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The Australian, 18/1/2006, p. 29

Source: Erisk – www.erisk.net 

John Vidal, environment editor
Wednesday February 8, 2006
The Guardian

Evergreen… Sweden will develop biofuels from its forests. Photograph: Mattias Klum/Getty Images
 

The Sydney Morning Herald, 8/2/2006, p. 1

Source: Erisk – www.erisk.net 

Theory into practice: That year, I started a construction
company called Sunpower Design in Mount Macedon. Ash Wednesday in 1983
was really the first opportunity for us to get into passive solar
design, and we replaced about 15 buildings up there.

Waiting for the others to catch up: I was also burnt in the
bushfires and as a result, the State Electricity Commission gave me
compensation, which I used go to America in 1984. There I studied
sustainable building design and met Balcomb and people such as Ed Mama,
who wrote what was then the only definitive manual – The Passive Solar
Energy Book. I came back enthusiastic about the whole idea, not
realising, of course, that I was about 15 years ahead of the times. It
really started to take off when the Victorian Government introduced
five-star and water-saving regulations – the awareness started to
shift.

Energy efficiency now a going concern: These days we have five
people working in the business and we’re growing at the rate of 10-15
per cent a year. We’ve designed more than 400 buildings and have won
well over 20 state and national energy efficient and sustainable design
awards. In our business we can make a huge difference to the survival
of our planet. If we all did solar hot water, rainwater catchment,
five- or six- or seven-star energy-efficient buildings we would make an
enormous difference to the amount of energy reduction we need as a
society.

Wanting to make a difference: When you talk to young people
today, they’re really worried about these issues and I can say to these
kids, “Well, indirectly, we’re one of growing numbers of people
actually wanting to make a difference.”

The Age, 8/2/2006

Source: Erisk – www.erisk.net 

Status quo likely outcome: However, a State Government document obtained by The Courier Mail
says that neither council is likely to support Cr Clarke’s idea because
the northern end of the Gold Coast relies on the piped water. A further
complication is that the Brisbane water makes its way to the Gold Coast
via infrastructure owned by Logan City Council, which could seek
compensation for lost revenue.

The Courier Mail, 8/2/2006, p. 1

Source: Erisk – www.erisk.net

Damian Dovarganes/Associated Press

The megachurch pastor Rick Warren is a signer of the “Evangelical Climate Initiative.”

Among signers of the
statement, which will be released in Washington on Wednesday, are the
presidents of 39 evangelical colleges, leaders of aid groups and
churches, like the Salvation Army, and pastors of megachurches,
including Rick Warren, author of the best seller “The Purpose-Driven
Life.”

“For most of us, until recently this has not been
treated as a pressing issue or major priority,” the statement said.
“Indeed, many of us have required considerable convincing before
becoming persuaded that climate change is a real problem and that it
ought to matter to us as Christians. But now we have seen and heard
enough.”

The statement calls for federal legislation that would
require reductions in carbon dioxide emissions through “cost-effective,
market-based mechanisms” — a phrase lifted from a Senate resolution
last year and one that could appeal to evangelicals, who tend to be
pro-business. The statement, to be announced in Washington, is only the
first stage of an “Evangelical Climate Initiative” including television
and radio spots in states with influential legislators, informational
campaigns in churches, and educational events at Christian colleges.

“We
have not paid as much attention to climate change as we should, and
that’s why I’m willing to step up,” said Duane Litfin, president of
Wheaton College, an influential evangelical institution in Illinois.
“The evangelical community is quite capable of having some blind spots,
and my take is this has fallen into that category.”

Full story at New York Times