Climate Change, Peak Oil, and the New Paradigm

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77229490774573790842011-11-27T15:57:23.333-08:00Climate Change, Peak Oil, and the New ParadigmHow to prepare for global climate change and peak oil by changing the way you think about the world and your place in it. Thoughts and analysis on deep ecology written by a graduate student of ecopsychology, Margaret Emerson.Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.comBlogger111100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-56824337084267222632008-10-29T09:14:00.001-07:002008-10-29T09:15:19.378-07:00The Workplace of the Future

When Matt Simmons does presentations on peak oil, he often recommends that one of the ways to build personal and community resilience is a restructuring of the workforce so that most people can telecommute instead of driving to the office every day. I couldn’t agree more!I’ve been a freelance graphic designer and have worked from home for the past 15 years. Two years ago I scaled back my design

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-51032303934235525622008-04-07T09:19:00.000-07:002008-04-07T16:55:41.499-07:00The Arithmetic of Growth and Consumption

See if you can figure out the answer to this simple mathematical brain teaser:It relates to population increases and the idea that exponential growth can often take us by surprise. Ready?There is one bacteria in a bottle at 11 a.m. and by noon the bottle is full of bacteria, who have been doubling their population every minute. So at 11:01 the population of the bacteria was 2, and at 11:02, it

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-2230296757743135752008-03-09T20:46:00.000-07:002008-03-09T20:56:37.248-07:00How To Raise Eco-Conscious Kids

You know that being “green” has become an official fad when you start seeing t-shirts for 12 year old girls at the department store imprinted with mantras like “Think Green” (on a green shirt) or “Do Something Good Today: Recycle”.I was at a department store at the mall today, performing a homework assignment for my deep ecology class. We were supposed to go shopping, drool over the merchandise,

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-56280951268072886112008-02-28T08:07:00.000-08:002008-02-28T08:12:12.053-08:00The Real Problem With George W.

Pay Now Vs. Pay LaterThe House of Representatives passed a bill yesterday that would generate $18 billion dollars by eliminating certain tax breaks for the five largest oil companies. That $18 billion would then be used to give incentives for wind and solar energy and energy efficiency initiatives.George W. threatened to veto the bill.His reason: it will force gas companies to hike gas prices, it

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-14879311496100146132008-02-17T08:15:00.000-08:002008-02-17T08:39:27.826-08:00Are Some Corporate Definitions of “Green” Just Another Marketing Ploy?

As buying “green” products becomes more and more trendy, corporations are beginning to see it as one more opportunity to improve the market share of their products. In some cases, this kind of change in the manufacture and use of a product may be a good improvement, but unless the consumer is completely informed about where the product is made, where the raw materials come from and all the steps

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-53557980322187584352008-02-11T13:15:00.000-08:002008-02-11T13:29:18.914-08:00I’d Like to Save the Planet…But I’m Too (insert favorite excuse here)

Why is it that most people seem to lack the motivation or the willingness to make lasting positive changes to their lifestyles when it comes to their health, career, relationships or the environment?We see and hear the urgency of needing to deal with climate change on the news all the time. We know we need to start doing something about it. Just…not today. We’re too busy. Something else came up.

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-14734406180250701832008-02-10T11:09:00.001-08:002008-02-10T11:27:25.806-08:00Would You Move to Where Your Favorite Food Is?

Let’s pretend that to transport fruits and vegetables long distances, like from South America to the Midwest, or from California to Ohio, became so cost prohibitive due to rising oil prices that it was unreasonable to buy these foods where you live. To avoid paying outrageous prices for food (think $20 for a carton of strawberries in January), you would have to limit your purchases to what was

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-17021724862763714502008-02-09T19:00:00.000-08:002008-02-09T19:22:58.193-08:008 Ways to Prepare For Peak Oil

In case you haven't heard, the oil is running out.You know, the oil that's used to make gasoline and is the basis of the global economy? Without it, we can't transport goods, fertilize our crops (fertilizers are petroleum-based), heat our homes, manufacture products or cart us butts around town. It's running out at an alarming rate because we're not finding any new sources of easy-to-extract oil

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-56003166873870100872008-02-08T09:08:00.000-08:002008-02-08T09:11:10.780-08:00Coca-Cola Buys 40% Share of Honest Tea: Buy In or Sell Out?

Coca-Cola, the world’s largest beverage company, is now the largest shareholder in the small and organic beverage company Honest Tea. Is this a “buy in” to help the Honest Brand or is Honest selling out to the large corporations?My knee-jerk reaction to this news was a feeling of disappointment with my favorite bottled beverage company. Et tu, Brutus? How could you?! But as I read the owner’s

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-66800577700310449262008-02-07T12:02:00.000-08:002008-02-07T12:55:47.655-08:00Corporate Paradigms: Whole Foods Vs. Wal-Mart

On a drive through Boulder this morning I passed by one of the half dozen Whole Food Market grocery stores located in the Boulder/Superior area. I love Whole Foods. I think a shopping trip to Whole Foods is entertainment for the senses as well as a fun buffet of free snacks (ha!).While Whole Foods seems to value such things as organic farming, humane animal husbandry, local products, recycling

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7722949077457379084.post-15335862109402521032008-02-06T12:03:00.000-08:002008-02-06T12:29:46.360-08:00Welcome Fellow Activists!

My name is Margaret Emerson, and I'm pursuing a masters degree in Ecopsychology from Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado.I started this blog because I can no longer sit on my hands and watch as we plummet even further into global crisis as a nation and as a species. The information and concepts that I'm studying and learning about deep ecology, peak oil, the new cosmology and the psychology of

Margarethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04486379835722747813noreply@blogger.com5