Pick of the Bunch

This headline could apply to many things in
this significant issue.  The first: one
of the finest men who has left an indelible and sustainable mark on this earth.
Ray Anderson, founder and leader of Interface, who sadly passed away earlier
this month. The pick of the bunch, certainly. Then we have, for the very first
time in the world – the 100 Global Sustain Ability Leaders. A bunch of great
people from all corners of the globe who have made their mark in their own
countries or further afield in the relatively new practice of sustainability.
Then we have an even greater selection of articles – take your pick from 15 in
all compared with the usual 13 – to mark this issue, which is our 150th since
we began in March 2008. Read all about it from Nauru, Sri Lanka, Germany, South
Africa, Brazil, Taiwan and Australia. Not forgetting the US and the UK. And for
a change, the Arctic and the Antarctic. Singapore is there of course, along
with insightful words about deniers and skeptics; green accounting, and how to make
money and do good in the world.  Added
threats to the Great Barrier Reef, too, while deforestation, forest carbon and
reforestation has a place at the table, too. A truly global issue for
globally-minded people. The time is certainly ripe…take your pick!   -  Ken
Hickson

Profile: 100 Global Sustain Ability Leaders

Not one but 100 profiles in this issue. The
selected Global Sustain Ability Leaders from six continents include Nobel prize
winners, scientists, architects, designers, artists, and CEOs of international
companies. Besides the well-known, there are the quiet achievers who are making
a name for themselves and their NGOs, institutes, universities or businesses.
One is Alison Rowe (left) Fujitsu’s global head of sustainability and another
is Singapore’s Ho Kwon Ping (right). Here’s the full list. Read More

100 Global Sustain Ability Leaders

This the first 100 Global Sustain Ability
Leaders list, which has been devised and produced by Ken Hickson, Chairman/CEO
of Sustain Ability Showcase Asia and ABC Carbon, is published first in this the
150th issue of abc carbon express
(24 August 2011).

Nominations were invited through abc carbon express and received from
readers around the world. There is purposely no ranking or numbering of individuals
on the list, which is shown in alphabetical order based on surnames.

Ken Hickson takes full responsibility for the
final selection and admits that many of those finalists are personally known to
him, but many are not. There could well be many deserving ‘sustainability
leaders’ not on the list, but either they were not nominated or brought to the
attention of the ‘selection committee’.

Agassi, Shai: Founder and
CEO of Better Place, which has developed the infrastructure for employing
electric cars as an alternative to fossil fuel technology. Formerly President
of the Products and Technology Group (PTG) at SAP AG. In 2003, at the age of
36, Agassi was named one of the top 20 ‘Global Influentials for 2003′ by
CNN-Time magazine and in 2009, was included in TIME magazine’s 100 most
influential people list. www.betterplace.com

An, Esther: Head of CSR
for City Development Limited (CDL) Singapore, which is a leader in
sustainability in Singapore through its properties and businesses. www.cdl.com.sg

Ang, Winston: President
of the Environmental Challenge Organisation (ECO) Singapore & organiser of
World Leadership Conference, Singapore 2011. www.eco-singapore.org

Baggs, David: Founder
Ecospecifier, Technical Director & Principal Consultant, and Chartered
Architect. A vocal advocate, educator and guide in a world ready to be greener,
he challenges the way for new frontiers of sustainable design to be realised.
He has 30 years’experience in the Green Building and Product sector, delivering
world leading projects. www.ecospecifier.com

Bayliss, Caroline: The
Climate Group Australia Director, former Director of Global Sustainability at
RMIT University in Melbourne. www.theclimategroup.org

Birkeland, Janis.  Former Professor of Architecture, Queensland
University of Technology, now University of Auckland, New Zealand, urban
designer, and author of “Design for Sustainability” and “Positive Development”.
www.bee.qut.edu.au

Blake, Dr Martin:
Sustainability and CSR guru, started Carbon Zero Solutions, joined The Green
Asia Group, and initiated Sustainably Blue. At Royal Mail in the UK he
implemented far-reaching plans which lead to greater energy efficiency and
sustainability, utilising carbon abatement measures to save millions of pounds
and win European awards. www.thegreenasiagroup.com

Blanchett, Cate: Oscar winning
actress, star of dozens of international movies and stage roles, co-director of
Sydney Theatre Company, which features many sustainable attributes, including
energy efficiency and renewable energy features; an outspoken advocate for
climate change action; in 2007, she was named as one of Time magazine’s 100
Most Influential People In The World and in the same year became the ambassador
for the Australian Conservation Foundation’s online climate change
campaign.  www.sydneytheatre.com.au

Bongars, Christophe: CEO
Sustain Asia, Hong Kong. He has 24 years of experience in the field of business
development, clean technologies, large-scale industrial and infrastructure
project development and management. He has successfully created, developed and
managed projects and businesses in diverse countries in Asia, Europe and
Africa. www.sustainasia.com

Bourne, Greg: Ex WWF CEO
Australia & Director Carnegie Corporation. He was seconded to the Prime
Minister’s Policy Unit at 10 Downing Street in 1988 as Special Adviser on
Energy and Transport. In January 1999 he became Regional President – BP
Australasia, the position from which he retired from BP in September 2003. Greg
was appointed CEO WWF-Australia in October 2004 the position he held until June
2010. www.carnegiewave.com

Bun, Mara: CEO Green
Cross Australia,  Mara was born and
raised in Brazil and studied and worked in the US before moving to Australia in
1991. She brings 20 years of community and business experience to Green Cross
Australia – from Morgan Stanley, The Wilderness Society, Greenpeace Australia,
Australian Consumer’s Association (CHOICE), Bush Heritage Australia, Macquarie
Bank, CSIRO and CANNEX. www.greencrossaustralia.org

Carpenter, Sidonie: President
of GreenRoofs Australia, Sidonie has run her own design and construction
business (Green Canopy Design Pty Ltd) in Sydney and Brisbane for the last 16
years, with a focus on residential and small commercial projects. She
specialises and consults on green roof and wall design, and construction and
maintenance, specifically for Australia’s unique climate and plant species. She
has studied green roof design and construction around the world. www.greenroofs.wordpress.com

Cassels, Richard:  Founder Climate Leadership, Brisbane, Australia,
archaeologist & former GM of Queensland Museum. www.climateleadership.com.au

Cheam, Jessica: Straits
Times Environmental Writer is the founder and editor of the website
eco-business.com, which provides news and views for Asia Pacific’s sustainable
business community. She has won a global journalism award at the Earth
Journalism Awards, which was held in Copenhagen in December 2009. In March
2010, she was named Young Journalist of the Year by Singapore Press Holdings
and in February 2011, her stories on sustainability won her the first Asean
Green Technology Journalism Award by Siemens. www.eco-business.com

Chu, Steven: US
Secretary of Energy in the Obama administration, a distinguished scientist and
co-winner of the Nobel Prize for Physics (1997). www.energy.gov

Clark, Anna:  President of EarthPeople, based in Dallas,
Texas, US and the author of “Green, American Style”. Previously a management
consultant with PricewaterhouseCoopers and IBM before becoming vice president
of a public relations firm.  She founded
EarthPeople in 2005 and has helped clients from non-profits and school districts
to municipalities and Fortune 500 corporations to achieve cost savings and
brand loyalty through profitable sustainability strategies. www.earthpeopleco.com

Collins, Cate:  Head of Sustainability for Lend Lease,
Sydney, Australia. Previously, as Associate Director ESD at Hyder Consulting,
Cate was responsible for building the Melbourne Sustainable Design Group and
the coordination of multi-disciplined teams across Hyder’s Australian Offices,
providing sustainability consultancy services for built environment projects
around Australia. Cate is an active participant of the Property Council of
Australia’s National Sustainability Roundtable, the new Green Building Council
of Australia’s Asia Pacific Committee and the United Nations Environment Programme
Finance Initiative Property Working Group, developing resources to facilitate
sustainable responsible investment. www.lendlease.com

Crawley, Cathy: Principal at
Arup and leader for sustainability in Australia. www.arup.com

Dickinson, Paul: Former CEO,
Carbon Disclosure Project, now the executive chairman of CDP, maintaining
supervision of the board and spending time working with other entities to
maximize CDP’s impact around the world. www.cdproject.net

Doherty, Peter: Nobel Prize
winner in Physiology and Medicine, author of “The Light History of Hot Air”.
Doherty, who holds the Michael F. Tamer Chair of Biomedical Research at St.
Jude Children’s Research Hospital, has been elected to the Institute of
Medicine (IOM), a prestigious branch of the National Academy of Sciences. www.stjude.org

Doppelt, Bob:  Director of Resource Innovations and the
Climate Leadership Initiative at the University of Oregon in Eugene, Oregon. www.theresourceinnovationgroup.org

Duggan, Mike:  Founder, Four Walls and a Roof (FWR), now
General Manager at Ecospecifier Global. Sessional Lecturer at Univerity of the
Sunshine Coast, Industry Fellow at Australian Centre for Sustainable Business
and Development and Director at Australian Green Development Forum.  Michael is committed to accelerating
sustainable development, and facilitating its uptake into the mainstream
through strategic business management and sustainability learning. www.ecospecifier.com.au

East, May: Director CIFAL
Findhorn, Scotland, UNITAR Associated Training Centre, Sustainability Educator,
from Brazil to United Kingdom. www.cifalfindhorn.org

Elkington, John: Co-founder of
SustainAbility and Founder and Executive Chairman of Volans Ventures. Author of
many books, the most significant being 1997’s “Cannibals with Forks: The Triple
Bottom Line of 21st Century Business”. He is a world authority on corporate
responsibility and sustainable development. In 2004, BusinessWeek described him
as “a dean of the corporate responsibility movement for three decades.” www.volans.com

Failliot, Gatsby: Green
Solutions Engineer with global responsibility, based in Singapore with the
French company Sodexo, committed to sustainable business practices.  He focuses on developing innovative,
sustainable approaches to liveable residential facilities in remote locations. www.sodexo.com

Flannery, Dr Tim: Author of
the landmark book “The Weather Makers”, leading climate change advocate, former
Australian of the Year, head of the Copenhagen Climate Council and appointed by
the Australian Government early 2011 to a newly-created position as Climate
Commissioner, chairing a panel of six experts, including scientists and economists.
www.climatecommission.gov.au

Forbes, Angus: In 2009, he
established Natural Capital in Sydney, Australia after working in London as an
investment banker. He is in the process of setting up the Natural Group and
Natural Foundation, both aimed at boosting the contribution to the
stabilisation and restoration of the global commons, of the professional
services sector. www.naturalcapitalfm.com

