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November
2001 Newsletter
Noted
Environmentalist Coming to Hamilton
One
of Canada's most articulate and dynamic environmentalists
is speaking in Hamilton on Saturday, November 24. Dr. William
Rees, the father of the concept of ecological footprints,
is the keynote speaker at a Conference on "Reducing
Hamilton's Ecological Footprint" taking place at First
Unitarian Church, 170 Dundurn Street South. in Hamilton.
Dr. Rees will give a public lecture starting at 9 am that
is open to the general public.
 Ecological
footprint analysis provides a way to measure our impact
on the earth. The footprint measures how much land and water
surface are actually required to sustain the population
indefinitely into the future. It takes account both consumption
of goods and services as well as assimilation of waste.
The results are comparable between units, and the method
of calculation allows the population to see exactly what
parts of their activity and lifestyle are imposing the largest
demands on the planet.
More
than 20% of the footprint of Canadians comes from our transportation
activities. This is obviously worsened by building more
expressways. In some cities in North America, roads already
occupy more than 50% of the land surface. However, the pollutants
and greenhouse gases produced by cars impose an even larger
load on the planet.
This
numerical approach to our relationship with the earth is
particularly challenging to those who think environmentalists
are a bunch of emotional tree-huggers. Rees very directly
and very effectively challenges conventional economic thinking
that treats the environment as an externality that merely
provides resources and absorbs waste products. He takes
particular aim at the notion that growth is necessary and
that it can continue much further into the future. He also
suggests that worrying about environmental problems is wrong-headed.
The problem isn't with the environment; it's with the human
species. We refer to problems with the environment because
we foolishly think that it is separate from us, and our
fate. In fact, we are totally dependent on the environment
and our economy is merely a subset of it.
Rees'
visit to Hamilton is particularly timely in the wake of
the September 11 terrorist attacks and the subsequent war
against Afghanistan, one of the poorest countries in the
world. Rees calculates that the very affluent lifestyle
of Canadians and Americans imposes a footprint of between
7 and 10 hectares per person. Unfortunately, the average
amount of productive land and water surface on the planet
is only about 2 hectares per person.
This
means that extending our affluence and lifestyles to the
rest of the people on earth would require finding three
additional planets. It also means we are using up far more
than our fair share of the earth's resources, including
most of the portion that rightfully belongs to the Afghanis.
The
November 24 Conference will include afternoon workshops
on "Calculating Hamilton's Footprint", "Footprints
and Community Planning", "Voluntary Simplicity"
and "Reducing Your Personal Footprint". While
the Rees lecture is open, registration is required to participate
in the workshops. This can be accomplished on-line at www.sustainablehamilton.org.
There is no cost for either the lecture or the Conference.
The
Conference is part of the "Hamilton Ecological Footprint
Project", a year long effort by Citizens for a Sustainable
Community funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation. After
the Conference, the Project will offer workshops to business
and community organizations, school classes, and other interested
groups. Participants will be assisted in calculating their
personal footprint and will learn ways in which this can
be reduced. These presentations can be booked for 2002 by
email at contactus@sustainablehamilton.org.
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