strategy.
If Europe is quite confident that they will move all together in
the same direction, what about the others? We have to bear in mind
that even if climate change is a global issue, developed countries
have an historical responsibility towards developing ones.
Therefore OECD countries have to help developing countries to
decouple economic growth from greenhouse emissions and adapt to
climate change...
read more
Aujourd’hui tous le monde parle du développement durable pour en
faire l’apologie mais peu de personnes savent ce que c’est.
Mauvaise traduction d’un développement soutenable, puis concept
fourre-tout et maintenant mot détourné. Comme cette croissance doit
répondre à l’ensemble des aspirations humaines ont y rajoute au fur
et a mesure des cibles alors que l’idée première n’est déjà pas
bien assimilée. Ca mise en application concrète est donc difficile.
On ne pourra donc pas s’appuyer sur le développement durable comme
objectif.
En outre gouverner c’est ce fixer des priorités et pour préserver
les générations futures la priorité est évidente : éviter que le
Changement climatique ne soie désastreux. Tout le monde, ou
presque, admet que l'excès de gaz à effet de serre modifie le
climat. Il augmente la température, ce qui, au mieux, amènera un
climat plus dure et moins fertile, au pire, une extinction massif
d'espèces, y compris les humains. Mais même le meilleur des
scénarios, c'est une production agricole en baise et surtout plus
aléatoire, l'épuisement des énergies facilement disponibles, la
perte de terres habitables, des catastrophes naturelles plus
fréquentes … Le tout avec une...
read more
Published Wednesday, April 9, 2008 at 10:25
by
martina
in Save our planet (2013 views and 2 comments)
Climate neutrality, or, in scientific terms 'CO2 neutrality',
describes processes by which the global CO2 balance remains
constant (source: Wikipedia).
In my opinion this CO2 balance no longer exists – we need to
bring back this balance before we can actually maintain it. In a
time of increased environmental awareness, this worthy goal can
nevertheless produce unusual ideas.
Our lifestyles are often careless: jetting off to remote
countries, taking the car to go to the bakery around the corner,
using the tumble dryer and all the other small things which makes
life easy. These actions need no longer give us a guilty
conscience. By spending a bit of money you can compensate for
your polluting sins. For example, take a look at Atmosfair,
Greenmiles, The Climate Company or My Climate. There are probably
more such projects, especially outside Germany. Yet a study from
Tufts
University in Boston revealed that only three of thirteen
such ‘compensation agencies’, including Atmosfair and My Climate,
are actually recommended service providers.
When travelling by plane, Atmosfair can help you obtain a cleaner conscience.
You can pay when you book, but also calculate and compensate for
your CO2 emissions later. When typing...
Even though discussion
paper 'Save our
planet' concentrates mostly on energy policy, I would like
discuss also about the influence of the traffic emissions.
Traffic is excluded from Kyoto protocol, but it still produces 20
percent of all CO2 emissions. The European Parliament tried to
restrict emissions of private cars, but right wing coalition
watered down that decision. What we need to reduce emissions of the
traffic is better public transportation and restricting heavily
polluting cars.
It’s quite controversial that when we have just started to realise
the power of the climate change, we have also started to fly more
than ever. Flying is definitely the most polluting way of traffic
and yet it’s still cheaper than ever before. Our goal should be
that using train is always cheaper than flying or using private
cars, but at the moment we are far, far away from that goal. In
Central Europe flying from one big city to another might be cheaper
than taking a taxi from airport to the centre. I’m afraid that
consumers are not willing to change this. It’s too attempting to
fly away for a weekend with less than 50 euros - for the first time
in history is travelling possible for everyone. I have to admit
that I haven’t been thinking...
read more
Published Friday, March 14, 2008 at 11:48
by
AnneSofie
in Save our planet (1074 views and 1 comments)
Scandinavian
PES
activistsmet in the village of Jørlunde, located on the
island of Zealand, Denmark on March 1st and 2nd 2008 to discuss
European democracy, politics and the PES manifesto.
Over sometimes heated discussions, the 80 participants agreed on
a number is issues, which we feel must be included in the PES
manifesto. Here is our suggestions for the theme 'Save our
planet':
Within the international community, the EU must be the leader
in the struggle for advances within energy and climate change.
All member states must implement radical changes in their energy
and climate policies. Therefore it is necessary to remove the
trade in CO2 quotas, because it constitutes a real stumbling
block for action and for the realisation of change, which will
have an effect.
It is not enough with state intervention and cooperation. The
global warming and the threat from the changes to our climate
must be fought at all levels of society. The citizens must get
actively involved. It demands a change of attitude for each
citizen. The social democrats in Denmarkcan for instance
elaborate a set of tools, which makes the...
Published Monday, March 10, 2008 at 10:12
by
frederic.vareillas
in Save our planet (1090 views and 3 comments)
Bonjour à celles et ceux qui voudront bien prendre le temps de me
lire, (Bonne journée de la Femme).
