IT's been exactly 39 years since the hippies began their chant for change, demanding that we respect the Earth and its resources; begging that we alter our materialistic viewpoint to prevent the worst from happening. But we felt it easier to label the long-haired free spirits 'nutters' and carry on with our quest to milk the world for what it was worth.
Then came the natural disasters, hot on the heels of each other, ravaging countries with tsunamis,floods and droughts, to which we offered sympathetic nods before carrying on with what we knew best - making money at all costs.
But now that the world economy has taken such a beating that even the prices of our most prized natural resources have taken a tumble, governments of the world have finally begun reevaluating their stance, Might this then be a good time to learn something from the hippies and take a few steps to protect our planet? And while we're at it, make some cash on the side?
Despite physical evidence to the contrary, money still makes the world go around. And it's because of the falling economy that we finally feel it necessary to take a step towards preserving our future.
It's a sad truth but at least it has forcibly pushed us onto the right path. In October 2008, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) and leading economists launched the Green Economy Initiative (GEI), right on the cusp of the then impending economic crisis, announcing that only way forward is by protecting the very thing we've taken for granted all along.
Since money make the world spin ,everyone sat up to listen when the UNEP announced that our survival (one has to wonder if 'survival' here means financial) depends on "re-focusing the global economy towards investments in clean technologies and natural infrastructures such as forests and soils, adding that "this is the best bet for real growth, combating climate change and triggering an employment boom".
It is an insult to the human race that our motivation to save the planet stems from financial gains. But it is motivation nonetheless.
GREEN JOB
The first step in restructuring our economy is by re-employing the masses that have lost their jobs in the last few months. In a bid to rescue Americans who are struggling to cope with the downturn, President Barrack Obama jumped on the UNEPs landmark study entitled Green Jobs; Towards Decent Work in a Sustainable, Low- Carbon World, which revealed that millions of new "green jobs" could be created in the next few decades as a result of the emerging global "green economy"
"We'll invest US$15 billion (RM55 billion) a year over the next decade in renewable energy, creating five million new green jobs that pay well, can't be outsourced and help end our dependence on foreign oil," he had said during his campaign, 10 days after the announcement of UNEPs findings.
He appears to have kept his promise. At the end of February, Obama signed the US$787 billion economic stimulus bill, which includes provisions to create jobs such as installing solar panels and building wind turbines, which is likely to aid middle-America regain its footing.
The most promising provision is the US$6 billion set aside as a loan guarantee programme to encourage banks to finance green investments and US$500 billion for a "green job" training programme to be run by the Department of Labor.
Risky business? Perhaps. But given the state of the earth and its resources, even Obama realises that we're caught between a melting iceberg and an impending tidal wave.
But even before Obama pledged allegiance to making this world a better place, green jobs had already begin making an impression in employment and investment trends. According to the UNEP report, renewable energy generates more jobs than employment in fossil fuels. Based on this trend, the report projects that investments of US$630 billion by 2030 would mean that at least 20 million additional jobs would be created in the renewable energy sector.
According to the report, green jobs reduce the environmental impact of enterprises and economic sectors, ultimately to levels that are sustainable. However, the report also finds that the process of climate change, already underway, will continue to have negative effects on workers and their families, especially those whose livelihoods depend on agriculture and tourism.
Is it then possible after years of abuse and neglect that our sudden concern for the earth might actually make a difference and turn things around? Or is this just a passing phase given the state of the economy?
The UNEP remains optimistic, Its Global Green New Deal, inspired by President Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal in the aftermath of the Great Depression, is to inspire and enable governments to begin the shift towards a global economy driven by massive job creation from the growth of resource and energy-efficient building and construction; widespread use of modern public transport in mega cities; the scaling up of solar, wind, wave, thermal, and bio energy mix; sustainable chemicals and waste management as a highly lucrative sector; and sustainable agriculture that reflects the latest thinking in ecosystem management and biodiversity and water conservation.
"The road onto the green economy may be long, but we are taking the first steps now and looking forward to walking this greatest journey of the 21st century with like-minded partners," the UNEP says.
INDUSTRY STANDARDS
Any capitalist will by now have realised that there still is massive amounts of money to be made in this economy, as long as they go green. Back a green industry, a new green invention or any of the initiatives that the governments of the world are prepared to invest in, and you're sure to cash in on the green movement.
At last two years, one of the hardest hit industries of the downturn, the auto industry, declared that it is serious about producing greener vehicles. After years of dragging their feet, they obviously mean business now as the statement was issued at the Geneva Auto Show.
A lot will depend on whether the consumer will be punished for buying fuel efficiency by having to pay more for it. Volkswagen chairman Martun Winterkorn appears to be slightly more optimistic about the change, saying that going green could save the auto industry from sinking during this critical period.