Frost, Tony: A fifth
generation South African, he is passionate about the natural heritage of our
planet and particularly South Africa. After 20 years as a Human Resources
Director, he founded Sirocco Strategic Management in 1996. He has published
“After the Rain”, a book on the subject of organisations and management. He was
CEO of the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF) in South Africa from 2002 to 2007. www.siroccostrategy.com

Garnaut, Professor
Ross:  Economist and author of the Ross
Garnaut Reviews of climate change policy and action for the Australian
Government. www.rossgarnaut.com.au

Gilding, Paul: An
independent writer, advisor and advocate for action on climate change and
sustainability. Former CEO of a range of innovative NGO’s and companies
including Greenpeace International, Ecos Corporation and Easy Being Green. He
argues in his book “The Great Disruption”, that this crisis driven change is an
enormous opportunity to build a new approach to economic and social development
for humanity. www.paulgilding.com

Gipton, Sara: She became
CEO of Greenfleet in early 2007 after moving to the environmental sector and
after holding senior financial roles at the Victorian Workcover Authority and
Ernst & Young’s Audit and Consulting Divisions. Sara is a Chartered
Accountant, with an Honours degree in Science and a Masters of Social Science
focused on environmental management and planning. www.greenfleet.com.au

George, Aaron: Co-Founder,
Amida Recruitment, a London-based agency specialising in the sustainability
sector and Director, BREP (Resource & Environmental Planning). He has 10
years’ experience in the recruitment industry, specialising in town planning,
the consulting engineering, construction and property sectors. Aaron leads
Amida’s business in the energy and engineering sectors. www.amida-recruit.com

Grant, Andrew:  As CO2 Group CEO, he was honoured with the
national 2009 Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award in the Cleantech
category. Prior to CO2, he was the National Head of Ernst and Young’s
environmental advisory division also fulfilling this same role at Arthur
Anderson in previous years. Earlier, Andrew held the position as Executive
Manager in Sustainable Packaging at Visy Industrial Packaging. www.co2australia.com.au

Grier, Nigel: Landscape
Ecologist with a focus on Biomimicry and the Tropics,  Managing Director & Principal, Zingspace,
Townsville, Australia. www.zingspace.com.au

Guldberg, Ove Hoegh: Director
of the Global Change Institute at The University of Queensland, he has held
academic positions at UCLA, Stanford University, The University of Sydney and
The University of Queensland and is currently a member of the Australian
Climate Group; the Royal Society (London) Marine Advisory Network; and the
Board of Editing Reviewers at Science Magazine. He also heads a large research
laboratory (over 20 researchers & students) that focuses on how global
warming and ocean acidification are affecting coral reefs now and into the
future. www.gci.uq.edu.au

Gunning, Tex:  Board member Akzo Nobel, with a degree in
Economics from the Erasmus University Rotterdam, a passionate lecturer, writer
and speaker on the role of business in Society and the need for collective leadership
to tackle the world’s biggest challenges. www.akzonobel.com

Harding, Jeff: As Chairman
Ceramic Fuel Cells, he has extensive experience in the renewable energy sector.
From 1995 to 2005 he was Managing Director of Pacific Hydro Limited,
Australia’s largest renewable energy developer with wind and hydro energy
projects in Australia, Asia and Chile.
He has Degrees in Civil Engineering, Economics, and a Masters Degree in Business
Administration and is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company
Directors. He resides in both Europe and Australia and is also a non-executive
director of the ASX listed Carnegie Wave Energy Limited. www.cfcl.com.au

Ho Kwon Ping: Executive
Chairman Banyan Tree Group, member 100 Global Leaders for Tomorrow at the World
Economic Forum (2005) and Chairman, Singapore Management University.  Mr Ho is also Chairman of Laguna Resorts
& Hotels Public Company Limited, Thai Wah Food Products Public Company
Limited, Singapore Management University and MediaCorp Pte. Ltd. He is a member
of the Asia-Pacific Council of The Nature Conservancy, Global Advisory Council
of London Business School, International Council and East Asia Council of
INSEAD, International Council of Asia Society and Management Board of the
Middle East Institute at the National University of Singapore. He is a former
journalist with the Far Eastern Economic Review. www.banyantree.com

Hobley, Anthony: Norton
Rose, Global head of climate change and carbon finance. www.nortonrose.com

Hood, David: Chairman of
Australian Green Infrastructure Council, David is a chartered professional
engineer with more than thirty years’ experience in senior executive positions
in the public and private sectors. He is an Adjunct Professor in the Faculty of
the Built Environment and Engineering at Queensland University of Technology,
Chairman of the Australian College of Environmental Engineers and is Deputy
President of the Australian Sustainable Built Environment Council (ASBEC).
David is also an accredited presenter on Al Gore’s Climate Project. www.agic.net.au

Huxley, Anne Marie: Founder
and CEO, Models of Success and Sustainability (MOSS), Melbourne, Australia. She
was instrumental in launching the unique training tool called Sustainability
Challenge. www.moss.org.au

Jones, Allan: The City of
Sydney’s international climate change and energy expert, who implemented major
climate change mitigation and adaptation programmes at London and Woking in the
UK, was appointed by the Minister for Climate Change and Energy Efficiency to
the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility (NCCARF) based at
Griffith University in Queensland. He is guiding the Sustainable Sydney 2030
Vision is for a Green, Global, and Connected City. www.cityofsydney.nsw.gov.au

Jones, Andy: Director
Group Sustainability, Amcor, previously with the Victorian Goverment, Toyota
and URS Australia. Former President of Net Impact at Melbourne Business School,
where he competed his MBA. www.amcor.com

Juniper, Tony: A campaigner,
writer, sustainability adviser and a well-known British environmentalist. He is
the editor-in-chief of National Geographic Green Magazine. www.robertsbridgegroup.com

Keller, Denise: Model,
performer, producer or crusader – she is far more than meets the eye. The
former MTV host is now a partner in a film production company No Quarter TV and
fronts a documentary series on Discovery channel. She is on the advisory
committee for the Climate Project and a regular speaker on environmental and
sustainability issues. www.no-quarter.tv

Kendall, Professor Kevin:
School of Chemical Engineering, University of Birmingham, United Kingdom. He
has been researching hydrogen and fuel cells over the past 30 years and was
responsible for the first hydrogen filling station in England, to fuel hydrogen
vehicles running on the Birmingham campus since March 2008. There are now four
stations in the Midlands and there should be eight by 2012, with a prospect of
hundreds of hydrogen hybrid vehicles by 2015.
www.birmingham.ac.uk

Kent, Muhtar: Chairman of
the Board and Chief Executive Officer of The Coca-Cola Company. He oversaw the
development of a system-wide sustainability framework called LIVE POSITIVELY,
built on its commitment to making a positive difference in the world,
which  is embedded within the entire
business at every level. www.thecoca-colacompany.com

Keogh, Amanda: Manager of
Environment and Sustainability, Fuji Xerox Australia. Following a successful
internationally-based career in ICT marketing communications, Keogh earned a
masters degree in Sustainable Development and has conducted extensive research
into corporate sustainability. www.fujixerox.com.au

Kepler, David: Chief
Sustainability Officer, Dow Chemicals, US. He is responsible for guiding the
sustainable business development of the company and is charged with leading the
company’s commitment to Set the Standard for Sustainability, including
achieving the company’s aggressive 2015 Sustainability Goals. He is a member of
Dow’s Management Committee and chairs its Sustainability Committee. In
addition, Kepler chairs the Sustainability External Advisory Council (SEAC), an
organization formed to provide an outside-in perspective on sustainability to
Dow. www.dow.com

King, Sir David: The
former UK Government’s Chief Scientific Adviser, Director of the Smith School
of Enterprise and the Environment at Oxford University.  www.smithschool.ox.ac.uk

Kleef, Jochen: Founder and
Group CEO, Kleef & Co, the Hong Kong based diversified group of companies
focused on sustainable business. www.kleef.asia

Koh, Professor Tommy:
Singapore Ambassador at Large, won the Champion of the Earth Award from the
United Nations Environment Programme, he was President of the Third UN
Conference on the Law of the Sea from 1980 to 1982. He was Chairman of the
Preparatory Committee for and the Main Committee of the UN Conference on
Environment and Development (RIO) from 1990 to 1992. Special Adviser of the
Institute of Policy Studies and Chairman of the National Heritage Board. www.spp.nus.edu.sg/ips

Kux, Barbara: Member
Group Management Committee, Chief Procurement Officer and Chair Sustainability
Board, Philips. Represented Philips at “Caring for Climate: The Business
Leadership Platform,” convened by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon in Geneva in
July 2007. Sustainability has been on the Philips agenda since the company was
founded because it makes sense for business, she believes. With the growing
concerns about climate change, sustainability has now become even more
important, evolving into a main business driver and strategic imperative. www.philips.com

Lane, Guy:  A sustainability consultant, based in
Townsville, Queensland, Australia, he is the founder SeaO2, My Clean Sky, The
Funnel Exchange and author of “The Oil Price”. www.seao2.com

Lebbon, Tim: Company director,
speaker on sustainability for business and promoter of forest carbon credits
and clean tech investment. He is the founder of Carbon Value, which is a
significant part of the Australian and Singapore investment in the environment
sector for Tim, who is also the Chairman of Adelaide-based Leadenhall VRG Pty
Ltd. He has over twenty five years’ experience in consulting and corporate
advisory work and is an acknowledged expert on company valuations.  Tim is also a director Noble Investments,
Paragon Private Equity and chairman of Lowrie Constructions (WA) Pty Ltd.  www.leadenhall.com.au

Lee Chuan Seng, Chairman
of Beca Asia, Deputy Chairman Building & Construction Authority &
former President of the Singapore Green Building Council www.beca.com

Loosemore, Dr Martin:
Professor of Construction Management at the University of New South Wales,
Sydney, Australia. Principal Consultant Risk Management for Synergy Management
Consulting Group, co-author (with Bede Boyle) of “Climate Change and Corporate
Social Responsibility”. www.fbe.unsw.edu.au

Lowe, Professor:  President of the Australian Conservation
Foundation, emeritus professor of science, technology & society at Griffith
University, Brisbane, IPCC contributor, and author of dozens of books,
including “Living in the Hothouse”. www.acfonline.org.au

McCabe, Simon: Business
Relations Manager at Intelligent Pathways, Past State Manager, Audit &
Advisory Services at Carbon Planet. Member of the committee for the ‘Taking
Care of Business: Sustainable Transformation’ conference being organised by the
Association for Sustainability in Business. www.intelligentpathways.com.au

