Guillaume and the moose

France has launched many Green Taxation policies in order to support economy and tackle climate change. But is it always good, in the long term? Not sure...

I have read a recent evaluation paper based on green taxation on old cars.

Since January 2008, less polluting cars benefit from a price reduction of up to 1,000 euros, while the most polluting ones are subject to a taxation of 2,600 euros. 

The author says "We show that if the shift towards classes benefiting from rebates is spectacular, the environmental impact of the policy is negative. The reform has notably increased sales, leading to an important increase in manufacturing and travelling emissions."

Conclusions:

• the impact of the policy is much disappointing.
• such policies should be designed with care to achieve their primary goal.

Read the full paper here: http://bit.ly/yUgRTq

(French version: http://www.insee.fr/fr/ffc/iana/iana3/iana3.pdf)

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) published a study wich highlights these key figures about endangered species:

• 12% of the world’s 10 000 known bird species
• 23% of its 4 776 mammals, 
• 46% of its fish,
  
• 33% of all reptiles
• 70% of all known plants.
  

• Humankind is the cause of 99% of these threats.
  
• Endangered species, according to IUCN
  
•  24 endangered species in 1975,
• 1000 in 1985
  
• 16 306 in 2007.

What can YOU do about this ? Any ideas ?

More? Visit http://www.iucn.org/

Nowadays, everybody knows that eating a strawberry for christmas in the UK is of course a non-sense in term of gastronomy but also an environmental nightmare (CO2, travel, cost, etc.)

But what about seafood, sustainability and seasonality ? Why saving oceans is important ?

Did you know that ...

• more than 120 million people are dependent on fish for all or part of their incomes.
• Animals such as whales, dolphins and seabirds also rely on fish for their food.
• Fish are a vital part of marine ecosystems
• what we take out of the ocean as seafood or bycatch is greater than what the ocean can sustainably provide (Source SeaChoice)

Here are some interesting initiatives to face seafood and sustainable oceans issues:

1/ The Mr.Goodfish campaign aims to sensitize the general public and the fish industry professionals about the sustainable consumption of seafood. "The objective is to develop the appropriate communications and educational means to empower them to make informed and sound choices when they buy seafood so as to reduce human

pressure on nonsustainable fisheries."

You can choose a restaurant that follow the good rules about seafood and sustainability visiting the dedicated page here : Restaurants

2/ Alternatively, you can also visit the website à World Ocean Network, who initiated the campaign  : http://www.worldoceannetwork.org

3/ In the same subject, you can also see what is done in Canada with SeaChoice, Canada’s most comprehensive sustainable seafood program. I suggest you download their IPHONE App to help you to choose the good fish at the

good time. Innovative & seafood-friendly !

And you, what can you do for sustainable oceans ?

Talking about sustainability and adoptions of innovations is all about Behaviour.

DECC has recently published a very interesting paper about ‘Energy Behaviour’ and how this can be impacted by public policies.

There are different Theories of ‘Energy Behaviour’

1. Economic Theories: Energy is a commodity and consumers will adapt usage in response to price signals
2. Psychological Theories: Energy use can be affected by stimulus-response mechanisms and by engaging attention
3. Sociological Theories: Energy use is largely invisible, energy systems are complex, and daily practices are significant
4. Educational Theories: Energy use is a skill that is learned through experience in specific situations

These four types of theories highlight how energy behaviour can be seen through very different lenses

According to the report, 4 possible ways in which it might be helpful to discriminate between behaviours are:

• The actors of the relevant behaviour and target of any policies may range from single individuals, families and households, small social networks, wider communities and so on, up to whole sectors of society.
• The scopes of behaviour of concern might range from isolated behaviours, to behaviours which structure or circumscribe subsequent behaviours, to interrelated or co-dependent behaviours, and so on, up to lifestyles as regularised patterns of behaviour. Do the means towards emission-reduction ends entail meat-free Fridays, vegetarianism, low impact living, or complete self-sufficiency?
• The durability of the behaviour relates to whether it is a “one-off” behaviour (such as getting loft-insulation fitted), through to repeated behaviours that require sustained policy intervention (such as the need to keep financial measures e.g. a congestion charge in place), to behaviours with successively less required reinforcement (short-term provision of a free bus pass in the anticipation that a new habit may form), and so on, up to enduring behaviours (routinely turning off lights or appliances when not in use).
• The domains of relevant behaviour refers to where the core target of change is thought to reside. Is the intention to simply change the way someone thinks or makes decisions, how the physically carry out a task, what equipment or technology they use to do something. Do the changes in behaviour rely on changes to institutions or infrastructures, or at scales of social, national or global? For example, might the aim of a policy be positive attitude formation towards substitutes for air travel, improved infrastructure for long-distance trains, or much wider reassessment of fashionable clothing that would permit lower internal building temperatures.

