March 21, 2013
Dear Board Member,
Our March update features a Thought Leader Series piece by Sunita Narain, director general of the Centre for Science and Environment and this month's Wrigley Lecture Series speaker. We hope you will join us Wednesday, March 27 for her presentation, "Environmentalism of the Poor vs. Environmentalism of the Rich." You can RSVP here.
Please feel free to email or call us with any questions or comments about this briefing.
Best regards,
|
A Thought Leader Series Piece
 By Sunita Narain
Note: Sunita Narain is the director general of The Centre for Science and Environment. She will be speaking at the next Wrigley Lecture Series on March 27 at Arizona State University.
We all know the threat of climate change is urgent. We also know combating this threat will require deep and drastic cuts in greenhouse gas emissions. This is when, already, the poor of the world—who are more vulnerable and less able to cope—are feeling the pain of a changing and more variable climate.
The question is: Why has the world been desperately seeking every excuse not to act, even as science has repeatedly confirmed that climate change is real? Climate change, though related to carbon dioxide and other emissions, is also related to economic growth and wealth in the world. Climate change is man-made. It can also devastate the world as we know it.
Shared solutions
The issues are clear, but the answers are lost in avoidance. The reason is simple: climate change is related to economic growth. It is the “market’s biggest failure.” In spite of protracted negotiations and targets set under the Kyoto Protocol, no country dismisses the correlation between economic growth and increasing emissions. No country has shown how to build a low carbon economy, either.
The solution involves redistributing the responsibility for growth between nations and people. There is a stock of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, built-up over centuries in the process of creating nations’ wealth. This has already made the climate unstable. Poorer nations will now add to this stock through their drive for economic growth. But that is not an excuse for the rich world to not take on tough and deep-binding emission reduction targets. The rich world must reduce so that we can grow. We must also find low-carbon growth strategies for emerging countries, without compromising their right to develop.
This can be done.
Read more »
|
|
Dirks appointed director of ASU's Global Institute of Sustainability
|
|
ASU's LightWorks Director and Sustainability Scientist Gary Dirks hopes to build "a very strong foundation to extend the reach and impact of the Institute" as the new director. Read more »
|
|
ASU releases its first Sustainability Initiatives Revolving Fund annual report
|
|
The report highlights energy-efficient and sustainable projects at ASU that were supported by SIRF during FY 2012. Read more »
|
|
ASU’s Sustainable Cities Network earns EPA’s Green Government award
|
|
During a ceremony at Wrigley Hall, the Network was honored for its commitment to connecting communities across Arizona to focus on sustainability. Read more »
|
|
ASU presents Sustainability Operations Annual Review 2012
|
|
The report highlights ASU's progress in sustainability including climate neutrality, zero waste, active engagement, and principled practice. Read more »
|
|
ASU faculty member named 2013 Leopold Fellow
|
|
Director of Research Development John Sabo hopes the Leopold training will allow him to develop sustainable water resource management research with greater policy relevance. Read more »
|
|
The Sustainability Consortium launches Electronics Delphi Panel
|
|
The Electronics Delphi Panel consists of experts who will develop metrics for the ideal electronics takeback program, which currently does not exist. Read more »
|
|
ASU, Australian Solar Institute collaborate on projects to advance solar energy solutions
|
|
Sustainability Scientists Christiana Honsberg and Ellen Stechel lead two multi-million dollar projects investigating solar cost reductions and advancing Australia as a leader in solar technology. Read more »
|
|
Professor elected to National Academy of Engineering
|
|
Sustainability Scientist Edward Kavazanjian is a professor in the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment and known for his research in seismic analysis and landfill environmental safety. Read more »
|
|
Engaging in science through art
|
|
School of Sustainability student Edgar Cardenas' artwork will be featured in a National Science Foundation exhibit in an effort to bring artists and scientists together for long-term ecological research. Read more »
|
|
|
