“The universe is full of magical things patiently waiting for our wits to grow sharper.” - Eden Phillpotts
Peak Oil links:
Richard Heinberg on One World TV (video) http://www.youtube.com/.../ A 7 minute interview extract in which Heinberg outlines the basics of Peak Oil. If you want a little more of the detail behind this see his article 'The View from Oil's Peak'. Heinberg also appeared on Radio 4 in September 2008, the audio from which is available here. Heinberg's books The Party's Over and Powerdown have justifiably become the classic Peak Oil texts. Anyone wishing to begin understanding the subject should consult them.
Simmons and Kilduff on CNBC (video) http://www.youtube.com/.../ American news network CNBC present a 7-minute report in March 2007 on the US Government Accountability Office (GAO) report into Peak Oil. This video clearly highlights many of the basic issues.
An April 2010 interview provides a useful update as the topic penetrates the mainstream.
Introduction to Peak Oil (pdf) http://www.theoildrum.com/.../ A clearly written introduction to the science of peak oil, building up from the basics. From Gail Tverberg of the Oil Drum.
David Strahan http://www.lastoilshock.com/ Strahan is a journalist and documentary film-maker, and his book The Last Oil Shock - focusing on the UK - is by far the most readable guide to our Peak Oil predicament. Thoroughly recommended reading for beginners and Peak Oil experts alike.
The Hirsch Report (pdf) http://www.netl.doe.gov/publications/.../ A 2005 report commissioned by the U.S. Department of Energy (full title: Peaking of World Oil Production: Impacts, Mitigation, and Risk Management) which concludes that "the peaking of world oil production presents the U.S. and the world with an unprecedented risk management problem", that without timely mitigation the economic, social and political impacts will be abrupt, revolutionary and permanent, and that mitigation "must be initiated more than a decade in advance of peaking". Hirsch produced a brief update in 2007.
Rob Newman's History of Oil (video) http://video.google.com/.../ Ready for some light relief? Rob Newman is a renowned stand-up comedian who shows in this brilliant performance that he understands the problems we face. For more peak oil-related entertainment I also recommend the free (and quick) online game Oiligarchy.
The All Party Parliamentary Group on Peak Oil and Gas http://www.appgopo.org.uk/ This group, founded in June 2007, is made up of MPs and Lords from the UK Government. They are discussing and investigating the debate regarding the date of global peak oil production and looking at the range of possible impacts, mitigations and solutions.
Energy Bulletin http://energybulletin.net/ An outstanding clearinghouse for current information news and events regarding the peak in global energy supply, climate change and related topics.
The Oil Drum http://www.theoildrum.com/ publishes carefully thought-out articles discussing energy and our future in a serious manner. It attracts many of the best-informed observers. They have a Europe-focused site available at: http://europe.theoildrum.com/.
Peakoil Films http://valuesystem.livejournal.com/16067.html Links to the various Peak Oil films, documentaries and features available online. For related full-length films see here.
Peak Oil Blues http://www.peakoilblues.com/ All a bit too much? This excellent and friendly site is run by professionally trained psychotherapists to help those trying to come to terms with Peak Oil and its impact on their life and plans.
Climate Change links (the problem):
Start here (pdf) http://royalsociety.org/.../ This straightforward guide was put together by The Royal Society in September 2010, summarising what is now clearly understood by climate scientists, and what is not. You may also find my own Climate Science Translation Guide a useful grounding before exploring the more technical of the links below.
NASA's 'Climate Time Machine' http://climate.nasa.gov/.../ An exceptionally clear and accessible visual presentation of the recent history of global temperatures, emissions and Arctic sea ice extent, using the most robust data. Clear and regularly updated records of the key indicators in the present day are here.
Times interview with Mark Lynas http://www.timesonline.co.uk/.../ Mark Lynas explaining in March 2007 why if we don't drastically reduce global emissions by 2015, it may well be too late to avoid catastrophe.
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) http://www.truthout.org/.../ The UN's conservative and consensus-driven IPCC supports Mark Lynas' analysis in its Working Group II Fourth Assessment report (Sept 2007), saying that "if warming is not kept below 2 degrees C, which will require the strongest of mitigation efforts, and currently looks very unlikely to be achieved, then substantial global impacts will occur, such as: species extinctions and millions of people at risk from drought, hunger and flooding, etc." Press release available here (pdf). Full report here. A June 2009 update on climate science developments *since* the IPCC report can be found here (pdf).
