The Sustainability Trust

Rotarians for Sustainability and Carbon Reduction

(previously The CO2 Offset Trust)An International Club-to-Club project

Our Planet Earth• “We travel together, passengers on a little

spaceship, dependent on its vulnerable reserves of air and soil;

• All committed for our safety to its security and peace;

• Preserved from annihilation only by the care, the work, and, I will say, the love we give our fragile craft”.

– Adlai Stevenson 1900-1965

The Sustainability Trust“.. the love we give our fragile craft”.

• Why did we do this Rotary Club-to-Club Project?• Because ...... in terms of Sustainability– Our Western lifestyle needs 4 planets to maintain it.– We don’t have enough resources to continue this way.– There are thousands of ways to change and improve.– We are starting to understand the issues.

• We hope Rotarians will get involved. • To understand the benefits of

Sustainability Principles, and develop them.• And to understand the consequences of failure.

One Example of Unsustainability

• The USA has 4.5% of the world population.• It uses 25% of the world’s annual oil

production.– As oil supplies dry up......– As developing nations want more oil......

• Is this sustainable?

World Oil Availability against Demand

Is this Sustainable?Source: International Energy Agency (IEA)

“America is addicted to oil, which is often imported from unstable parts of the world”.

United States President George W. Bush in his State of the Union Address on January 31, 2006.

Where Our Oil Comes From - an elephant in the room?

US Crude Oil & Petroleum Imports June 2009 Figures from US Energy Information Association

• CANADA 2,001• VENEZUELA 1,119• MEXICO 1,099• SAUDI ARABIA 902• NIGERIA 769• ANGOLA 435• IRAQ 374• RUSSIA 305

Around two thirds of US oil is importedAround half of US oil comes from regions with limited democracy

(Thousand Barrels per Day)

Food for Thought:Part of every gallon of gasoline we buy* -

• Funds a Dictatorship.• Reduces Human Rights.• Contributes to the next hurricane, by warming the

oceans.• Makes the oceans more acidic, damaging fish & coral.• Adds to the misery of every refugee affected by

drought.• Destroys part of the ecosystem our grandchildren will

need for survival.• Possibly makes a donation to a terrorist organisation.

*Source – Hot, Flat & Crowded, by Thomas Friedman

Something We Can All Do ....• 1 million plastic bags are used worldwide

every MINUTE....!

• U.S. EPA states that "over 100 billion plastic bags are consumed in the U.S. each year." That's about 300 bags each year per US resident.

• “Californians Against Waste” estimates that 12 million barrels of oil are used annually to produce the plastic bags used in the USA.

• That’s 500 million gallons of oil annually...... THAT WE DON’T NEED to IMPORT !!!

The Local Alternative to Plastic Bags...

String Bags like Grandma used

From somewhere local

Something Else We Can All Do...• "Change the World, Start with ENERGY STAR"

– a national campaign encouraging all Americans to join with millions of others and take small, individual steps that make a big difference in the fight against global warming - www.energystar.gov

• Use Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs (CFLs)– ENERGY STAR qualified CFLs use up to 75% less energy and last 6-10 times longer than

incandescent bulbs.

• High utility bills in summer and winter? – can often be traced to air leaks in your home's envelope, inefficient windows or

inefficient or incorrectly installed heating and cooling equipment, or poorly sealed and insulated ducts.

• Home Energy Audits– If you have five minutes and your last 12 months of utility bills, use the

ENERGY STAR Home Energy Yardstick to compare your home's energy efficiency to similar homes across the country

– Hire a Professional Home Energy Auditor

• Check out LIPA’s website for good advice at www.lipower.org/efficiency

By Adopting Sustainable Solutions:-

• We can all can save money.• We can improve current life-styles.• We can help those in need.• We can preserve scarce resources.• We can leave more for future generations.• We can STOP some of the world’s worst conflicts.• We can reduce funding for un-democratic regimes.• Should Rotarians be taking a lead?• Because if no-one leads, this could happen.......

Earth 2100 – Civilisation at CrossroadsVideo clip courtesy of ABC TV – Program aired June 2009

And it’s started: The Weather is Changing EVERYWHERE

The 800lb Gorilla in the room

• Let’s deal with the unspoken issue.• Many Rotarians are Contrarians. • They don’t believe that greenhouse gases are

causing our climate to change.• They believe it’s caused by Sun Spots or by

natural cycles of the planets’ orbits, or something else.

• No problem. The Trust does believe human activity is changing the climate..... however...

Let’s all agree on the need for Sustainability

• .... the Trust also believes that Sustainability is vital, regardless of whether we believe in human-induced Climate Change.

• Many of our key resources, like OIL - are in short supply and subject to rapidly growing demand.

• We can all do something to benefit ourselves - and to help others.

• Surely we can ALL accept this view? Contrarians and Rotarians!

Car Ownership Worldwide

•2008 actual = 1 billion•2028 estimate = 2 billion

• Is this Sustainable?

Things We Can All Do....

• Don’t jump into the car for every trip.• Coordinate our family travel.• Appoint a family Travel Manager: Mom?• Go easy on the gas pedal.• Keep tire pressures at recommended levels.• Drive with space in front, to avoid rapid braking

and acceleration.• Measure gas consumption and what we spend on

it. We can almost certainly reduce the cost.

A Big Part of the Problem

Coal• 50 percent of the electricity generated in the United

States is from coal.• Coal use now accounts for roughly 20 percent of

global Greenhouse Gas emissions.• “The United States is the Saudi Arabia of Coal*”.

