internationalpolicydigest In less than 200 days, the world is expected to agree upon a new climate protocol which will succeed the Kyoto protocol and govern the global climate regime post 2020. In investigating Africa’s stake in this global compact, the continents priorities within the context of available developmental and negotiating mechanisms should be considered given the vulnerability of this region to climate change impacts as attested by the latest scientific reports especially the 2nd Africa Adaptation Gap report. Aside INDCs, SDGs and Africa’s Agenda 2063 Aside from Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) which would form the basis of negotiating the new climate deal in Paris, the adoption of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which hold much promise for Africa, as the global blue print for development post 2015 will constitute another key determinant of Africa’s policy priorities. Parity between Adaptation and Mitigation A framework for Defining Africa’s Priorities
Exiting The Anthropocene and Entering The Symbiocene. | glennaalbrecht Exiting The Anthropocene It has been proposed that humans are now living within a period of the Earth’s history appropriately named ‘The Anthropocene’ (Crutzen and Stoermer 2000). The name is derived from the observed human influence and indeed dominance of all climatic, biophysical and evolutionary processes occurring at a planetary scale. The issue is not simply climate change (as bad as that is) it is the whole Capitalist development paradigm that is at the dark heart of mal-development; that is, development that undermines and destroys the very foundations of all life on Earth. Gone is the relative stability and predictability of the past 12,000 years as the established patterns and regularity of Holocene phenology begin to fall into chaos. In the Anthropocene, the so-called ‘new normal’, or what I prefer to conceptualise as ‘the new abnormal’, life will be characterised by uncertainty, unpredictability, genuine chaos and relentless change. Entering The Symbiocene Sumbiocracy
Resilience Alliance - Adaptive Cycle The model of the adaptive cycle was derived from the comparative study of the dynamics of ecosystems. It is meant to be a tool for thought. It focuses attention upon processes of destruction and reorganization, which are often neglected in favor of growth and conservation. Traditionally ecology has focused on the concept of succession that describes the transition from a time when exploitation (i.e., the rapid colonization of recently disturbed areas) is emphasized to a time when conservation (i.e., the slow accumulation and storage of energy and material) is emphasized. Our current understanding of ecological dynamics however indicates that two additional functions - release and reorganization - are needed. An adaptive cycle that alternates between long periods of aggregation and transformation of resources and shorter periods that create opportunities for innovation, is proposed as a fundamental unit for understanding complex systems from cells to ecosystems to societies. Holling, C.
Climate change will see parts of cities under water - Robinson Many people living along the coast of cities could find their homes under water with even a moderate sea-level change, former president Mary Robinson has warned. The United Nations special envoy for climate change said it was predicted 200 million people could be climate displaced people by the end of the century. “And, if we are not careful, by 2050,” she said. “We are talking about the fact that an awful lot of people live on the coast in parts of cities will be under water if sea levels rise by even a fairly moderate amount. The former president said although the global goal was stay below 2 degrees, scientists had told her the earth was on course for 4 degrees over this time frame. Ms Robinson said families in the Pacific Islands were faced with a “real threat to their existence” because of climate change. “I see communities faced every day with the erosions of their gardens, of their walls,” she said. She said a 4-degree rise would be “catastrophic” if it happened.
Darwin's Wedge & Dumb Competition | Errors We Live By “Competition creates efficiency,” is preached as if it were a law of nature. But nature itself teaches a different lesson. Biological competition can create foolish costs, and collective doom. “Darwin’s Wedge” shows why and reminds us of the point of being human. Our competitions, and the myopic logic of free markets, needn’t be dumb as trees. “Tree trunks are standing monuments to futile competition” says Richard Dawkins. What can market lovers learn from nature's competitions? A $62 billion monument to “futile competition” exists in healthcare. Robert Frank coined “Darwin’s Wedge” to describe situations where individual incentives diverge from collective goals (sometimes even risking collective doom). Competition’s benefits arise from the constraints it creates. Illustration by Julia Suits, The New Yorker Cartoonist & author of The Extraordinary Catalog of Peculiar Inventions.
