How do people try to chance society? Why do these methods work? How can they be resisted? Progressive and regressive change can depend on many of the same basic techniques.
Tag: Health
The regulatory battle over coal fly ash heats up
The coal industry has had a history of lobbying against a hazardous waste label for fly ash. Fly ash is toxic enough that the EPA mandated decades ago that it be captured and stored rather than emitted into the atmosphere.
Jeffrey Sachs on the high price of ignoring poverty
We can end poverty in two decades. HIV/AIDS has reached a steady state in the world. Military spending is 25 times aid spending. We can achieve peace through shared prosperity.
Misconceptions spreading about the price of solar power
A recent Clean Technica article said that solar power would be cheaper than coal if it received the same subsidies. This is incorrect.
How the common explanations for poverty are incorrect
The common ideas that purport to explain the fact of poverty are in fact not the primary causal factors of poverty.
National and cultural issues that contribute to poverty and hamper development
Now we are going to discuss the issues that shape the development of extremely poor nations and cultures.
What keeps communities locked in the extreme poverty trap?
Extreme poverty is a state of subsistence living in which most, if not all, efforts are directed towards survival. Extreme poverty has many direct consequences. What we are discussing here are the direct feedback effects that tend to cause cycles of deepening poverty on a community level.
Jim Elliott shares his thoughts on sustainability, community, and living green
Jim Elliott is a notable figure in the sustainability movement in Regina and Saskatchewan. He is involved with many environmental action groups, poverty-reduction groups, and the Citizen’s Public Transit Coalition for Regina.
The foundations of personal change
How do we change as people? Why do we change as people? This work is intended to be an earnest discussion of the realities of personal change.
Laura Pfeifer on urban ecology and community leadership
Laura Pfeifer is the founder and editor of Regina Urban Ecology, and is the Regina organizer of Jane’s Walk.
Hans Rosling: Health, wealth, and progress of the world
While demonstrating the changes on his graphs, Rosling delivers a rapid-fire description of the major political choices and world forces that are driving the change.
Why does ‘meaning’ mean so much?
Meaning is a perceived property of the universe that makes one bit of matter more significant than another.
Coal power: Pollution, politics, and profits
Burning coal releases heat energy, but it also releases many other products. Combustion products such as carbon dioxide, water vapour, nitrous oxides, sulphur oxides, particulate matter, and fly ash are also produced in varying amounts.
What is the ladder of economic development?
The ladder of development is a useful concept that we first found in Jeffrey Sachs’ excellent book ‘The End of Poverty’. This concept provides a useful framework for the discussion of economic development with regards to poverty reduction. This is a conceptual tool, not necessarily a framework for understanding all of economics.
How do we define poverty?
Every country has people living in poverty. Here we will distinguish between people living in extreme poverty, moderate poverty, and relative poverty1 . A person in relative poverty has consistent access to the basic necessities of life, while those in extreme or moderate poverty do not. Extreme Poverty People in extreme poverty are the poorest people in […]
Personal and social change for a green energy future
The question is: what can we do to be more in harmony with the environment? The answers we present here are intended to be practical pieces of an answer to that question.
Is most radiation from nuclear power?
Nuclear power is a tiny fraction of our total radiation dose. Nuclear power is legally obligated to keep its radioactive emissions incredibly low. Even people who live close to nuclear power plants will receive from them only a fraction of the dose that they receive naturally from their environment. Human-made sources account for about 20% of the dose to humans, with nuclear power composing less than 1% of the total dose. Coal is responsible for a larger portion of radioactive dose than nuclear is. This is a point missed by most people involved in the world discussion about energy sources.
Does nuclear power lead to weapons proliferation?
Arguments can certainly be made to support either side of this argument. This article gives examples of valid arguments on both sides of the issue. In general it is clear that understanding of nuclear energy fundamentals is a prerequisite for creating nuclear weapons. In this area however, the proverbial cat is out of the bag. Pandora’s box has been opened. The knowledge exists and is relatively widespread. The real question is what to choose to do with the knowledge that the world now has.
Would nuclear be too expensive for Saskatchewan?
This piece refers to kilowatt-hours (kWh) and costs-per-kWh as well as cost per installed watt ($/kW). If you are new to these units, please consult our introduction to energy system terms. In this area of knowledge, we defer to our publicly-owned utility for the best possible answer. Sask Power’s analysis in 2009, submitted to the […]
Does nuclear waste last millions of years?
Prior to reading this article, it is recommended that you read our basic definitions for discussing nuclear science. In this article we refer to ‘used nuclear fuel’ and to ‘nuclear waste’. For our current discussion these are both the same thing. To get a deeper understanding of nuclear power in general, see our general nuclear […]