McCarthy, Daniel: President
& CEO of B&V Water and a member of the Black & Veatch Board of
Directors since 2005, oversees the company’s global water business. McCarthy
earned his Civil Engineering degree from Iowa State University in 1975 and his
Masters degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Kansas in 1982. He
currently serves as a board member of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of
Commerce, an advisory group member for the Singapore International Water Week
and chair of the Water Environment Federation International Program Committee.
McCarthy has presented at many global, regional and local conferences for the
water/wastewater industry, as well as at a wide range of business, civic and
political forums. www.bv.com

McIntosh, Professor
Malcolm:  Director, Asia Pacific Centre
for Sustainable Enterprise. An international leader in corporate social
responsibility (CSR) and sustainable enterprise. Malcolm pioneered the teaching
of corporate responsibility and sustainability in universities in the UK,
Japan, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
www.griffith.edu.au

Meloto, Antonio: Founder of
Gawad Kalinga (GK), promoting the “seeds of sustainability” in Philippines.
Tony Meloto was invited as one of the speakers in the APEC CEO Summit 2009 in
Singapore, attended by more than 800 of the world’s top business leaders headed
by US President Obama. GK was showcased as the global model of social
development consistent with the UN Millennium Development Goals that seeks to
reduce poverty by half by 2015. GK has transformed over 1700 poverty ridden and
crime-laden communities throughout the Philippines. Emerging as the Asian model
for community development and poverty alleviation, GK has provided successful
programme templates that have been replicated in Papua New Guinea, Indonesia
and Cambodia. www.gk1world.com

Metcalf, Louise:   Author of Leadership for Sustainability
Survey. Master of Applied Psychology Organisational, Member APS College of
Organisational Psychologists, Member of AHRI, APESM,  Director of Sydney based leadership and
sustainability consultancy, Pax Leader Labs. www.paxleaderlabs.org

Nakanishi, Hiroaki: President
Hitachi Ltd, Japan. The outspoken and energetic president of Hitachi, is
revitalizing the Japanese industrial powerhouse and confirming its sustainability
commitments in all its businesses around the world. www.hitachi.com

Narulla, Harveen:
Entrepreneur and thinker, founder of Greenpost, which has a vision for a
paperless future. It involves helping Singaporeans go paperless when receiving,
viewing and paying their bills. The qualified lawyer and law lecturer was a
former Parliamentary legislative assistant. www.gogreenpost.com

Ng, Jeanne: BSc, PhD,
Member of Sustainability Committee, Director Group Environmental Affairs, China
Light and Power, Hong Kong. www.clpgroup.com

Ong Seng Eng: Director
Waste Minimisation, formerly Director Energy Efficiency, for the National
Environment Agency (NEA), Singapore. Speaker at the National Sustainability
Conference, Singapore 2010. www.nea.gov.sg

Oustrup, Mette Kristine: CEO
of Qi Global and aQiver Goodwill Ambassador of Copenhagen. Organiser of Qi
2011, meeting of Asia’s best minds on design, innovation and sustainability. www.qi-global.com

Parkinson, Giles: Editor,
Climate Spectator, former Environment Writer for The Australian, former Deputy
Editor & Business Editor, Australian Financial Review (1995-2004). www.climatespectator.com.au

Patterson, Jennifer Lauber: A
specialist in environmental and energy markets with over 20 years’ experience
in the banking and energy sectors, she is head of Environmental Treasury
Solutions at National Australia Bank (NAB).
During her time in the energy industry, Jennifer held a number of senior
roles before transitioning to banking in 2004, taking up the position of
Director, Electricity, Emissions and Renewables at ANZ. She was responsible for
NAB commissioning a report by “Republic of Everyone” on how to “Build
Conversations Around a Low Carbon Economy”. Jennifer is also a non-executive
director of Yarra Energy Foundation and a non-executive director of Frontier
Carbon. www.frontier-carbon.net

Purves, Rob: Chairman,
Sustainable Business Australia and Board Member, WWF International; Member,
Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists; Director, Purves Environmental Fund;
Principal, RPG Management. www.sba.asn.au

Quirk, Robert: Advocate
and lecturer in sustainable agriculture, foundation chair of the Better Sugar
Cane Initiative (BSI), the global round table for sugar  formed by WWF and IFC to develop practices to
reduce the impacts of sugar cane growing. www.climatekelpie.com.au

Reithofer, Dr Norbert:
Chairman of the Board of Management, BMW. He affirms the company’s commitment
to sustainable mobility, including applications of cleaner fuels – electric and
hydrogen  – and fuel efficiency,
recycling and environment management.
BMW was selected as the automobile partner for the London Olympic Games
in 2012 because of its comprehensible and sustainable approach to mobility. BMW
is the only automaker among the members of the Sustainability Club for the
London Games.www.bmwgroup.com

Rose, Sir Stuart: Former
CEO & chairman of Marks & Spencers, who led the sustainability Plan A –
“there is no Plan B” – for the retailing giant. www.marksandspencer.com

Rosenthal, Hendrick: Project
Director Association for Sustainable and Responsible Investment in Asia
(ASrIA), Hong Kong.  www.asria.org

Rowe, Alison: Global
Executive Director Sustainability, Fujitsu. She is quoted as saying:
“Sustainability is in our DNA. Our sustainability journey dates back to 1938
with the creation of a parkland environment for our first factory and extends
to our long term policy taking us to 2100.”
www.fujitsu.com

Rowley, Nick: Director of
Kinesis consultancy, former advisor to British Prime Minister Tony Blair on
sustainability and climate change. For two years prior to the December 2009
UNFCCC meeting in Copenhagen, Nick was Strategic Director of the Copenhagen
Climate Council. He is a research associate at the Centre for Climate Economics
& Policy at Crawford School, Australia National University, Canberra. www.ccep.anu.edu.au

Schlein, Bruce: VP,
Corporate Sustainability, Citigroup, New York. He is also Adjunct Professor at
John Hopkins SAIS and previously Sustainability Manager, China and Romania at
Bechtel. www.citi.com

Schuster, Dr Sandra: Munich Re
research analyst, a meteorologist and Governor, WWF Australia. www.munichre.com

Shaw, Howard: Senior Vice
President, Corporate Social Responsibility, HALCYON Group, he was formerly the
executive director of the Singapore Environment Council (SEC). Howard was
actively involved in driving the environmental movement since 1995,
contributing towards shaping Singapore environmental policies and programs. He
was responsible for the development and administration of the Singapore
Environmental Achievement Awards, as well as the Singapore Green Labelling
Scheme. www.halcyoninvestcorp.com

Solsky, David: CEO and
co-founder of Carbon Systems. A passionate technology entrepreneur, he has
spent the past four years working locally and internationally to build the
company into a leader in the energy and carbon management sector. Sydney, Australia.
www.globalcarbonsystems.com

Stanton, Dean: Operated
BrandGreen Strategy Consultants, now Managing Director, Southeast Asia, Kleef
& Co. and Chief Strategy Officer, Ecopoint. www.ecopoint.asia

Stern, Nicholas:  World Bank Chief Economist from 2000 to 2003,
he was recruited to work for the British government, and appointed to conduct
reviews on the economics of climate change and also of development, which led
to the publication of the much respected Stern Review in 2006/7. www.lse.ac.uk

Strong, David: From 1998 to
2007 he was Managing Director of BRE Environment and between 2007 and 2010
Chief Executive of Inbuilt Consulting Ltd. Visiting Professor at the University
of Nottingham Department of Architecture and Built Environment. Chairman of the
Energy Efficiency Partnership for Homes and Chairman of Helianth Systems Ltd.
He was responsible for establishing the UK Green Building Council and was
awarded the Building Sustainability Leadership Award in 2007. www.davidstrong.co.uk

Suzuki, David: Canadian
environmentalist and long time activist to reverse global climate change,
co-founded the David Suzuki Foundation in 1990, to work “to find ways for
society to live in balance with the natural world that sustains us.” The
Foundation’s priorities are: oceans and sustainable fishing, climate change and
clean energy, sustainability, and Suzuki’s Nature Challenge. www.davidsuzuki.org

Swartz, Jeffrey: Timberland
CEO and President, has led the company on its sustainability journey. The
company has reduced its carbon emissions by 36% from 2006 to 2010 Swartz says:
“We’ve done this by lowering costs, making business more profitable and more
sustainable—proving that commerce and justice are not mutually exclusive, but
rather good business practice.” www.timberland.com

Tai Lee Siang: President
Singapore Green Building Council & former President of Singapore Institute
of Architects. www.sgbc.sg

Tan, Professor Leo:
Marine Biologist, Chair of the Garden City Fund, President of the Singapore
National Academy of Science, Vice Chair of the Singapore Environmental Council
and Chair of the Science Sub-Commission of the Singapore National Commission
for UNESCO. www.dbs.nus.edu.sg

Tay, Simon: Renowned
lawyer, political adviser and environmental policy expert, Professor Tay
teaches international law at the University of Singapore, and is Chairman of
the Singapore Institute of International Affairs . From 2002-08, he chaired the
National Environment Agency, the country’s major agency for environmental
protection. He was a Nominated Member of the Singapore Parliament (1997 – 2001)
and led public consultations on Singapore in the 21st century, the national
concept plan, and the Singapore Green Plan 2012. He is the author of a number
of non-fiction books, including “Asia Alone: The Dangerous Post-Crisis Divide
From Americas”, as well as fiction, the latest being “City of Small Blessings”.
www.siiaonline.org

Thomas, Andrea: Wal-Mart’
senior vice president of Sustainability. www.walmart.com

Thomas, Thomas: Executive
Director of Singapore Compact, promoting corporate social responsibility and
sustainability. He was formerly with Shell Oil and NTUC. www.csrsingapore.org

Thomas, Valerie: Associate
Professor conducts research in sustainability and holds the Anderson-Interface
Chair in Natural Systems at Georgia Tech www.gatech.edu

Thwaites, Professor John:
Chairman Monash Sustainability Institute and Chairman Climate Works Australia. www.climateworksaustralia.org

Tyndall, Lewis de Vere:
Managing partner and founder of Climate Roundtable, he advises and speaks on
domestic and international law and commerce, climate and carbon economy. www.climateroundtablecom.melbourneitwebsites.com

Vachon, Mark L:  A 28-year GE veteran and Corporate Officer,
leads ecomagination, GE’s sustainable business strategy that has invested $5
billion in clean tech research and development and generated $70 billion in
revenues in its first five years. Most recently, Mark served as President &
CEO of GE Healthcare’s $9 billion Americas Region, leading commercial
activities in the United States, Canada and Latin America.  www.ge.com

