Hong Kong’s first blog for SDG education news and announcements
Two stories last week highlighted to me that not only do we have the real sustainability issues to deal with but that our own standard patterns of thinking also hinder our approaches to solutions and this is in itself another sustainability problem. First was John Kerry pointing out that relying on carbon capture technology is dangerous. Many people have been saying this for a long time – and for many good reasons. It is unproven, the net impact is unknown, it is expensive, who funds it (Why should consumers? Especially if they consume necessities and have no say in how those are produced and supplied)? And most importantly, why on earth rely on one thing? Panaceas don’t exist. Can humanity not learn from history or logic? And why does it take a high-profile person saying this to get it in the media? Second, scientists have found the most recent sea temperature data far exceeds what they thought was possible. Not likely, possible!!! Is this an anomaly? Why is it so high? . . .
Image by G.C. from Pixabay ‘Statistically impossible’ heat extremes are here (The Conversation) Use of antibiotics in farming ‘endangering human immune system’ (The Guardian) Indigenous leader from Brazil wins top environmental prize (Al Jazeera) Massive iceberg discharges during the last ice age had no impact on nearby Greenland, raising new questions about climate dynamics (ScienceDaily) EU agrees binding green fuel targets for aviation (Reuters) UniSieve’s filters use special crystals to reduce industrial emissions (TechCrunch) UN: World set to blow through 1.5C carbon budget in 10 years (CHN) Why having a corporate purpose can help companies to create value (Eco-business) . . .
Image by NoName_13 from Pixabay I liked this newsletter from Ryan Hagen who writes regularly on LinkedIn. He points out some interesting stats – like 42% of US emissions are determined by domestic decision-making. Goes to show that while we need governments to push regulation and policy, and even better we need corporates to take the initiative, we can actually have a huge impact through personal agency. He then lays out really nicely and clearly that we need to be better at: How we cook How we heat/cool the home How we heat water Transport Electricity supply. If we can nail these as a society then we can maybe drag government and corporates with us. . . .
Image by Gerald Lobenwein from Pixabay 2030 nature targets agreed in December may already be slipping out of reach (The Conversation) Climate change: multi-country media analysis shows scepticism of the basic science is dying out (The Conversation) National Geographic raises eyebrows with biodiversity tour of Asia and Africa by private jet (Eco-business) Record clean-power growth in 2023 to spark ‘new era’ of fossil fuel decline (Eco-business) World's climate plans make for a worrying read (Science Daily) Explainer: What is direct air capture and how can it fight climate change? (Reuters) China and Brazil to cooperate in stopping illegal trade fueling deforestation (CHN) Food Waste Makes Up 50% of Global Food Emissions, Study Finds (greenqueen) Volcanic microbe eats CO2 ‘astonishingly quickly’, say scientists (The Guardian) . . .
Image by Delynn Talley from Pixabay Last Saturday 22nd was of course Earth Day 2023. This is now an event that has finally permeated mainstream culture and consciousness. From the UN perspective, this was the 2nd Earth Day to occur in the Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. Ecosystem restoration is an interesting project as it intersects with so many other environmental, social and economic SDGs. But perhaps the biggest weakness is that the emphasis on Earth Day seems still to be on us as individuals to change our behaviour, and while that is super important and needs to happen, if it is only left to individuals then our efforts will be too slow and will hit barriers. We need governments and corporations to make clear policy changes so that individuals are capable of behaving in a way that does little or no damage and so that proactive steps are taken to fix what is damaged. . . .
The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) has released it’s latest SDFG Progress Report. With such a variety of economies to cover, the authors recognise data gaps, but the key thrust of the report remains solid. Good gains have been made towards SDGs 7 & 9 (energy, industry, infrastructure) but the region will miss 90% of the 2030 targets and at the current rate of progress will take another 42 years to reach milestones slated to be achieved in just 7 years time. You can read a good summary of the report at IISD or go straight to the full document. . . .
Image by CyberComputers from Pixabay Plastics cause wide-ranging health issues from cancer to birth defects (The Guardian) What Is The Degrowth Movement And Why Should You Care? (greenqueen) Property firms ‘alarmingly slow’ to respond to climate emergency (Eco-business) Humanity’s big problem: Luxury carbon consumption, not population (Eco-business) How Shell cashed in on dubious carbon offsets from Chinese rice paddies (CHN) UN votes to ask world court to rule on national climate obligations (Reuters) NASA Launches New Climate Monitoring Technology (GreenCitizen) Rows over Asian carbon credits overlook project benefits (NikkeiAsia) Should academics fly at all? (CrookedTimber) . . .
Image by PublicDomainPictures from Pixabay Tomorrow, 30 March, is the very first observance of the International Day of Zero Waste which was agreed in December 2022. It is a very pertinent observance as we see increasing amounts of waste generated across all sectors, driven by the dual factors of increasing population and increasing wealth (which leads to increasing consumption). Add to this the world’s “new consumers” being led down the wrong path that the post-industrial world followed as seeing consumption as some kind of badge of honour, of not being mindful of purchases and end of life decisions and of being presented with products still being designed and produced in linear economy models, and we have a recipe for disaster. Resources wasted, disposal problems, implications for biodiversity through exceeding maximum yields and pollution, an ecological footprint off the charts. let’s hope this observance can start to generate more urgent action. . . .