Most of the cars launched at the show offered fuel-saving or lower emissions, but there is nagging doubt if consumers will actually have the incentive to make that change. Once again, it boils down to money. A start-up in the US, Sapphire Energy, cashed in with a promising innovation. The company unveiled what it calls "green crude", a liquid fuel chemically identical to gasoline but isn't dependent on either a food source or agricultural land. Even in these difficult times, Sapphire has managed to attract US$50 million from respected venture capital companies in the US, Genomatica, to create thousands of tons of a foundational chemical in plastics using sugar instead of a petrol-based ingredient. It too has gained the attention and commitment of ventures capitalists, proving that going green will naturally beef up your bank balance.
SUSTAINABLE ENERGY
All this talk about creating green jobs and cleaning up after ourselves, as it turns out, is clearly a race to discover as many renewable energy sources as possible. This is where the money is.
One of the most ambitious sustainable-energy projects to date is the Master Initiative in Abu Dhabi, UAE. Part of this project includes transforming about four square miles of empty dessert into the world's only zero-emissions, waste free city, named Masdar City. This massive project has received billions of dollars in backing, which includes an investment fund and a science and engineering institute devoted to the study of clean energy and sustainable technologies, and continues to draw investors from around the world including Finland's WinWinD, which supplies wind turbines.
Closer to home, the North Sumataran Island of Indonesia has found new use of its score of volcanoes, Geothermal Power built by Omat technologies of Japan is in the midst of tapping into the built-up power of these volcanoes, and has found backing of about US$600 million. Construction of this massive geothermal site is slated to end around 2011. At a cost of US$2 billion, the Mojave Desert in California is being transformed into the state's power generator. Working with Solel Solar Systems, an Israeli solar thermal company, the solar thermal energy output at this plant is estimated to reach its state-mandated renewable energy requirement by 2010. Solel plans to string 1.2 million mirrors over nine square miles of the dessert, converting the sun's heat into steam that powers turbines.
At this rates, the future is looking infinitely green. But why has it taken a beating of the economy and a sad state of our climate to push governments to take these necessary steps? Take President Obama's plans to sell permits giving businesses the right to emit pollution from 2012. The number of available permits would gradually decline, forcing businesses to buy the increasingly scarce, and costly, rights to pollute on an open market. Obama hopes that the rising cost of permits will encourage businesses to invest in clean technologies as a cheaper alternative to meeting pollution mandates, helping to cut greenhouse gas production to 14 percent below 2005 levels by 2020.
Had such a step been taken even two decades ago, would climate change have taken millions of lives and left millions more homeless? Would our agricultural industries been as bad hit? It begs the biggest question of all : If we had put all our energy into saving the planet in the first place, would this economic crunch have even happen? All this begs the question as to what Malaysia is doing to put right our transgressions against the planet. Have we as a country stepped up to reduce our carbon footprint? In March 2007, former Prime Minister Dato' Seri Abdullah Badawi launched the Malaysia Green Building Mission aimed at promoting sustainable construction in the country, much like the Pusat Tenaga Malaysia Zero Energy Building in Bangi, Selangor, which runs on energy efficiency and renewable energy.
In order to encourage more such buildings, the Malaysian institute of Architects (PAM) and the Association for Consulting Engineers Malaysia (ACEM) announced that as of April, they would initiate a voluntary Green Building Index to encourage the building of eco-friendly properties.
The index is meant to guide architects, designers, engineers, and property developers on energy and water efficiency, sustainable site management and indoor environment quality, all of which will generate a green rating for the building.
The question is, who's going to bear the cost of training our workforce to install solar panels as opposed to water heater?
PAM's chairman, Tan Loke Mun says that the body will liaise with the government to identify possible incentives to support this urgent initiative. For now it remains to be seen what will become of this move. Untill then, the looming question remains centred on our oil palm practices. America's largest organic grocer announced that its products will no longer use palm oil sourced from unsustainable producers.
" Whole Foods Market is concerned with the social and environmental impacts of palm oil production in tropical rainforest ecosystems around the world," Whole Foods said in a statement, Whole
foods is committed to protecting rainforests, communities and our global climate, and therefore Whole Foods has partnered with the Institute for Markettecology (IMO), a highly regarded international certification agency whose social responsibility and fair trade certification programme requires successful implemaentation of environmental, social responsibility, and sustainability practices on the land within the company's organisation,"
Unilever, the largest corporate buyer of palm oil has agreed with Whole Foods. This put us in a bind as studies have shown that palm oil production in South East Asia is destroying the rainforest and putting endangered species like the oranghutan at further risk. Conversion of natural ecosystems for oil palm plantations has also been associated with the emissions of hundreds of millions of tons of greenhouse gases.
Perhaps this boycott is the only way to halt the rapid expansion of oil palm plantations locally. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), figures show that Malaysia's annual deforestation rate jumped almost 86 per cent between the 1900-2000 period and 2000-2005.
Clearly, something has to be done right now if we want to continue living on a lush, green planet, signs of which are fading fast.
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