Visser, Wayne: Founder and
Director of the think-tank CSR International and the author/editor of twelve
books, and Senior Associate at the University of Cambridge Programme for
Sustainability Leadership. www.csrinternational.org

Warwick, Richard: Director
and Chairman of the Board of CLIMsystems Ltd. He is Professor of Climate Change
Adaptation at the University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia.
Recently retired from the International Global Change Institute (IGCI) at the
University of Waikato, New Zealand. www.climsystems.com

Whelan, Tensie: She serves
as the president of the US Rainforest Alliance, previously a board member, and
then later as a consultant, becoming the executive director in 2000. Working in
the environmental field for more than 25 years, she served with the National
Audubon Society and executive director of the New York League of Conservation
Voters. www.rainforest-alliance.org

Wills, Ray:  CEO, Sustainable Energy Association Australia
Perth & Adjunct Professor School of Earth and Environment, The University
of Western Australia. www.seaaus.com.au

Wright, Matthew: Executive
Director of climate solutions think tank Beyond Zero Emissions, an organisation
focused decarbonising the Australian economy. The organisation has a strategic
research collaboration with the University of Melbourne’s Energy Research
Institute. He has led the campaign to get support to enable Australia to shred
all reliance on oil, coal and gas and become entirely dependent on renewable
energy sources, mostly solar thermal, by the end of the decade. www.beyondzeroemissions.org

The first 100 Global Sustain Ability Leaders
list, which has been devised and produced by Ken Hickson, Chairman/CEO of
Sustain Ability Showcase Asia and ABC Carbon, is published first in the 150th
issue of abc carbon express (24 August 2011).
Nominations were invited through abc carbon express and received from
readers around the world. There is purposely no ranking or numbering of
individuals on the list, which is shown in alphabetical order based on
surnames.

Source: www.abccarbon.com

Germany’s Clean Energy Leadership

In the midst of severe economic and financial
constraints worldwide, and in particular in the European Union, Germany has
embarked on a courageous endeavour: Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Government has decided
to transform this industrialised nation of 82 million people from nuclear and
fossil fuel energy to renewable power within the next 40 years.

BY KLAUS-PETER KLAIBER in Canberra Times

17 Aug, 2011

In the
midst of severe economic and financial constraints worldwide, and in particular
in the European Union, Germany has embarked on a courageous endeavour:
Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Government has decided to transform this
industrialised nation of 82 million people from nuclear and fossil fuel energy
to renewable power within the next 40 years.

The Germans have been aware of the scarcity
of resources and the problems connected with nuclear energy for a long time. It
all started with the Yom-Kippur war in the Middle East in 1974 when the price of
oil rose from $US3 to $US12 a barrel.

Reacting to this sudden scare, the German
government decided with immediate effect that cars with number plates ending
with even numbers could only drive on even dates of the month; cars with number
plates ending with uneven numbers were only allowed on uneven dates. On four
Sundays in November 1974, the government imposed a complete ban on car travel.

This
development led to the emergence of new political movements and parties in a
number of German cities. These ”Alternative Lists” or ”Greens” stood for a
cleaner environment, car-free zones in city centres and against nuclear power.

This new political momentum quickly gathered
strength. In 1979, a ”Green List” successfully participated in elections to the
state parliament of Bremen.

In
1980, a federal party of ”the Greens” was founded in West Germany. Only three
years later, at the federal elections of 1983, they obtained more than 5 per
cent of the votes. Since then, the Greens have established themselves as a
respected party in Germany.

In the mid-1980s, another international event
strengthened the Green Party enormously. This was the nuclear reactor explosion
in Chernobyl in Ukraine in 1986. It confirmed the Greens’ view that nuclear
energy was a dangerous energy option. Ever since, big demonstrations and
sit-ins take place in Germany whenever a container of nuclear waste is being
transported from France to Gorleben in Germany, where the waste is being
stored. At the 1998 general elections, the coalition government of
Conservatives (CDU) and Liberals (FDP) lost its majority. The Social Democrats
(SPD) formed the new government with the Greens. The leader of the Greens,
Joschka Fischer, became deputy chancellor and foreign minister for the next
seven years. During that time, the government decided to phase out Germany’s
nuclear energy.

Since
2005, Germany’s government is again led by the Conservative CDU. However, at
the last general elections in 2009, the Greens recorded their best result,
polling 10.7 per cent of votes. Out of the 622 parliamentarians of the
Bundestag, the Greens hold 68 mandates. The party today has 56,000 members.
They stand for an ”ecological market economy”.

While
the Conservative Government decided in 2010 to extend the life span of the 17
nuclear reactors in Germany for between eight and 17 years, the tsunami in
Japan and the reactor catastrophe in Fukushima had a dramatic impact on German
perceptions of nuclear energy. Only a few days after the events in Japan,
Merkel’s Government decided to suspend the operation of the seven oldest
reactors. It set up an expert commission for global environmental changes. This
commission submitted its report last June.

One of its key sentences reads: ”The German
economic model is ethically unacceptable. We need a transformation towards
climate acceptability. The decarbonisation of world economy has to be
implemented quickly without nuclear energy and without coal.” Some observers
cynically noted that Germany seemed to be moving towards an eco-dictatorship.
It is not a minority of people demanding these changes, but a majority, led by
the Government. This change of perception is also exemplified by the result of
a state election in Baden Wrttemberg a short time after the nuclear reactor
disaster in Japan.

While the Conservatives retained the majority
of seats in parliament, the Green Party obtained 24.2 per cent of the votes and
was able to form a new government in coalition with the Social Democrats. The
third largest state in Germany with a population of 10.7million inhabitants and
a GDP of 330million euros a year, now has a Green leader.

In July of this year, Merkel’s Federal
Government took the following far-reaching decisions:

•Seven nuclear reactors will close with
immediate effect. The remaining 10 reactors will be closed in stages, the last
one in 2022;

•The share of renewable energy will double
from 17 to 35 per cent of Germany’s energy consumption in the next nine years;
it will reach 50 per cent in 2030, 65 per cent in 2040 and 80 per cent in 2050.
At the same time, CO2 emissions will be cut;

•New legislation on renewable energy puts the
main emphasis on the development of wind energy on land and offshore. Planning
and implementation of new wind farms will be accelerated;

•Legislation was put into place to strengthen
and enlarge the grids for the transport of renewable energy;

•Some new coal and gas power stations will be
built to fill the potential energy gap before renewables can take over;

•The Government will provide 1.5billion euros
for the ecological upgrading of buildings which are responsible in Germany for
around 40 per cent of the annual energy consumption, and;

•Two billion euros have been put aside for
research and development of electric cars.

What is most surprising is the fact the
Germans support this policy. They are prepared to pay higher energy prices to
make their country safer for future generations. The Germans now move far
beyond the targets set by the European Union which were already more ambitious
than targets set in most other countries.

Merkel has certainly taken the lead in Europe
and probably worldwide to reduce Germany’s dependence on nuclear and coal
generated energy. The future will tell whether this ambitious project can
succeed. If yes, she will be the first leader of an industrialised nation which
replaces nuclear and fossil fuel energy with renewable power.

•Dr Klaus-Peter Klaiber, a former German
ambassador to Australia, is a Visiting Fellow at the Centre for European
Studies, ANU.

Source: www.canberratimes.com.au

Fear & greed: The real energy challenge

US Energy Secretary Stephen Chu is fighting a
rear-guard action to save a new generation of clean technologies – such as
thin-film solar PV and new forms of solar thermal technologies. It’s curious to
see how left wing and right wing politics have fallen on either side of the
clean-tech divide, particularly in the US and Australia, says Climate
Spectator’s Giles Parkinson. It’s obviously different in the UK, where more than
90% of firms have met the first reporting deadline imposed by the Government’s Carbon
Reduction Commitment (CRC) scheme, providing detailed data on their carbon
footprint to the Environment Agency.

17 Aug 2011

Giles
Parkinson in Climate Spectator

At the end of the PBS documentary Power
Surge, there is a poignant moment when the camera crew visits the solar energy
museum in Dezhou, a former crumbling transport hub that is now known as China’s
“Solar City.”

One of the more popular displays at the
museum is a solar panel that had been installed by President Jimmy Carter on
the roof of the White House in 1979, just after he promised that the US would
source 20 per cent of its energy needs from renewables by the end of the
century.

The panels were torn down a few years later,
along with the rest of Carter’s renewables vision, by his successor Ronald
Reagan, with the vocal approval of the new president’s oil and coal industry
backers. The panel, along with a $100 billion solar PV industry that the US had
once hoped would be its own, ended up in Dezhou, at the heart of China’s Solar
Valley, the local cleantech equivalent of California’s Silicon Valley.

The Chinese can’t quite believe their luck –
and the display appears to be designed to be a potent symbol of lost
opportunity from its biggest economic rival, and one that Carter himself had
foreshadowed. “This solar heater can either be a curiosity, a museum piece, an
example of a road not taken, or it can be just a small part of one of the
greatest and most exciting adventures ever undertaken by the American people:
harnessing the power from the Sun,” he said at the time.

The Obama administration, and particularly
Energy Secretary Stephen Chu, is fighting another rear-guard action to save a
new generation of clean technologies – such as thin-film solar PV and new forms
of solar thermal technologies such as solar towers, along with a host of other
emerging cleantech options – from a similar fate.

Having lost the fight to introduce a carbon
price to the Republicans and its fossil fuel backers, the government is trying
to support those technologies with other mechanisms, such as loan guarantees
and tax credits. But these, too, are now under attack from the Tea
Party-controlled Congress and newly elected Republican governors.

It’s curious to see how left wing and right
wing politics have fallen on either side of the cleantech divide, particularly
in the US and Australia. In NSW, the Premier Barry O’Farrell has renewed his
distaste for wind farms. There has been virtually no new investment in electricity
generation in the state for years, but there is possibly $10 billion of wind
turbines in the pipeline. O’Farrell, who has also managed to bring the local
rooftop solar PV market to a crashing halt, said he hoped the wind farms would
never be built.

“None of this would be necessary if the
federal government hadn’t signed up to a 20 per cent renewable energy
target,” he told Macquarie Radio, before trying to pass off the comments
as his “personal views.” It even made the daily global wrap of France
broking house Mirabaud Securities, which among its headlines of solar, wind,
fuel cell and other cleantech investments across the globe, noted: “Australia’s
NSW premier Barry O’Farrell states he hopes the state does not give approval
for any more wind farms.” That must be what marketing people call positioning.

The fear of cleantech seems to have several
origins. Part of it is from the belief that there is no problem to solve in the
first place – no climate change, no limit on natural resources. Part of it
comes from the belief that, if there is a problem, then it is either too hard
or too costly to overcome. Part of it comes simply from the fear of change.

