Discussion question responses - Environment
From Melbourne - Anglesea informal discuussion group
1. WHAT ARE THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICIES?
1.Strength. That there are any policies at all.
2. Weaknesses. Not many people know of them or are interested in them.
3. The powers that be do not yet find them in their interests
4. No sanctions that can enforce them.
2. HOW CAN NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS ENSURE THAT INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS ARE
POLICED/ ENFORCED?
1. Nations with environmental interests must join together against the
imposition of international global trade agreements that threaten nations
and peoples with lawsuits and penalties if a single nation tries to protect
its environment.
2. The people must vote to support their national governments in these
issues. See below on political hurdles.
2. HOW ELSE COULD GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES BE ADDRESSED?
1.The people themselves must realise their own part in it as 'consumers'
- in what they buy and the waste in their lifestyle. One person can do
little it seems but one person x 18 million = an awful lot of environmental
destruction.
See discussion paper on The Size of Your Footprint.
HOW CAN AUSTRALIA OVERCOME THE POLITICAL HURDLES IN IMPLEMENTING
ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY?
1. Agreement with other nations to put up government resistance to
international robber barony.
2. Electoral reform. The people must be able to vote to support their
national governments in these issues.
a. To be able to do this will require electoral reform - that is, in each
seat, each of the major parties must be able to put up TWO candidates for
the cost of one, so that voters can choose between them - and have more
chance of not having to vote in Tweedledum and Tweedledee, who obey the
corporate demands. Supporters of both parties can choose the candidate who
more closely represents their interests instead of having no real choice at
all, and instead of being stuck with only candidates that are selected for
them by other interests.
b. The issue of COST in elections. It must be made possible for all the
people to be informed about all the issues on television without costing the
earth
to 'advertise'. The commercial channels must have a responsibility to include
all sides' policies and agenda as part of the news, that is not charged to
parties or government.
WHAT DO YOU FEEL ARE THE STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES OF ECONOMIC INSTRUMENTS,
SUCH AS TRADABLE POLLUTION RIGHTS, IN SOLVING ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS?
Tradable pollution rights are abominable and prevent solutions.
WHAT KIND OF GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION AND POLICY WOULD YOU RECOMMEND?
1. Some recommendations for international co-operation are already made above.
2. Encouraging sustainable industries and research into them, including
know-how that can be exported.
3. Taxes on waste and pollution.
4. Heavy charges for all forest resources taken from public land, instead
of the present peanuts.
5. Introduction of 'FUTURE COST' assessments into statistics, advertisements
and company reports, etc. That is, how much of the cost of what is being
made or consumed is going to be borne by the future. Although Future Cost
can only be estimates, it can be thought-provoking estimates. eg. The
'future-cost' of 4-wheel-drive touring that ruts, gullies and erodes the
countryside and spreads plant diseases.
6. Encouraging documentaries about what is happening to our land, and
of enterprises that are restoring it.
7. Catching cane-toads as a community-order for delinquents.
8. Legislation that gives social welfare a precautionary priority over the
legislation that 'forces' companies to maximise shareholders' profits as
the first priority. 'First priority except when . . ."
CAN YOU THINK OF AN EXAMPLE WHERE THE OBJECTIVES OF ECOLOGICAL
SUSTAINABILITY HAVE BEEN MET THROUGH MARKET MEANS?
Sweden, Denmark and Holland may have achieved this. But the whole
advertising industry needs to be rejigged to make this more possible
in Australia.
Some water companies in Victoria are making gestures to try to appear
respectable - eg. people should not leave the tap running when they clean
their teeth. ! On the other hand, suggestions put to water companies that
would make more impact are ignored.
HAS THE MARKET APPROACH IN THE ELECTRICITY INDUSTRY LED TO ANY POSITIVE
ECONOMIC OR SOCIAL AFFECT?
No. More paper has been wasted, and probably humanpower too. Maintenance
has not been a priority, nor has happy workers.
CAN CHANGES TO THE TAXATION SYSTEM, THAT ARE AIMED AT ACHIEVING
SUSTAINABILITY, BE COMPATIBLE WITH SOCIAL JUSTICE AND EQUITY?
We cant see how they could be anything but compatible, since they should
reduce the power of the wealthy to destroy out of greed.
HOW IMPORTANT IS IT TO HELP DEVELOP PEOPLEÍS UNDERSTANDING OF THE NEED FOR
RADICAL CHANGE IN OUR APPROACH TO THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT?
Suppose we said no!!
WHAT EXAMPLES HAVE YOU SEEN IN YOUR WORKPLACE OR ORGANISATION OF WORKERS
AND ENVIRONMENTALISTS COMING TOGETHER?
In schools, children have been starting to make worm-farms and gardens,
and a bit of recycling - but they still fill the rubbish bins each day with the
day's schoolwork etc..
HOW CAN THE POLITICAL OBSTACLES THAT STAND BETWEEN WORKERS AND
ENVIRONMENTALISTS BE RECONCILED AND OVERCOME?
More alternative constructive jobs for workers currently in industries that
are destroying natural resources and the environment.
A development of unions to consider in their mandate the welfare of the
workers as consumers too, so that what they produce is also a concern for
unions.
HOW CAN BOTH FULL EMPLOYMENT AND NATURAL RESOURCE CONSERVATION BE GUARANTEED?
See Jobs that are Needed, and Jobs for the Future -
http://www.vicnet.net.au/~ozideas/jobsned.html
http://www.vicnet.net.au/~ozideas/jobsfut.htm
If all the jobs that need to be done were being done
there would be no unemployment. The question is, how to pay for the jobs
that are needed instead of as at present, paying for the jobs that make
company profits regardless.
WHAT KIND OF ËTRADE OFFSÍ AND COMPROMISES WOULD BE ACCEPTABLE TO ALLOW FOR
CO-OPERATION TO OCCUR FURTHER DOWN THE TRACK?
Whatever will start co-operation now, and does not bind the future to
environmental exploitation of any sort.
HOW CAN WE INCORPORATE ËLESSONSÍ FROM INDIGENOUS PEOPLES INTO OUR WAYS OF
MANAGING AND PROTECTING THE ENVIRONMENT?
1. Co-operation rather than competition. We could have TV SURVIVOR
programs in which the winners are those who co-operate most - as they would
need to co-operate in real life in order to survive. Witness all the people
in desperate circumstances who have fought instead - and all died
or severely impoverished their countries.
2. Population limitation. The indigenous people had some pretty rough ways
to keep their populations sustainable, (including infanticide, abandonment
of the ill, tribal wars, etc.) and even then tribes could be wiped
out by environmental famines and disasters - but they did not have local
populations so big that they destroyed their own resources (except insofar
as they did this deliberately or accidentally by fire)
3. Protecting breeding grounds. The totem system among other measures
helped ensure that animals and fish had some 'safe' areas for breeding
grounds and so were not wiped out.
At present in Northern Australia indigenous peoples are sometimes/often not
keeping to these old strategies, and helping to wipe out turtles and other
species. Their growth in population also means that they make greater
demands on the earth in arid, coastal and semi-arid areas. As do we.
WHAT OTHER EXAMPLES DO YOU KNOW OF WHERE THE INDIGENOUS MOVEMENT AND THE
ENVIRONMENT MOVEMENT HAVE WORKED TOGETHER? WHAT DID YOU LEARN FROM THIS?
Indigenous is a hard word to spell and I wish we could go back to 'koori'.
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