Ontario Systematically Dismantling Climate Action and Environmental Protections

Doug Ford's Progressive Conservative government in Ontario is a climate and environmental nightmare. They have systematically dismantled the province's climate initiatives including withdrawing from the national carbon pricing plan. They are currently legislating an end to environmental protections for wildlife. They have even forbidden the use of the words "climate change" by government departments.

This government's resistance to climate action was evident from the start of the PC's mandate. In addition to withdrawing from the national carbon pricing scheme, the province has cut home efficiency incentives and cancelled rebates for electric vehicles. They are also in the process of ending protections for the provinces endangered floral and fauna.  According to Ford's most recent environmental plan Ontario will scale back its provincial emissions reduction targets by 30-megatonnes.

The provincial conservatives are putting profits before people and prioritizing industrial competitiveness over climate action and public health.  However, the PC's refusal to support cleantech is undermined the economy.  Although some of the province's dirtiest industries will benefit the economy will suffer now and in the future.

Ontario’s environmental commissioner, Diane Saxe, leveled a scathing indictment against the Ford government's environmental record and for ending the province's climate programs. A report by Saxe calls the Progressive Conservative's moves "bad for our environment, bad for our health, and bad for business." 

Killing the carbon tax

Immediately after he was elected Ford announced that that he would withdraw from Canada's national carbon pricing scheme. They also filed a motion in court to try to stop the national carbon tax.

Ford has referred to the national carbon tax as a "cash grab" saying it does "nothing for the environment." The fact is carbon pricing works and Wynn's cap and trade plan used money raised by big polluters to pay for climate and environmental action. Under Wynn the economy grew and greenhouse gas emissions fell to their lowest levels since reporting began in 1990.

The carbon pricing scheme that Ford loves to malign will actually provide a small windfall for most Canadians. According to a new report by Canadians for Clean Prosperity the average Ontario family would pay an extra $239 in 2019 in direct and indirect costs while receiving a $350 rebate.

The provincial government is expected to use a $400-million carrot rather than the stick to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the province. Thanks to Kathleen Wynne's Liberal government the province is already almost three quarters of the way to its emission reduction goal. However, the lax climate efforts of the PCs make it hard to see how this will enable the government to achieve the target of 30 percent emissions reduction by 2030 compared to 2005.

The economic costs of inaction

This government is not only undermining climate action they are hurting the provincial economy. Although the plan won't do much to reduce emissions it will slash jobs and kill investment in Canada's cleantech sector. The result will be that green tech companies will not come to Ontario and many of those already in the province are likely to leave. This will not only hurt the low carbon economy (eg clean energy, efficiency and EVs), it will have a sizable impact on the larger economy. It is economic malpractice for a government to ignore a growing global market worth an estimated $7.5 trillion a year. It will also harm innovation and future economic prospects as the province will become less competitive and fall behind other regions.

Although Ford has rejected his predecessor's support for renewable power, a report from Simon Fraser University think tank Clean Energy Canada exposes the folly of the Progressive Conservative's policy stance. The recently released study stated that clean energy is one of Canada's fastest growing industries in the country.

The longer the province waits to align its economy with climate realities the more it will cost.  "It will cost much more if Ontario doesn’t start getting ready, and no one is sure who will pay," said Saxe. "Ontarians tell me they are ready to act on climate change, but the government needs to lead. Our window for action is closing — soon it will be too late." 

Assault on wildlife

At a time when we are faced with a troubling new report that shows how humans are destroying wildlife at a prodigious rate the Ontario government is trying to gut the province’s Endangered Species Act (ESA).  The Ford government's assault on biodiversity is similar to actions take by the Trump administration.

"Nature and biodiversity around the world is declining at an unprecedented rate, so now is not the time to be weakening our legislation," said Emily Giles, senior specialist for species conservation at WWF-Canada. 

The 20 page assault on biodiversity was buried in an omnibus housing bill known as Bill 108. The sweeping changes to the ESA would de-list species, slow the process and ignore good science. It would also allow developers to 'pay to play' by circumventing accountability for endangering wildlife by contributing to a conservation fund. The bill is so devastating that Environmental Defence called it the "doomsday scenario" for endangered species in the province.

"It really is a doomsday scenario for endangered species in this province," said Kelsey Scarfone, program manager at Environmental Defence Canada. "It’s basically been whittled down to nothing. They might as well have just cancelled it." Justina Ray, president and senior scientist of Wildlife Conservation Society Canada called said the amendments made Ontario's ESA, "an empty shell of an act."

The Ford administration has even killed a program to plant trees forcing an Ontario nursery to destroy 3 million trees. The "50 Million Tree Program" would have seen 50 million trees planted in the province.

Banning reference to "climate"

In a move reminiscent of former prime minister Stephen Harper, Doug Ford's office has banned government agencies from mentioning climate change online. The social media coordinator for Ontario Parks told staff that consistent with a directive from the premier's office they were "not allowed to mention climate change in social media content." A similar directive was issued by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry.

The actions of this government have not gone unnoticed by the electorate. As reported by CTV news the support for the Ontario Progressive Conservatives has "collapsed". According to a recent poll Ford is less popular than his predecessor and his party is in third place behind both the Liberals and the NDP. 

Related
Canada is Warming Faster than the Rest of the World
Green Party Win in BC Foreshadows the Importance of the Environment
The Shift to the Right and Hope on the Road to Ruin

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BlackRock's Revolutionary Prioritization of Climate Disclosure

With assets worth $6.52 trillion, BlackRock is the world’s biggest fund manager and they are using their considerable might to advocate for corporate climate disclosure. They have made it clear that they expect to see companies factor climate risks into their strategies.

They have called the lack of climate disclosures a "systemic problem" and they want to compel companies to be more transparent. "There are firms where we think they’re probably not moving fast enough given the risks to the business," Michelle Edkins Global Head of BlackRock’s Investment Stewardship Team told Reuters. This is a game changer. as no company has more ability to augur such change than BlackRock.

Black Rock has also challenged political leaders. Vice Chairman Philipp Hildebrand told the Trump administration not to rescind Obama era regulations. "Rolling back regulation at this point with this much liquidity in the system strikes me as a very bad idea," he said.

BlackRock's prioritization of climate-risk disclosure has been adopted by the Financial Stability Board, the international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system. The board published recommendations in the areas of governance, strategy, risk management, metrics and targets. BlackRock is a participating member of the board.

BlackRock has been criticized for owning carbon-heavy companies and fossil fuel stock in particular. They have also been called out for their preference for private meetings over proxy resolutions. However, BlackRock supported a shareholder resolution demanding ExxonMobil disclose climate change risks and they have indicated that they expect all directors in sectors associated with climate risk to have "demonstrable fluency in how climate risk affects the business" as well as how they will address it. 

BlackRock is supporting boardroom diversity including the inclusion of more women. They also champion the value proposition associated with higher wages.

In 2018 BlackRock's CEO Larry Fink published a letter to CEOs titled "Purpose and Profit" in which he urged companies to create positive social value. If they fail to do so Fink warned them they may lose their license to operate.  Here is an excerpt of that letter:

"Indeed, the public expectations of your company have never been greater. Society is demanding that companies, both public and private, serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance, but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society. Companies must benefit all of their stakeholders, including shareholders, employees, customers, and the communities in which they operate. Without a sense of purpose, no company, either public or private, can achieve its full potential. It will ultimately lose the license to operate from key stakeholders."