The Power Surge documentary that was
broadcast on SBS TV on Tuesday night had an interesting approach to the “too
hard, too costly” fear, and how to break down the energy task – to arrest the
emissions growth from soaring energy needs.

“It is easy to say, ‘Oh, the energy problem
is so big that we can’t possibly build enough wind turbines to solve it, we
can’t possibly do enough conservation to solve it,’ says Princeton University’s
Stephen Pacala. “So you break the problem into pieces and say, ‘What are the
technological options across the board that we have to throw at it?’”

Pacala has addressed the problem by creating
a triangle formed by the gap between what the world was going to do in terms of
emissions (business as usual) and what we must do, and split the challenge –
the carbon emissions that must be kept out of the atmosphere – into a series of
wedges. Instead of relying on one technology to avoid, say, seven billion
tonnes of emissions per year, maybe it could develop seven that could each
account for one billion.

Pacala estimates there are actually 15
technologies already in the marketplace at an industrial scale that could meet
the billion-tonne target, grouped around efficiency, renewables, carbon capture
and nuclear. Which of those were deployed, and to what extent, would be the
subject of individual country choice and opportunity: some may go more for
solar, some more for efficiency. The likelihood is that if one of the options
emerges as the “killer solution,” then it will dominate the other
technologies, as coal has done for the last century on the simple metric of
cost.

Dan Kammen, from the University of
California, Berkeley, tells the program that the carbon problem is actually
easily solvable. “What’s hard is that we need to make a lot of change in a
hurry,” he says. “We, more or less, have the coming four decades to recreate a
green version of the industrial revolution that’s taken us 150 years.” But as
Paul Alivisatos, the director of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory says:
“Technology save us from climate change?
I’m very convinced that it can. And, in fact, beyond that, what I would
say is that it’s an incredible opportunity for us to create all kinds of new
things.”

Source: www.climatespectator.com.au

By James Murray

Published August 16, 2011

Green Biz

More than 90 percent of firms have met the
first reporting deadline imposed by the Carbon Reduction Commitment (CRC)
scheme, providing detailed data on their carbon footprint to the Environment
Agency.

According to figures released yesterday by
the watchdog, 4,295 reports were lodged with the agency ahead of last month’s
deadline, out of an anticipated 4,549 organizations that are thought to face
CRC reporting obligations.

The result means that around 95 percent of
the companies and public sector bodies required to file official CRC carbon
reports have met the first reporting deadline.

The Environment Agency said that the reports
cover over 60 million tonnes of carbon emissions, equivalent to more than 10
percent of the U.K.’s total carbon footprint.

The high level of compliance was arguably
greater than had been anticipated given earlier reports that large numbers of
organizations were either unaware of the new rules or ill-prepared to report on
their carbon emissions.

“This is a new scheme for the UK, so we
are pleased that the vast majority of organizations required to submit a report
have done so by the deadline,” said Tony Grayling, head of climate change
and communities at the Environment Agency, in a statement.

He added that the high level of compliance
meant the agency was now well positioned to produce the first public CRC league
table in the autumn, which will rank companies based on their energy efficiency
performance.

A spokeswoman for the Environment Agency told
BusinessGreen that those organizations that failed to lodge an official report
detailing their energy use and carbon emissions ahead of the deadline would be
called on to comply with the rules as soon as possible or risk potential fines.

“We have sent warning letters to
non-compliant participants that they have failed to comply with the reporting
deadline and civil penalties may apply,” she said. “We will keep
under review and may decide to impose these penalties if they remain in breach
of the CRC Order.”

The CRC remains highly controversial, with a
number of business groups, including the CBI, leading calls for the government
to reverse its decision to scrap the original revenue recycling element of the
scheme, which was axed last autumn effectively turning the scheme into a carbon
tax.

Meanwhile, some green groups have also
criticised the scheme’s complexity, arguing that a simple carbon tax would
represent a less onerous means of driving investment in energy efficiency.

The government and the Environment Agency are
currently seeking feedback on the costs of complying with the CRC with a view
to simplifying the scheme, and are inviting participants to provide information
on their experiences through an online survey.

The deadline for registering responses to the
survey is the end of August.

This article originally appeared on
BusinessGreen and is reprinted with permission.

Source: www.greenbiz.com

South African CEOs Want Climate Change Outcomes

As the world grapples with climate change
challenges, a group of about 40 South African CEOs has formed a forum to work
with government at ministerial and director general level on policy issues to
help government ensure the success of the global Climate Change conference from
November 28 to December 9 in Durban. In 2012 the spotlight is on Brazil. Under the United
Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the World Congress on Justice, Governance
and Law for Environmental Sustainability (World Congress) will be organised to
support the Rio +20, so called because it will be held 20 years after the first
Earth Summit in Rio in 1992.

13 August, 2011 18:48

LUCKY BIYASE

Business Times (South Africa)

CEOs join climate change policy talks

As the world grapples with climate change
challenges, a group of about 40 South African CEOs has formed a forum to work
with government at ministerial and director general level on policy issues.

They will try to help government ensure the
success of the UN’s Framework Convention on Climate Change – dubbed the 17th
Conference of Parties (COP 17) – which takes place from November 28 to December
9 in Durban.

David Brown, CEO of Impala Holdings, who
heads the forum, alongside Eskom’s Brian Dames and Sasol’s David Constable,
said government is formulating policy on climate change and the forum hopes to
have a positive influence on the process.

“As a main economic driver, business
could be profoundly affected by the climate changes. This could have unintended
effects on job creation and poverty alleviation. If you mention carbon tax,
people tend to focus more because this involves rands and cents. So that is why
we want to be part of a response to climate change threats and at the same time
make sure that we don’t err as we go there,” he said.

Brown said the CEO forum wants to rid
business of the image of saying no to policy initiatives and rather be seen as
being a contributor.

“We see the need for SA to adapt to the
changing climate as this will certainly be problematic to our future
generations. We see a need for a strong partnership between government and
business. This will ensure that as we take a step towards the promulgation of
climate change legislation we make sure that business remains resilient and our
input at the COP 17 recognises this,” Brown said.

The COP is a set of international
environmental agreements crafted at the UN’s Conference on Environment and
Development (UNCED), held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.

One of these aims to stabilise greenhouse gas
concentrations in the atmosphere to prevent man-made influence on the climate
system.

Brown said the forum has held meetings with
the department of environmental affairs and the department of international
relations and co-operation.

“The meetings were held in good spirit.
What is equally encouraging is that they are held at the minister, director
general and CEO level, which strengthens the process by makng decision-making easier
and faster,” Brown said.

The forum is not replacing other business
organisations such as Business Unity SA and the Business Leadership SA.

“We are just a loose advocacy formation
of CEOs as we go to the COP 17 process. After COP 17 we will sit down again and
see what happens,” said Brown.

Source: www.businesslive.co.za

United Nations Conference on Sustainable
Development (Rio +20)

19 August 2011

World Congress to play key environmental role

Come June 2012, a highly significant event
will take place in Brazil. Under the United Nations Environment Programme
(UNEP), the World Congress on Justice, Governance and Law for Environmental
Sustainability (World Congress) will be organised to support the Rio +20, so
called because it will be held 20 years after the first Earth Summit in Rio in
1992.’

The World Congress will bring together
attorney-generals, prosecutors, auditor-generals, chief justices and senior
judges, as well as parliamentarians from around the world. They will deliberate
on a host of legal issues relating to environmental sustainability and
sustainable development. The outcome of the World Congress is potentially far
reaching. Countries take differing approaches to energy use and apply different
environmental standards. Understandably so, since the process is hostage to
individual commercial interests and is highly politicised.

But our environment is not just about
individual actions – it is about collective actions. The well-being and
sustainability of our Earth is in the collective interest of all nations. This
has long been recognised. The 1972 United Nations Conference on the Human
Environment in Stockholm formally declared that the environment, ‘the natural
and the man-made’ was ‘essential to the well being of mankind, to the enjoyment
of basic human rights, and to the right of life itself’.

The Earth Summit addressed the production of
toxic components, poisonous waste, alternative sources of energy to replace
fossil fuels, reduction of vehicle emissions, congestion, and the health
problems caused by polluted air and smog and the growing scarcity of water.
What followed was the establishment and execution of hundreds of multilateral
environmental agreements. But although ambitious in intent, these agreements
fell sadly well short when it came to implementation.One problem was that
countries lacked the capacity to deal with environmental issues. Without the
requisite skills or infrastructure, governance and law, attempts at reform and
enforcement for the benefit of an environmental cause are doomed to fail; there
will be more talk than action.

The need for the reform of international
environmental governance has been widely debated. There have also been broader
institutional reforms: The enhancement of the UNEP, establishing a new umbrella
organisation for sustainable development, reforming the United Nations Economic
and Social Council and the United Nations Commission on Sustainable
Development, enhancing institutional reforms and streamlining existing
structures.

But for full scale action at an international
level, we will need to start nationally. The wheel must first turn within
nations, each of which must play its own part in safeguarding the environment.
Only then can actions be coordinated across nations, and only then can there be
any hope for compliance with aspects of environmental law. Compliance is a key
element. Unless laws are subscribed to internationally, and enforced,
sustainable development will remain but a dream.

The upcoming World Congress in Brazil is
therefore one of the most crucial events for decades to come, if not for the
next century.

Source: www.uncsd2012.org

Mining & Shipping Impact Just What the Great Barrier Reef Doesn’t Need

Record numbers of turtles and dugongs have
been washing up dead and starving along the Queensland shoreline, prompting
warnings of an ecological disaster in the Great Barrier Reef. While extreme
weather and climate impacts are factors, it is facing a growing threat of
environmental damage from several multi-billion dollar mining projects
occurring on its doorstep. Unesco’s World Heritage Committee has expressed
‘extreme concern’ at the construction of a massive processing facility at
Curtis Island, near Gladstone, which will become one of the world’s biggest
hubs for natural gas exports.

Extreme weather, mining and port projects
blamed for record deaths of turtles and dugongs

Jonathan Pearlman, For The Straits Times 12
Aug 11;

SYDNEY: Record numbers of turtles and dugongs
have been washing up dead and starving along the Queensland shoreline,
prompting warnings of an ecological disaster in the Great Barrier Reef.

The turtles and dugongs – or sea cows – along
the reef are believed to be starving to death after a series of extreme weather
events destroyed their main food source, seagrass. Some think nearby mining
projects and a port expansion may also have destroyed some seagrass.