The paper describes a number of approaches to understanding human behaviour and social practices, particularly in the context of activities that have significant environmental impacts and, especially in the context of energy usage.

None of these approaches alone can provide a full and complete account of how and why people act as they do. It is unlikely that they can do this even if used together.

The challenge for the policy-maker is to use these ideas, theories, and tools to understand the behaviours of concern, and to help develop and implement effective, efficient and legitimate policies to change the way people do things.

Examples and more details => read full report here

What's up about the Internet of Things? Do you know this paradigm where you can imagine a world where everything can be both analogue and digitally approached ?
 
The IoT in linked to a number of other emerging ideas such as smart cities, persuasive sensing and m2m communication, open data protocols, RFID, etc.

Both, businesses and governments are much interested in that.
But what is it really ? Here are some key elements
 
Definition:
Internet of Things (IoT) is an integrated part of Future Internet and could be defined as a dynamic global network infrastructure with self configuring capabilities based on standard and interoperable communication protocols where physical and virtual ‘things’ have identities, physical attributes, and virtual personalities and use intelligent interfaces.
 
Examples:
 
Autobot : http://mavizontech.com/MeetMavia.htm
Developed by Louisville, Kentucky company Mavizon Technologies, AutoBot is a car appliance that allows you to control aspects of your car with your smart phone.
 
Nike+ Shoes : http://www.apple.com/ipod/nike/run.html
The shoes come with a sensor that tracks your run and sends the data to your iPod. It even has its own social network and can automatically tweet and post a status report on Facebook.
 
Pachube : https://pachube.com/
It lets you tag and share real time sensor data from objects, devices, buildings and environments both physical and virtual.
 
I was told that the number of "things" connected to the internet already surpasses the number of people on earth !
 
Want more?
http://www.theinternetofthings.eu/

Recently, UK Gov released a white paper called "water for Life"

See report here bit.ly/uLqhyy

I was hugely dissapointed by this paper and the lack of vision.

Water is mainly  linked to utilities and regulation. Of course, some staements are good: rising needs, resource under stress, polution, performance, etc. Nothing new really for a water professional.

"This paper describes a vision for future water management" Secretary of State says.

I was quite amazed to notice that it was exclusively focused on water and water industry itself.

It saddly ignores the links with others "worlds" in the XXI century's city.

water + building + technology + customers + chemistry + IT, etc.

Here are some topics that I think would had been beneficial to the debate:               

1. Energy: water/energy nexus: how to make energy efficiency utilities + how to create carbon free utilities + How to generate energy from waste water ?
2. Buildings: City of tomorrow: water and the new buildings
3. Climate change: boiling and heating water is responsible for more 60% of the CO2 emissions in the water sector. Link to home appliances and lifestyle
4. Technology: to monitor, to inform, to detect: how do we build a smart water environment?
5.  Behaviour: what about a Water 2.0 approach? How can we involve each customer?
6. Can we re-invent the water cycle at a "block" scale in the city ?
7. Ecosystem: Agriculture, industry, etc.
8. Sustainability: Is "virtual water" part of the debate? I think so.
9. Food: water and how face the growing needs. Can genetic help?

What about new technology and entrepreneurs to bring fresh ideas in the debate?

Moreover, as in many countries in Europe, nothing credible about agriculture and pollution.

Finally, too few words about emerging pollutants such as drugs.

It seems to mee that players such as Nestle, IBM, Suez Environnement and even P&G are more the front-runners in the debate.

I am not sure this kind of paper gives the inspirational vision we need...

What do you think ?

Recent crisis in Africa about food and population raises the question about sustainable agriculture.
But what is it and how innovation can help ? Quick overview.

Sustainable agriculture integrates three main goals--environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity.

0/ Farming and Natural Resources : Water. (Water supply and use, Water quality, impact on Wildlife), Energy, Soil.