Fink has also urged CEOs to avoid the dangers of short term thinking and the BlackRock Institute has published a couple of papers to help guide companies to address their climate risk. The Price of Climate Change is a guidance paper that explores what a warming climate means for industry and why companies need to factor extenuating issues into their disclosure statements and related governance issues.

Adapting Portfolios to Climate Change is another guidance paper and it anticipated regulations that would enable companies to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement which aims to keep temperatures below the upper threshold limit of 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial norms. This paper bluntly sates, "climate factors have been under appreciated and under priced...Our research suggests there can be little downside to gradually incorporating climate factors into the investment process — and even potential upside."

BlackRock's efforts are having a ripple effect throughout the investment community and they are inspiring changes in other big fund firms. The New York Times' Andrew Ross Sorkin suggested that Black Rock's actions "may be a watershed moment on Wall Street, one that raises all sorts of questions about the very nature of capitalism."

If we are to achieve the goals laid out in the Paris Agreement we will need to see transformative change.  To succeed within the limited time frames we have we will need activist investors like BlackRock who have the clout to promote strong sustainability agendas.

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The Trump Administration's Recent Failures on Plastic, the Arctic and Efficiency

The Trump administration is on the wrong side of a wide range of global issues. This administration defies the global consensus on climate change. They have eradicated  at least 40 regulations and they have hurt the renewable energy industry while supporting fossil fuels.

Even though we are approaching the point of no return on the climate crisis Trump has said he wants to withdraw the US from the Paris Climate Agreement. In the wake of reports on unprecedented biodiversity loss this administration is enacting policies that are killing wildlife and hastening its extinction.

Most recently the administration made headlines for refusing to join the international community in its efforts to address the problem of plastic waste and refusing to sign a brief on the Arctic because it includes references to climate change, they have even rolled back Obama era light bulb efficiency standards.

With the exception of the Trump administration almost every government in the world has agreed to address the issue of dumping plastic waste at a UN-backed convention in Geneva, Switzerland. A total of 187 countries agreed to control the movement of plastic waste across national borders. The new agreement will add plastic to the Basel Convention which regulates the movement of hazardous materials. Although the US is not a signatory they will be bound by the agreement if they try to move plastic waste out of the US.

The Trump administration also refused to sign an Arctic Council declaration protecting the Arctic because it references climate change. This is the first time that the Arctic Council has cancelled a declaration since its inception. The eight nations on the Arctic Council met in Rovaniemi in Finland with the hope of being able to minimize climate damage in the far north and to find a sustainable development path for resource extraction in the vulnerable region.

The US specifically objected to references to climate change as a serious threat. In his address Secretary of State Mike Pompeo welcomed climate change in the Arctic and particularly melting sea ice. He said it makes the Arctic a "21st century Suez and Panama Canals," that will afford new opportunities for trade. Pompeo is likely eying the regions fossil fuel reserves. Pompeo specifically referred to the fact that the Arctic contains 13 percent of the world’s undiscovered oil and 30 percent of its undiscovered gas. He also mentioned other Arctic resources including uranium, rare earth minerals, gold and diamonds. At one point Pompeo even mocked the Paris Agreement.

It is hard to imagine that Pompeo is genuinely misguided about the deleterious effects of climate impacts on the Arctic which includes interfering with global weather patterns. The region is warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world. The resultant fires and melting permafrost could trigger tipping points from which we may not be able to recover. It is more likely that he is parroting his boss who has previously tried to open the Arctic Ocean and Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to drilling for hydrocarbons.

It would appear that this administration wants to ferret out everything that reduces energy demand including light bulb standards first enacted under the George W. Bush presidency. This is an administration that has adopted what can only be called an energy inefficiency policy.

However, states see value in efficiency and they are resisting the Department of Energy's proposals that would eliminate efficiency standards. This bipartisan resistance is coming from states like Vermont, Washington and Colorado all of which passed bills designed to protect the lighting efficiency standards.

Why would you want to do away with standards that reduces energy demand and saves the average household more than $100 each year?

"The idea that we are returning to some by-gone era is nonsense," Clark R. Silcox, general counsel for the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA), was quoted as writing by the Hill. "Yes, there is still a little way more to go to this lighting market transformation, but this is not the ‘nightmare’ nor is it as ‘bad economically’ that some of our colleagues in the energy efficiency community are portraying."

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The Benefits of Climate Action Far Outweigh the Costs

Despite problems with existing economic models and resistance from political and business leaderships the logic of climate action is irrefutable. The merits of climate action is born out by a slew of studies and rudimentary math. 

When we factor the costs of environmental damage it is difficult to come up with an assessment that does not convincingly demonstrate the value of climate action over business as usual. Here are three separate assessments that come to the same fundamental conclusion.

In a 2018 Vox article David Roberts concludes, "these days, it has gotten almost impossible to make sustainability look like a bad deal." He points to the fact that as the cost of business as usual keep rising, the costs of sustainable alternatives keep declining.

Large potential reduction in economic damages under UN mitigation targets

In a 2018 Guardian article Damian Carrington says that climate action will save the world $30 trillion in damages which is far more than the costs of cutting carbon emissions. Citing an article published in Nature Carrington writes, "Data from the last 50 years shows clearly that when temperatures rise, GDP and other economic measures fall in most nations, due to impacts on factors including labour productivity, agricultural output and health."

"By the end of the century, we find the world will be about 3% wealthier if we actually achieve the 1.5C target relative to 2C target," said Marshall Burke, assistant professor at Stanford University in the US, who led the new work. "In dollar terms, this represents about $30tn in cumulative benefits...The estimated cost of meeting the 1.5C target is about $0.5tn over the next 30 years," he said: "So our evidence suggest the benefits of meeting the targets vastly outweigh the costs...We also calculated what’s going to be the additional economic cost if we hit 3C instead of 2C. This will cost the globe an additional 5-10% of GDP, relative to 2C; that is tens of trillions of dollars. These are very large numbers," Marshall said.

The actual costs are likely to be much higher as study did not include the costs of climate change that are hard to quantify.

Cambridge University’s Judge Business School

In a 2015 Think Progress article Joe Romm wrote that climate action avoids over $400 Trillion in damages. Romm was citing an analysis from Cambridge University’s Judge Business School. The author, Chris Hope, an expert on the economics of climate change, told Romm that the "corresponding value for a low emissions scenario is about $80 trillion." The cost of melting permafrost alone represents $43 trillion in damages. "So climate action remains a figurative no brainer," Romm said "and climate inaction remains a literal no-brainer."

Although it may seem obvious, straight forward math is confounded by disinformation from those with dirty energy agendas and misinformation from short term thinkers. However, even those with tiny time horizons will find that there are short and medium term savings that come with climate action.

New Climate Economy Report

Roberts said a global shift to sustainability would save us $26 trillion by 2030. He cites the 2018 New Climate Economy Report that says, "We can have growth that is strong, sustainable, balanced, and inclusive." The report looked at energy, cities, food/land use, water, and industry/innovation/transportation and indicated that almost $90 trillion will be invested in infrastructure in the next decade.