The Queensland government said 96 dead
dugongs have been found so far this year. Hundreds of turtles have also been
found, though official figures have not been released. Environmental sources
told The Straits Times that up to 1,500 dugongs and 6,000 turtles are expected
to die in the coming months.

The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority
said the loss of turtles and dugongs will be the worst on record. Most of the
carcasses have been found around Townsville and Gladstone, but experts said
this is ‘the tip of the iceberg’ and many more turtles and dugongs will have
died at sea.

‘What we have seen is just a snapshot of
what’s really going on,’ Dr Ellen Ariel, a turtle expert at James Cook
University, told The Straits Times.

‘We are aware of turtles that float up on
beaches where people find them, but there will be others that die and sink to
the bottom or are taken by predators. There are some pretty fat sharks out
there.’

Levels of seagrass along the coast are at
their lowest on record after the state was hit by a series of floods, heavy
rain and Cyclone Yasi in February. Seagrass tends to be highly delicate and can
take as long as 10 years to grow back.

The Queensland government, however, said the
dugongs are not under threat.

‘Our dugong population has been traditionally
very resilient and there’s no reason to believe they will not bounce back,’
said the state’s Environment Minister Vicky Darling.

The reef’s dugongs are listed as a vulnerable
species, meaning they risk becoming endangered under current environmental
conditions. The strange- looking herbivore, related to the Florida manatee, is
believed to be the source of the mermaid myth. The Great Barrier Reef has
provided a stable habitat for the dugong, which helped the region to gain its
listing as a World Heritage area in 1981.

Australia has the highest number of dugongs
in the world, with most in Western Australia and the Torres Strait. While the
50,000-odd dugongs in these waters are unlikely to be badly affected by
Queensland’s recent extreme weather, the 5,500 dugongs in the southern,
tourist-visited parts of the reef are now under threat.

Professor Helene Marsh, from James Cook
University, said many dugongs have died or will die in the coming months and
others will flock to safer waters, mainly to the north.

Asked whether the dugongs could be lost
entirely from the main section of the reef, Prof Marsh said she did not know,
but believed they will probably survive.

‘What is unprecedented is the extent of the
damage from the cyclone and the floods,’ she said. ‘Next year, there won’t be
any conceptions because the animals will be too skinny… In that region, I am
quite worried about the dugong’s future.’

The Great Barrier Reef is also facing a
growing threat of environmental damage from several multi-billion dollar mining
projects occurring on its doorstep.

Unesco’s World Heritage Committee has
expressed ‘extreme concern’ at the construction of a massive processing
facility at Curtis Island, near Gladstone, which will become one of the world’s
biggest hubs for natural gas exports.

Shipping traffic through the reef is set to
double in the next decade from current levels of 3,500 a year.

Environmental groups believe the recent
dredging work on Gladstone harbour to expand its port may have further
destroyed seagrass and led to more deaths of marine life.

Around the town of Gladstone, four dugongs,
three dolphins and more than 40 turtles have been found dead in recent months.

The Queensland government has launched an
inquiry into the Gladstone animal deaths but insisted that the development
adhered to stringent environmental requirements.

A Gladstone resident, Mr Clive Last, who
works on a privately-owned island near the town, came across a dead dugong on
Witt Island two weeks ago. He took five photographs and contacted Queensland
Parks and Wildlife.

He said he has lived in the area for 50 years
and believed the marine deaths cannot be explained merely by the recent poor
weather.

‘We never had this quantity of deaths before
the dredging,’ he said. ‘Something strange is going on.’

Source www.wildsingaporenews.blogspot.com

Dramatic Arctic & Antarctic Changes Over Last Two Decades

Melting permafrost sets up dangerous climate
scenario, says Polar scientist Michael Gooseff.
The Pennsylvania State University hydrologist works in remote regions of
the Arctic and Antarctic, where ice and frozen ground are thawing. Permafrost
itself holds about twice as much carbon as we currently have in the atmosphere.
Melt from this
frozen precipitation, as well as from older snowpack and glacier ice, is
happening faster and is more widespread than a decade ago.

August 12, 2011

Polar Scientist Charts Melting Caused by
Climate Change

Expects accelerated thawing to continue
unless greenhouse-gas emissions are reduced

Rosanne Skirble | Washington, D.C.

Voice of America

Photo: Michael Gooseff

Sparse snow patches in Taylor Valley
Antarctica may be an important source of moisture for soil ecosystems in this
extreme environment. .

Michael Gooseff follows water to the end of
the earth. The Pennsylvania State University hydrologist works in remote
regions of the Arctic and Antarctic, where ice and frozen ground are thawing.
He expects polar warming and melting to continue at an accelerating pace if no
significant reductions are made in climate-changing greenhouse-gas emissions.

At the annual convention of the Ecological
Society of America in Austin, Texas this week he posed this question: “How are
those polar systems responding to climate change?”

The answer is based on his on-going research
into how water crosses landscapes and what happens to it above and below
ground.

“In the northern regions, of course, we have
sea ice, but a smaller surface area than in the Antarctic where we have very
large ice sheets. And that actually plays into the differences in climate
change responses that we’re seeing at both of those places.”

According to Gooseff, the two regions also
differ widely geologically and ecologically. He says the Antarctic McMurdo Dry
Valleys station where he’s based “appears like a polar desert system with open
exposed soils, with no vascular plants at the surface and with glaciers coming
down from the mountains, whereas in northern Alaska, we have a lot of plants.
The tundra is actually dense with vegetation and very green.”

Michael Gooseff

Thawing permafrost creates a formation called
a thermokarst, which sends an overload of sediment and nutrients into streams
in the Western Brooks Range of Alaska.

Gooseff is documenting change over time, by
observing patterns in polar rivers, streams and lakes. He recalls a 2003 visit
to Alaska’s North Slope, when his team charted the course of an unusual muddy
stream.

“We
follow this up and finally we found a big gash in the hill slope essentially,
and all of this mud pouring out from underneath it.”

Here’s what had happened: A massive ice wedge
under the surface had melted, thawing the permafrost and causing the soil above
it to collapse. That created a deep gully in the hillside.

A study of historic aerial photos of the area
revealed that this dramatic change, as well as similar warming-induced changes
to 25 other landscape features, had occurred over just two decades.

Gooseff explains that as water moves through
these altered formations, it picks up sediment and nutrients normally locked up
in the permafrost. As that flows into rivers, it could affect fisheries and
coastal oceans.

The Toolik River thermokarst gully that
Michael Gooseff and colleagues discovered just after its formation in 2003.

Gooseff says the melting permafrost sets up
another dangerous climate scenario.  “As
we warm, we release more carbon, that carbon goes into the atmosphere,
contributes to more warming, contributes to more permafrost degradation and the
cycle sort of continues. In fact, permafrost itself is expected to hold about
twice as much carbon as we currently have in the atmosphere.”

At the opposite end of the earth, near the
McMurdo Dry Valleys station, Gooseff studies snow patches. Not much snow falls
in Antarctica, but what little there is collects in cool shady spots, behind
rocks and hills. These patches insulate the soil and may provide small amounts
of moisture for microbes below.

Gooseff says the melt from this frozen
precipitation, as well as from older snowpack and glacier ice, is happening
faster and is more widespread than a decade ago. The remote sensing devices his
research team has deployed are helping to track how that water moves across the
land.

“We expect that there are going to be
patterns in both time and space that will be somewhat predictable.”

Gooseff hopes his research of climate change
at the poles underscores the regions’ interconnectedness with a global climate
system that affects everyone on the planet.

Source: www.voanews.com

World Bank Cites Benefits from Deforestation & Reforestation Projects

World Bank reports say that despite
challenges and barriers, the reforestation and other forest carbon projects are
not only mitigating climate change by contributing to the storage of carbon
dioxide, they are also improving rural livelihoods, increasing resilience to
climate change, conserving biodiversity, and restoring degraded lands.
Meanwhile, First Growth Ventures, an Australian company developing significant
forest carbon assets through a public private partnership with provincial
governments, has been purchased by Carbon Value. It will continue with the
development of the existing projects in SE Asia and will look to expand its
Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) portfolio. Read
More

22 August 2011

Announcement

First Growth Ventures and Forest Carbon Assets

First Growth Ventures Pty Ltd (FGV), a
company developing significant forest carbon assets through a public private
partnership with provincial governments, has been purchased by Carbon Value Pty
Ltd. It will continue with the development of the existing projects in SE Asia
and will look to expand its Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and
Degradation (REDD) portfolio.

FGV is developing a programmatic approach to
forest carbon with the Government of the province of West Papua in Indonesia
for both the corporate social responsibility sector and the pre-compliance
market.

FGV has appointed as its Chief Executive
Officer Lewis Tyndall who will be running the operations of FGV from its Sydney
offices and looks forward to talking to companies or individuals interested in
the acquisition of carbon credits or REDD investments.

Before its purchase by Carbon Value, FGV was
a 100% owned subsidiary of First Growth Funds Limited group (ASX: FGF), which
was placed into administration on 17 July 2011.

Lewis Tyndall is a commercial and
environmental lawyer who has for many years owned, operated  and advised corporations in the environment
sector including being the founder of Climate Roundtable Pty Ltd. Lewis has
expertise in international carbon markets and in particular  the nascent but critical forest carbon
mechanisms being developed and accessed by rainforest nations globally.

About Carbon Value Pty Ltd:

Carbon Value Pty Ltd is a significant part of
the Australian and Singapore investment in the environment sector for Tim
Lebbon, who is also the Chairman of Adelaide-based Leadenhall VRG Pty Ltd. He
started the consultancy practice of Leadenhall in 1982 and has over twenty five
years’ experience in consulting and corporate advisory work. Tim is also a
director Noble Investments, Paragon Private Equity and chairman of Lowrie
Constructions (WA) Pty Ltd.

Website: www.leadenhall.com.au/Carbon_Value.htm

For the full Carbon Markets Report (June
2011) by the World Bank, go to www.carbonfinance.org

See
also a Special Report by David Fogarty for Reuters entitled Indonesia’s Jungle
Fumble http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/16/us-indonesia-carbon-idUSTRE77F0IK20110816

Reforestation Projects Bring Carbon Revenues
And Co-Benefits To Poor Communities

Project rules and processes need to improve,
says World Bank report

Marrakesh, July 5, 2011 – Carbon markets can
successfully bring revenue to poor rural communities through reforestation
projects but the processes involved need reform and improvement. That is the
conclusion of a World Bank report released today which draws on seven years of
experience of afforestation and reforestation (A/R) projects in 16 developing
countries under the World Bank’s BioCarbon Fund (BioCF).

