Steve Martin

Should We Abandon the Concept of Climate Refugee?

Climate change is expected to force millions of people to relocate this century, as rising seas inundate small islands and intolerable heat makes life impossible in tropical regions. But is the world really facing a mounting climate refugee crisis? It is entirely reasonable to assume that as climate change intensifies, it will result in moreContinue reading “Should We Abandon the Concept of Climate Refugee?“

OUR economy is killing us.

Even before the pandemic and the cost-of-living crisis, rates of healthy life expectancy were falling in Scotland. People living in the poorest areas in the UK were dying younger because of deliberate cuts to social security and public services. Now, each week sees a new headline about the rising tide of destitution. At the same time,Continue reading “OUR economy is killing us.“

MYTHS AND CLIMATE DENIAL from MPs in NZSC?

Is this why this and recent governments have failed to address the empirical evidence of global warming? The constituency of South Thanet according to recent data, had just 4mm of rain in July – making it one of the driest in the UK. It is also the constituency of Craig Mackinlay, MP, a former UkipperContinue reading “MYTHS AND CLIMATE DENIAL from MPs in NZSC?“

HALFWAY TO 2030: HOW is the UK PERFORMING on IMPLEMENTING THE GLOBAL GOALS?

Early findings from the UN Global Compact Network UK’s Measuring Up 2.0 report suggest that the UK is only performing well on 21% of the Targets that are relevant to the domestic delivery of the Sustainable Development Goals in the UK. In the past four years there has been no change in the performance againstContinue reading “HALFWAY TO 2030: HOW is the UK PERFORMING on IMPLEMENTING THE GLOBAL GOALS?”

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS -ALL TALK NO ACTION

In September 2015, leaders from 193 countries gathered in the UN assembly hall in New York to plan nothing less than “transforming our world”. This was the birth of the sustainable development goals, which aimed to “free the human race from the tyranny of poverty and want and to heal and secure our planet”. ThereContinue reading “SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS -ALL TALK NO ACTION”

Amping up Community Energy in the Derbyshire Dales

There is a growing appetite for the development of community energy programmes across the UK- Currently over 400 proactive programmes exist in the UK according to Community Energy England( CEE State of the Sector Report : https://communityenergyengland.org ) which have generated over £3 Million of community benefits. In Derbyshire there are currently 5 Rural Community Energy Funded(RCEF) programmes.Continue reading “Amping up Community Energy in the Derbyshire Dales”

Replacing Sustainable Development: Potential Frameworks for International Cooperation in an Era of Increasing Crises and Disasters.

Jem Bendell This preprint(full paper in the link below this abstract)written by Professor Jem Bendell outlines his thinking on the impact of the SDGs . It’s not comfortable reading but nor is what’s happening across the globe in terms of fires, floods and huge changes in weather events as well as the increasing evidence ofContinue reading “Replacing Sustainable Development: Potential Frameworks for International Cooperation in an Era of Increasing Crises and Disasters.“

EARTH SUMMIT REFLECTIONS

This coming week is the 30th anniversary of the Rio Earth Summit (which launched the sustainable development paradigm) and the 50th anniversary of the Stockholm conference (which alerted world leaders to environmental dilemmas). Such anniversaries previously brought much fanfare from the UN. Not this year. The backsliding on poverty and the environment is so shocking and underminingContinue reading “EARTH SUMMIT REFLECTIONS”

EU PLANS to ACCELERATE RENEWABLES

Europe’s plan to slash Russian fossil fuel imports and accelerate renewable energy production will test its ability to find the minerals, metals and other components that are needed for a dramatic shift to clean power. The plan, outlined by the European Commission, would speed the continent toward a historic transition to wind and solar energy,Continue reading “EU PLANS to ACCELERATE RENEWABLES”

THE CLIMATE CRISIS-THE KIDS ARN’T ALRIGHT

Commentary from Dr Wim Thiery Scientists predict about 2.4°C of global warming by the end of this century under current policy pledges, compared to preindustrial times. In our studies, we calculated the meaning of that level of warming, in terms of how many extreme climate events a real person in a real location will faceContinue reading “THE CLIMATE CRISIS-THE KIDS ARN’T ALRIGHT”