"[S]hifting to sustainable technologies and techniques would save trillions of dollars through 2030 in increased productivity, innovation, and reduced health costs. Sustainability costs less," Roberts wrote about the report. "Policymakers worldwide need to price carbon, roll back fossil fuel subsidies (and other policies that impede sustainability), invest in sustainable infrastructure, harness the private sector, and protect vulnerable communities." 

The report also indicates that current models and projections underplay the benefits of transitioning to a sustainable low carbon economy. "Current economic models are deeply inadequate in capturing the opportunities of such a transformational shift, or the grave dangers of climate inaction," the report states. "We need a new class of economic models that can capture the powerful dynamics at play, including transformative technological advances, preservation of essential natural capital, and the full health benefits of cleaner air and a safer climate, including the containment of pandemic diseases."

We have the required solutions but we need the will to enact policy to scale them up.  In addition to problems with our economic models we are also contending with a failure of leadership. "The barrier — now, as always... is sufficient political and business leadership," the report said.


Related
Economic Assessments Overwhelmingly Support Climate Action
Economic Arguments as a Pretext to Torpedo Climate Action
Does Business Need Government to Incentivize the Green Economy?
The Energy Efficiency Opportunity and the Case for Government Leadership
Climate Crisis Economics: A Serious Threat and a Real Opportunity
We Cannot Afford to Deny the Cost of Climate Change

Read More»

Event - SRI30: Sustainable Responsible Impact Investing Conference

The 30th Annual SRI Conference will take place on November 11-15, 2019 at the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

The event will celebrate SRI's 30 years at the forefront of sustainable, responsible, impact investing.  SRI30 is about harnessing the power of investing to revolutionize the way investors deploy capital to solve some of our most   pressing social, environmental and cultural challenges. As one of the fastest growing investment movements SRI offers an opportunity for both purpose and profit.

Premier change event

Change is the natural watchword of The SRI Conference and Community, because it is only through meaningful and sustained change that we will see a better world emerge. The SRI Conference is the premier annual gathering of sustainability professionals, financial advisors, investment managers, members of mission-driven organizations, researchers, and private- and public- sector professionals who share a common goal of deploying capital as a change agent 

Why attend SRI30

• 1200 Attendees
• A Remarkable Sense of Community 
• Make 1-on-1 Connections
• 3 Days of Learning

 

Why SRI

• 25% US assets under management
• 33% increase since 2014
• 75% of investors interested in SRI investing 

Who attends

• Financial advisors
• Asset managers,
• Mission-driven organizations
• Forward-thinking enterprises
• Entrepreneurs
• and more!

 

Why they attend

• Financial Advisors Novices and experienced SRI advisors alike come to learn how to grow their businesses through SRI. 
• Asset Managers Portfolio managers, analysts, and business development professionals come to hear from seasoned SRI professionals to expand their SRI footprint and increase sales. 
• Mission-Driven Organizations Nonprofits, endowments, foundations, educational institutions, and family offices attend to further their fundraising efforts and explore SRI investment opportunities. Forward-Thinking Companies CEOs, treasurers, sustainability officers, and HR professionals come to learn how to apply SRI across an enterprise, to improve profitability, enhance shareowner value, and attract and retain employees. 
• Entrepreneurs Start-ups and venture capitalists are drawn to the conference 's reputation incubating new ideas. Investors Institutional and individual investors attend to learn about new products, including private impact investments for accredited investors, and connect directly with SRI-specialist investment managers and financial advisors.

 

 

Learn, connect and be inspired 

 

Learn from asset managers who are harnessing the power of capital to address social, environmental, and cultural challenges while generating financial return.

Connect with the whole SRI community in one place, including asset managers, financial advisors, enterprises, mission-driven organizations, sustainability analysts, influential public figures, and more.

Be inspired by authentic leaders in the field who are making a difference where they work, live, and invest, every day. More on SRI

Breakout Session Tracks

To provide an inspiring, engaging, and quality conference experience for all, The SRI Conference features a wide variety of breakout sessions in addition to our plenary sessions. They are organized along five separate tracks identified by icons throughout. Although not guaranteed, many sessions typically qualify for continuing education (CE) credits for CFP, CFA, and CIMA designees.

Professional Education – Sessions in this track are designed to help SRI professionals sharpen their skills and deepen their SRI knowledge base around practice building, portfolio management strategies, and other trending topics. Although not guaranteed, these sessions often qualify for continuing education (CE) credits for CFP, CFA, and CIMA designees.

ESG integration – Fixed income and equity portfolio managers will share their frameworks for the application of environmental, social, and governance (ESG) metrics in their investment analysis, providing important insights and data for asset managers, advisors, and corporate sustainability professionals.

Impact – Participants will gain a thorough understanding of direct impact investing in mission-driven organizations, its additive role in diversifying investment portfolios, as well as best practices for impact investment issuers.

Advocacy – Asset managers will discuss challenges, successes, and trending topics in shareowner advocacy initiatives. Participants will gain a better understanding of the overall process, what it means for publicly traded corporations, and how advisors can become more active shareholders on behalf of their clients.

Introduction to SRI/ESG/Impact – Participants will learn the fundamentals of SRI/ESG/Impact investing including its history and evolution, the role shareowner advocacy plays in advancing the movement, various SRI/ESG screening methods, and tips and tools for establishing and growing an SRI/ESG/Impact advisory practice. This track, along with all others, is relevant for advisors, investment managers, and professionals in the corporate space who are new to SRI and desire a better understanding how to communicate and incorporate SRI into their professional roles.

The Advisor Summit Workshop

You might also want to consider adding to your conference experience with the Fundamentals of Sustainable and Responsible Investment Course, and the Advisor Summit Workshop. 

• 2 extra days of educational opportunities
• In-depth sessions on SRI and ESG
• Equips advisors with all the tools they need to build and maintain a thriving SRI practice
• The expertise of established SRI advisors
• 4 to 6 CE credits for CFPs and 5 CE credits for CIMAs* 

 

 

Agenda

At this year's SRI you will find an informative, engaging, and fun agenda with something for everyone, including special social and networking events throughout the conference. Check out the more inclusive and engaging conference agenda that is geared towards broadening the SRI movement far beyond the annual or regional events. Click here for the agenda

Registration 

Click here to register

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Trees and Forests: There is Good News and Bad News

Although the enthusiasm for planting trees is well warranted, they are not a panacea. Forests provide a wide range of benefits but humans are making it very hard for them to provide their vast array of benefits.

Trees are an important part of combating the climate crisis. Forests can sequester up to a third of the 30 to 40 billion tons of climate change causing carbon dioxide we emit each year. However, no matter how many trees we plant there will never be enough to keep temperatures from exceeding the upper threshold limit. As reported in a Business Insider article by Rob Ludacer and Jessica Orwig, "there isn't enough space on Earth to plant the amount of trees it would take to prevent the climate from warming by 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit." Even if trees covered the entire contiguous US they would only sequester about 10 percent of the country's annual CO2 emissions.

