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"Every crisis contains in itself an opportunity"

category national | environment | opinion/analysis author Thursday January 22, 2009 13:40author by Dunkauthor email d.crowley at ecointelligentgrowth dot netauthor address BCN Report this post to the editors

(Letter regarding Pat Kenny`s upcoming radio show)

Dear Pat, (Wednesday 21 January, 2009)

Strange times indeed!

Yesterday Martin Luther King’s dream was realised with Barack Obama becoming the first black president of the united States. Today sees Ireland celebrating, after much movement building based on Hope and Bold-ness of vision, the 90th anniversary since the first meeting of Dail Éireann.

But strangest of all is that we are living in times of such climate catastrophe, which threatens our collective existence regardless of nation and race, and in Ireland this fact is neither sufficiently recognised, nor is sufficient assistance given to those with visions for sustainable change.
Crisis : Danger + Opportunity
Crisis : Danger + Opportunity

Since time immemorial, the Chinese symbol for “crisis” has been expressed by the combination of the two words “danger” and “opportunity.” There-in lies not only a sentiment for Ireland’s present woes, but also a notion that these days could lead to something truly positive: an opportunity for our “Green Isle” to become a model sustainable community for both Europe, and indeed the world…

We must re-evaluate our understanding and use of the words Progress and Health. We must move from the idea of GDP (gross domestic product) to EPI (environmental performance index). That being, moving from how much stuff we move around the planet and at what cost, to what is the environmental impact of these actions and how they can be improved upon. In short, we need to stop burning tonnes of oil to import tonnes of New Zealand apples to Ireland, and seek ways to develop local food production zones and markets, like Seedsavers or Dolphins Barn community garden, which re-establish community and tradition, while not costing the earth.

What we are calling a “global financial crisis” is the first inevitable problem arising from a faulty economic system, built on the absurd idea that infinite economic growth is possible, fuelled by the endless supply of cheap oil. Apart from the disastrous CO2 emissions of this approach, a direct cause of Irelands recent summers rains?, scientists have made it clear; World Oil demand has peaked, we are running out of it and need to quickly build alternatives to survive. Thankfully some exist:

The Cradle to Cradle approach, which is based on the observation that in nature “Waste equals food” uses smart eco design powered by the sun, and is developing and building clean eco processes and buildings. The Netherlands is firmly embracing the concept and US architect, Bill Mc Donagh, has been asked to design 12 new eco cities in China. Can we imagine what a Cradle to Cradle island of Ireland might look like?

The Transition Town movement, originally developed out of ideas from Kinsale permaculture college, has expanded rapidly in only 2 years and sees communities coming together to imagine how they will exist with less oil dependence. Recently Sommerset county council in the UK embraced this practical philosophy.

I am an architect and eco-urbanist who left Ireland 2 years ago and now live, work and learn in the Catalan city of Barcelona. Prior to that I was involved with a group seeking to make the Botanic Spine, that being an 18km eco corridor, bikeway and linked route of food gardens joining Dublin’s 2 canals, the Phoenix park and the derelict train line that splits Cabra in two. With a bit of vision and support from the government, this ring could be a major catalyst for change that might help Ireland realise her opportunity, and take another BOLD and Visionary step, in these troubled times: to attempt to become Europe’s “Green Isle”.

Regards,

Duncan O`Cruadhlaoich, architect, EIG (eco intelligent growth), Barcelona
http://www.ecointelligentgrowth.net/eng/02duncan.html

Notes:

The above letter was sent to Pat Kenny, after a request on his show last Monday for people to send in ideas for a “Brainstorming session to try to get us (Ireland) out of this (economic) mess”, in light of the current economic crisis that has gripped the country, for Fridays show which will be a 2 hour discussion resulting from such inputs. Email Pat if you want to add your views.

Today With Pat Kenny -
http://www.rte.ie/radio1/todaywithpatkenny/
Email Pat Kenny at todaypk@rte.ie

Related links

Martin Luther King + Barack Obama
http://www.rte.ie/news/2009/0119/uspolitics.html

90th anniversary since the first meeting of Dail Éireann.
http://www.rte.ie/laweb/ll/ll_t15_main.html

climate catastrophe
http://climateactioncafe.wordpress.com/2009/01/05/what-...2008/

Chinese symbol for “crisis”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_translation_of_crisis

Progress and Health.
http://www.resurgence.org/magazine/article250-HOW-WEALT....html

GDP (gross domestic product)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gross_domestic_product

EPI (environmental performance index).
http://epi.yale.edu/Home
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_Performance_...Index

New Zealand apples to Ireland
http://www.maf.govt.nz/mafnet/rural-nz/statistics-and-f...1.htm

local food production zones and markets
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/mar/26/cityf...print
http://transitionculture.org/essential-info/book-review...puls/

Seedsavers
http://www.irishseedsavers.ie/

Dolphins Barn community garden
http://dublincommunitygardens.blogspot.com/

“global financial crisis”
http://www.indymedia.ie/article/89482

CO2 emissions
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/aug/05/kin...hange

Irelands recent summers rains?
http://blog.cjwriting.com/2008/08/09/summertime-and-the...oggy/

Scientists have made it clear; World Oil demand has peaked,
http://www.oildecline.com/

Cradle to Cradle
http://www.mcdonough.com/cradle_to_cradle.htm
http://itsafunnyoldworld.wordpress.com/2008/03/13/billm...ough/
“Waste equals food”
http://www.vpro.nl/programma/tegenlicht/afleveringen/36...2706/
watch film in English: http://www.vpro.nl/programma/tegenlicht/afleveringen/36...1824/

