Web & media – Jan 26

January 26, 2010

Click on the headline (link) for the full text.

Many more articles are available through the Energy Bulletin homepage


Past Peak Oil Travelling towards Transition

Anita Sancha, anitasancha.co.uk
From pre Hubbert’s Peak Oil chart towards Transport and travel in a world where transition has taken place. A positive animation look at the future of traveling without oil fuel, in this climate changing world to where we will again be able to hear the sound of birds.
(2009)
Looks like a good teaching tool to use with children. -KS


Why Transition? Creating a Brighter Future

BenZolnoFilms, Transition US
Why is there a need to change our way of life?
The Transition Movement is a vibrant, grassroots movement that seeks to build community resilience in the face of such challenges as peak oil, climate change and the economic crisis. It represents one of the most promising ways of engaging people in strengthening their communities against the effects of these challenges, resulting in a life that is more abundant, fulfilling, equitable and socially connected.
(7 Jan 2010)
Another good resource for introducing people to peak oil and the Transition Movement. -KS


The Future of our Food Supply
(Conference presentation)
Bruce Darrell, Feasta (Foundation for the Economics of Sustainability)
Bruce Darrell of Feasta gave a presentation on food systems in which he surveys the effects of strategic global influences on the future of our food supply. (His talk replaced that of Kate Bailey, who was unable to travel to attend the conference).

Recorded on day one of The New Emergency Conference: Managing Risk and Building Resilience in a Resource Constrained World. Held on 10-12 June 2009, All Hallows College, Drumcondra, Dublin 9, Ireland
(10 June 2009)


‘Peak water’ could flush civilisation

Sylvia Thompson, The Irish Times
FORGET PEAK OIL. Forget climate change. Peak water is where it’s at, according to Scottish journalist and broadcaster, Alexander Bell, who has just written a fascinating book, Peak Water (Luath Press, Scotland).

“It’s the coming issue of our age,” says Bell. “Civilisation is thirsty. It has never stopped to think about what would happen if the water ran out.” And while Bell acknowledges tackling climate change is important, he firmly states peak water would have happened with or without it.

“You could say that it’s a re-framing of the climate change [issues] and what we are doing with the planet. With climate change, we’ve become conditioned to the idea of disaster but by focusing on water, you can’t say there is nothing you can do. Water is a precious resource that is running out in various parts of the world and even if it’s not running out in Ireland or Scotland, we will lose food, clothing and stability of the world order as we know it because of water shortages.”

Writing for the non-expert reader, Bell offers a fascinating journey through civilisations, charting how important access to water was in their growth and, in many cases, their demise. He brings us back to ancient civilisations in Persia, Egypt, China and Peru, with details of canal transport, aqueducts, dams and irrigation schemes. Bell argues that when humankind began to lose its connection to the river, we got the water to follow us rather than us following it.

“The triumph of the early empires is that they tame unpredictable flows but from about 1,000 BC on, civilisation begins to take the control of water for granted and something that has been magical becomes a given. It is still the source of power and the determinant to an empire’s success but the gradual process of burying water under the complexity of the state begins,” he writes.
(23 Jan 2010)
Learn more about the book here.


Tags: Building Community, Consumption & Demand, Culture & Behavior, Education, Food, Fossil Fuels, Geopolitics & Military, Media & Communications, Oil, Water Supplies