World Economic and Social Survey 2011
The UN’s view on happiness and life expectancy is that we should all be paid no more than $192 per week. The global population will increase by 35% by 2050 and the challenge will be to feed the world. So why then are the UN and western Governments so hell-bent on renewable energy targets, biofuels taking precedence over affordable food and ignoring the destruction of arable agricultural land in Australia under coal seam gas? And why is the Government allowing international interests to buy huge areas of farmlands for their ‘paddock to plate’.
Enormous improvements in human welfare have taken place over the past two centuries, but these have been unevenly distributed and have come at a lasting cost of degradation of our natural environment. At the same time, we cannot stop the engines of growth, because much more economic progress is still needed in order for people in developing countries to have a decent living. But using the traditional environmentally irresponsible development paths is no longer defensible. To meet both the objectives of conquering poverty and protecting the environment, the World Economic and Social Survey 2011 calls for a complete transformation of technology on which human economic activity is based.
The “great green technological transformation” that the Survey champions will have to be completed in the next 30 to 40 years, that is, twice as fast as it took to accomplish previous major technological transitions. Because of the limited time frame, Governments will need to play a much more active and stimulating role to accelerate the green energy transformation. The Survey details new policy directions and major investments in developing and scaling up clean energy technologies, sustainable farming and forestry techniques, climate proofing of infrastructure and reducing non-bio-degradable waste production.
From Chapter 1: Summary:
Business as usual is not an option. An attempt to overcome world poverty through income growth generated by existing ‘brown technologies’ would exceed the limited of enviornmental sustainability?
Staging a new technological revolution at a faster pace and on a global scale will call for proactive government intervention and greater international cooperation. Sweeping technological change will require sweeping societal transformation, with changed settlement and comsumption patterns and better social values.
Read the 251 page report here: http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/policy/wess/wess_current/2011wess.pdf
I think there is so many great changes being made in technology. I am glad this is being pushed so much. There is so much that you can get from it. Keep up the good work.
Industrial Shredders