When It Comes to Sustainability, We’re a Society of Distracted Drivers

A recent essay by Richard Heinberg of the Post Carbon Institute intrigued me. He drew a metaphor between distracted driving and the way we all deal with sustainable living. He says driving is dangerous. In fact, it’s about the riskiest activity most of us engage in routinely. It requires one’s full attention—and even then, things can sometimes go horribly awry. The brakes fail. Weather turns roads to ice. A driver in the oncoming lane falls asleep. Tragedy ensues. And if we are not fully alert, the likelihood of calamity skyrockets. That’s why distracted driving is now against the law. If you're caught, the fine is hefty.

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Mr. Pallister, you Could do so Much Better

The Federal government has proposed a tax which, in five years time, will increase the price of gasoline $0.12. According to gasbuddy, the retail price of gasoline has fluctuated by $0.24 in the past year, $0.38 in the past two years, and $0.55 in the last five years. Given these price fluctuations it’s hard to understand the opposition the Conservatives, provincial and federal have mounted to this tax proposal, suggesting that its going to be economically destructive for Canada.

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The Report of the International Panel on Climate Change

The International Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has released another report. This panel came into being in 1988 when the need for an impartial, scientific panel to comment on climate change, became obvious. This is now the sixth report this panel has released, and not much has changed from the first report. All of this panel’s reports have said that when we humans burn fossil carbon deposits, we are, in essence transferring carbon from under the ground into the atmosphere.

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How I’m Dealing with My Fear

I’ve been having a difficult time coping with the information in the latest IPCC report released two weeks ago. In it, we learn that we must reduce our emissions by 50% within 12 years to keep average global temperatures from rising more than 1.5^○C. If we achieve that reduction, we’ll get a chance at the next deadline in 2050, when it must be brought to zero. If we fail, we won’t be able to stop the catastrophe at all. At 2.0^○C, 25% of all species will be extinct. At 3.0^○C, New York City will be submerged. It gets worse after that.

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Profile of Dr. Martin Entz

I find it fascinating to track where our influences come from and where they lead us. My career path was not a straight line from knowing what I wanted to do when I grew up to actually doing that. Most of us have a zig-zag career path. The path may result from being at the right place at the right time. The path may result from seizing opportunities as they arise or it may result from developing interests based on what we see or hear or read.

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