The European Commission underlines the crucial importance of reaching a global, ambitious and comprehensive climate agreement at the UN climate change conference in Copenhagen on 7-18 December.

The change away from coal &/or to more sustainable use of coal may take time, but this U.S. Medical Report increases pressure on the coal industry to “clean-up”. On the other hand, a large and complex transition for the people of mining communities. It’s a complex issue, but so were the challenges of the 19th century world.

This is one of our very popular earlier 2008 articles working to rebalance the criticism that Generation Y attracted, and pointing out that non-linearity may be an asset in a networked world. Enjoy the ‘Creative Generation’, reproduced for your reading pleasure…

ANALYSIS, Sydney & Melbourne, Australia –
An open letter to visiting President Bush.
Mr Bush is in Sydney Australia at current for the APEC summit, this was written just after his joint speech with Mr Howard today.
Dear Mr President,
You spoke at the APEC Summit with our Prime Minister, Mr Howard.
I agreed with your remarks Sir, about freedom and human rights being critical to the world’s future.
But the Oil War is not the way to spread freedom.
This war is deeply unpopular because the people ‘get’ it was not an honest war.
Another’s freedom …

ANALYSIS, Global –Sometimes the logic for oil usage sounds crazy.
Rather than reduce use of oil we go into a war using oil to fight for more oil supplies so we can have more plastic goods made from oil.
This itself increases global oil consumption further reducing oil supply.
Huh?
Does that Sound rational? Read it out aloud. No.
Economically it is not rational. Common sense tells you it is not rational.
Sounds like a panic because we might run out of oil to:
a) drive our big cars/SUVs/motor homes
b) manufacture more plastic cr*p we don’t …

COMMENT, Global — We’ve have been in a post-modernist age for some time now.
But someone forgot to tell those 1950s-loving industrialist neo-cons.
The innovation zeitgeist is with the Creative Age.
Let’s look at where that innovation is for a moment.

ANALYSIS, Global — Our town, our world, is drowning under a flood of cheap sub-standard products. Products that we can and did once live without.
This is because our modernist global economic system in English-speaking countries largely runs on the manufacture and mass consumption of cheap low-priced goods made from oil-based plastics.
Think about that for a second. What really happens?
The following chain of events was loosely based on media reports of the China pet food story, Fisher Price scandal, and recent other events.
Here is one average scenario:
A company in your city …

COMMENT, Sydney, Australia — Network goods are an economic term. Basically they mean the more people on the network the greater the value of the network.
Myspace is an obvious one. Telephones an older example. The internet a modern-ish example. Airports.
Anything where building more users/locations/access points or effectively nodes, increases the value of the network.
Network goods: the concept that explains the value of your life

The web of interrelationships that is your or my life, is a web of intersecting networks. In our published research to be released soon, we will be …

ANALYSIS: McLaren Vale, South Australia — Writing from South Australia, outside Adelaide in the McLaren Vale wine region. Been researching innovation in food supply in the region.
Food supply important to innovation?
Yes. Definitely. Community and food (never eat alone) are crucial to the development of ideas, and understanding the point of life.
Community and food are a large part of life. French people don’t view food as ‘fuel’ this is an English-speaking (largely big city) definition.
Food and company are to be savoured an enjoyed.
In the community conversation, good ideas grow, bad ideas …

ANALYSIS — Innovation (a positive social change) is rare. Innovation is needed in environmental issues, not reliance on just scientific solutions.
This means, governments, business, people and their communities need to act. And to varying degrees each of them are.
The Big Innovation Guerrilla/Gorilla in the Room – Our Environment
Your beliefs on Climate Change don’t matter, nor mine. Our environment is the issue.
A reasonable person would agree beyond reasonable doubt that there is evidence of harm to human and animal life attributable to environmental damage.
That is the standard of proof in …

It’s Melbourne. It’s Cold. 4-13 Celsius today. By Swiss standards tropical, even Bostonians might take off their scarves, but by Melbourne standards C O L D.
I am happy. Why? In my experience cold days (in doors at least) are the best thinking days. Our office has air-con/heating, but as we have 15 feet ceilings and a heritage sandstone building it is not obtrusive like the typical 8-10 foot foam-core ceiling tower.

Modernist Sins for innovation – no longer the Innovation Zeitgeist

One innovation in building design I don’t like is the Office …

People are worried about Greenhouse pollution. The polls say so. Yet look at the mid-morning traffic.
1 person per car, many gas guzzler SVU/4WD (the Australian term) or high-octane V8 sports cars.
Australia, has a car culture, people feel superior when they zoom past those faithful souls like me catching a tram to work. They feel superior – look at me in my car. … my flash new sports car or SUV. It shows how much money I owe… sorry have.
Dumb Math: No car …

‘Innovation’ is a much abused term. Innovation is not just change. It’s positive change.
Some people say: how do you decide positive? I say it’s not always easy, it’s impossible to get 100% positive, but something that reasonably and generally improves people’s lives would be close. We accept the negative, but are deeply suspicious of positive.
It’s time we stopped arguing over methods (eg. public or private, listed or private equity) and started looking at outcomes. Is the outcome making the majority better off?
We need to look at broader policies on better …