Copenhagen Summit – The Blame Game

Copenhagen Summit Roundup – Part 4

First Published Date: Jan 1, 2010

Early into the United Nations Copenhagen Summit, fears were in place that the conference would not be able to come up with a unified agreement as originally hoped.  All around the world, leading climatologists (and even some politicians chimed in) led the discussion that this particular climate summit was our ‘last chance’ to turn things around; that is, our final opportunity for the world community to form real agreements that would reverse, and ultimately eliminate the public health and environmental threat caused by harmful carbon emissions.

Some blame China for what is seen as the failure of the summit.  Despite the fact that an accord was adopted, China is seen as a villain for causing so much distress because of their refusal (until, some say, forced by the hand of the United States, and more specifically President Barack Obama) to submit to a transparent process for monitoring progress toward emissions reductions.  Some blamed the United States for, as usual as these critics charge, pushing smaller, less affluent countries around.  Still others blame ‘smaller’ players like Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Nicaragua for threatening to veto the accord, in part out of protest for the forced hand of big, rich players like the United States.  However, a new, more nefarious ‘enemy’ to the accords has recently been identified, and it might surprise some to know that that ‘villain’ is Denmark, herself. 

Did the host country ruin the Copenhagen Summit?  Critics charge that the host government, who convened a unilateral meeting of 26 hand-picked (by Denmark’s Prime Minister,  Lars Lokke Rasmussen) that would threaten the strength of a document drafted multilaterally by all of the attending nations.  In fact, other world leaders ‘warned’ Rasmussen to not convene such a unilaterally motivated meeting of the minds, as it would undermine any document or accord that would be presented as a result of pain inducing discussions involving more than 190 countries throughout the two week summit, and, actually for the last four years of climate change discussions between the participating countries. 

Despite the warnings and admonishments from other participating government, the Danish government did indeed produce and present a document that seemed to explicitly conflict, at times, with the multilateral and democratically negotiated accord where 193 countries had collectively been involved in coming to an agreement on the many-faceted climate deal. 

Especially since these unsanctioned meeting occurred during the last days of the Copenhagen Summit, the move by Denmark is seen as a way for the host country to bring attention to itself as a solution finder, and more for public image and relations than trying to contribute to a true and lasting accord.

What the long-term effects of Denmark’s move will be are up in the air.  As the host country, their move has been seen as some as a showcasing of the host country’s government.  Still others fear that this move will cause irreparable harm to the ongoing discussions that will continue for the next few years, as the world (it is hoped) community comes to some sort of agreement on how to reduce harmful carbon emissions.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Jan 1, 2010.

Great Fears Expressed In One Day Global Warming Summit

China has The Most Impressive Carbon Emissions Reduction

First Published Date: Dec 6, 2009

It may appear that finally leaders of the world’s strongest nations are waking up to the reality that something needs to be done if we are to save the planet that we all call home. The days of lone ranger tactics are now gone and we must pull together as the human family of destroy the planet through our bad practices. The 1997 Kyoto protocol has come back to haunt us and there efforts to strengthen it or may be replace it with a better alternative. At a recent summit it emerged that countries such as US and China are gearing up towards drawing some ambitious programs that may be forerunners of what to expect in the climate summit to take place in Copenhagen in December 2009

The American president, who was also in attendance, took note that his country is leaving no stone unturned as it looks for an internal solution through the congress, which is battling to pass a new energy and climate bill which will go a long way in working out measures that could see a drastic reduction of the emission of green house gases. It may appear that finally the chickens have come home to roost and everyone is determined to play their honest role in this great undertaking.

During the one day conference it emerged that the greatest contributors to the problem are actually fast developing countries with the highest economic rate, chief of which are the two Asian giants of China and India, who jointly need to pull up their socks and encourage some green development because they seem to be catching up fast with the developed nations in contributing to the problem of global warming. The good news is that the Chinese president himself assured the participants of his county’s determination to work out their own domestic solution to the global problem, especially in trying to reduce the carbon intensity produced by his country’s economic activity.