*www.energyandcapital.com

• So far there is no such thing as ‘Clean Coal’.• By reducing our electricity use, we can directly cut

greenhouse gas emissions.

By Cutting our Electricity consumption, we can stop this huge rise in Coal Use

The answer is in our homes and businesses

Will a Growing Population Share Resources?

..... or a fight to obtain a larger share of diminishing resources...?

The Thaw on the Roof of the World*

• Glaciers in the Himalayas supply the Rivers Ganges, Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Salween, Mekong and Yangtze.

• Chinese scientists believe two thirds of the regional glaciers could disappear by 2050.

• These glaciers provide water to two billion people!

• Imagine the consequences if 25% of the world population is short of water.

• *New York Times Sept 26, 2009

Water Shortage Predictions 2020Source = University of Kassel in Germany

Water Shortage Predictions 2070Source = University of Kassel in Germany

What do Americans Think?That Gorilla is Still in the Room ...

• Of the Rotarians asked about Climate Change at International Conventions, the most skeptical were the US Rotarians.

• “It’s a communist plot to bring this country down” - Oklahoma Rotarian.

• “It’s the greatest hoax ever perpetrated on mankind” - Indiana Rotarian.

What do the Experts think:“The Perfect Storm 2030”

- the warning from John Beddington, the UK government's chief scientific adviser, of a possible crisis by 2030

• “As the world's population grows, competition for food, water and energy will increase. Food prices will rise, more people will go hungry, and migrants will flee the worst-affected regions.– Specifically by 2030 "a whole series of events come

together“– The world's population will rise from 6bn to 8bn (33%)– Demand for food will increase by 50%– Demand for water will increase by 30%– Demand for energy will increase by 50%

Is this Sustainable?

Food for Thought: * Every Second, the Sun......• Produces the same energy as about a trillion 1

megaton bombs!• Produces enough energy for almost 500,000

years of the current needs of our civilization. • We just have to find new ways to collect and

use it.• What are we Rotarians doing to encourage this?

• Source = The Boston Globe

We represent Businesses in our communities• Our motto of Service above Self looks out for those

in need.• People benefit from Sustainable Solutions by saving

money long-term and improving living standards.• Climate Change will cause extreme hardship as its

effects take hold.• Consequently people will have to do much more to

overcome the effects of a fast-changing world.• Rotarians can promote Sustainable Solutions.

What We Can Do• We can cut our use of gas & gasoline-based

products.• We can reduce our use of electricity to cut coal

burning.• We can consider solar domestic water heating• We can press for electricity generated locally from

solar, wind and tide.• We can ask for peak/off-peak energy tariffs, as in

Europe.• We can ensure that Rotary projects are sustainable.

What Rotary Clubs Can Do

• Get Speakers in, to explain the opportunities.• Promote energy saving services in our town.• Influence local politicians to think Sustainably.• Encourage local energy generation by wind, geo-

thermal, solar and tide.• Devise Rotary projects that adopt sustainable

principles.• Invite prospective Rotarians from relevant

energy-saving businesses.• Develop an energy-saving mindset.

What the Sustainability Trust is Doing

• Acting as a catalyst within Rotary.• Developing a 501(c)3 US version of the Trust.• Encouraging the ideas in these slides.• Linking Clubs together to devise energy-saving

sustainable humanitarian projects.• Providing grants from carbon offsetting

donations to appropriate Club projects.• So please – donate via the website to neutralize

your unavoidable carbon emissions (e.g. a flight)

www.TheSustainabilityTrust.org

The Sustainability Trust - Progress• 11 Founding Member Clubs on 5 continents.• A new category – Gold 50 Member.• Aiming to create US version of the Trust.• A growing following on Facebook and as a ‘Cause’.• Promoting solar cookers in S. Africa by linking Clubs in -•Cheltenham England, •Fresno California, •Grahamstown, S. Africa, •Kirstenbosch, Cape Town, S.A. and •Swaziland

Sheffield Club in England’s ProjectSelling the Standby Saver to Rotarians at a discount, saving it’s cost in one year

Donating $4 to the Trust for each one sold.Combined TV, VCR, DVD, etc, powered off with one click

A different version does the same for computers, printers etc

The Solar Cooker ProjectRun by Fresno, CA, Club, supported by the Trust,

financed by your carbon offset donations

• Locally produced with local labor and materials.• Local training program for local teachers.• Cooks, sterilizes water, prevents smoke ailments & tree

felling.

Devise a Club project

The Sustainable John

Go for it Rotarians.....!

The Sustainability Trust

Rotarians for Sustainability and Carbon Reduction

www.TheSustainabilityTrust.org

• Extra slides follow for use in question time

A team of 28 scientists has identified 10 separate biophysical systems crucial to humanity’s flourishing; for each system they have identified a “safe operating

boundary” within which humanity must remain if it wishes to maintain the basic environmental conditions in which it evolved.

Total Oil Consumed in barrels per day (bbl/day)2007 est.

• 1 United States 20,680,000 • 2 European Union 14,380,000• 3 China 7,880,000• 4 Japan 5,007,000• 5 India 2,722,000• 6 Russia 2,699,000• 7 Germany 2,456,000• 14 United Kingdom 1,763,000

Source: www.nationmaster.com/graph/ene_oil_con-energy-oil-consumption