Climate Code Red (pdf) http://climatecodered.net/ An outstanding 2008 report from the excellent Carbon Equity group in Australia, which shows that climate change impacts are happening far more quickly than projected by the IPCC and others, argues convincingly that 'business as usual' is irrelevant as we need to recognise a planetary state of emergency, and suggests solutions.
2011 Climate Science update http://climateprogress.org/.../ Dr. Joseph Romm clearly and concisely summarises the latest science (as of Sept 2011) on the impacts we can expect from climate destabilisation, in a readable yet fully referenced blog post. For more, see his Nov 2010 post.
Wake Up, Freak Out, then Get a Grip (video) http://wakeupfreakout.org/ An ingeniously clear and engaging 11 minute animation explaining why the next few years are the most important humanity has ever faced, or will ever face. We who are lucky enough to be alive now are effectively the most powerful people who will ever live, and future generations are breathlessly watching our every choice.
How to answer climate change sceptics http://grist.org/series/skeptics/ There are still some arguments out there to the effect that man is not really causing severe climate change. Unfortunately the evidence clearly shows that that's not true - here are the answers to the common contrarian arguments. And here's another similar list. Also take a look at this outstanding slide show (pdf), or this 10-minute video (2010). Finally, here's an excellent piece on the shortcomings of media coverage of climate change.
Real Climate http://www.realclimate.org/.../ A climate change site run by climate scientists. If you're confused by some of the more complex aspects of climate change, this is the site that knows the answers.
James Hansen mailing list http://www.columbia.edu/.../ Dr. James Hansen, perhaps the world's leading climate scientist, sends out occasional mailings on the latest science and its implications, from a personal as well as professional perspective.
On death and hopelessness http://www.commondreams.org/.../ A man who has met the death of hope in the most direct way tells us what he learnt there. And Joanna Macy adds her insights here.
Climate Change links (what can we do):
Climate Camp http://www.climatecamp.org.uk/ The place to join the wide-ranging discussion as to the best approaches to our climate situation. As journalist Stephan Faris put it, "It’s no longer possible to delve into our relationship with the global environment without drawing conclusions that make you seem like a raving fanatic to those who have yet to delve." It can be a great relief to find some other lunatics to talk to! See my post from the 2008 Camp.
Soil carbon http://soilcarboncoalition.org/.../ This incredibly important slideshow from the Soil Carbon coalition reminds us that the complete elimination of CO2 emissions would not solve our climate problem. We also need to draw carbon out of our atmosphere, and soil is by far the biggest carbon sink over which we have control. Using it for this purpose is nature's own process, and it can be done quickly. You may also be interested in this website, or my blog post on the subject.
TEQs (Tradable Energy Quotas) http://www.teqs.net/ The Lean Economy Connection outlines a national framework designed to ameliorate the impacts of both climate change and peak oil, support local initiatives and guarantee a nation's emissions reductions. Simple yet brilliant - exactly the kind of thinking the world needs right now.
Zero Carbon Britain http://www.zerocarbonbritain.com/ This perceptive report was published by the Centre for Alternative Technology in July 2007, laying out the challenges we face and presenting a bold, radical vision of how Britain could eliminate carbon emissions altogether within 20 years. The suggested policy framework is built around TEQs nationally and Contraction and Convergence at the international level.
AMEE http://explorer.amee.com/ AMEE is an acronym for the Avoidance of Mass Extinctions Engine, and is a hugely ambitious project aiming to measure and track all the energy data in the world by collating all the available data streams. This is a far more significant project than its website probably shows, and having met the people behind it, it is intensely ethical in its practices.
350.org http://www.350.org/ An international campaign aiming to use beautiful, creative and unstoppable methods to spread the idea that 350 is the most important number on the planet. We need to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations to at most 350ppm to avoid huge and irreversible damage to life on Earth. They need our ideas and inspiration to spread the word as far as possible and thus move the international negotiations in that direction.
Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) http://www.desertec.org/.../ This is NOT photovoltaic solar panels, but rather the simple use of mirrors to focus solar heat on pipes filled with water. This generates steam which turns turbines to generate electricity. A simple concept that has been operating a 165 MW power plant in California for over 20 years and has the wonderful property of scalability. Discussed on my blog here.
Painting the Town Green (pdf) http://www.green-engage.co.uk/.../ A report by Green Engage Communications investigating how we communicate climate change, and why we so often fail to prompt any behavioural change in those we talk to. This is crucial information for all of us, as MPs still claim that the popular support is not there for realistic action on climate change, and this must change. Chapters 6 & 10 especially recommended. Also see the outstanding Common Cause report on this topic (Sept 2010), which was the inspiration for one of my blog posts.