China has emerged to be one of the countries with the most impressive records in reduction of carbon emissions in the last five years, having reduced her intensity by a whole 20% and things look like they are going to be much better. This is according to the vice president for climate and energy at the UN foundation in Washington, Reid Detchon. The US president now wants focus to be directed towards least developed nations who suffer the greatest consequences of global warming and yet are least prepared to face the challenges that obviously facing them. He believes a lot more financial help is in order so that these nations at least get equipped.

As nations prepare to go to Copenhagen at the end of the year it is the desire of the UN secretary general to see fresh ideas brought into the up coming summit because this summit taking place in Paris in June this year did not go as far as it would have been possible. One would hope that all the other forums that will be taking place in preparation for the Copenhagen meet will do substantial groundwork so that every country does its share in order to save our planet.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Dec 6, 2009.

How To Have A Green Summer

How To Have An Eco-Friendly  Green Summer

Published Date: April 23, 2009

It may seem premature in the second half of April, but making early plans for how you are going to enjoy the summer can really get you in the mood for the evenings getting longer, the days getting warmer and the decrease in rainy days. Taking green issues into account is something that can happen naturally – after all, if you are going to be spending a lot of time outside, then you are less likely to need to use a lot of energy indoors. Heating will be less of an issue, you won’t need to put lights on as early, and in the kitchen the chances are that salads will take the place of soups, so the hob won’t have to be on so much for a start.

But beyond the saving you will make on energy and the dent you can make in your environmental impact, there are other ways that you can prepare for a green summer. These take many forms. Things that you can do to keep the household green, to make your daily lifestyle more environmentally friendly, and ways that you can change the annual summer routine – some of them very subtle – to make things more green-friendly. You’d be surprised where you can make a difference!

There are few people, for example, who do not enjoy a good barbecue in the summer months. It allows you to enjoy simple, grilled food while not having to be cooped up in the kitchen. So often, people serve up dinner and run into the lounge to watch television while they eat. But eating outdoors allows you to make the best of the natural resources that for so much of the year are either absent or ignored. A barbecue can bring with it environmental difficulties, though – the air can get polluted pretty quickly, so you need to look for a green barbecue. One that uses less gas or coal would be ideal.

At that barbecue, you will of course have some guests who would love a cold beverage – as often as not it will be a beer. You can help the environment while enjoying a beer, which is news that will encourage some of the more skeptical enviroskeptics to give some thought to helping out. You can do this by buying organic beer. It does the same job as your typical beer, and goes just as well with grilled food, but producing it impacts the environment a great deal less.

While outside in the sunshine there is of course the danger of succumbing to the lobster factor. Some of us tan beautifully at just the right speed. Others are not so lucky, and can burn up after less than an hour outdoors. For this reason, it is ideal to have a brand of sunscreen which is non-toxic. Additionally the chances are that with all that food and drink around, you will be visited by bugs. Just as with your sunscreen, a more natural brand can be the winner here. It is better for the environment and better for you.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Apr 29, 2009.

How To Save Water At Home

Conserving Water in the Home

First Published Date: Feb 7, 2010

Water is one of the most precious resources on our planet. While our planet is 70 percent water, only three percent of that water is fresh water. Of that three percent, only one percent of the fresh water is available to us, the rest is locked in ice. Around the world, water supplies are beginning to dry up and that means water conservation is extremely important. In our homes, we can work to make our homes water-smart by following some very simple green tips:

1.    When your shower is warming up, you are wasting a lot of water. You can fix this by putting a shower water container under the tap while your shower warms up. Once your shower is warmed up, take the container out. Then you can use that container to water plants and for your pets because it is plain water from the tap, with no soap in it.

2.    Only water your lawn once per week. Your lawn only needs one inch of water per week and many people over-water. Keep an eye on the weather because if you are expecting rain that week, you will not need to water. Also, only water in the evening and mornings, otherwise the sun will just evaporate the water away.