We are planting trees on a vast scale. However much of the trees being planted are massive monoculture farms which are nowhere near as effective in sequestering carbon as natural forests. Research by scientists from University College London and University of Edinburgh published as a comment piece in Nature which indicated that 45 percent of the areas countries have pledged to grow trees are commercial plantations.

Although trees combat climate change, they are also being adversely impacted by it. Forests are being hurt by climate related wildfires, insect infestations and pollution. Trees also provide oxygen, however a 2017 study warned that tropical forests are now emitting more carbon than oxygen.

Trees clean the air, but there are limits. We currently emit far more fine particulate matter than trees can absorb. Trees mitigate flooding, but they will not be able to prevent the two meter sea level rise that is predicted by 2100.

Humans are by far the biggest impediment to trees. Humans are destroying the world's most important forests. Some of the world's most ecologically significant forests are being cut down. China is laying waste to the world's second largest rainforest in Central Africa’s Congo Basin to make cheap furniture destined for the United States. The largest rainforest is also under threat from the Bolsonaro government in Brazil. Canada is the world leader in deforestation this includes boreal forest which contain 300 billion tons of stored carbon (soils, plants, and wetlands). These forests are being cut down to make toilet paper destined for the US and native trees are being cut down on Canada's west coast only to find themselves in landfills were the wood breaks down and releases carbon back into the atmosphere. 

Trees cool urban environments but the most recent research suggests you will need to see almost half of a city block covered in tree foliage to make a difference. Trees have also been found to elevate moods, but they cannot insulate people against the grief and anxiety associated with the climate crisis, biodiversity loss and environmental degradation.

Related
The Forest Through the Trees: The Failure of the Ecosystem Services Model
Our Forests are Being Decimated but they can be Reborn
The Vital Role of Forests: Carbon, Rain and Food
The Economic and Employment Benefits of Forests

Read More»

The Trump Administration is Hurting US Renewables and Imperiling the Planet

Renewable energy now accounts for around 17 percent of US electricity generation and where it not for the Trump administration that number would be higher. Trump has slowed the growth of clean power and hurt the renewable energy industry. At least 20,000 solar jobs have been lost in the first two years of the Trump presidency. After being ravaged by tariffs earlier in Trump's tenure, the US solar energy industry now has to contend with another round of tariffs on imported solar components. This is at odds fact based policy. Scientists tell us that to keep temperatures from rising above the upper threshold limit we will need to transition away from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy.  Instead of supporting clean power the Trump administration is propping up dirty energy.

While nations like the UK are abandoning coal the Trump administration is protecting the US coal industry from market realities. This administration has moved heaven and earth for the fossil fuel industry. They cleared the way for more oil and gas drilling on federal lands and waters and they killed federal support for energy efficiency.

Trump and most Republican legislators are woefully ignorant about renewable energy. This may be part of a calculated disinformation campaign or it may reflect their genuine stupidity, either way it obscures the fact that fossil fuels can be replaced by renewable energy.

Republican talking points disparaging renewables are inaccurate. The most commonly mentioned criticism involves intermittency. However, energy storage technologies mean that we can have access to clean renewable energy even when the wind is not blowing or the sun is not shining.

Despite municipal and state action, the involvement of the federal government is crucial. Mike O’Boyle, the co-author of the report for Energy Innovation, recognizes the importance of all levels of governments to scale renewables. "In order to get an affordable, clean energy system we need both federal and state actors involved," The Guardian quotes O’Boyle as saying.

Trump's support for fossil fuels and rejection of renewable energy translates to more greenhouse gases. His decision to kill climate regulations and initiatives like Obama's Clean Power Plan mean that US energy based emissions are not expected to decline until at least 2050.

The current administration's refusal to embrace science based energy policy increases the likelihood of more severe climate impacts.

If we are to avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis we will need to quickly transition away from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy. However, this will not happen in the US for at least a year and a half.

Related
Trump Hates Renewables and Loves Fossil Fuels
Trump Undermines Renewables to Help Fossil Fuels and Take Revenge
The Trump Administration's Policy of Energy Inefficiency
Trump's Energy Agenda is as Insane as his Presidency 
Clean Energy is Essential to Climate Action

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States Outlawing Protest to Protect the Fossil Fuel Industry

Image Credit: Action Network

There is a movement to stymie protest by making it illegal and by levying fines and/or prison sentences. There has always been a rocky relationship between protests and government, but the situation is going from bad to worse as efforts are underway to make a mockery out of first amendment rights and outlaw protest altogether.

North Dakota has been on the front lines of pipeline protests. In 2016 the state government started fining people $1000 just for bringing in food and supplies to the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) camps. In February 2017 DAPL protest camps were raided and the pipeline was completed in March 2019.

Louisiana’s Governor John Bel Edwards, signed HB 727 into law in 2018. The new law makes trespassing on critical infrastructure property a felony. Now protesting can get you a decade in prison and a $100,000 fine. States looking to insulate their own fossil fuel infrastructure from protests have passed similar legislation. This includes state governments in Oklahoma, North Dakota, South Dakota and Iowa. Most recently Texas lawmakers passed a bill (H.B. 3557) that makes interfering with fossil fuel infrastructure a third-degree felony like attempted murder. Other states including Minnesota, Kentucky, and Illinois are also considering such legislation. Bills in Kentucky and Illinois would make trespassing on critical infrastructure property a Class 4 felony with prison terms of up to 10 years.

Bills designed to kill protest are another volley of truth subversion from the fossil fuel industry. Many of these bills are being modeled on legislation from the Koch Brothers American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). At the end of 2017 ALEC proposed a model bill titled the "Critical Infrastructure Protection Act." This model legislation holds environmental groups liable for the actions of their members. An Oklahoma bill would hold organizations that support or compensate protestors liable for up to $1 million.

Organizations like the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers and a wide range of oil and gas lobbyists actively support legislative initiatives outlawing protest.

"It's an anti-protest bill, favoring the fossil fuel industry, favoring corporations over people," Frankie Orona, executive director of the Society of Native Nations, told the Austin American-Statesman.  The advocacy group Public Citizen described the legislation as "an oil and gas backed effort to squash environmental protest.

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A Realist Makes the Case for Cassandra

Is this the best of times or the worst of times? Charles Dickens historical novel, A Tale of Two Cities begins with the words, "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair."

In a recent article Stephen Martin Walt assesses our times and weighs the merits of optimistic assessments alongside more apocalyptic interpretations. He asks: "Who’s right: Cassandra or Dr. Pangloss? Are we on the brink of serious trouble, as Cassandra of Greek myth prophesied, or is all for the best 'in this best of all possible worlds,'  as the fictional Pangloss insisted in Voltaire’s Candide?"

Walt is an American professor of international affairs at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. He belongs to the realist school of international relations. He has made important contributions to the theory of defensive neorealism and he has authored the balance of threat theory.

For those who are interested in a cogent and sound analysis Walt offers a review that is well worth the read. He lays out the facts in a way that transcends the usual polemics. In the May 20th Foreign Policy article Walt leads with a discussion of climate change which he describes as the "single most vexing political test humankind has ever faced." Here is an unabridged excerpt of his comments on the climate crisis from the article.

