Emergent Futures Tumblelog

This is the Tumblelog of Paul Higgins and Sandy Teagle - Futurists from Melbourne and Brisbane in Australia. Go to Emergent Futures to see more or follow on Twitter at FuturistPaul . If you right click on the pictures, titles or links in these posts you will be able to go to the original story on the web. If you click on comments for each post you can either read what others have said or add your own comment via Disqus. If you click on the date of a post it will take you to a single post view where you can copy the web link if you want to send it to someone else. If you click on the tags it will take you to other stories from Emergent Futures with the same tag.

May 10th 2012

Reblogged from thenextweb|62 notes |# Comments

Microsoft Commits to Becoming Carbon Neutral from July 1 (via thenextweb)

Posted at 9:11pm and tagged with: Environment, tech, technology, climate change,.

“
Microsoft has become the latest technology company to commit to reducing its environmental footprint, today announcing that it wants to make its data centers, software development labs, air travel, and office buildings carbon neutral. The software giant’s new initiative will begin from July 1 (also the start of its fiscal year 2013), introducing a new “accountability model” that will make every Microsoft business unit responsible for the carbon that they generate — providing rewards for increasing efficiency, purchasing renewable sources of energy, and reducing their environmental impact.
”

May 7th 2012

23 notes |# Comments

Expert warns world needs to move ‘rapidly’ toward ‘population shrinkage’

The optimum population of Earth – enough to guarantee the minimal physical ingredients of a decent life to everyone – was 1.5 to 2 billion people rather than the 7 billion who are alive today or the 9 billion expected in 2050, said Ehrlich in an interview with the Guardian.


Full Story: The Raw Story

Posted at 1:52pm and tagged with: population, environment, risk,.

Expert warns world needs to move ‘rapidly’ toward ‘population shrinkage’ The optimum population of Earth – enough to guarantee the minimal physical ingredients of a decent life to everyone – was 1.5 to 2 billion people rather than the 7 billion who are alive today or the 9 billion expected in 2050, said Ehrlich in an interview with the Guardian. Full Story: The Raw Story

May 5th 2012

6 notes |# Comments

New project to help predict the future of the UK’s coastline

The four-year £2.9m iCoast project is bringing together a number of UK universities, research laboratories and leading consultants, to develop new methods that will characterise and forecast long-term changes to coastal sediment systems.


Full Story: Southampton Uni

Posted at 8:47pm and tagged with: climate change, Environment, prediction,.

New project to help predict the future of the UK’s coastline The four-year £2.9m iCoast project is bringing together a number of UK universities, research laboratories and leading consultants, to develop new methods that will characterise and forecast long-term changes to coastal sediment systems. Full Story: Southampton Uni

May 4th 2012

Reblogged from climateadaptation|22 notes |# Comments

climateadaptation:

BEST KICKSTARTER EVER: W.S. Merwin documentary!!

If I have a hero, it’s Merwin. This video just confirms that.

Nice project.

(Source: ecantwell)

Posted at 11:54am and tagged with: crowdfunding, environment,.

May 3rd 2012

Bill Bryson begins campaign against wind turbines in the UK

Reblogged from climateadaptation|9 notes |# Comments

Paul Higgins: An interesting discussion and argument. I love Bill Bryson’s writing and the balance between competing environmental values rather than a black and white fight between good and evil is where things are headed.

climateadaptation:

Thousands of turbines being built in pristine landscapes of the UK, but at what cost?

Mr Bryson said the CPRE and people in the countryside are supportive of the Government’s plans to cut carbon emissions.

But the continuing march of the turbines is turning ordinary people against the battle against climate change because they see green energy destroying the countryside.

“The Campaign to Protect Rural England is increasingly concerned that the wave of planning applications for wind turbines across the country risks unacceptable damage to the landscape; to localism and people’s confidence in the planning system; and, ultimately, to the battle against climate change,” he said.