3.    Collect water with rain barrels outside. You can collect a lot of water when it rains and you can use that water inside on your plants, for your pets and even to water your garden later.

4.    The more adventurous of water conservers will try a navy shower. A navy shower, which comes from people on submarines, consists of:

1.    Get into shower and turn it on.

2.    Once you have been soaked, turn the shower off.

3.    Soap yourself up.

4.    Turn shower on and rinse off.

5.    Turn shower off and get out.

5.    You can practice the rule in your home of “If it is brown, flush it down. If it is yellow, let it mellow”. You waste a lot of water with each flush, roughly 1.6 gallons per flush with lo-flow toilets. That is more water than people in Africa get all day. Saving water this way is easy and it saves you money as well.

6.    When you are brushing your teeth, turn off the water. If you brush your teeth twice a day and leave the water running while you do so, you waste seven gallons of water per day. Turn the water off while you brush, and only turn it on when you rinse. This way, you save a lot of water every single day.

It is very easy to save water in your home. Each day, people waste gallons of water through their activities. In North America, a typical person uses twice the amount of water that people do in Europe. Even better, you can save money by conserving water because you will not be letting money essentially go down the drain anymore. There is a finite amount of fresh water available to us, a lot of that is wasted and polluted, so we need to conserve as much as we can.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Feb 7, 2010.

What Is A Green Car?

The Green Car

First Published Date: Feb 13, 2010

What is a green car and why it is gaining so much popularity is a question that a lot of users are asking and reading about in different blogs or articles. People have become more conscious of the hazards that are presently polluting our environment and there is a lot of awareness that has been given to us by the media and the technology to become environment friendly. The green car is exactly serving the same purpose by introducing alternate fuel and battery technology. The car manufacturers are now experimenting and investigating hydrogen-powered vehicles and also that are powered by ethanol. Another technology that is being introduced by the green car manufactures is the new battery technology. The battery technology has more efficiency and there is no pollution as well.

A promising and popular technology that has come into the limelight of the future of the car industry is hybrid technology. This is unique when fuel efficiency is boosted by an internal combustion engine and an electric motor. There are a variety of greener alternatives that have made their room in the markets of the United States and Europe as well. In the year 2020, more than a billion green cars will be a part of the traffic as estimated by the experts. It is more like a dream coming true to save our environment and our planet from pollution and this dream had been watched over by millions of people over the years. The car manufacturers are also being pressurized by the governments to increase the manufacture of green cars because they are friendlier to the Ozone layer as well. Another reason for its popularity is that the green car fuel technology will also finish the global agony of rising fuel prices and now brought forward is this latest concept of more efficient and clean cars so petrol-powered vehicles will no longer be marketed or manufactured. Many big names in the field of car manufacturers have introduced their green series like Toyota “Prius,” Honda “Insight,” Nissan “Altima Hybrid” and also Hyundai’s “i10” which was launched by a famous Indian celebrity.

At present, there are a limited number of green cars available on the market for purchase. But this new technology is ever-expanding and it can be easily speculated that green technology will hit the markets of the world like a storm. There are also trial runs conducted to examine the roadworthiness for the concept cars. These concepts cars have exciting sleek designs and features that may never be introduced to most of the other ordinary car models. One of the hydrogen-powered vehicle that is a talk of the town is going to have features beyond the space age. There’s another revelation about one of the future concept car which at first glance would look like it can fly. This will also run on ethanol and its material will be very light which will contribute to its fuel efficiency. The production dates are not yet revealed but there is a possibility that the green car will be introduced and manufactured for the mass market as well. The preview of the concept car is only a way to imagine what the expectations will be for the future and these green cars will be a real help to our environment and it will go green again.

To streamline and minimize blog maintenance, I will be discontinuing maintaining the Thegreenlivingblog.com website (however, I will still hold the domain). I will gradually move all articles from this site to A Dawn Journal. This article originally published on the above website on Feb 13, 2010.