The report, released at the Africa Carbon
Forum in Marrakesh, Morocco, finds that A/R projects in developing countries
face numerous regulatory, capacity, finance and land tenure issues. Despite
these barriers, the projects are not only mitigating climate change by
contributing to the storage of carbon dioxide, they are also improving rural
livelihoods, increasing resilience to climate change, conserving biodiversity,
and restoring degraded lands.

“Since 2004, the World Bank’s BioCarbon
Fund has built one of the largest portfolios of afforestation and reforestation
projects under the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM),” said Joëlle
Chassard, Manager, Carbon Finance Unit of the World Bank. “When analyzing the
most efficient mitigation opportunities in developing countries, it is
important to look toward the future while taking stock of what has worked and
what has not. This report provides lessons for all involved – project
developers, validators, regulators, and national authorities”

The BioCF is a public-private initiative
mobilizing resources for projects that sequester or conserve carbon in forest-
and agro-ecosystems. To date, the Fund has contracted 8.6 million emission
reductions from 21 projects, most of which are on degraded lands.  More than half of the projects involve
planting trees for the purpose of environmental restoration. It demonstrates that
land-based activities can generate emission reductions with strong
environmental and socio-economic benefits for local communities. The report,
The BioCarbon Fund Experience – Insights from Afforestation andReforestation
CDM Projects, documents lessons from the early years of implementing A/R
projects in developing countries.

It finds that these types of projects have
proven challenging to develop and implement. Complex rules for designing CDM
projects are among the obstacles, as is land eligibility and non-permanence.
Non-permanence, for example the risk that trees burn down and thus lose their
carbon stock, is currently addressed through temporary crediting, which can
limit the demand for forest carbon assets. The report suggests a number of
improvements that could make the implementation of these projects easier for
project developers and government officials.

“Implementing one of the first afforestation
and reforestation projects in Africa was a real challenge,” says Hailu Tefera,
Manager of Climate Change Programs at World Vision Ethiopia. “We started
developing our tree planting project in 2005 and it took four years to get to
CDM registration. It was not easy but well worth the effort and we now hope
that others can avoid the pitfalls that slowed us down and implement similar
projects – maybe even scaled up – all across our continent”.

The first A/R project was registered in China
in November 2006. However, it was not until 2009 that more projects followed. A
number of issues contributed to the slow start – the rules under the CDM were
defined later than projects in other sectors and methodologies for forestry
projects were complex and unclear. It took both time and funding to develop the
tools required to facilitate their application. Over time, the CDM Executive
Board simplified the rules, but adapting to such changes also proved to be a
challenge for project developers.  The
report says that even now, rules will require further simplification to
significantly scale up A/R projects under the CDM.

A/R projects are now being developed at a
faster pace with almost 50 in the pipeline, building on lessons learned,
established methodologies and tools. Today, 27 A/R CDM projects are registered
with the UNFCCC; 13 of them were developed with the support of the BioCF and,
of these, four are in Africa.

Some African countries are driving the
development of A/R CDM projects. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Ibi
Batéké reforestation project is set to absorb close to 1.6 million tons of

carbon dioxide between 2008 and 2037. Also with the support of the BioCF,
Africa’s first large-scale reforestation project on Humbo mountain in
Ethiopia’s Great Rift Valley was developed and is now looking to be scaled up.

In Moldova, the BioCF s supporting two A/R
projects where local farmers are restoring about 30,000 hectares of severely
degraded communal and public lands through soil conservation, sustainable
timber production, reducing soil erosion and enhancing plant biodiversity. The
projects are creating jobs while lowering greenhouse gas emissions that will
generate carbon credits.

“These projects provide a great
‘learning-by doing’ example of the benefits of close cooperation between
various stakeholders: international institutions such as the World Bank, local
and regional forest enterprises, Moldova’s Forest Research and Management
Institute, townships and local communities,” said Mr. Anatolie Pupoşoi,
General Director of the Forestry Agency Moldsilva.

For more information on the World Bank’s
carbon finance activities and the electronic version of this report, please
visit the website: www.carbonfinance.org

For more information on the BioCarbon Fund
please visit:

http://wbcarbonfinance.org/Router.cfm?Page=BioCF&ItemID=9708&FID=9708

Source: www.worldbank.org

Greening Manufacturing Sector and Public Housing Energy Test-Bed

Singapore’s Minister for the Environment and
Water Resources Dr Vivan Balakrishnan launched a new training programme to
green the Republic’s manufacturing sector. The new initiative would help spread
critical knowledge to a large number of professionals within the sector and is
jointly developed by the Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMa) and the
Workforce Development Agency (WDA). Businesses will be elegible for a 400 per
cent tax deduction on training costs under the government’s Productivity and
Innovation Credit scheme. Meanwhile, Panasonic and the government of Singapore are
working to create Asia’s first public-housing test bed for technology designed
to provide total energy solutions and, ultimately, link to a smart grid.

Published : Friday, August 12th, 2011

By : Jenny Marusiak

In eco-business.com

Singapore’s Minister for the Environment and
Water Resources Dr Vivan Balakrishnan has launched a new training programme to
green the Republic’s manufacturing sector.

Speaking at the annual Singapore
Environmental Achievement Awards (SEAA), where five local organisations were
commended for their efforts in sustainability, Dr Balakrishnan said the new
initiative would help spread critical knowledge to a large number of professionals
within the sector.

The scheme is jointly developed by the
Singapore Manufacturing Federation (SMa) and the Workforce Development Agency
(WDA). Businesses will be elegible for a 400 per cent tax deduction on training
costs under the government’s Productivity and Innovation Credit scheme.

SMa said the new three unit programme,
‘Implement Sustainable Manufacturing’, will help managers evaluate and improve
the sustainability of their operations and supply chains, as part of a series
of courses on manufacturing. The course will be offered by the end of this year
and is expected to involve about 200 professionals over two years.

SMa president George Huang said the
federation is offering the training courses to encourage its 2,800 members to
improve productivity and reduce their environmental footprint at the same time.

“We hope our lead will inspire our members
and others to do more for the environmental cause,” he added.

Mr Huang noted that being ISO certified (by
the International Standards Organization) is now a basic requirement in the
international manufacturing arena, and that overseas buyers wanted to see that
environmental policies are in place. “Being green will be a requirement,” he
said.

Last month, SMa and WDA celebrated the
achievements of the Certified Productivity and Innovation (CPI) programme, a
project-led coaching initiative based on the globally recognised Lean
Manufacturing and Six Sigma operating standards. The average productivity
increase for the ten companies participating in the scheme was 15 per cent over
six months. The CPI scheme now has 35 members and is well on its way to its
target of 50 members over two years.

The success of the CPI scheme led to the
introduction of a scaled-down version targeted at small and medium –sized
enterprises (SMEs), called SME Qiang or “SME Quality Initiative to Assist and
Nurture Growth” programme.

SMa’s secretary-general Gwee Seng Kwong told
Eco-Business that the SMa/WDA formula for training, coaching and implementation
of better management practices was proving extremely successful and that chief
executives and other high level managers were active participants. He added
that based on positive feedback from clients, SMa has raised its targeted
number of participants in the Qiang programme from 200 to 500.

“Our challenge is to educate SMEs to embrace
the notion of going green, because it’s no longer a luxury. It’s survival now,”
said Mr Gwee.

Singapore’s manufacturing sector has slightly
more than 8,100 companies, 90 per cent of which are SMEs.

One of Singapore’s leading SMEs on
sustainability issues is GreenPac, a homegrown company that provides
environmentally-friendly packaging to industries world-wide. GreenPac won
yesterday’s SEAA Top Achiever award for the manufacturing sector.

Dr Balakrishnan said at the awards, held at
the Shangri-la hotel, that companies would face increasing resource constraints
in the near future and that businesses that differentiate themselves through
sustainable management would have a competitive advantage over those that do
not.

He also commended the other winners,
including Temasek Polytechnic (TP), which won the Top Achiever award for its
contributions within the services sector.

TP’s 30 hectare campus serves as a model for green buildings and boasts sustainability features such as rainwater harvesting, an in-house energy management system, a certified-green data centre, and the use of recycled water for its cooling towers and irrigation. The institution also supports clean energy research and development (R&D) through a partnership with Singapore’s Economic Development Board (EDB). Through its conservation measures, TP has saved about S$1.7 million on energy costs and S$105,000 on water costs annually.

Mr Lee Peng Hon, acting executive director of
SEC, said in a statement, “It is encouraging to observe how Temasek Polytechnic
and Greenpac have successfully demonstrated the adoption of environmental
sustainability with their core businesses. These SEAA Top Achievers are also
making a difference by driving the adoption of environmental sustainability to
global and local communities.”

Singapore technology firm HydroBall Technics
won the SEC-Senoko Energy Green Innovation Award for the HydroBall System, an
internationally patented automated cleaning system for air-conditioning tubes
in commercial and industrial buildings. Merit awards were presented to power
plant operator PowerSeraya and to international technology firm Seagate.

The awards were hosted by the Singapore
Environment Council (SEC), SMa and Singapore energy company Senoko Energy, with
additional support from the National Environment Agency, national water agency
PUB and WDA.

Mr Lee told Eco-Business the awards are first
and foremost meant to reward leadership, but also innovation, performance and
system and management. This year the awards have expanded to reward companies
who show high levels of transparency and sustainability reporting, he added.

It’s not just simply saving electricity and
water, said Mr Lee: “To help a company enhance itself we look at changing the
mindset and implanting sustainability into the management system.”

Source: www.eco-business.com

Panasonic to Run Asia’s First Green Home
Energy Project

By Leslie Guevarra

Published August 11, 2011Green Biz

Panasonic and the government of Singapore are
working to create Asia’s first public-housing test bed for technology designed
to provide total energy solutions and, ultimately, link to a smart grid.

The plan involves a block of public housing
units in Punggol Eco-Town. Singapore wants to transform the former fishing and
farming village into the country’s first green community, and last year it
began remaking the town as a living laboratory for green technology.

In Singapore, public housing is open to the
middle class, and more than 80 percent of residents live in
government-developed housing. A pilot in such an environment is expected to
provide a good example of how effective sweeping energy-saving systems would be
among the general public.

Panasonic is providing the technology for the
project, which is expected to be one of several — involving a variety of
companies — that will seek to address better management of energy and water
use, pollution and carbon emissions, as well as the evolution of a smarter grid,
transportation and buildings — a scenario that illustrates the concept of
VERGE.

The total energy solutions pilot, which is
scheduled to be underway by year’s end and conclude in 2013, will feature
solar, storage and efficiency systems from Panasonic including:

•Solar
Power: Rooftop photovoltaic panels are to power building services like
elevators, lighting and water pumps. The goal is to bring the commonly operated
areas as close to zero emissions as possible.

