France is threatening to pull out of G20 talks without real changes to world financial regulations.

Christine Lagarde told Hardtalk that President Nicolas Sarkozy would not sign any agreement if he felt “the deliverables are not there”.

Strengthening financial regulation will be one of the key issues at the G20.

France wants a stronger global financial regulator than the US and the UK would like.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Ms. Lagarde sets up a picket, god knows the French are good at strikes…

Seriously though, the French minister is right. All the gnashing of teeth will not help one iota without real changes to the financial system. Changes that actually put limits on the powers of corporations to manipulate imaginary sums of money in ways that even they can’t keep track of.

While they’re at it, maybe they can come up with a way of breaking it to the citizens of the world that infinite growth economies simply don’t work and we’re going to have to find a way to live in a more flat-lined economy that is actually self-sustaining.

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After todays Public Forum on Climate Change and Sustainability, I really do think that Port Alberni is at the leading edge of what *really* needs to happen on the way forward.

The simple fact that 3 out of our current 6 councillors plus the Mayor and all of the senior management of the City were there to listen to Bruce Sampson and Nola Kate Seymour talk about Energy depletion, Natural Capital, Climate Change and how we move forward and address the incredible change we are facing is proof enough for me. The conversations I had with councillors and managers were incredibly encouraging.

You can see a short interview with Nola Seymour here where she talks about much the same things she said tonight.

Tonights talk was a turning point. Yes, the audience was largely tuned into Climate Change, but Bruce Sampsons main points were around Energy and Peak Oil, not Climate Change, and I think that turned a lot of heads. I think our Councillors that weren’t already Peak Oil aware and active, or just on the sidelines, now really have something to chew on. It’s been put into terms that are more familiar.

I am energized by tonights presentation. I think the debate is officially over in Port Alberni on Climate Change. There is going to be some real action come out of this, and it’s going to happen with at least a big chunk of our leaders behind it.

There is a recognition that the divisions between loggers and treehuggers of the past are over. We must all move together in order to create not only a livable planet, but also renewable jobs and a sustainable lifestyle.

I handed out really inadequate little brochures. I hope people email me about it.

I’m going to start up a Transition Town committee in town and get this ball rolling. SEPERATE from Council, we need a grassroots effort to engage people in the community and merge all of the wonderful things we have going on in this town. If we could just harness a portion of the energy that I know is out there, I am sure that we could make a huge amount of change happen very quickly.

After tonight, I have more Hope about the future than I have had for months. And Hope is what we need to get through this above all.

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Echo Center 7PM tonight is the Public Forum on Climate Change in Port Alberni…

I didn’t realise they had Internet in here until now… I’ve missed the 1st speaker, who was amazing… but he will be back for QA and i will start with the second speaker who is talking right now.

The current speaker is talking about a 100 Year plan that was done for Greater Vancouver… for the “Plus Network”. She is a psychologist….

She is part of the Sustainable Cities Network, which is a network of 300 cities including Vancouver and Port Alberni.

A City needs a Plan… for 5 years with financial plan…. a Strategy for 30 years… a Vision for 50-100 years.

Cities Copy each other… large Cities (Calgary) learn from medium cities that learn from small cities… smaller cities can implement change faster because there is less complexity and more attachment to the ground-level.

Lighthouse projects… that might not be economically feasible, like the Million dollar solar bus “Tindo” in Adelaide Australia, “shine a light” for others to follow. Someone has to make a prototype… there needs to be a leader to follow.

Talking about going to Iqualuit… talking to the Elders who are seeing things they have never seen before. Robins, bumblebees. Never seen before that far north, were there in 2007.

……. Now it’s question period…. here are just my notes from the previous speaker, who was incredibly good if a little disjointed due to time.

Bruce Sampson former BC Hydro :

Growth with less Impact…

With worst case (mst likely scenario) Cedar growth on VI is wiped out by 2080.

He just explained Peak Oil in a nutshell

Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Report

Largest basekine study of the pplanet ever done

Over 60% of the planets ecosystems are not sustainable
Among the outstanding problems-dire state of many of the worlds fish stocks; the intense vulnerability of the 2 billion people living in the dry regions.

Put a price on carbon:

We abuse the Earths Natural Capital because we don’t price it

Carbon Offsets —–> Ecosystem Offsets

………………………..

QA: From Ken Whiteman (Councillor). How do we reconcile Canadian carbon emissions in the world (2%) which 50% comes from tar sands… with China where they are building a coal plant “every day”.

Answer: Burning up natural gas to produce tar sands is like “turning gold to lead”. There has to be a leader in transition coming from Canada. We have to move away from Tar Sand, which is larlgely impossible to due the momemtum, so our only hope is carbon sequestration.

As far as China… we have to be the leader… we can give our technology to China. But the challenge is gigantic. Youre looking at a massive switch to coal as fossil fuels decline…. there has to be a switch in mentality or CO2 will take off in emissions.

One comment from “the psychologist”… Refer to Tar Sands as “Tar” sands.. not oil. It is not Oil. It is a powerful psychological attachment to those words..

BOOK RECOMMENDATION: Agenda for a new Economy – by David Corten… only just published

Mike Carter: Brought up Transition Towns and how Bruce Sampsons talk very much mimics what Transition Towns is all about…. we need to act locally.. we need to act holistically and help everyone through it as well. This is a gigantic change, and it is goin to hurt, economically, socially, and psychologically.

Jen Fisher Bradley: How do we internalize the externalized costs that are manifest in a market based eonomy. (Whoa!)

Bruce Sampson: It comes down to Natural Capital and putting a cost on our effect on ecosystems. Until that is built into our economy by having companies understanding thier impact, and valueing their impact on natural capital. Not just carbon offsets. It is full, natural, ecosystems offsets. Companies have to pay for the impact they have. Not as a penalty, but simply as a matter of doing business.

Group conversation……..

Ken McRae Closing Comments:

- Councils Next Step will be to appoint a Sustainability Committee.

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The BBC has a video here… WIth the Wind, Tidal, Run-of-River, and yes, even Solar potential available on and around Vancouver Island, there is no reason we could not do the same as El Hierro in the Canaries and be completely self-sufficient in power generation not only for electricity for our homes and businesses, but for fuel for transport as well.

It has taken them 10 years of planning.

If we start now we could do it in 10 years and maybe avoid the worst of the oil shocks that are ahead.

We’re not going to do it with *either* of our current political parties…

This is an Island of 10,000. What if a City or Region like Port Alberni, Tofino, Ucluelet and Bamfield joined forces to implement a vision for their residents? 30,000 working together to end dependance on fossil fuels.

It could happen… it will happen… it must happen.

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Wow:

The Obama administration autos task force Monday rejected the turnaround plans of General Motors and Chrysler LLC and warned both could be put through bankruptcy to slash debts.

“We have unfortunately concluded that neither plan submitted by either company represents viability and therefore does not warrant the substantial additional investments that they requested,” said a senior administration official, who asked not to be named.

This on the heels of the news earlier this evening of GMs CEO Rick Wagoner departing….

On one level, congratulations… President Obama, I respect you for standing up to these companies and not settling for just any plan and sinking billions more into a failed business model.

On another level, if one or both of these companies go into any form of bankruptcy, it could mean tens of thousands of layoffs.

Do not doubt: This is a step, a difficult, necessary one, but a step indeed, in our ending our dependance on fossil fuel based personal vehicle transport.

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