The Netherlands is firmly embracing the concept
http://www.duurzaamgebouwd.nl/images/pdf/Designing%20Cr...y.pdf

US architect, Bill Mc Donagh, has been asked to design 12 new eco cities in China.
http://www.mcdonough.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eY4o3WzCfmM

The Transition Town movement,
http://www.transitiontowns.org/
http://itsafunnyoldworld.wordpress.com/2008/10/16/trans...tion/

Kinsale permaculture college,
http://www.kinsalefurthered.ie/permaculture_course_leve...2.htm

Sommerset county council in the UK embraced this practical philosophy.
http://transitionculture.org/2008/07/28/something-wonde...rset/

architect eco-urbanist Barcelona
http://itsafunnyoldworld.wordpress.com/2008/10/08/towar...lona/
http://www.wiserearth.org/file/view/129467181ccddcda2ab...f31fd

Botanic Spine,
http://www.indymedia.ie/attachments/feb2007/botanic_spi...e.pdf
http://itsafunnyoldworld.wordpress.com/2005/11/15/botan...pine/
Online thesis: http://www.wiserearth.org/file/view/ee418f0d85252453f94...42161


author by dunkpublication date Fri Jan 23, 2009 11:20author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Ring in, email, listen, contribute
http://www.rte.ie/radio1/todaywithpatkenny/

On-air Phone: 1850 715 900
GB & N. Ireland: 0845 7857777

author by dunkpublication date Fri Jan 23, 2009 17:23author address author phone Report this post to the editors

1 - Koyaanisqatsi
2 - Baraka

Koyaanisqatsi means Life out of Balance.
The Second, Baraka is an ancient Sufi word, which can be translated as "a blessing, or as the breath, or essence of life from which the evolutionary process unfolds."
(Oddly enough this is posted a few days later after Barack Obama was sworn into office, he was named after a Kenyan variation of the word, many people feel change has come?)

Koyaanisqatsi: Life out of Balance
Godfrey Reggio 1983 - You can watch fully freely online

A mind-tripping impressionistic view of how the collision between nature and technology has given birth to an apolacyspe on earth. Using very innovative (in 1970s) time-lapse footage, the ordinary rythms of civilization are made alive and mesmerizing. Unlike the film Baraka (reviewed here), which later borrowed the same time-shifting and space-scanning techniques to create a prayerful ode to humanity, this documentary despairs about the consequences of our encroaching machinery. It shows we are seduced by the bright flashing lights of the city, while underneath run all kinds of explosions and destruction, captured in slow motion! If you like this surprisingly beautiful distopia, then you should know this is the first of four films by the same director, all similar in design, all ending in "Qatsi," and all of which get increasingly darker. Setting aside its sermonizing, the film is a wonderful kailoscope of modern life on this planet, for better or worse.

view online: http://video.google.es/videoplay?docid=5539613947839465921
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koyaanisqatsi
http://www.koyaanisqatsi.org/
review: http://www.kk.org/truefilms/archives/2003/12/koyaanisqa...1.php

Baraka
Ron Fricke (1992) - watch online
Baraka is an ancient Sufi word, which can be translated as "a blessing, or as the breath, or essence of life from which the evolutionary process unfolds."

The movie was filmed at 152 locations of 24 countries: Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Cambodia, China, Ecuador, Egypt, France, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Kuwait, Nepal, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, and the United States. It contains no dialogue. Instead of a story or plot, the film uses themes to present new perspectives and evoke emotion purely through cinema. Baraka is often compared to Koyaanisqatsi, indeed its director was the cinematographer for the earlier film.

Fricke writes about his work: "I feel that my work has evolved through Koyaanisqatsi, Chronos and Baraka. Both technically and philosophically I am ready to delve even deeper into my favorite theme: humanity's relationship to the eternal"

Watch online: http://video.google.es/videoplay?docid=4757013919126117245
Baraka - Trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJRFJVCucD0
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baraka_(film)

In Barcelona we hope to be screening 1 and related vids for upcoming Eco Union cinema
http://cineforumbcn.wordpress.com/

Koyaanisqatsi  (Life out of Balance)
Koyaanisqatsi (Life out of Balance)

Baraka (Blessing)
Baraka (Blessing)


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author by dunkpublication date Mon Jan 26, 2009 17:16author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Fridays 2 hour show went ahead and there was some talk about more sustainable moves for a healthier country, like hi level insulation, electrical city cars... But most of the show was simply about business, back to work schemes, incentives for business and enterprise. Anyway, RTE have now archived it, and its broken into 6 parts:

Pat talks to a live studio audience about their "big idea's" to kick start the economy

Part 1 - http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-16m35s-...y.mp3
Part 2 - http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-18m33s-...y.mp3
Part 3 - http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-10m45s-...y.mp3
Part 4 - http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-24m29s-...y.mp3
Part 5 - http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-9m59s-t...y.mp3
Part 6 - http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-16m35s-...y.mp3

http://www.rte.ie/radio1/podcast/podcast_patkenny.xml

embedded below is part 1

http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-16m35s-todaypatkenny.mp3

Embedded audio: http://www.rte.ie/podcasts/2009/pc/pod-v-230109-16m35s-todaypatkenny.mp3

author by mambomon - SP - Personal Capacitypublication date Mon Jan 26, 2009 19:26author address author phone Report this post to the editors

Yesterday Martin Luther King’s dream was realised with Barack Obama becoming the first black president of the united States.


Hmmm.. I'm not so sure that was the full extent of MLK's dream .

Related Link: http://www.socialistworld.net/eng/2009/01/2009.html