•Energy Storage: Lithium-ion batteries will
enable energy from the solar power system to be stored for use at night.

• Smart Meters, Monitoring and Demand
Response: By connecting government-owned smart meters to Panasonic’s Home
Energy Management System and its Smart Energy Gateway, residents will have an
in-home tool to help them reduce energy use and ease their draw on the power
grid during times of peak demand.

Panasonic’s President Fumio Ohtsubo and other
executives outlined the plan earlier this month. Here is a video clip of their
presentation:

Panasonic’s push into home energy management
comes as IT giants Google, Microsoft and Cisco are backing away from the
market. The move is the latest effort by Panasonic in a campaign to become the
top green innovator in electronics by 2018, when the company celebrates its
100th anniversary.

Source: www.greenbiz.com

Pacific Swamps Nauri & Sri Lanka Faces Up to Climate Impacts

A message from Marcus Stephen, Nauru’s
President: Nauru’s coast, the only habitable area, is steadily eroding, and
communities in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands have been forced to
flee their homes to escape record tides. The low-lying nations of Tuvalu,
Kiribati and the Marshall Islands may vanish entirely within our grandchildren’s
lifetimes. And in the Indian Ocean, the nation of Sri Lanka, also threatened by
climate impacts, a major community project has been launched to help change the
attitudes towards climate change and its effects.

On Nauru, a Sinking Feeling

By MARCUS STEPHEN

Published: July 18, 2011 New York Times

Yaren, Nauru

Op-Ed Contributor: Life After Land (July 19,
2011)

I FORGIVE you if you have never heard of my
country.

At just 8 square miles, about a third of the
size of Manhattan, and located in the southern Pacific Ocean, Nauru appears as
merely a pinpoint on most maps — if it is not missing entirely in a vast
expanse of blue.

But make no mistake; we are a sovereign
nation, with our own language, customs and history dating back 3,000 years.
Nauru is worth a quick Internet search, I assure you, for not only will you
discover a fascinating country that is often overlooked, you will find an
indispensible cautionary tale about life in a place with hard ecological limits.

Phosphate mining, first by foreign companies
and later our own, cleared the lush tropical rainforest that once covered our
island’s interior, scarring the land and leaving only a thin strip of coastline
for us to live on. The legacy of exploitation left us with few economic alternatives
and one of the highest unemployment rates in the world, and led previous
governments to make unwise investments that ultimately squandered our country’s
savings.

I am not looking for sympathy, but rather
warning you what can happen when a country runs out of options. The world is
headed down a similar path with the relentless burning of coal and oil, which
is altering the planet’s climate, melting ice caps, making oceans more acidic
and edging us ever closer to a day when no one will be able to take clean
water, fertile soil or abundant food for granted.

Climate change also threatens the very
existence of many countries in the Pacific, where the sea level is projected to
rise three feet or more by the end of the century. Already, Nauru’s coast, the
only habitable area, is steadily eroding, and communities in Papua New Guinea
and the Solomon Islands have been forced to flee their homes to escape record
tides. The low-lying nations of Tuvalu, Kiribati and the Marshall Islands may
vanish entirely within our grandchildren’s lifetimes.

Similar climate stories are playing out on
nearly every continent, where a steady onslaught of droughts, floods and heat
waves, which are expected to become even more frequent and intense with climate
change, have displaced millions of people and led to widespread food shortages.

The changes have already heightened
competition over scarce resources, and could foreshadow life in a world where
conflicts are increasingly driven by environmental catastrophes.

Yet the international community has not begun
to prepare for the strain they will put on humanitarian organizations or their
implications for political stability around the world.

In 2009, an initiative by the Pacific Small
Island Developing States, of which I am chairman, prompted the United Nations
General Assembly to recognize the link between climate change and security. But
two years later, no concrete action has been taken.

So I was pleased to learn that the United
Nations Security Council will take up the issue tomorrow in an open debate, in
which I will have the opportunity to address the body and reiterate my
organization’s proposals.

First, the Security Council should join the
General Assembly in recognizing climate change as a threat to international
peace and security. It is a threat as great as nuclear proliferation or global
terrorism. Second, a special representative on climate and security should be
appointed. Third, we must assess whether the United Nations system is itself
capable of responding to a crisis of this magnitude.

The stakes are too high to implement these
measures only after a disaster is already upon us. Negotiations to reduce
emissions should remain the primary forum for reaching an international
agreement. We are not asking for blue helmets to intervene; we are simply
asking the international community to plan for the biggest environmental and
humanitarian challenge of our time.

Nauru has begun an intensive program to
restore the damage done by mining, and my administration has put environmental
sustainability at the center of our policymaking. Making our island whole again
will be a long and difficult process, but it is our home and we cannot leave it
for another one.

I forgive you if you have never heard of
Nauru — but you will not forgive yourselves if you ignore our story.

Marcus Stephen is the president of Nauru.

Source: www.nytimes.com

Sunday Observer, Sri Lanka, (14 August 2011)

Kelani Nadee Yathra:

A journey for climate justice

By Dhaneshi YATAWARA

Nature has no boundaries. It never laid
boundaries for countries and regions. What happens to nature in one country
could affect the entire earth. All of us are siblings of the earth whether black
or white, Western or Asian.

Located between 6-10 degrees of the north
latitude and between 80-82 degrees of the east longitude, the pearl of the
Indian ocean – Sri Lanka is becoming a victim of climate change too.

Scorching heat, irregular rain patterns,
increase in vector borne diseases with bizarre names are becoming quite common
and yet never was it realised that climate change, global warming has a part to
play. Climate change impacts become significant through vector ( specially
mosquitoes) and rodent borne diseases, food and water borne diseases, changes
in nutritional levels and many other environment related health disorders.

Rather than safeguarding ourselves and
preparing to face the possible fiasco we prefer to sit and watch while blaming
the developed world for their higher carbon emissions. Fortunately Sri Lanka is
one of the countries which emits carbon less than 1 metric ton. According to
recent statistics carbon emitted by Sri Lanka is around 0.6 metric tons whereas
the world average is 4.5 metric tons and in USA alone carbon emission per person
is 25 metric tons.

The ‘Kelani Nadee Yathra’ A journey to raise
awareness on adversities of climate change will take place from August 15-29
organized by eco friendly Volunteers. Twenty young nature enthusiasts, between
the age of 18-20 will start the journey for climate justice from Nallathanniye
on ‘Sripada’ (Adam’s peak) and will be trekking, floating and cycling along the
Kelani river.

Eco Friendly Volunteers is a non-profit
organisation to conserve nature. The Provincial Environment Ministry of the
Western Province, UN Volunteers and the Sri Lanka Scout Association jointly
supports the endeavour. Among the volunteers are rehabilitated ex-LTTE military
cadres who are now enjoying their lives with their families.

“The community project will help change the
attitudes towards climate change and its effects,” on nature at grassroots
level, said Western Province Minister of Environment Udaya Gammanpila. “Many
people are not aware that climate change is one of the main reasons for
agricultural, health and climatic problems we face,” Minister Gammanpila said.
Highlighting the importance of choosing Kelani river minister Gammanpila said
that with the rise in sea water levels more salt water tend to flow inland thus
making the water of the river unusable. “Extracting river sand despite the ban
and limitations imposed on the trade has aggravated the situation,” he added.

Western Province Minister of Environment
Udaya Gammanpila addressing the media conference

The salt water has caused irreparable damages
to arable lands at certain locations along the Kelani river.

“Climate change has not been properly
discussed at grass rootlevels. People need to understand how to change their
lifestyles and adopt strategies in their day-to-day life to mitigate the impact
of climate change,” said President of the Eco Friendly Volunteers (Eco-V)
Kanchana Weerakoon.

“We need to educate the younger generation
how to adapt eco-friendly habits. It is high time that a national awareness
campaign is launched to enlighten people on climate change rather blaming the
developed world for their higher carbon emission,” Weerakoon said.

Weerakoon said sensitivity of the community
towards environment issues should be elevated and the best way to educate the
younger generation and develop these skills. “We hope to enlighten
policy-makers by bringing to their notice issues among communities. Kelani
Nadee Yathra highlights these issues among the residents along the Kelani river
which is polluted by human activities.

Armed with Sri Lankan youngsters the Scout
Association Colombo District branch joins hands with Eco-V into this group of
Samaritans. “Scouts enjoy the outdoor life for over 100 years and have always
considered environment as a key part in the success of an individual,” said the
Assistant District Commissioner of the Colombo District Scouts Darshana
Ranathunga. “Hikers would stop at the Salawa Camp in Kosgama of the Scout
Association on August 25 and several programs will be conducted before leaving
to Wattala to end the journey,” Ranathunga said.

This camp site located along the Kelani river
is providing the scouts a place to enjoy nature and outdoor life, he added.

For the scouts it is also the Scout Centres
for Excellence for Nature and Environment. Sir Robert Baden Powell, the founder
of the Scout Movement said “For those who have eyes to see and ears to hear,
the forest is at once a laboratory, a club and a temple. The UN Volunteers
supports the Eco-V effort as 2011 is the UN year for volunteers. Representing
UN Volunteers Fadhil Bakir Marker said it is high time to appreciate and
recognize the hard work of volunteers.

Starting a long walk the ‘Kelani Nadee
Yathra’ will start the campaign from the ‘Sama Chaithyaya’ in Siripada and
journey along the Kelani river. The Eco-V targets communities to live along
Kelani River, people in Sri Lanka and later the Asia_Pacific region as a
post-project activity. The whole travel will be done as segments with
stop-overs by bus, bicycles and on foot at pre determined places. Once the
journey starts several awareness workshops for the respective communities with
presentations, film shows and discussions will be organised at seven different
stations where the trekkers will be camping overnight. The tree planting
campaigns at which 100 trees will be planted at each stop will be organised at
those stations with the support of local governmental agencies.

Energy saving bulbs and water saving tips
will be introduced at the same stations where local environmental groups can
continue promoting them even after. Final day gathering will be held at
Kelaniya Temple where experience will be shared with the government officers,
and various stakeholders.

All the participants and organisers will
maintain an environmental friendly lifestyle during the river campaign and the
carbon footprint will be minimized. Local environmental groups will be
empowered by sharing information.

A community action plan and a final report of
the outputs will be prepared by the youth group with the support of ECO-V and
will be presented to the higher government authorities. Each youth traveller
should initiate a project related to climate change issues at local level and
the best project will be selected and rewarded. According to Weerakoon
necessary guidance and support will be given by Eco-V to the travellers.

Source: www.sundayobserver.lk