"We haven’t known about man-made climate change for very long, but alarming evidence of its negative consequences continues to accumulate. Moreover, the pace and extent of change appears to be closer to the worst-case end of the spectrum. We are virtually certain to see a rise of more than 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit in atmospheric temperature in the next 20 years, for example, and a major study by the United Nations scientific panel on climate change estimates that a rise of that magnitude would cause roughly $54 trillion (!) worth of damage.

But the troubling part is how tepid the response has been. A well-funded army of people rejecting mainstream climate science tried first to convince us the problem simply didn’t exist, and they have worked to block meaningful actions to address it. At the global level, profligate energy users mostly tried to make sure that somebody else got stuck with the costs of mitigation. When the president of the United States refuses to accept that climate change is even occurring and wants to resurrect coal (the dirtiest of all fossil fuels), you know we’re in trouble. And my guess—see here—is that adapting to this problem is going to affect politics and society in ways we’ve barely begun to imagine.

I’m not saying dealing with this challenge is easy. It’s always hard to get people to make sacrifices today for the sake of future generations, and there are big cross-generational and cross-national equity issues involved. In fact, I believe developing an effective global response to atmospheric warming is the single most vexing political test humankind has ever faced. And so far, we’re flunking it, and placing whole societies in risk. Boy, I hope I’m wrong."

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Webinar - Renewable Energy Understanding and Evaluating Your Options

This complimentary renewable energy webinar will take place on Wednesday, May 22, 2019 at 11:00 AM Pacific / 2:00 PM Eastern. It will explore four salient themes: Options, cost, risk and reliability. It will also answer the question what is the best renewable options for your organization? As well as what is the best way to add them to your energy mix?

"ENGIE Insight" has assembled a panel of experts to answer these and other questions about renewable energy.  The hosts and expert panelists include Brian Dooley, Senior Director of Renewable Consulting and Shy Muralidharan, Director of Product Management. These energy and sustainability experts will show you why now is the time to invest in renewables. Learn how renewables can be part of a holistic energy management strategy, why renewables are now so much more attainable, and future trends to watch. Get your specific questioned answered by submitting them during registration. Dooley and Muralidharan will discuss them during the Q&A session.

Renewable energy has made huge strides in the commercial market over the past few years. Once more of a sustainable dream reserved for companies with large budgets, renewables are becoming mainstream, proving to be more than a short-term trend. Both on and off-site options (solar, wind, storage, RECs, green tariffs and more) are all viable considerations to add to your energy mix and the benefits are enticing: more options, reduced risk, lower costs, and an answer to stakeholder pressure.

Of course, the hardest questions for companies to answer are, "Will renewables work for us?" and "Where do we start?" The answers to these questions—and more—will be presented at the webinar. You’ll leave the webinar knowing:

• How to evaluate and identify the best renewable options for your organization.
• Key considerations for adding renewables into your energy mix.
• Options available on the market today, and balance cost, risk and reliability while working toward your sustainability goals.
  

Register even if you are unable to attend the live broadcast and you will receive a copy of the PowerPoint presentation and a recording of the webcast.

Click here to register for the webinar.
Click here to learn more about ENGIE Insight webinars. 
For more information email: info@ecova.com 

Related
Clean Energy is Essential to More than Just Climate Action
The Ongoing Prodigious Growth of Renewables
MENA's Renewable Energy Leadership
The Transition Away from Fossil Fuels to Renewables is Well Underway
Clean Energy from Renewable Sources is the Answer but Government Policies are a Problem
Declining Battery Storage Costs are Helping Renewables
The Dream of 100 Percent Renewable Energy is Alive and Well
What Would Happen if Fossil Fuel Subsidies Were Redirected Towards Renewable Energy?

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Event - Women In Green Forum: A Decade of Impact

The 10th annual Women In Green Forum, subtitled A Decade of Impact will take place on Thursday August 15, 2019, 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel, 11461 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90049, United States.

Over the past ten years, the Women In Green Forum has grown to be the premier event highlighting women in the environmental industry. Each year, they convene sustainability trailblazers who share insights about the newest and most cutting-edge environmental innovations.

The 10th anniversary of the Women in Green Forum celebrates a Decade of Impact. The 2019 program will explore the advances made in the environmental movement over the last decade and the innovations on the horizon for the coming decade - from future-ready business models to rethinking the blue recycling bin.

The Forum includes an international audience of sustainability experts including academic researchers, CSR executives, energy analysts, and technology developers. Attendees will be able to connect one-on-one with pioneers in the environmental movement.

From the White House to Fortune 500 company leaders, this annual program features the environmental industry's brightest and most innovative speakers. The mission of the Women In Green Forum is to create a venue for sustainability professionals to develop the skills necessary for professional success, to promote women’s leadership across the environmental industry, and to channel our efforts to build a better world where both genders have equal access to and are involved in leadership and decision-making.

Offering a blend of interactive sessions, spotlight presentations, and curated tech demos, the Forum provides attendees with a platform to form effective relationships with key players in the environmental industry. There will be a variety of workshop sessions and Eco Exhibitor booths that enable attendees to learn about companies whose products and services are changing the game in sustainability.

This event will sell out in advance so register today to reserve your spot. Online registration will close at 5 pm on August 13, 2019. Click here to register.

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Training - Certified Sustainability (CSR) Practitioner Program, Advanced Edition

This event will take place on June, 06 - 07 2019 in New York City. The 2019 Sustainability Practitioner Certification Program: Sustainability Strategy and Circular Economy will give you the insights you need to meet the serious challenges we face. This two-day training offered by CSE aims to give you all the latest practical tools and resources required to implement or upscale corporate sustainability in order to drive your initiatives to the next level by generating value and creating effective strategies. Executives from Fortune 500 companies, local governments and academia have trusted CSE and participated in our advanced training to become Certified Sustainability (CSR) Practitioners and earn a unique recognition in the Sustainability and CSR field. Click here to see the training agenda.

Key Challenges:

• The challenge of Integrating SDGs into the current Sustainability Plan
• New trends in Sustainability and how to gain a competitive advantage
• How to maximize stakeholder engagement
• How to influence C-Suite Executives and get most of their support into the Sustainability Plan
• The role of Investors and how to maximize your corporate performance in ESG ratings

Benefits of the Advanced Edition, 2019 Sustainability Practitioner Program in NYC:

• Earn the globally recognized Sustainability (CSR)-P Certification and become a qualified Sustainability Professional
• Access CSE business network (leaders from Fortune 500 Companies and Government Representatives)
• Develop a two-year sustainability plan

Places are limited. Click here to register.

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Clean Energy is Essential for More than Just Climate Action

Clean energy is a necessary part of efforts to address the climate crisis and if implemented at scale, renewables would favorably impact far more than just the environment.

Greenhouse gas (GHG) from fossil fuel based energy sources are contributing to planetary warming and driving the climate crisis. We have just surpassed 415 ppm of atmospheric carbon for the first time in human history. We urgently need solutions and making the transition to clean energy would afford substantial GHG reductions.

A 2018 report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) said the rapid deployment of renewables, combined with greater energy efficiency, could achieve 90% of energy sector emission reductions required by the Paris Climate agreement. This would mean that by 2050 clean energy would have to provide 66% of the world’s energy consumption and 80% of its power generation. We have a long way to go to get to these kind of numbers, but we know what we have to do and we know that it is viable.