Excellent piece at The Telegraph

Posted at 1:50pm and tagged with: environment, energy, wind,.

May 1st 2012

Insurers Prepare for Climate Change…Except in U.S.

Reblogged from climateadaptation|68 notes |# Comments

climateadaptation:

“In a survey conducted by Ceres, a Boston-based coalition of investors and environmental groups, more than 75% of insurers acknowledged the existence of perils stemming from climate change.
 
“Yet despite widespread recognition of the effects climate change will likely have on extreme events, few insurers were able to articulate a coherent plan to manage the risks and opportunities associated with climate change,” the Ceres report states.
 
The Ceres study found that out of 88 U.S. insurance companies, only 11 had formal climate change risk policies and more than 60% had no dedicated management approach to assessing climate risks.
 
Ben Schiller at Yale’s Environment 360 noted that while American insurance companies have been slow to prepare for global warming’s ramifications, their European counterparts have been getting ready for a potentially costly future.”
Via AllGov

Posted at 9:50am and tagged with: risk, Environment, climate change,.

April 30th 2012

Stowe Boyd: Laser Unprinters

Reblogged from stoweboyd|27 notes |# Comments

stoweboyd:

Researchers at the University of Cambridge have devised a way to ‘unprint’ laser printed pages, so that the paper can be reused.

Use a laser, save a tree - via University of Cambridge

Dr Julian Allwood, Leader of the Low Carbon Materials Processing Group at the University of Cambridge, and…

Posted at 12:01pm and tagged with: tech, technology, environment, innovation,.

April 28th 2012

Reblogged from smarterplanet|45 notes |# Comments

smarterplanet:

Next generation Cargo Ship with 50m high sails uses 30% less fuel

The aim of the Wind Challenger Project is to substantially reduce fuel consumption by large merchant vessels. Under development by a group including members from the University of Tokyo, the idea is to utilize giant retractable sails, 20m wide by 50m high, to make maximal use of wind energy. The group has done simulations for shipping routes such as Yokohama-Seattle. The results indicate that hybrid ships with sails and engines could reduce annual fuel consumption by about 30% on average. […]

[more]

via futurescope:

Posted at 8:20am and tagged with: tech, technology, design, energy, environment, assumptions,.

April 27th 2012

50 notes |# Comments

Global Clean Energy Investment a Record $263 Billion in 2011

“Clean energy investment, excluding research and development, has grown by 600 percent since 2004, on the basis of effective national policies that create market certainty,” saidPhyllis Cuttino, director of Pew’s Clean Energy Program. “This increase was due in part to the number of countries that have implemented effective national policies to support the clean energy market. In the United States, which attracted $48 billion last year, investors took advantage of the country’s stimulus programs before they expired at the end of 2011, as well as the production tax credit for electricity from renewable energy, which is to end this December.”


Full Story: Pew

Posted at 1:52pm and tagged with: environment, energy, economic, trends,.

Global Clean Energy Investment a Record $263 Billion in 2011 “Clean energy investment, excluding research and development, has grown by 600 percent since 2004, on the basis of effective national policies that create market certainty,” saidPhyllis Cuttino, director of Pew’s Clean Energy Program. “This increase was due in part to the number of countries that have implemented effective national policies to support the clean energy market. In the United States, which attracted $48 billion last year, investors took advantage of the country’s stimulus programs before they expired at the end of 2011, as well as the production tax credit for electricity from renewable energy, which is to end this December.” Full Story: Pew

April 26th 2012

env

Reblogged from climateadaptation|79 notes |# Comments

onearth:

climate-changing:

bogleech:

I knew a lot of this and I’m sure most of you did as well, but it’s pretty nice to have such a comprehensive list with links.

It’s amazing this is even still a controversy when the science has been so consistent for so long.

This site is very good and should be on you list of favorites.

Will always reblog the great work of John Cook at Skeptical Science.

Posted at 7:21pm and tagged with: Environment, climate change, science,.