Category Archives: Economics
Survival of the fairest?
Greed, in the immortal words of Gordon Gekko from the movie Wall Street, is good. Or, as we were told over and over again in this country during the heady days of the Bubble, we just needed to free our … Continue reading
Posted in Biodiversity, Economics, Global Warming, Psychology, Sustainability
Tagged economics, hubris, inequality, New York Times, wealth
8 Comments
The decline and fall of the Human Empire
Below is my article, as it appears over four pages in the current edition of ‘Village’ magazine: Doomsday cults are as old as human civilisation. The Bible is a rich sourcebook for ‘End Times’ enthusiasts, who pore over Iron Age … Continue reading
Posted in Biodiversity, Economics, Energy, Global Warming, Irish Focus, Media, Sustainability
Tagged Armageddon, CO2, Peak Oil, Village
13 Comments
In the world, at the limits to growth
By David Korowicz* We imagine this country is in crisis, yet crisis is relative. Most people in the world would envy our material austerity and be thankful for our endlessly ‘collapsing’ health service. But, with our expectations thwarted and in … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Energy, Global Warming, Sustainability
Tagged collapse, David Korowicz, Feasta, Peak Oil, Sustainability
4 Comments
A Climate Bill Post-Mortem
Now that the Climate Change Response Bill 2010 has officially been consigned to the scrap heap, it is a good time to take stock of how the public debate around the Bill played out. As has already been discussed on … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Global Warming, Irish Focus, Sustainability
Tagged abatement, farming, IBEC, ICMSA, IEA, IFA, Oil, SEAI, Teagasc, Voiceireland.org
10 Comments
Greetings from 1930: a book extract
You might have thought that the last decade, and back in the 1980s, were the first occasions that banking in Ireland lost the run of itself, throwing our collective future in jeopardy. Not so. Or that the decade to 2008 was … Continue reading
Restructure debt, and phase out compound interest thats what our environmental and financial crises tell us
Agree or disagree with him, Morgan Kelly’s analysis in the Irish Times last week is a must read. Closing Ireland’s €20 billion deficit by €6 billion in 2011 spending is all fine and well, but it won’t do enough to stave off … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Global Warming, Irish Focus
Tagged carbon dioxide emissions, climate change, debt, economic growth, GDP, restructuring
6 Comments
Energy constraints will collapse global economic recovery
We may rail against the regulators, politicians, and others who failed to understand and manage past risks, but we are just as culpable for our failure to engage with severe, well-signposted, imminent ones. Impassioned arguments over bank nationalisation, the austerity-stimulus … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Energy, Global Warming, Sustainability
Tagged Energy, ESRI, Feasta, Hirsch, Korowicz, Nama, Peak Oil
15 Comments
The economics of climate change: discounting the future, ignoring the poor?
Economists looking at climate change face a difficult task, with uncertain climate models, chaotic climate systems and possible catastrophic threshold effects. Often, when looking at the impacts of climate change different mitigation/adaptation options and emission scenarios will be looked at, … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Global Warming, Sceptics
Tagged climate, climate change, economics, environment, global warming
61 Comments
Peak oil – what happens next?
Wednesday night last saw an interesting session to kick off several days of the 15th Convergence Sustainable Living Festival, organised by Cultivate. The two-hour session was entitled: ‘Planning our retreat from fossil fuels: exploring the ramifications of Peak Oil’ and … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Global Warming, Sustainability
Tagged Ciaran Cuffe, Cultivate, Davie Philip, Energy, Feasta, Korowicz, Peak Oil
7 Comments
Low future price for carbon puts us on the wrong route
Transport investment is particularly expensive. And two points are emerging in Ireland. First, some facilities are significantly overcapacity. Second, there isn’t enough capacity in areas set to grow as the price of carbon emissions rise: the failure to adequately price … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Global Warming, Irish Focus
Tagged pricing, roads, Shadow price of carbon, transport emissions
3 Comments
Decreasing carbon emissions without affecting the quality of life
There are a couple of simple ideas, which if implemented could make deep and long term cuts in our carbon emissions, while maintaining (or even increasing) the quality of life for all. In no particular order, they are: 1. Immediately … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Energy, Global Warming, Sustainability
Tagged carbon, climate, climate change, CO2, emissions, global warming, Sustainability
4 Comments
Time for prosperity without growth
If there’s one book you read this winter make it Tim Jackson’s Prosperity without Growth. We can have a stable climate and leave enough resources for future generations. Or we can continue with the fantasy of perpetual economic growth, with … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Energy, Global Warming, Sustainability
Tagged affluenza, consumerism, consumption, debt, economics, growth, James Nix, lending, The Spirit Level, Tim Jackson
6 Comments
McCarthy: ability without sustainabilty?
Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? This well-known Latin phrase from the poet Juvenal, loosely translates to “Who will guard the guards?” It came to mind when thinking about the Talented Mr McCarthy and his oversized shears, better known as An Bord … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Global Warming, Irish Focus, Sustainability
Tagged Bord, Bord Snip Nua, Colm McCarthy, Comhar, eco, economists, Friedman, Green N, John Gibbons, McCa, sustain, Sustainability
2 Comments
A smart tax, on so many levels
James Tobin had a very, very good idea. So good, in fact, they named it after him. And that’s the Tobin Tax. It’s a small tax with very big potential. And best of all, it’s a damn good idea, in … Continue reading
Posted in Economics, Global Warming, Irish Focus, Media, Sustainability
Tagged bankers, banks, foreign currency, Germany, greed, speculation, tax, Tobin tax
3 Comments