Erik Solheim, the former Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme is among the thousands of authorities that argue the merits of clean energy. "A global transition to renewable energy technologies like solar and wind are also key ingredients of delivering on the Paris Agreement, keeping the global temperature rise below 2°C and avoiding catastrophic climate change," Solheim said in a press release.

As a leading source of GHGs dirty energy is a necessary focal point. The awareness that we must end fossil fuel use is not new, in fact the industry knew this more than 40 years ago. Two recent studies confirm that if we stop using fossil fuels we could keep temperatures below the upper threshold limit of 1.5 C. 

We understand the problem and we have a viable solution. Those who equivocate on the issue of energy are like those who question the veracity of climate change.  We cannot waste time trying to convince the willfully ignorant and those who are motivated by something other than reason. These people will not be swayed by facts. We are in the midst of the 6th great extinction and we have a little more than a decade to keep the planet from surpassing the upper threshold temperature limit.

The multifarious benefits of clean energy make a compelling case for anyone who is open to the facts. A 2015 IRENA report explains how renewable energy contributes to SDG goals. The report is the second edition of the REthinking Energy – Renewable Energy and Climate, a series outlining progress in the transition to a sustainable energy future. In addition to being a major part of climate action and sustainable communities, renewables support good health, well being, clean water and sanitation.  According to the report they also reduce poverty, contribute to gender equality, improve education, and decrease hunger.

The IRENA report also makes a business case for renewables pointing to advances in innovation and enhanced infrastructure.  This is a solution that offers a trifecta of benefits. It is a powerful method of combating both climate change and air pollution. It also is an economic boon that offers both cheap energy and good jobs. The economic case for climate action is irrefutable as is the moral case. The overwhelming logic of action over inaction is undeniable. Dozens of independent studies demonstrate that the range of economic benefits associated with a low carbon world.

Despite being popular fossil fuels still eclipse renewables by a huge margin. The US gets 63.5% of its energy from fossil fuels even though 83% of Americans support clean energy.  The transition away from fossil fuels is a popular idea that protects human health and conserves biodiversity. The alternative is to maintain our current energy trajectory and imperil civilization as we know it.

The call to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy is about more than holding the bad actors accountable or confronting the failures of our political leaderships. This is about survival.

It is time to move on to the next stage of energy production. It is time to demand that our political leaders embrace clean energy solutions.

Related
The Ongoing Prodigious Growth of Renewables
MENA's Renewable Energy Leadership
The Transition Away from Fossil Fuels to Renewables is Well Underway
Clean Energy from Renewable Sources is the Answer but Government Policies are a Problem
The Dream of 100 Percent Renewable Energy is Alive and Well 
The World's Poor are Hurt Not Helped by Fossil Fuel Subsidies
Fossil Fuel Industry Pays Legislators to Protect their Subsidies
What Would Happen if Fossil Fuel Subsidies were Redirected Towards Renewable Energy?
Ending Fossil Fuel Subsidies is a Crucial First Step

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Assaults on Wildlife from the Top to the Bottom of the Food Web

The Trump administration has proven harmful to species both great and small. Wildlife at the top of the food chain play vital roles in maintaining the health of ecosystems and although species at the bottom of the food web might not captivate the popular imagination like apex predators, they still play pivotal roles. The Trump administration has not been coy about its propensity to prioritize economic interests over the well being of the natural world. Some may celebrate the financial gains wrought through the elimination of environmental regulations and species protections but this is a Pyrrhic victory that ignores the fundamental interconnectedness of all life. Organizations like NRDC and Earth Justice are mounting successful court challenges to force the administration to address it's failure to protect wildlife. One judge described this administration's conduct as a "pattern of bad faith".

The Trump administration has institutionalized fact avoidance to prosecute it's war against wildlife. Facts that interfere with their policy agenda will not be tolerated, thus the executive branch, government agencies and departments all resist scientific input.

The administration's blatant disregard for America's biodiversity augers a wide range of serious problems. The natural world is an interconnected web of life forms. The decline of one species often adversely impacts a number of other species. Some obvious examples include pollinators and corals. Coral reefs are under threat due to warming seas and ocean acidification. They protect shorelines from storms and they support fisheries. As reported by Scientific American, US coral reefs provide $1.8 billion of ecosystem services each year. We are also losing pollinators including bees, which play a critical role in plant reproduction* and agriculture.  Bees are critical pollinators, without them our ecosystems are at risk of collapsing.

Biodiversity does far more than just provide ecosystem services, nature has a value that transcends economics. Our economy, indeed our very lives depend on the natural world.  Here are three species that are suffering because of the Trump administration. 

Gray Wolves

Wolves were one of the first species to be protected under the Endangered Species Act in 1973, now America's iconic gray wolves are under threat from the federal government. In March the Trump administration made it known that they are seeking to remove the gray wolf's protections. The proposal means that gray wolves could be hunted and trapped.

Wolves are not only at the top of the food web they are a keystone species and as such their disappearance would have a profound ecosystem wide impacts. They keep elk populations under control which in turn protects willows and aspen. The leftovers of their kills provide food for a number of other species. They help increase beaver populations and they keep coyotes in check. They also contribute to increases in insects, fish, songbirds and other wildlife.

Dusky Sharks

The dusky shark is another apex predator that sits atop the food web and helps maintain the ecological balance. The courts are a last recourse to save a species that is on the brink of extinction. Fishing for this imperiled dusky shark was outlawed in 2000, but the federal government turns a blind eye to the fact that they are still killed in bycatch. In April a federal judge in Washington D.C. ruled that the National Marine Fisheries Service is breaking the law due to its failure to use available science to protect the dusky shark from bycatch.

Anchovies

It is not only apex predators like gray wolves and the dusky shark that are being hurt by the Trump administration's failures. At the bottom of the food web other species are also under threat. Anchovy populations are being decimated by overfishing as a result of the ruling administration's failure to enforce scientifically valid catch limits. This was the verdict of a judgement earlier this year that ordered the National Marine Fisheries Service to issue a scientifically valid catch limit for the anchovy population within 90 days.

Anchovies are important sources of food for marine species including whales and sea lions. For some populations the availability of anchovies is a matter of life and death. The decline in anchovy populations is thought to have caused the starvation death of thousands of sea lions in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2013.

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*Honey bees transfer pollen produced by the male reproductive organs in a flower (anther) or from a male cone to the female reproductive organs (stigma/ovule). This transfer of microscopic grains of male gametes contained in pollen allow for the formation of seeds.

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MENA's Renewable Energy Leadership

In much of the world year over year growth of renewables has slowed, but countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) are outpacing the norm. According to recent International Energy Agency (IEA) data, 2018 was the first year since 2001 that renewable energy growth failed to increase year on year. New net capacity from renewable sources was about 180 Gigawatts (GW), which is equivalent to the previous year. However, the report indicates that renewable capacity accelerated in many countries in the MENA region last year.

The energy sector in the Middle East and North Africa is expected to see $1 trillion in investment over the next five years. Electricity demand in MENA is expected to grow by 7 percent annually driving increasing demand for inexpensive sources of energy. Solar energy has emerged as the cheapest source of regional power but wind is also increasingly cost effective.

