A thought on the costs of global warming

Today I opened up the paper as I usually do every morning and began reading an opinion article by Washington Post writer Steven Mufson entitled “Is This Green Enough? We Can Clean Up Our Act, But It’ll Cost Us.” The first line of it, for some reason at present unknown to me, made me think of a couple things.

He writes, “How much are we willing to spend to save the planet? And just how much does saving a planet cost these days anyways?”

Now, the first line of this sentence is what threw me off. He is basically asking the question: What is the value of Earth?

Well we all know that the environmental challenge has been going around in circles for the last 15 years and very little has been done. Many countries have failed to meet Kyoto Protocol standards with a number of them increasing their gross greenhouse gas outputs.

So how much will it cost to save our planet? Well according to the Environmental Defense Fund, the figure is STARKLY less than you probably would think. According to them, the annual median projected impact on annual growth if the “greener” path was chosen would be three-hundredths of a percentage point, meaning GDP in 2030 would reach $23 trillion in April, instead of January. This amounts to hardly anything for the worlds largest economy which continues to refuse international treaties on climate change and greenhouse gas emissions.

Sure in the short term it’s going to be expensive but think of the spin off industries that can be developed by this. Smart, forward thinking companies should be investing in subsidiaries that can specialize in green technology so that the vertical integration that has become the business plan of so many companies can begin to integrate the technology of these new companies into their own development.

The problem with asking “how much” is knowing that if we don’t make these investments now, or at maximum in the next 10-15 years, we are going to be sending our planet down a perilous course that we are unsure we’ll be able to fix. Sure it’s going to cost a lot of money, but in the long run, it’s going to be necessary.

These companies that today hark at the thought of investing a couple hundred million in upgrading their facilities to improve environmental efficiency will have no one to sell their products to in 100 years if things are changed quickly.

Industry and government need to stop looking at the short term bottom line and instead look at whether they will be able to continue growing over the next century with the environmental and societal impacts that global climate change is having, and will continue to have on our planet.

love

someone loves me... yes, as hard as it is to believe, it's true.... that person also happens to be my board of education superintendent as he told me SEVERAL times tonight at the new teachers welcome party! ahhh good times when you're loved by the big boss man :D

haha you've gotta appreciate a drunk japanese man/senior! they're just too funny. anyone who has met him is sure to know exactly how he sounded as he said it! haha

meetings

today there was a meeting with all the schools in bandai to decide on observation class dates and stuff for the next year. the meeting i was a part of was small, about 8 people, and made me realise how much i miss going to meetings at my job and being an active contributer.

bouncing ideas off each other, discussing ways to improve and problems that exist are some of my favorite parts about working... i cant wait to be in a job where i can do lots of this :D soon, very soon... maybe parliament hill :)

april 14, 2008

the last couple weeks have been some of the most difficult for me since coming here. i was tired of japanese custom and tradition, job satisfaction was at an all time low, i miss my loved ones in canada and the loneliness that is the japanese countryside was getting to me. i seriously considered leaving and even applied for jobs back in canada. the last couple weeks have seen a profound improvement though.

normally drab and ugly japan has been decorated with cherry blossoms in a way i have never seen before. although i had a slightly cynical obsession with them early on, i feel i now appreciate their beauty much more and am excited for this weekend when they will finally bloom in aizu (cherry blossom season is planned here with frightening accuracy!!).

school was really starting to get on my nerves. after two weeks off for spring break i was back to the routine, and what a routine it is. schools here are absolutely obsessed with ceremony. a ceremony in japan is not like a ceremony anywhere else simply because of the rigid formalities the students, teachers, parents and spectators must endure. bow, sing, introduction, speech, introduction, bow, sing, bow, sit, stand, bow, repeat... ive had enough!!! as a foreigner not properly introduced to this and having no idea what's going on most of the time i found these to be incredibly draining. it seems like ceremony season has ended for a little while now so that huge aspect of my dissatisfaction is over!

today was also the first time i have been the central topic of discussion at school lunch since my arrival. most of the time while we're eating lunch i sit there in silence while everyone else converses in japanese and i have no idea whats going on. but today, with the help of my vice-principal (who is quite worldly, even living in thailand) and tomoko sensei (who learnt english at a private school as an adult and is quite good at it) all that changed. we had hamburgers and everyone became quite interested in what i and other canadians eat! it's always really funny when you tell them that you eat cereal or toast for breakfast since a typical japanese breakfast is filled with rice, miso soup and other hot dishes! it was really nice to be included and for the other teachers who dont speak english to communicate with me with all the english they know and even laugh at my jokes!

japan is a place of extreme highs and lows and you just roll with the punches and move along. i'm glad to have such good friends here and such supportive people back home. thanks everyone :)

Umm that's my internet cable

When the new school year starts everyone seems to move desks... Before I sat next to one of my English teachers, Nozomi, and she couldn't use the internet on her comp so I had it all the time. I went into school yesterday and noticed that the teacher that now sits next to me has already taken my internet connection! THIS IS THE WORST NEWS EVER!! How am I going to pass my hours of boredom now? I am hoping to god they get a new connection set up when I'm there on Monday!! :-S

Sorry, it's been a while!

Well I dont think that I've written here in about 5 months so I figured I'd try to maintain it a bit better for the rest of my 4 months here.

First off, my winter was amazing. December - March were my favorites months since I'd been to Japan.

1) Went to Thailand and Cambodia for Christmas holidays. The beaches and history were amazing, so it was really awesome to see... especially with the group of people I was with!

2) I finally got to ski regularly again! Having lived in S. Ontario for the past 4 years I wasnt able to get out much... Living here, 10 minutes from my door to the ski hill, made me go usually 4 times a week! It was awesome... I'll miss ALTS!

3) Phil came over to Japan and we had an incredible time together. Traveled most of Japan, and saw most of the major Japanese sites from Hiroshima to Kyoto/Osaka and then up north to Aizu and Bandai. It was really awesome having him here... cant wait to do it again!!

4) Went to China for 5 days over a Japanese long weekend! It was SOOOO good! Check out the video on Facebook to better understand ;)

5) Amy was in Japan and took 2 days out of her schedule to come up and visit! It was awesome to be able to show her Aizu!

So that's what I've done.

At this point I'm over Japan and would really like to move on. I dont really like the job... it's boring and a lot of the time I feel completely useless just sitting there in a staff room not knowing what's going on. I started reading The Global Me the other day and it talks about problems with homogeneous populations taking Japan as a case study arguing that their aversion to immigration has impacted their global competitiveness. I find this becoming more obvious the longer I'm here and its making me disenfranchised with Japan.

Well that's my rant for now.. I'll write on here more often... promise! ;)

Driving

Yesterday a couple of us went to Nikko - a historic site about 120 KM from Aizu Wakamatsu. I thought it would be a good idea to drive (and it was) but you will never guess how long the 120 KM trip took us. In Canada, it would probably take about 1 hour to drive this distance - maybe 1.15 hours. In Japan it took us over three hours! INSANITY!

This happens for a couple reasons
1) The roads are TWISTY and TURNY as you make your way through the mountains
2) The roads are ALL one lane, so passing someone is hard
3) There are no lights on the roads
4) The Japanese LOVE to drive slow

Oh well, it was a fun road trip!