- J' ai déjà écrit au sujet de "Gaïa" et de Lovelock et je n'y
reviendrai pas ici.
- EN REVANCHE, je vous conseille à toutes et tous de lire le numéro
de cette semaine de : "Le Nouvel Observateur" (6-12 mars 2008):
Page 90-91 : "2029 : Le Krach écologique", par Geneviève FERONE,
sur les effets désastreux du changement climatique et de la crise
énergétique en Europe et dans le monde. Nous devons agir dès 2009,
nous socialistes Européens.
Page 5-6 : "Nicholas Stern ; le sonneur de tocsin", par
Jean-Gabriel FREDET : Exhortons l'Europe et le Monde à changer de
modèle de croissance très très vite.
Pour les plus courageux, signalons toujours, en Poche (pas cher) :
"Un monde de ressources Rares", par Eric ORSENNA et Le Cercle des
Economistes (2007) :
Changeons notre économie, fondée sur la finance et les monnaies,
pour une économie fondée sur les flux énergétiques et leur coût
réel.
Faisons donc changer l'Europe le plus vite possible vers une
civilisation du recyclage, de la décroissance, de l'électricité, de
l'électronique, des transports en commun, de la...
read more
Published Saturday, March 1, 2008 at 18:32
by
rikkeindenmark
in New Social Europe (1300 views and 0 comments)
The afternoon of the Danish conference on the PES manifesto ended with a
plenary where the four work groups presented a ‘top 3’ of
priorities for their manifesto theme. Here are, from my view,
some of the most interesting ideas brought forward:
The PES manifesto should propose to put an end to the
emissions trading scheme where rich countries can buy CO2 credits
from the developing world
Fighting climate change needs to take place on many levels:
the international, the national and the individual. EU should
offer the citizens a ‘package’ of suggestions to how they can
reduce their energy consumption
Public transport should be free in Europe
The PES manifesto should encourage that the Scandinavian
welfare model is spread to other European countries (non-Nordic
people, what do you think? Do you agree?)
It should also underline that the social rights of people
working outside their home country are important to protect
Europe’s social democrats should consider what a European,
social democratic identity looks like. What do we have in common
– and how can we use that in our political work and the campaign
for the 2009 elections?
The EU should promote democracy and human rights in its
external policies: for example, in trade policy favour countries
with decent working conditions and respect for human...
We have two years left before oil and gas cost ten times more
than today; solar energy and wind turbines can supply maximum 7
percent of our total consumption of energy; oceans are littered
with plastic bags, wrappings, and are 80 percent DEAD; the sun is
getting hotter; we are killing the great forests to get wood to
burn (and transform into paper); Earth's temperature is rising 2
degrees Celsius (which is huge) due to CO2 and methane.
What would you say if we could recycle and reutilize nuke waste
and nuke plants?
Think again: We have two years in front of us before the great
depression.
We have seen a very lively debate about a number of relevant topics
in the 'Save
our planet' section of Yourspace. The contributions from
bloggers and PES activists demonstrate a growing interest in
climate change issues, and they offered important ideas for the PES
to work on. Here are the highlights:
Biofuels
The pro’s and con’s of EU support for biofuels have been a hot topic with a
big number of comments from our participants. Migeru, taipale and
other users were sceptical whether the current generation of
biofuels are really an answer to energy scarcity. Clearly,
participants want a sustainable answer and not one, which threatens
to add to environmental problems.
Encouraging greener life styles
What is your individual answer to climate change? The idea to
calculate our individual contribution to climate change, the
so-called carbon footprint, has been received with interest. Nanne
from Berlin added an important point: this user called for
political support and advice for a green life style. One option is
the the so-called 'front-runner approach', an idea the PES can and
should discuss...
read more
Published Tuesday, February 26, 2008 at 10:16
by
frederic.vareillas
in Save our planet (1067 views and 2 comments)
Dear friends,
I would like to share two other readings with you so as we're
able to think Europe's near future through:
First: There's a very interesting issue of "L'Ecologiste" #24;
Oct-Dec 2007 (French version of the original "The Ecologist",
London, UK) about the biofuel hoax and slowing our cars' speed.
Also look at the present issue of "The Ecologist": "The end
of food as we know it" (London, 2008). You should also have
a look at the website: www.theecologist.org – it’s interesting
(English and French versions available).
Second: A French essay by Eric Orsenna and Le Cercle des
Economistes: "Un monde de ressources rares" (2008,
paperback, French only). They offer some economical and political
ways to deal with scarcity.
True. Nuclear power is not 100 percent safe but which energy is?
Coalmines ? Gas? Forget it: To many deaths. And oil is the
poison, our lethal addiction. I remember Chernobyl but, compared
to a French reactor, Chernobyl 3 was a poor piece of junk. Risk
zero doesn't exist.