In 2017 there were 5.7 GWs in the solar energy pipeline in the MENA region. In 2018 that number increased to 13 GWs. Egypt, Morocco and Jordan are leaders in solar PV projects but smaller countries like Oman and Kuwait have also built large scale solar installations.

The clean energy future looks bright for MENA countries. According to an analysis from MAKE Consulting declining costs will help to drive wind capacity in the Middle East and Africa to 40 gigawatts (GW) by 2026. Regional countries that are leading the charge in wind energy include Morocco, Egypt, Jordan, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Iran.

In terms of total planned output five MENA countries emerge as renewable energy leaders. They are Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Morocco, and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia is looking to grow the amount of energy it generates from renewables. Under the National Renewable Energy Program (NREP) Saudi Arabia is planning to get 59 GW of energy from clean sources by 2030. Construction will soon start on the 300 MW solar PV plant at Sakaka in the northwest of the country. They have targeted a 10-year time span to develop and produce solar components capable of generating 140 GW of power. The 400 MW Dumat Al Jandal wind farm is the countries first such farm.
In 2017, the Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman announced a plan to establish what is called the  NEOM mega-city project with investments of $500 billion. Renewable energy is an integral part of this project.

Saudi alfanar recently announced that it was looking at $1.6 billion worth renewable energy projects over the next few years. Alfanar has reportedly signed contracts to implement energy projects with total capacity of 1.4GW. This includes a $250 million, 250 MW wind farm in Egypt and a 50MW solar power plant in Benban, Aswan.

Egypt

Egypt has put forward comprehensive large scale plans to build and produce electricity from renewable resources. The country is striving towards the ambitious national goal of 42 percent  renewable generated electricity by 2035

Egypt is making strides toward achieving an ambitious national goal for renewables to make up 42 percent of the country’s electricity mix by 2035. Its solar PV program, which includes the enormous new Benban complex near Aswan launching later this year, should yield 3-4 GW of solar power coming online during the next 2-3 years. Wind capacity include the Zaafarana and Gabal El Zeit wind farms which collectively generate 1 GW of power.

Morocco

Morocco plans to meet 42 percent of its energy requirements with renewables by 2020 and 52 percent by 2030.  The country's biggest solar financing project is the $2.4 billion, 800 megawatt NOORm Midelt PV and solar thermal portfolio. The Moroccan Solar Energy Program is developing five solar complexes with a combined capacity of approximately 2GW by 2020. This includes two hybrid concentrated solar power (CSP) and photovoltaic (PV) plants in central Morocco.

The 580 MW NOOR Ouarzazate solar project will become fully operational this year followed by the 800 MW NOOR Midelt project. Morocco's wind energy projects include the 300 MW Tarfaya wind farm which is one of several new or planned wind farms in the Western Sahara area.

United Arab Emirates

 

The renewable energy goal of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is 44 percent by 2050. Dubai is the largest and most populace city in the UAE and it intends to get 75 percent of its total power output from clean energy by 2050. They have the enormous MBR Solar Park in the desert 30 miles south of the city. The solar park’s Phase 3, is a solar PV array capable of generating 800 MW. It will be completed in 2020. Phase 4 is a 950 MW solar CSP/PV complex, it will consist of 700 MW CSP with up to 15 hours storage, and a further 250 MW of solar PV capacity.

UAE's capital Abu Dhabi has the 1.2 GW Sweihan solar PV plant, which is the world’s largest single location solar PV plant. It is expected to be completed and come online later this year. Planning is underway for the 1.5 GW Sweihan II plant. Up to four new solar PV plants are planned in order to reach the target 5.7 GW by 2026.

Related
Clean Energy is Essential to More than Just Climate Action
The Ongoing Prodigious Growth of Renewables
MENA's Renewable Energy Leadership
The Transition Away from Fossil Fuels to Renewables is Well Underway
Clean Energy from Renewable Sources is the Answer but Government Policies are a Problem
Declining Battery Storage Costs are Helping Renewables
The Dream of 100 Percent Renewable Energy is Alive and Well 

Read More»

The Trump Administration's War on Wildlife

The Trump administration is working to erode protections designed to safeguard America's wildlife. As reiterated in a new U.N. report we are destroying biodiversity at an unprecedented rate.  The future of life on this planet is looking bleak as the world's most powerful nation belligerently disregards the natural world.

This is an administration that puts economic impacts ahead of species protections. They have sought to end protections for threatened species including those that hinder the fossil fuel industry.

The facts expose the administration's callous disregard for the nation's biodiversity. That is why both Trump and the Department of the Interior actively oppose science. Interior has an important role in conservation as they manage public lands, national parks and wildlife refuges. They are also responsible for conservation efforts including protecting endangered species. Oil industry lobbyist David Bernhardt is the new secretary of the department and in a 2018 Washington Post op-ed he wrote the Endangered Species Act places "unnecessary regulatory burden" on companies.

Bernhardt has amassed a rap-sheet of environmental crimes in the short time he has been at the helm of the cabinet level agency. In February a National Park scientist was dismissed when she refused to remove references to climate change from a report she had written. In March Bernhardt blocked a report by scientists at the Fish and Wildlife Service that found popular pesticides "jeopardize the continued existence" of more than 1,200 endangered animals and plants. He then relaxed the rules for pesticides.

In May Bernhardt proposed weakening protections for the highly endangered American burying beetle. He also exempted the oil and gas industry from having to consider its impact on the beetle's habitat in Oklahoma. They argued that the beetle will be rendered extinct by climate change anyway so there is no point in trying to save it. They do not mention the fact that this administration has consistently undermined efforts to combat the climate crisis, nor do they disclose all the ways they have supported increased fossil fuel production.

Bernhardt wants to revise the entire Endangered Species Act to make it harder to put a species on the list and easier to remove them. He is also seeking to weaken habitat protections. 

The Trump administration's ongoing assaults on wildlife are part of a de-regulatory orgy that is imperiling American biodiversity.

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Event - Women In Green Forum: A Decade of Impact

The 10th annual Women in Green Forum will take place on Thursday August 15, 2019, 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM at the Luxe Sunset Boulevard Hotel, 11461 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90049, United States.

Over the past ten years, the Women In Green Forum has grown to be the premier event highlighting women in the environmental industry. Each year, they convene sustainability trailblazers who share insights about the newest and most cutting-edge environmental innovations.

The 10th anniversary of the Women in Green Forum celebrates a Decade of Impact. The 2019 program will explore the advances made in the environmental movement over the last decade and the innovations on the horizon for the coming decade - from future-ready business models to rethinking the blue recycling bin.

The Forum will convene pioneers in the environmental movement, drawing an international audience of sustainability experts including academic researchers, CSR executives, energy analysts, and technology developers.

Attendees will be able to connect one-on-one with the world's leading environmental trailblazers. They will also be signed up for our event marketing email list so that they can stay current on events produced by Three Squares Inc. You may unsubscribe from our emails at any time.

Please click on the link below and select the number of registration passes you wish to order. You will be guided through the registration process. This event will sell out in advance so register today to reserve your spot. Online registration will close at 5 pm on August 13, 2019.

