The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively affected economies from the local to the global and we can rebuild our economy using old destructive methods or rebuild it in a way that future generations can benefit. Everyday there are more calls to reshape our economic systems to respect the environment more while
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THE FIFTH COLUMN: Towards a Green Social Democratic Economy
Background/Context Capitalism is an economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit.[1][2][3][4] Characteristics central to capitalism include private property, capital accumulation, wage labor, voluntary exchange, a price system and competitive markets.[5][6] In a capitalist market economy, decision-making and investments are
Continue readingThings Are Good: How to Remove Plastic From Your Life
We all know that plastics are bad for the earth and the oceans. Indeed, a study published last month found that plastic was found in the deepest ocean dwelling animals. Obviously that’s not good, but what we as individuals can do some good for the planet by removing plastics from
Continue readingThings Are Good: Living a Zero-Waste Life is Getting Easier
Zero waste living seems like an impossibility given the amount of packaging everything is put in. Ordering a small item can lead to 10x the packaging of the item itself. The use of packaging seem so out of control that we can’t avoid it. We can. Back in 2010 a
Continue readingThings Are Good: Slavoj Zizeck on the Ethics of Consumption
Slavoj Zizeck is a modern thinker that has done a great job of critiquing the overarching assumptions in our society when it comes to power dynamics and the insidiousness of neoliberalism. In the video above his views on capitalistic consumption are summed up rather nicely. It’s worth the ten minute
Continue readingThings Are Good: Buying Recycled Products is Good for Everything
Reduce, reuse, and recycle is a mantra heard time and time again. Yet, not everyone follows it (remember that they are in that order for a reason: reduce what you consume in the first place, then reuse what you can, and recycle the rest). It can be easy though. When
Continue readingPolitical Eh-conomy: A review of Naomi Klein’s This Changes Everything
I have another piece up at Ricochet: a review of Naomi Klein’s big book on climate change, This Changes Everything. It’s friendly but critical, looking at what the book’s themes of austerity, the local and extractivism mean for how we build politics against climate change. I’ve included it in full below… Naomi
Continue readingThe Progressive Economics Forum: Canada’s Luxury Index is through the roof
Numbers season is over but good inequality data is still missing. January sees us regularly bombarded with a whole range of economic statistics about the previous year. GDP growth: likely 1.7%, low but looking brighter for next year. Unemployment: 7.2%, low but lots of workers leaving the job market altogether
Continue readingThings Are Good: Using Behavioural Science to Lower Energy Consumption
Alex Laskey wants to lower people’s energy consumption by using tricks and practices from the world of behavioural science. It sounds great and would be great to see implemented, check out his TED talk for more:
Continue readingThings Are Good: Lower Your Energy Consumption in Easy Ways
With more technology around the home more energy is required to power the devices, and this adds up when millions of people plug things in. There are enough energy consumers out there that needlessly leave things running leads to a ton of wasted energy being produced. Fortunately there are many
Continue readingArt Threat: How Many Gallons per Hour? – Water Portraits brings water usage closer to home
In the excitement at finally convincing his father to be the first subject of his water portraits, Peter Holmes poured cold water over his father’s head. A surprise to both of them. Since the initial portrait, 16 have been taken over a two year period in North America, Europe, Morocco,
Continue readingThings Are Good: Air Miles Starts Rewarding Eco-Conscious Purchases
Starting today, consumer tracking program Air Miles will begin rewarding people with points when they make environmentally friendly purchases. But whereas previous initiatives were intended to inspire a single socially conscious decision, “these [programs] have a permanent effect,” Souvaliotis said. “If you find a way to create a trickle of
Continue reading350 or bust: Earth Day With A Twist: Giving Our Credit Cards A Holy Pause
Last weekend, I had the privilege of participating in a unique Earth Day celebration in Winnipeg, Manitoba. On the sunny Earth Day Sunday, I joined dozens of other people streaming into the procession as it made its way down the city’s main street. We were bracketed by a golden oil
Continue readingArt Threat: Propaganda and consumption – Friday Film Pick: Outfoxed & Wal-Town
Best Buy shoppers camp out before Black Friday, proving that certain kinds of occupations are indeed acceptable. This week’s Friday Film Pick is a double bill, commemorating two important moments. Outfoxed: Rupert Murdoch’s War on Journalism is a pick that commemorates the recent poll published by Fairleigh Dickinson University showing
Continue readingThings Are Good: What We Truly Need
Every person has a different take on what one truly needs as opposed to what they want. Over time as a culture we collectively define our needs and those needs change over time. The never-ending question is ultimately what do we need to live and what do we need to be happy.
Obviously, we support looking […]
DeSmogBlog - Clearing the PR Pollution that Clouds Climate Science: Pentagon Releases New Clean Energy Strategy
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The U.S. Department of Defense has released a new strategy for how the U.S. military will address growing concerns over energy consumption. The military remains the single largest c…
Continue readingTHE FIFTH COLUMN: Ottawa’s Green Bin Program – Time for City Council to Lead
An Open Letter to Ottawa City Council and Residents RE: Residential Solid Waste Service Level Review RecommendationsThis open letter is being posted on my blog, The Fifth Column ( http://the5thc.blogspot.com/ ) and being sent via email to the the follo…
Continue readingopenalex: The Big Picture Approach to Cities and Climate Change
It was former London Mayor Ken Livingstone who started the ball rolling in 2007 when he announced that “Urban areas are responsible for over 75 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions, so the battle to prevent catastrophic climate change will be won or …
Continue readingMarginal Notes: Exploiting the BP Oil Spill to Sell Self Tan Bronzing Gel
The August edition of Vogue Italia features a fashion spread titled ‘Water and Oil.’ I believe that ‘Violence and Destruction’ better capture the content and mood of these photos. We are accustomed to the sexualization of violence against women…
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