Carbon Trading - A Critique (pdf) http://www.thecornerhouse.org.uk/.../ An excellent and very readable exploration of some of the shortcomings of our current systems of international carbon trading, such as the Kyoto Protocol and the European Union Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS). Edited by Larry Lohmann. This 2010 report by FERN also comes recommended.
Carbon offsetting? http://www.treeaid.org.uk/ or http://www.treesforcities.org/ If you're considering using a carbon offsetting service, why not donate to one of these charities instead? There is justifiably much controversy surrounding carbon offsetting, but these charities were carefully planting trees where they would be most beneficial long before offsetting became fashionable (and profitable). Just don't buy the myth that donating money gives you any ethical right to emit more carbon! See my blog post on the topic.
Lean Energy links:
Transition Culture http://transitionculture.org/ Blog site by Rob Hopkins, founder of the rapidly spreading Transition Towns movement, which is mobilising localities to prepare for the future. This presentation is a good introduction, and I would highly recommend Rob's book, the Transition Handbook, to everyone grappling with the issues of our time. Also check out the
In Transition movie, available free online.
A Farm for the Future (video) http://www.youtube.com/.../ A beautiful and fascinating 50 minute documentary from the BBC's Natural World series (2009), exploring the future for food in a world of peak oil and climate change. If you want to download it for a showing you can do so here (right-click and save). Watching this requires Apple's QuickTime software or the VLC Media Player (recommended), which can be downloaded free here. And if you want more when you're done, I also highly recommend Dirt - The Movie.
Sustrans http://www.sustrans.co.uk/ The UK's leading sustainable transport charity, working on practical, imaginative ways of dealing with the transport challenges that affect us all.
The Man in Seat Sixty-One http://www.seat61.com/ An extremely useful site for those of us who have decided not to fly (for whatever reason). This site gives detailed, friendly, first-hand information on how to get almost anywhere in the world by surface-based transportation.
Green Alliance report on 'Grid 2.0' (pdf) http://www.green-alliance.org.uk/.../ The Green Alliance have produced a clear and compelling piece of work on the new thinking that is needed for electricity distribution and the National Grid.
Permaculture Principles http://www.permacultureprinciples.com/.../ Permaculture is often termed a design system. It is that, but it is also an entire way of seeing life, based around the principles of Care for the Earth, Care for People and Fair Shares. It is one of those beautiful ideas that get deeper the more you explore them, and this site is a lovely introduction. Also see this gem of a 9 minute video.
Freegle http://www.ilovefreegle.org/ Freegle is a network of local groups facilitating the giving and receiving of free stuff! Got something you don't want any more? Freegle makes it easy to keep it out of landfill by giving to someone who does want it, and is all organised online. You may have heard of Freecycle - well they treated their volunteer members badly, so here in the UK Freegle was born. Same system, more ethically run.
Online energy conversion tool http://www.onlineconversion.com/energy.htm Confused by BTUs, petajoules, gallons, kilowatt hours and megacalories? This conversion tool is invaluable.
Economics links:
A bird's eye view http://www.lietaer.com/.../ Professor Bernard Lietaer has written this clear and concise explanation of the problems with our current monetary systems, and how critical they are to all that we might wish to achieve. It features several links for those wishing to explore further. I also recommend this two minute video for a touch of comic relief.
Dr. M. King Hubbert http://hubbertpeak.com/hubbert/monetary.htm A short extract from an interview with Dr. Hubbert, in which he outlines the clash between our understanding of Physics and our monetary culture.
Money as Debt (video) http://video.google.ca/.../ An astonishingly clear and engaging explanation of the little-understood reality behind our existing monetary system, presented as a video animation. There is also 2009's Money as Debt II, and the excellent Money Fix, both of which develop the same themes. You'll likely be shocked by any of them, and eager for the next link below!
The Positive Money campaign http://www.positivemoney.org.uk/ Clear, well-presented information about the campaign for a UK Act of Parliament that would put right the issues addressed in the above video while reducing the tax burden by 30%, making public service cuts unnecessary and allowing us to clear the national debt. Crucial, sensible and in need of your support.
Dr. Albert Bartlett http://old.globalpublicmedia.com/lectures/461 Dr. Bartlett applies the arithmetic of steady growth to populations and to fossil fuels. Essential, a lot more interesting than it might sound, and available here as video, audio or text.