Click here to register. *

*Photographic Release: There will be photographers and film crews at the event. By signing up for a registration pass, you understand that you may appear in photographs or film footage from the Forum.

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Our Suicidal Genocide Against Nature and the Need for Transformative Change

We are often reminded that the fate of humanity is tied to the fate of other species. A new report is once again emphasizing the interdependence of life on Earth. It tells us that we are destroying biodiversity at a perilous rate. The sixth great extinction threatens life on the planet. While previous extinction events were caused by things like volcanoes and asteroids, the defining feature of this one is that it is being driven by human activity. This suicidal rampage has been dubbed the age of the Anthropocene. A summary of a comprehensive new report warns that unless we make significant changes, we will, "plunge the planet into a nightmarish, downward spiral of conflict, growing inequality and continuing degradation of Nature."

The recent United Nations report was created by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). It details the past losses and future prospects for nature and humans. It was created over the course of three years by 150 experts from more than 50 countries. They examined 15,000 sources of information to create the first report of this type since 2005.

Representatives from 132 governments recently met in Paris to take a look at the peer reviewed conclusions in a 44-page Summary for Policymakers. The 1,800-page assessment of scientific literature is the most exhaustive UN report on the state of nature ever produced.

Extinction

Extinction is taking place up to 1000 times faster than the the natural background rate and some projections suggest they will soon be 10,000 times background rates. Every day, we lose up to 150 species and every year, we lose between 18,000 and 55,000 species. In the past 45 years, the number of living mammals, fishes, birds, reptiles, and amphibians have fallen by half. We have identified only one tenth of all life on the planet, think of how many invaluable species may have disappeared without our knowledge.

We are losing clean air, potable water, pristine forests, pollinators and other insects. Both terrestrial and marine life are being decimated. A quarter of known plant and animal species are already threatened. The extinction rate for vertebrates is now 114 times higher than the historical background rate.

Up to one million species are at risk of extinction due to human activities. Habitat loss (deforestation, coral bleaching), climate change, pollution (especially fossil fuel emissions and plastic), over-exploitation, over-consumption, mining, and poaching are pushing our ecosystems past the point of no return. All of these factors are altering the natural world at a rate that is "unprecedented in human history."  These assessments may be even worse as we only know about 10 percent of the estimated 11 million terrestrial species that occupy the Earth.

Three-quarters of the land, almost half of marine environments and half of inland waterways have been "severely" changed by human activity, according to the report. We have cut down half the world's forests and damned more than three quarters of the planet's rivers. We are destroying natural habitats and overtaxing resources on an unprecedented scale.

Much of our harm we are doing is caused by the ways we use the Earth to derive food and energy. Around 40 percent of the planet's land surface is being used for crops and livestock and half of the Earth's accessible fresh water is being used in agricultural irrigation. We have removed more than half of the wild fish from the ocean and we continue to exploit 90 percent of our fisheries beyond their maximum sustainable limits.  Our fossil fuel consumption is the leading cause of climate change and a major source of pollution. Since the 1950s we have increased our use of fossil fuels by more than 550 percent.

A 2016 study indicates that 58 percent of the Earth's land surface has surpassed the "safe" threshold putting these ecosystems in danger of collapse. Although a recent NASA report indicates the Earth is getting greener, much of this is monoculture plantations which are nowhere near as effective in supporting biodiversity when compared to natural forests. The fact is we lost around 12 million hectares of biodiverse forest in the world's tropical regions in 2018.

Suicide

We cannot ignore the horrific injustice we are perpetrating against nature. Nor can we avoid the realization that we are threatening our own survival. We are not only killing species we are destroying biological relationships and undermining the stability of life on Earth.

"The essential, interconnected web of life on Earth is getting smaller and increasingly frayed," says report co-chair Josef Settele, an entomologist at Germany's Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research, in a statement. "This loss is a direct result of human activity and constitutes a direct threat to human well-being in all regions of the world."

When we destroy nature we are destroying the ecosystem services that it provides. This includes food, medicines, clean air, potable water and healthy soil. It is important to understand just how valuable individual species can be. For example, the loss of mangrove forests and coral reefs will expose 300 million people to increased risk from flooding. Think of what can happen when we eradicate vast swaths of biodiversity.

We are risking far more than just the $24 trillion of non-monetized benefits nature provides to humans each year. We are threatening the survival of many forms of life on the planet, including our own. We are undercutting the very things that we depend upon for our survival. "[T]his report makes clear the links between biodiversity and nature and things like food security and clean water in both rich and poor countries." the IPBES Chair Robert Watson said.

Destroying biodiversity undermines nature's ability to bounce back from extreme events like fires and floods. Nature also provides something arguably even more profound. A sense of wonder, awe, and beauty that can have powerful psychological and spiritual benefit.

"The evidence is incontestable," Watson said. "Our destruction of biodiversity and ecosystem services has reached levels that threaten our well-being at least as much as human-induced climate change." 

Immediate action

Although much of the damage is irreparable, there is still time to stave off the worst impacts if we act now. The UN report calls for "transformative changes" to save the natural world and ourselves. It warns that we must rapidly end humanity’s destructive approach to the economy, food production, and energy usage.

As reported by the Guardian, Watson said, "There is no question we are losing biodiversity at a truly unsustainable rate that will affect human wellbeing both for current and future generations. We are in trouble if we don’t act, but there are a range of actions that can be taken to protect nature and meet human goals for health and development."

Steven Osofsky, a professor of wildlife health and health policy at the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine and expert on biodiversity, said anyone who does not believe that humans are creating an extinction crisis is "either lying or not paying attention." Although he concedes that the situation is perilous he also said that he has to believe that its not too late.

"[T]here are prospects for hope in bringing together sectors that have historically been antagonistic...From how we feed the world, to how we generate energy, to how we educate the next generation (especially women and girls)," he added, "there are solutions to the pressures currently impacting global biodiversity and the natural systems humanity (perhaps ironically) ultimately depends upon for survival."

We will need to do far more with far less. Importantly government will need to strengthen and enforce environmental laws. We need to take a holistic approach that integrates considerations for biodiversity into every aspect of human endeavor.

"It’s no longer enough to focus just on environmental policy," Sandra M. Díaz is quoted as saying in the New York Times. Diaz is a lead author of the study and an ecologist at the National University of Córdoba in Argentina. "We need to build biodiversity considerations into trade and infrastructure decisions, the way that health or human rights are built into every aspect of social and economic decision-making."

We are facing a social and ecological emergency. We need education, research, preparedness, and prevention. Above all we need to realize that we are part of the ecosystems that we are destroying.   

Human health is inextricably linked to the health of the planet's biodiversity and for better or worse, the fate of life on Earth is in human hands.

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The Perils of Growth and the Ubiquity of Growthism
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Half of All Wildlife on Earth is Going Extinct
Collapsing Fisheries and the Importance of Fishing
The Mass Extinction of our Oceans May Have Already Begun
The State of Our Oceans: We are Headed Towards a Marine Mass Extinction
The Financial Costs of Biodiversity Loss
List of Canadian Animals and Plants that are Extinct or at Risk
Endangered Species

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