Twenty Twenty Twenty (Deal or No Deal?)

With all the targets under discussion over in Poland, the number twenty does seem to appear with amazing regularity, as noted in this piece from the FT.

Talking about how to get the message across about global warming, especially now we are officially in a bad recession, the author makes a lot of good points, and there is little that one can disagree with.

Just love the concluding statement .... "The way to mobilise the masses is to recast the argument. Opportunity sells a lot better than do hair shirts."

And from the same publication, an interesting comment on the future of electric cars, or, perhaps the lack of one!

Update:
The deal in Poznan is finally agreed - see the Indy.

Looking through just what has been agreed, I can't really see anything much different to what was 'agreed' before. But it is interesting to note that Ireland has been offered 'concessions' in order to swing a second referendum vote on the Lisbon Treaty in its favour. Hmmm, the Irish get a second chance to vote on it and we still can't have even one?

And the EU deal is not enough, and too watered down, says OxFam.

Update - 15/12/08:
Hmmm. The Poznan 'deal' seems to have rather wound up Caroline Lucas! From today's Guardian letters.

And it looks like the 'deal' isn't going to do much to save the planet's remaining rain forests - reported in eGovMonitor.

Make do and mend

Saw this report on the news this morning: 'Green Grannies' web lessons

Not a great start that what I call reuse was described as recycling, but I persevered.

In fact, so much that, as per host invitation, I wrote in with a suggestion on some tips.

Sadly mine did not make it. As, I imagine, many other did not.

What did make it was 'making soup out of chicken bones' and 'darning your own socks'. Inspiring. Not. Ain't gonna happen with such as this.

Much as there is much to laud in such an initiative, I fear the way Aunty decided to pitch in was hardly the best help Granny might have hoped for.

I will have a rummage and see if more can be made of this (Not much yet on the Oxfam site), for all concerned to benefit rather than filling a box-tick 'green' slot on national broadcasting.

A new RE on the block...re:place?

I'm about to head off to a seminar in Surrey. And this time I'm a speaker!

That's a nice new twist. I have often had my doubts about the value of a lot of networking events, and have pretty much decided the only ones of real value are when you have a stand of your own, or are on the podium.

At least with these two you can be pretty certain all there at least know who you are. Of course, to achieve the former you are several grand down on the deal, while with the latter you might even get paid. Of course, you might not. Ways to go, I guess. In this case, Farnham, about 250 miles there and back.

Anyway, I have been invited to share the story so far on RE:tie, and by association, Junkk.com.

It's going to be interesting. I have done my PowerPoint, and at 30 minutes it's a long one. Mainly an amalgamation and adaptation of a few previous ones, mostly derived from pitches to try and get funding or PR or a sale.

I was pondering this this morning as I watched breakfast TV.

It was another of what seems a weekly slot where Sir Stuart Rose of M&S gets to flog stuff with Declan holding a rack of schumtter alongside. The PR luvvies and wires between them and the BBC bookers must have been buzzing.

Only this time there was... is (it's a trial, which cranks the eyebrow a tad) a twist. And as stated, it's a reuse story, with win-wins all round, so I am bound to cover it here.

Basically, for now, if you are about to donate your old stuff to the charity shop, make sure you break out the old M&S efforts and get 'em to OXFAM. In so doing, you get a £5 voucher, they get some quality gear, and M&S.... well, they get you to fork out at least another £30 on new stuff. See... win-win.

Only, it's kinda more replacement than reuse. And in many ways the main winners are, in order... who? And... as long as it lasts?

Look , I have no problem with end-benefit driven enviro-initiatives, and this is better than many I've seen. But it just comes across as a bit, I don't know, stretching it... or... grubby?

Speaking of which, there was a whole raft of 'if it isn't suitable or crack squad of sorters will recycle it no problem' form the lady on a nice directorial crack from OXFAM. Were these not the guys who told us recently that if it wasn't brand and spanking to bugger off elsewhere? Maybe this is a corrective mea culpa.

It's just we are talking a very specific effort here, for a potentially limited time period, but by being greenish gets another huge dollop of free-ad PR. And I have to say that, and once I have gone through the Sundays will prove, the 'fashion'; industry doesn't half get a lot of cover for doing a few things that might err on eco, when overall the whole sorry lot are sucking the life out of the planet in terms of consumption and waste and, even, unethical, practices.

Wouldn't it be great to see a few more stories where you, the consumer, get to opt for a necessity (well, ish) that is free yet still can in its purchase help you, aid the marketers... and the planet? Now that would surely be a 'win win win'.

Let's see how I do trying to convince my audience in person. As I can't seem to get the BBC or retailers to be interested as yet.