A/ Plant Production Practices: Selection of species and varieties that are well suited to the site and to conditions on the farm; Diversification of crops (including livestock) and cultural practices to enhance the biological and economic stability of the farm; Management of the soil to enhance and protect soil quality;

B/ Efficient use of inputs. The goal is to develop efficient, biological systems which do not need high levels of material inputs.
C/ Animal Production Practices: Animal Selection, Animal nutrition. Reproduction. Grazing Management.

D/ Economic, Social & Political Context: Food and agricultural policy. Land use. Rural Community Development.

More ? read the article "Sustainable agriculture key in developing a green economy, both at home and abroad" http://bit.ly/pTSUws

Have you ever heard about the FRESCATI MANUAL ?

"This Manual was written in 2002 by and for the national experts in OECD member countries who collect and issue national R&D data and submit responses to OECD R&D surveys. Although many examples are given, the Manual remains a technical document which is mainly intended as a reference work."

It is a document setting forth for the methodology for collecting statistics about research and development. It  is very important for understanding the role of science and technology in economic development.

The definitions provided in this document serve as a common language for discussions of science and technology policy. It has become an acknowledged standard in R&D studies all over the world.

In this fast moving world and globalization, common terminology is a precious tool. In this guide, find usefull correspondances. Examples:

• Current classification of French, UK and US terminology about Research
• Terminology in common use in the defence and aerospace industries

What about other standards ? It is shown, for example, correspondence between Frascati Manual categories of R&D personnel by occupation and ISCO–88 classes

The full Frescati manual is Here

More on OECD website : www.oecd.org/

Electricity + Sustainability - CO2 = Nuclear power ?

Some experts say Electricity and nuclear power is an answer to major issues:

• tackle climate change and cut CO2 emissions
• respond to rising needs for electricity : new appliances, electric car
• face the peak oil problem
• face geopolitical issue linked to petrol

That is why we can notice a kind of "Nuclear power's comeback"

Today, there are 340 nuclear power plants in the world .Did you know that the 3 world leaders in nuclear power are:

• France: 30% of the installed base
• USA 16%
• Japan 10% 
• Today 30 other countries have power plants. More than 60 tomorrow.

"BRICS" need power to develop and many projects have been launched. Here are some new programmes already accepted (source world nuclear association):

• USA : 104 existing, 32 projects
• France: 58 existing, 3 projects
• UK: 19 existing, 13 projects
• Japan : 55 existing, 15 projects
• China : 13 existing, 182 projects !
• India: 19 existing, 64 projects
• Russia: 32 existing, 54 projects

Two trends for new nuclear plants:

1. more power
2. old plants retrofit

400 reactors are needed within 20 years ! (Today, only 4/year are built !)

The main obstacles could be :

• time to market - life cycle: it takes at least 10 years to design and build a new nuclear plant
• need of investment
• resource: uranium, plutonim
• actors: the nuclear industry is one of the most concentrated with very few huge actors : Areva, USEC,
• technological: 3rd or 4th generation ?
• competition with renewable (image, political, etc.) 
• Acceptability: what about the waste ? What about mines exploitation ?
• HR: techniciens and engineers needed.  For example, only 400 graduated in France every year. Not enough.

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THESE TRENDS AND OBJECTIVES IN TERMS OF TECHNOLOGY, GEOPOLITICS, ECOLOGY OR INVESTMENTS ?

More about electricity and nuclear ?

• Read International Energy Outlook 2010. Read here
• Key players :
  • www.usec.com
  • http://www.minatom.ru/en/
    
  • www.areva.com
  • www.urenco.com

"BREAM vs LEED : Which method is the best ?"

The rating of buildings in terms of environmental performance has been growing rapidly over the last decade using systems like BREEAM in the UK and LEED in the US.

In the UK, BREEAM may be incorporated into the building regulations by 2019.

Question :  developers and architects are currently facing a difficult decision in choosing which one to use according to Aurore JULIEN, Head of Llewelyn Davies Yeang’s new Eco Systems unit.

• Is using a local system the best strategy ?
• Is there any "global" method with worldwide legitimacy ?
• what about singaporian systems such as Green mark (http://bit.ly/96cvR5) ?

=> Read the article : "Assessing the assessors" : http://bit.ly/aA2chJ