Cantankerous Frank ¦ Mark Roberts
Over the last month, President-elect Obama has made all the right noises with regards the environment. If you are to believe his manifesto, he has some impressive environmental objectives for the next 4 years. And he has recently announced that Nobel laureate, Steve Chu, will take up the post of Energy Secretary in order to make these dreams a reality.
Call me cynical if you will, but I just can’t shake the feeling that these are only words. We have been here so many times before. Climate directives are all very well in theory but it is time now to put your money where your mouth is and if we are going to see any sort of lasting behavioural change, the impetus has to come from a grass-roots level.
Speaking to the Guardian, Ed Miliband called for popular mobilisation in order to call the government into account over its environmental pledges. But how? Surely Al Gore tried this last year with An Inconvenient Truth and Live Earth?
Cantankerous Frank ¦ Mark Roberts
As far as I can see Live Earth was always destined to fail. Unlike the Live Aid campaign, which primarily wanted to raise money, its environmental counterpart needed viewers to go one step further and change their behaviour in order to succeed. This cannot be achieved from atop a stage.
Over the past term I have been learning all about “interest areas”. In News terms, the local angle should always come first - one dead Briton equals any number of foreigners. The same rings true for the environment. If the masses are to be mobilised you have to hit them where it hurts most – their backyard.
Live Earth should have been a local affair based on the Macmillian Coffee Mornings rather than the Make Poverty History campaign. Small, local events where residents engage with the issue would have enabled local issues to be aired and funds to be raised for local environmental projects. Instead of some far off politician spouting doom and gloom from a far corner of the world, the issue would have been brought to life by a community run campaign. Also, it would have saved on all that fuel used to fly celebrities half way across the world in order to campaign against carbon emissions!
When it comes to the environment it is very easy to focus on the doom and gloom. The Earth is in such a dire state, surely will call the masses to arms. But such reporting can only go so far and in the long run may actually dissuade people from joining the campaign. Why should we get involved when it seems like a lost cause?
Whilst it is important to keep the pressure on, it wouldn’t do any harm to remind everybody that there are small things to be done at home. As they say, “every little helps.”
So here are my top energy saving tips.
1. LIGHTS! If you are not in the room, switch it off
2. TV. That little red light uses up more power than you think. Turn your TV right off once you have finished watching it
3. CHARGERS. If the charger gets warm when it is plugged in then it is using energy even if it isn’t attached the other end. Remember – take the plug out when you are done.
4. REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE. My pet peeve is waste. I hate it when recyclables are put in the normal rubbish rather than being recycled. Landfill is running out fast. On average we produce enough rubbish to fill the Albert Hall every 2 hours in the UK alone. So do your bit and don’t throw out more than need be. And remember, you don’t need to take the packaging home, you are within your rights to leave any excess at the supermarket!
5. KETTLE. Only boil what you need
6. WALK. Short journeys use more petrol, so if you can walk, do. It’ll help you reach your 10 000 step target. Or if not, take the bus.
7. TAKE YOUR OWN DRINK. Plastic bottles make no environmental sense and the same goes for the plastic lids on your coffee cup. So reuse a bottle you have already got or take a flask.
8. PLASTIC BAGS. Get a bag for life. They are stronger, hold more and make much more sense environmentally. One plastic bag takes up to 1000 years to biodegrade, they may seem temporary but they have a permanent effect on the environment.
9. ENERGY SAVING BULBS etc... Think about energy saving or effiicient appliances next time you are shopping
This post started as an environmental review, a chance to take stock of the directives and pledges made in 2008. Over the next week I will endeavour to finish my environmental review, for now I hope you will forgive me for the truly random nature of this most recent post.
What have I been listening to?
Mobilising the Masses: A How-to Guide Monday, December 22, 2008
Tags: Barack Obama, Climate Change, Ed Miliband, Environment, Live Earth, Macmillian, Make Poverty History, Mary Stokes, Steve Chu
Cantankerous Frank ¦ Mark Roberts
Over the last month, President-elect Obama has made all the right noises with regards the environment. If you are to believe his manifesto, he has some impressive environmental objectives for the next 4 years. And he has recently announced that Nobel laureate, Steve Chu, will take up the post of Energy Secretary in order to make these dreams a reality.
Call me cynical if you will, but I just can’t shake the feeling that these are only words. We have been here so many times before. Climate directives are all very well in theory but it is time now to put your money where your mouth is and if we are going to see any sort of lasting behavioural change, the impetus has to come from a grass-roots level.
Speaking to the Guardian, Ed Miliband called for popular mobilisation in order to call the government into account over its environmental pledges. But how? Surely Al Gore tried this last year with An Inconvenient Truth and Live Earth?
Cantankerous Frank ¦ Mark Roberts
As far as I can see Live Earth was always destined to fail. Unlike the Live Aid campaign, which primarily wanted to raise money, its environmental counterpart needed viewers to go one step further and change their behaviour in order to succeed. This cannot be achieved from atop a stage.
Over the past term I have been learning all about “interest areas”. In News terms, the local angle should always come first - one dead Briton equals any number of foreigners. The same rings true for the environment. If the masses are to be mobilised you have to hit them where it hurts most – their backyard.
Live Earth should have been a local affair based on the Macmillian Coffee Mornings rather than the Make Poverty History campaign. Small, local events where residents engage with the issue would have enabled local issues to be aired and funds to be raised for local environmental projects. Instead of some far off politician spouting doom and gloom from a far corner of the world, the issue would have been brought to life by a community run campaign. Also, it would have saved on all that fuel used to fly celebrities half way across the world in order to campaign against carbon emissions!
When it comes to the environment it is very easy to focus on the doom and gloom. The Earth is in such a dire state, surely will call the masses to arms. But such reporting can only go so far and in the long run may actually dissuade people from joining the campaign. Why should we get involved when it seems like a lost cause?
Whilst it is important to keep the pressure on, it wouldn’t do any harm to remind everybody that there are small things to be done at home. As they say, “every little helps.”
So here are my top energy saving tips.
1. LIGHTS! If you are not in the room, switch it off
2. TV. That little red light uses up more power than you think. Turn your TV right off once you have finished watching it
3. CHARGERS. If the charger gets warm when it is plugged in then it is using energy even if it isn’t attached the other end. Remember – take the plug out when you are done.
4. REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE. My pet peeve is waste. I hate it when recyclables are put in the normal rubbish rather than being recycled. Landfill is running out fast. On average we produce enough rubbish to fill the Albert Hall every 2 hours in the UK alone. So do your bit and don’t throw out more than need be. And remember, you don’t need to take the packaging home, you are within your rights to leave any excess at the supermarket!
5. KETTLE. Only boil what you need
6. WALK. Short journeys use more petrol, so if you can walk, do. It’ll help you reach your 10 000 step target. Or if not, take the bus.
7. TAKE YOUR OWN DRINK. Plastic bottles make no environmental sense and the same goes for the plastic lids on your coffee cup. So reuse a bottle you have already got or take a flask.
8. PLASTIC BAGS. Get a bag for life. They are stronger, hold more and make much more sense environmentally. One plastic bag takes up to 1000 years to biodegrade, they may seem temporary but they have a permanent effect on the environment.
9. ENERGY SAVING BULBS etc... Think about energy saving or effiicient appliances next time you are shopping
This post started as an environmental review, a chance to take stock of the directives and pledges made in 2008. Over the next week I will endeavour to finish my environmental review, for now I hope you will forgive me for the truly random nature of this most recent post.