The Endangered US Dollar http://www.richardheinberg.com/.../ In this perceptive article from 2004 Richard Heinberg looks to history to find the roots of our present global economic position. In 2010 he also produced his 'Economics for the Hurried' articles, which, as a non-economist, I found very helpful: Number 1, Number 2.
The Crash Course (video) http://www.chrismartenson.com/crashcourse Chris Martenson undertakes the daunting task of presenting the overarching interplay of economics, energy and environment examined in all the links above. He not only pulls it off, but does so in easily digestible videos from 2-15 minutes long. Watching them all would take 3 hours 23 minutes. Here's my blog reacting to my first watch.
Prosperity Without Growth http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/.../ Professor Tim Jackson of the Sustainable Development Commission has produced this outstanding report (now also available as a book) which looks into the connections and conflicts between sustainability, growth, and wellbeing, and argues for a redefinition of "prosperity" in line with evidence about what actually contributes to people's wellbeing.
New Economics Foundation http://www.neweconomics.org/ A UK organisation proposing alternatives to the dominant economic paradigm. Practising economics as if people and planet mattered.
The Ecologist http://www.theecologist.co.uk/.../ Dr. Stephan Harding's article in The Ecologist magazine on economic growth and TEQs. Harding's book Animate Earth also receives my highest recommendation, with its beautiful ability to open readers' eyes to a new dimension regarding nature and climate change.
The Freeconomy Community http://justfortheloveofit.org/ A UK-based online network of those sharing their skills and resources for no money. Why? Just for the love of it. Started by Mark Boyle, The Moneyless Man, whose book is highly recommended.
Other links:
Music (audio!) One of the most powerful forces shaping our cultural stories, music is also a particular passion of mine. Although it is of course a matter of taste, here are a couple of songs that speak to our global predicament - one from Ani DiFranco and one from Saul Williams. Also see my blog post here, and my more recent 'Dark Optimism album'.
Lean Logic: A Dictionary for the Future and How to Survive It http://www.leanlogic.net/ The first of two book recommendations, this book could appear under any of the other sections above. Entertaining and impossible to categorise - this review probably makes the best attempt!
Charles Eisenstein's The Ascent of Humanity http://www.ascentofhumanity.com/ This book explores the sources of our cultural and ecological crises in a more insightful and profound way than anything else I have yet read. Not always the easiest read, but radical stuff, in the truest sense of the word. A lovely 12 minute taster video is here.
Media Lens http://www.medialens.org/ An important independent site which expertly challenges the "profoundly distorted picture of our world" that the increasingly corporate mainstream newspapers and broadcasters provide.
Radio Ecoshock http://www.ecoshock.org/.../ An outstanding online radio station interviewing key thinkers and realistically documenting our times. My June 2010 interview with them can be heard or read here.
On biodiversity and extinction (video) http://video.google.com/.../ This watchable 9 minute video outlines the mass extinction event occurring now on our planet. For media coverage of the UN announcement that: "If things continue, in as little as 35 years half of all species of life will be extinct" click here.
Avaaz http://www.avaaz.org/ An inspiring international organisation using the Internet to ensure that the views and values of the world's people are heard in key global decisions. Sign up to their mailing list - their judgment is generally unerring.
Write To Them.com http://www.writetothem.com/ The very easiest way to write to your MP or other political representatives, even if you don't know who they are (UK residents only).
Human population http://www.johnfeeney.net/ John Feeney's site is an important source of understanding regarding the critical debate over sustainable human population levels. I also recommend David Attenborough’s excellent documentary How Many People Can Live on Planet Earth?
Big Picture.tv (video) http://www.big-picture.tv/ Big Picture TV streams free video clips of leading experts, thinkers and activists in environmental and social sustainability, including scientists, journalists, economists, businessmen, designers and politicians.
Throbgoblins International http://www.marcrobertscartoons.com/ Marc Roberts provides brilliant cartoons for those with both a dark sense of humour and a real understanding of our global challenges.
Resurgence http://www.resurgence.org/ Resurgence magazine provides a refreshing mix of penetrative critique of existing paradigms and working models for emerging ones, and is full of positive ideas about the theory and practice of good living, including spirituality, permaculture, community supported agriculture, local economics, creativity, ecological building, art in the environment, small schools and deep ecology.
Schumacher College http://www.schumachercollege.org.uk/.../ A truly transformative place where space and time is given for learning, reflection and the exchange of ideas and experiences. Much of its unique character comes from the way the College community creates an expression of a sustainable lifestyle, with participants sharing in essential activities including cooking, housekeeping and gardening. If you have a chance to study there do not fail to take it.
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