Do we really have a choice? For the generation to come (25
years), nuclear power is the only possible choice unless we want
to be in a new dark age (back to middle ages). Do you want this
regression? Again, do we have a choice? We should have changed
and adapted 25 years ago when the oil prices quadrupled. We
didn't. Europe needs power - Europe needs electricity to avoid
wars and to keep civilized.
As to the disposal of nuclear WASTE I recommend again you read
Sir Jim Lovelock's book "Revenge of Gaia". This book is
a project to save civilization from the dark age. While you're at
it, you should also read "Vers un monde de ressources
rares" by Eric Orsenna and Le Cercle des Economistes" (2007,
paperback).
Then you'll understand the urgency of the present Europe's (and
Earth's) situation. Good luck, keep it up!
Published Monday, February 25, 2008 at 09:20
by
frederic.vareillas
in Save our planet (1163 views and 6 comments)
Hi,
I strongly advise all PES activists to read sir James Lovelock's "The
revenge of Gaia" (2008, paperback). We absolutely need to
take his views into account.
Lovelock is 89 years old: He has nothing to lose and he tells us
everything we need to know.
Please read his book and think twice before you get your act
together.
This week Barroso
presented one of his most ambitious proposals to date; a climate and energy package that outlines how Europe
can lead in climate protection. But is it really ambitious enough?
Here are a few of the package’s key ingredients:
A ‘low-carbon Europe’ by 2020: 20% reduction in greenhouse
gases; 20% more effective use of energy, and 20% of energy from
wind, solar and other renewable sources.
The richer the country, the more ambitious the target.
Germany will, for example, have to get 18 percent of its energy
from renewables by 2020. In comparison poorer country like Malta
will only have to achieve 10 %
Today emission certificates are basically handed out for
free. From 2013 the EU ‘Emission Trading Scheme’ will gradually
move to the complete auctioning of emission certificates for some
10,000 energy-intensive plants across Europe - representing
around 40% of the EU's total CO2 emissions.
No ‘eco dumping’: when importing goods from polluting
countries European companies will have to pay extra taxes, if a
global agreement on reduction cannot be found.
Reactions are mixed. Ministers and energy companies are
complaining that they find the targets way too...
Most people know that
owning a car impacts on the environment – but less are aware that
buying new clothes and going out for dinner also result in CO2
pollution.
The ‘Carbon Footprint Calculator’ is a website that
helps you estimate the number of tonnes of CO2 that your lifestyle
amounts to. Once your footprint is calculated you can compare it to
the average of your country and find out just how sustainable your
lifestyle is. The average footprint of people in industrial nations
is 11 tonnes. In comparison the world average is 4 tons – and will
have to be reduced to half if we are to fight climate change.
Without doubt the modern way of life is a threat to clean air. The
Japanese government has taken action to prevent pollution from
consumption. In Japan the law says that the most energy efficient
consumer products must be standard within five years. Environmental
NGOs have called for the introduction of similar laws in
Europe.
How far should the EU go more to ensure eco-friendly lifestyles?
When is a sustainable lifestyle the responsibility of the
individual citizen – and when should the EU pass laws?
read more
Today is the last day
of the UN climate conference in Bali. The big question
that has driven the talks in Bali is whether world leaders can
agree on a ‘new Kyoto’ – find common grounds for a new
international agreement on how to deal with climate change.
One of the major topics was how to deal with the reduction of
forests. Forests are a major ally in combating global warming,
since trees and other green plants take CO2 out of the air. When
forests are cut down and trees are burnt it has a doubly damaging
effect – not only are there less trees to remove CO2, but the
carbon contained in the trees is released into the atmosphere.
In Bali environmental ministers agreed that financial rewards for
not cutting down trees should be a part of a new global climate
deal. Money should be ‘bait’ for developing countries to preserve
their rainforests.
At first hand this may sound like a good solution. However, NGOs
have aired concern that financial compensation is just a convenient
excuse for rich countries not to take actions against emissions
within their own boundaries. Greenpeace and Friends of the Earth
have, for example, suggested that instead of rich countries buying
their way out of emissions’ reductions...
read more
Published Thursday, December 13, 2007 at 10:00
by
taipale
in Save our planet (1348 views and 5 comments)
Best regards from
Bali. I was there last week to organize and speak in
two side events on behalf of the Ministry of the Environment of
Finland. The topic in both of the events was to highlight the
energy and emission savings potential of buildings and
construction. Big.
Now, it is time to focus on Copenhagen, where the new climate
protocol should be finalized and agreed upon in 2009. This is a
huge challenge not only for the City of Copenhagen and Denmark
hosting the meeting, but to Sweden’s EU Presidency and to the
European Union as a whole.
