“There are risks and costs to action. But they are far less than the long range risks of comfortable inaction.” John F. Kennedy In November, Russia destroyed one of its own old space satellites, Cosmos 1408, a 2,200-kg intelligence satellite launched in 1982,...
When most Western and Asian countries were in lockdown with the pandemic, the African continent remained largely without restrictions. This shows that Africa is not afraid of the future and has a lot of opportunities opening up. China’s strong influence here is one...
The United Nations (UN) was born out of an idea for creating a society of nations, a global community, a brotherhood of nations built on a set of higher ideals. These ideals would give rise to a global village with accountability to each other, including social...
(Editor's note - The federal government committing to net zero policies at the November 2021 UN Climate Change summit in Scotland, effectively requires the eventual phase out of western Canada's hydrocarbon producing sector. This essay, though from a year ago,...
Some of Canada's best doctors have suffered undue trouble for sharing their concerns with lockdowns, masks, social distancing and COVID-19 vaccines. Authorities in the medical profession have treated these physicians like apparent heretics under the threat of...
The economic consequences of COVID-19 and the shutdown of the economy are difficult to evaluate. But some of them have begun to appear and risk hindering recovery. Inflation is one of these harmful consequences. In the USA, consumer prices jumped 4.2 per cent in the...
Minister Kent told his audience in Guelph about “the important role of science in driving the development of world-class regulations in Canada”. Now is his chance to make this boast a reality on the climate file.
Republican Senator Marco Rubio’s feeble response to President Obama throwing down the gauntlet on the nation’s energy policy.
President Barack Obama and the Senate must not repeat the mistake of choosing another climate activist for U.S. secretary of energy. Although well-qualified in his field of physics, outgoing Secretary Dr. Steven Chu brought a dangerously naïve vision of both climate change and America’s energy future to Washington.
Smallish countries are often in the vanguard when it comes to reforming government. In the 1980s Britain was out in the lead, thanks to Thatcherism and privatisation. Tiny Singapore has long been a role model for many reformers. Now the Nordic countries are likely to assume a similar role.
In his recent inaugural address, President Barack Obama promoted the use of the least reliable and most expensive sources of energy: wind and solar power. He notes that the transition to these energy sources would be difficult, but he also presented the move as having economic benefits that would support the country’s energy independence. In reality, such a transition would ruin the country’s economy.
The most realistic assessment to appear in main stream media was that published about a week after the conference ended, written by Connie Hedegaard, European commissioner for climate action in the European Commission. She told climate campaigners:
“Yes progress was slow and frustrating, but the main goal was to prepare the ground for the big 2015 talks. Job done.”
A growing middle class in China is being credited with pushing the normally opaque Chinese government to deal with air pollution. If this is true, it lends support to the idea that environmental improvement is part of economic growth.
I want to start with some apologies. For the record, here and upfront, I apologise for having spent several years ripping up GM crops. I am also sorry that I helped to start the anti-GM movement back in the mid 1990s, and that I thereby assisted in demonising an important technological option which can be used to benefit the environment.
Policy integrity. Ethical culture. Environmental protection. Environmental defense. Friends of earth. Defenders of wildlife. Ethical investing. Not just their names, but their charter, culture and policies – their very being – represent a commitment to these profound values. Or so we are supposed to believe.