Young Professionals - Leading the Change

Nick Potter's Blog (12)

Moving beyond Copenhagen

In the wake of the latest round of climate change negotiations, here’s my response to “life after Copenhagen”.

Why

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Added by Nick Potter on December 22, 2009 at 11:17am — No Comments

Are baby boomers ready for forgiveness?

Do baby boomers have more responsibility to reduce greenhouse gas emissions than people under 40 years of age? Should they share more of the costs to cover damages from climate change? Are baby boomers willing to accept some responsibility so… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on December 14, 2009 at 6:30pm — 2 Comments

Time for a carbon recovery charge?

I seem to be unfashionable. I am not following the trend that many governments are taking to manage their climate emissions. I am also calling for better support for New Zealand farmers in climate change discussions. In the lead up to the global climate change negotiations in Copenhagen next month, I have been thinking a lot about inter-governmental frameworks for restoring our climate. Many countries are developing Emissions Trading Schemes to manage their climate changing emissions, either on… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on November 18, 2009 at 10:17am — 3 Comments

Stretching to make a difference (3): Flow

This is the third set of musings in a sequence on how yoga relates to action on climate change. This post takes up the theme of flow, which involves the movement of energy. I have only recently started to find a good flow a… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on November 2, 2009 at 3:30pm — 2 Comments

Stretching to make a difference (2): Stillness

This is the second set of musings in a sequence on how yoga relates to action on climate change. This post takes up the theme of stillness. Focusing the mind To warm things up, here is a quick exercise to stret… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on October 30, 2009 at 10:30am — 1 Comment

Stretching to make a difference: What has yoga got to do with climate change?

My friend Carl threw me a curly question (as he is prone to do) earlier this year: How would you apply what you’ve come to understand through the practice of yoga to our current global situation? With a “Big Stretch for the Climate… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on October 22, 2009 at 6:30pm — 2 Comments

Fun and games - until someone opens an eye

Last week I enjoyed taking part in a curious event that was organised around the idea that "we have our Eyes Wide Open to the opportunities that will make our country shine." It aimed to help shift the conversation on climate change in a more positive direction. Much of the current debate on climate change - and it mostly is a debate instead of a constructive conversation - focuses on the costs of taking action. If we always look f… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on August 17, 2009 at 4:00pm — 2 Comments

Time travel and climate change

“One’s destination is never a place, but a new way of seeing things.” - Henry Miller I got a big wake up call when I started looking more closely at my personal impacts on the clim… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on August 4, 2009 at 5:00pm — 1 Comment

Chewing on climate change

My last post looked at greenhouse gas emissions from home energy and waste. Now it’s time to turn the spotlight on food. This seems to be one of those ‘taboo’ areas in clim… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on July 28, 2009 at 4:00pm — 2 Comments

Confessions of a carbon-based life-form

There are growing calls for modernised/consumer countries like New Zealand to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% by 2020 (based on 1990 levels). Like many New Zealanders, I totally su… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on July 27, 2009 at 1:30pm — 7 Comments

NZ's emissions target for 2020 - framing the discussion

This week NZ's government begins consulting on a greenhouse gas emissions reduction target for 2020. NZ is one of the last developed countries to set this target, in preparation for the international climate change negotiations at Copenhagen this year. The government brochure for this consultation frames the conversation this way: should… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on July 4, 2009 at 10:00am — 3 Comments

How to set up a Car Share

Last year I set up a Car Share with some friends in Wellington. 3 of us own a car together, and we share all the costs. This has been a fantastic system - giving us access to a car when we'd like to use it occasionally (we mostly walk/bike/bus), at far less cost to each of us. Several people have asked how we set up our system. I couldn't find any useful guidelines on the web when we started this up, so here's my contribution. Setting up a Car Share basically involves: 1. Finding the right peop… Continue

Added by Nick Potter on January 6, 2009 at 2:00pm — 2 Comments