The EU needs it own “roadmap” towards Copenhagen, making sure that
the EU not only upholds but strengthens its position as the world
leader in progressive and innovative climate policies. This means
including all aspects of sustainable use of energy, such as energy
for development, fair mechanisms of technology transfer, and decent
work. This also requires that the European Union is unanimous and
strong in its positions.
The EU should use its best diplomacy, most determined political
cooperation, and financial bilateral mechanisms to make certain
that developing countries, China and India in specific, will play a
fair but focal role in Copenhagen. That the same goes for the
United...
read more
A roundtable debate
on the ‘Save
our planet’ manifesto theme concluded the first day of PES
Council. Here are a few opinions and impressions from the
debate:
Hans Eichel, former German Minister of Finance, and chair of the
PES Lisbon Network, encouraged the governments of the Left in
Europe to develop a coherent and realistic strategy of sustainable
development. Eichel explained that the idea of an effective green
growth policy has always been one pillar of the Lisbon Strategy,
but he underlined that with the “integrated policy guidelines” a
good instrument has now been developed for linking the different
strategies that used to be separate.
Modern environmental policies are essentially knowledge based;
without advanced technologies and innovative policies, the
necessary transition to a low carbon future might take too
long.
Herbert Schmalstieg, President of the Union of Socialist Local and
Regional Representatives in Europe, who had been Mayor of the city
of Hannover for 34 years, stressed how important citizens’
involvement is for climate change policy. He emphasised the
importance of cities – where more than 50 percent of Europe’s
population live – and outlined a number of examples how this can
be...
read more
What will the PES do to encourage a low carbon consumption
style in Europe?
How will Europe’s socialists and social democrats address the
challenge of climate change?
Where does the PES stand on nuclear energy?
These were some of the questions we received when we encouraged
Yourspace users to ask questions to Mona Sahlin, leader of the
Social Democratic Party of Sweden and responsible for the
manifesto theme Save our planet. Check out her answers in the video
below.
Sometimes solving one problem brings about another. A recent study by
the European Trade
Union Confederation looks into the relationship between
climate change and employment. One of the conclusions of the
report is that prevention of climate change bears the risk of
increased unemployment: If economic activities are slowed down in
order to reduce energy consumption many jobs will be lost.
Especially the energy, construction and transport sectors are in
risk of unemployment, if CO2 emissions are cut in a way that
might benefit the environment, but not the job market.
The study underlines the need for a European strategy for smart,
green growth. We need to consider how to reduce CO2 without
loosing jobs. Here the report is optimistic and concludes that
with the right political initiatives lowering our energy
consumption can even create new jobs. The transport sector is
highlighted as an example, where jobs in public transport and
rail are expected to increase.
How do you think we can balance fighting climate change with
economic growth and high employment?
How many people have been born this year? How many cars have been produced? How much CO2 has polluted the atmosphere? How many people have died due to lack of safe water? Find statistics and both good and bad news here!
After having held a
conference on New Social Europe on April 8, the
PES Group in the Committee of the Regions met up again
to discuss the three remaining topics of the PES manifesto
consultation: Save our planet, European democracy and diversity and EU in the world.
The extraordinary meeting was held on 15-16 May in Turin,
Italy, at the invitation of Mercedes Bresso, President of the
Piedmont Region and President of the PES Group in the Committee of
the Regions.
Socialists are pushing for
more action on climate change, since it is necessary to act now,
leaving aside the disastrous “business as usual approach”.
Socialist MEP Linda McAvan (Labour UK) hosted the WWF debate “EU
Climate action : Do 30% NOW!” on 6 May 2008. Here are a few
conclusions from the meeting:
in Save our planet (1223 views and 2 comments)
Il faut en finir avec les énergies fossiles (PSE).rtf
IT_climate_DE.pdf
Even though discussion
paper 'Save our
planet' concentrates mostly on energy policy, I would like
discuss also about the influence of the traffic emissions.
Scandinavian
PES
activists met in the village of Jørlunde, located on the
island of Zealand, Denmark on March 1st and 2nd 2008 to discuss
European democracy, politics and the PES manifesto.
This week Barroso
presented one of his most ambitious proposals to date; a climate and energy package that outlines how Europe
can lead in climate protection. But is it really ambitious enough?
Here are a few of the package’s key ingredients:
Today is the last day
of the UN climate conference in Bali. The big question
that has driven the talks in Bali is whether world leaders can
agree on a ‘new Kyoto’ – find common grounds for a new
international agreement on how to deal with climate change.
Best regards from
Bali. I was there last week to organize and speak in
two side events on behalf of the Ministry of the Environment of
Finland. The topic in both of the events was to highlight the
energy and emission savings potential of buildings and
construction. Big.
A roundtable debate
on the ‘Save
our planet’ manifesto theme concluded the first day of PES
Council. Here are a few opinions and impressions from the
debate:
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