Portland Plan See how the plan’s actions and the City and partners’ strategic investments can transform our community – from our schools and neighborhoods, to jobs and the environment. Resilience 2014: Limits revisited? Planetary boundaries, justice and power - STEPS By Melissa Leach, IDS Director In 1972 Meadows et al’s Limits to Growth made scientific and policy waves, as its ‘World3’ model predicted the end of growth and prosperity as rising, consuming populations ran up against resource limits. In critique, SPRU (Science and Technology Policy Research) at the University of Sussex offered alternative models predicting that human ingenuity and innovation would overcome scarcities. Meanwhile an alternative Latin American World Model from Fundacion Bariloche in Argentina argued that a desirable social future ‘based on equality and full participation of all its members ….intrinsically compatible with its environment’ could be achieved using proven human creativity, but also requiring transformation in social and institutional organisation, and relations of power. Today, the idea of ‘green limits’ to development is resurfacing in the concept of‘Planetary boundaries’. Planetary boundaries – science and policy Integrating power and politics About boundaries
A New Economic System for a World in Rapid Disintegration (Photo: Antoine Collet; Edited: LW / TO) We live in ominously dangerous times. The world capitalist system -- having fueled colonialism, imperialism and the constant intensification of labor power exploitation for roughly 500 years -- now threatens the planet with an ecological collapse of unprecedented proportions. Simultaneously, the phenomenon of global warming, driven mainly by the dynamics and contradictions of a fossil-based economy, has prepared the soil for the eruption of new sources of conflict with the manifestation of historically unique destabilizing social forces. Nonetheless, the catastrophic scenario sketched out behind the operations of global capitalism does not merely represent the other side of a wild socio-economic system bent on constant and abstract growth in pursuit of ever greater rates of profit. Corporate Capitalism and Social Disintegration Yet, the choice between "barbarism or socialism" has never been clearer. Rethinking "Development" and "Progress"
UW Urban Design and Planning Green Fiji framework THE government made a bold move on June 13 this year when it launched its green growth framework (GGF). It was a step into the untried, untested and largely unknown in policy making. But the objectives were noble, and the intentions profound. The idea of green growth is not new. What is the GGF? So what is the GGF and why is it so important? Put simply, it is an attempt to link the economic development of the country with environmental concerns in the hope of sustaining the environment while enjoying the trappings of economic prosperity. The focus is on economic development and the effect it invariably has on the environment. Where did the idea come from? Talk about sustainable economic development has been continuing for a long time. * promotes the development of green economies in the context of sustainable development and poverty alleviation; * encourages all countries to develop their own green economies. The GGF's structure GFF's unique features Several features of the GGF are unique.
Understanding Reductionist vs. Holistic Thinking | The Weiler Psi Reductionist thinking rules the world. Without it, technology and the progress that comes with it would not have occurred and we would have very little in the way of sciences. The modern world as we know it would not exist without the technical marvels that come from putting pieces together in novel ways to create often spectacular new inventions, many of which change our lives in profound ways. Reductionist thinking works perfectly for this: Which is made from this: A car is a very complex thing, but you can break it down to its individual parts and understand them in detail. Reductionism has been highly successful in so many areas that one of the most basic problems with this approach has been virtually ignored. Can anger be broken down into its pieces? Can you really apply any reductionism to this emotion? Emotions are acts of consciousness and consciousness is hard to explain because our minds and vocabulary is inherently reductionist and consciousness is irreducible. Like this:
Urban Land Institute - Panels, Reports, and Presentations Explore our panel archives to learn about the challenging land use and real estate issues that ULI members have helped communities to solve. For most panels, the final report and the presentation are available for download in PDF format. Panels are listed by year below, and featured panels regarding a variety of topic areas can be explored through the menu to the left. This page also features information about panels that are under way or upcoming. Jump to upcoming panels | 2013 | 2012 | 2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 Upcoming Panels Knoxville, Tennessee (October 5-10, 2014)Omaha/Council Bluffs, Nebraska (November 2-7, 2014)Chicheng, China (November 9-14, 2014) Panel Archives Return to the top.