Converging Environmental Crises Teach-In
Posted by Gail the Actuary on April 6, 2008 - 4:03pm
Note added April 10: If you are having difficulty connecting, the last page of this PDF gives some troubleshooting tips. It doesn't work with Safari, and you cannot be using pop-up blocker, among other things. It may not work if you are behind a firewall. You can test in advance.
The Ohio State University Department of Public Health is sponsoring a web-based teach-in, which they would like TOD readers to help publicize. The basic information is as follows:
Converging Environmental Crises:
A Teach-In on Energy, Climate Change, Water, Agriculture and PopulationThursday, April 10, 2008
11:00am to 4:00pm EDT
http://sg60.oar.net
Select "Converging Environmental Crises" in the Pull-Down Menu
The teach-in is free, and has a fairly strong peak oil component. The organizers are Dan Bednarz and Mac Crawford. A few high-lights:
11:30am Congressman Roscoe Bartlett provides a 15 minute introduction.
11:45am Terry Tamminen, former director of the California EPA, talks about whether it is really possible to address climate change in time, and what steps might be needed.
12:15pm Gail Tverberg, AKA "Gail the Actuary," talks about the economic impact of an energy downturn.
12:45pm William Catton PhD, author of Overshoot: The Ecological Basis of Revolutionary Change, talks about living on a finite planet, and reaching a carrying capacity bottleneck.
1:30pm Dick Jackson MD, PhD, environmental health expert, talks about pollution related issues.
Between 2:00 and 3:00, there are simultaneous break out talks. The choices are
Kristin Bradford, MD, from Willits, California, talks about hospital care in the context of peak oil and climate issues.
Joel Kreisberg, DC, MA talks about pharmaceutical pollution of drinking water.
Walt Lierman, PhD, talks about the economics of climate change mitigation.
Don Spady, MD, talks about differences between the Canadian and US medical systems in needed responses to peak oil.
Jason Bradford, PhD of Willits, California, talks about reducing fossil fuel inputs to the food system.
Ken Smail, PhD, talks about global population reduction, and other inconvenient truths.
Between 3:00 and 4:00 is a time for summing up.
3:00 Jessica Pierce, PhD, bioethicist, looks at the moral challenges facing health care.
3:30 Mac Crawford, PhD, one of the conference organizers, talks about the public health response to the converging crises of peak oil, climate change, water shortages, and population growth.
3:45 Dan Bednarz, PhD, the lead conference organizer, talks about abandoning silos between disciplines.
The schedule I have provided is my interpretation of what the talks are about. Full abstracts of each of the talks and a complete schedule are given in the Converging Environmental Crises flier. The flier also provides biographical information on each of the speakers.
My comments
The talks start at 11:00 am with some introductory material. There will be some provision for dial in questions. It would be good to listen at 11:00 to find out more about that. Most presenters will not be physically present in Ohio. It is my understanding that the people presenting from Ohio will answer the questions.
I am fairly certain that the talks will be available after the fact, as well, at the same web site, so if you are not available at the appointed time, you can view the same web site later.
I put a draft of my talk up on TOD a few days ago. After I did this, the organizers asked me to add a little more to the talk. It now has a section on why a drop in oil production makes a difference, near the beginning, and a few more concrete examples though-out. The discussion of the transition to a lower-energy economy at the end has been expanded, and mentions the possibility of an implosion. This is a link to the earlier post, with the additions. I plan to put a version of my talk up on You Tube, after the event.
I think that there are parts of this teach-in that will be of interest to a broad range of viewers. Ohio State has invited many in the public health field, and at least some medical schools. If you know of public officials who might be interested, please let them know about it. Universities may also be interested. Pass the word around!
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You'll be running for president next Gail.
I've read enough today, both at TOD and other PO sites, to have made up my mind.
Today, I'm going to max out every credit facility I have to purchase: NPK, manure, mulching materials, solar electricity hardware, water storage, reticulation supplies, fuel storage, weapons, ammunition and tools.
Have I left anything out.
Thanks to all at TOD for great work. I've been reading your site for about 18 months now and in that time the overall feel has gone from "they are a bunch of fringe dwellers with a reasonable hypothesis" to you know "These folks are spot on and when mainstream catches on it's 'feces to the impeller'".
This could all unfold rather quickly. I plan on worst possible outcomes generally and previously thought we would have about five years to get ourselves organized. I now believe 2008 is the last good year we'll see in this civilization and will have to get busy with shovel and hammer setting up my home for survival in a maelstrom. I'm feeling energized by the challenge and look forward to the true freedom and authority that self sufficiency will give me in a world destroyed.
If I were to give any advice it could be summed up very simply; Permaculture and Solar Power NOW.
I don't think you will see me running for president any time soon. I am in Washington DC for a couple of days, though, attending the Energy Information Administration conference.
So anyone can watch it or participate online?
Yes, as far as I know. The people in charge of the conference will be the ones answering the questions, since not all of us will be in one place at one time.
I got more information about dialing in. There is a new version of the PDF brochure that on the last page has some troubleshooting details about logging in.
Apparently, it does not work with Safari web browser. You have to disable pop up blockers, and there are some other odds and ends.
I plan to put my talk on YouTube, after this is over, to get around those problems for people who want to view it after the fact. TOD will probably have a link after the YouTube version goes up.
Professor Gail,
Do you know if this will be archived?
It is my understanding that it will be. I think it will still have the issues outlined in the PDF I mentioned in the comment above (last page).
Good. Having a job gets in the way of doing all kinds of things. ;-)
Looks like a good talk. I especially like that someone doesn't necessarily think we have time to 'fix' climate change.
Hi everyone, haven't seen you all in a while.
Aaron Wisner's Grand Rapids Localization conference is coming along nicely, too. I hope to see some of you there.
http://sustainabilityconference.org/
Having spent the last four months of my life being converted to the reality of peak oil and the potentially devastating effects for the future I cannot help but add a voice to those in praise of this initiative. I am an international student living in Canada being faced with the same rality of hiking gas and food prices as my parents who live on a tiny island in the middle of the Caribbean Sea. Only through awareness of the GLOBAL implications of Environmental threats and it's implications for future generations can we even hope to put embolden the cause. Engery Security and Environmental Security should be required teaching in light of our reality. I applaud the work of those getting the word out.