FEASTA Quarterly Bulletin, Autumn 2002 - page 2

Contents

1. Introduction - Interesting Times by David O'Kelly
2. Energy Money and Power by Richard Douthwaite
3. Ireland's Transition to Renewable Energy
4. The Feasta Lecture 2002
5. Introducing Stan Thekaekara by James Bruges
6. So that was Johannesburg - Now What?
7. Housing / Land
8. Education
9. Democracy
10. Feasta on-line
11. Books Available from the Feasta Office
12. Feasta Membership

This event was organised by the FEASTA Indicator group. Organising the conference did not stop the members of the Indicators Group from continuing with their main project. This is the preparation of a report on Ireland's progress - or lack of it - towards sustainability and how the obstacles to that progress might be removed. Several sections of the report are complete and it is hoped the rest will be ready to enable publication, probably in electronic form at first, in Spring 2003. Anyone interested in joining the group should contact richard@douthwaite.net

Report by Tom Campbell

Rampant inflation in land and house prices has been a defining characteristic of Ireland's 'Tiger Economy'. This trend has in several ways been beneficial for the Government parties, for developers, landowners, mortgage lenders, estate agents, private sector landlords and many property owners. At the same time the younger first-time buyer, tenants and the poor have suffered. Many young families are now heavily indebted for cheaply built houses located far from their workplace and from public/community facilities. Tenants are also paying exorbitant rents to live near their college or place of employment. Though much has been written about the housing crisis our policy makers and mainstream commentators have little to offer in terms of solutions it would seem.

The Feasta housing/land group has been established by members determined to address the complex challenge of housing provision in Ireland. The group aims to apply insights from the new economics, including environment taxes, and to develop proposals for housing policies which are sustainable, viable and socially just.

The Feasta Housing/Land Discussion Group will have its inaugural meeting on Tuesday October 28th At 7.30.pm at the Feasta office at 158 Lr Rathmines Road. Dublin 6.

The Agenda includes;

• Discussion of Aims and Objectives,
• Review and debate on Policy Proposal for Social Housing by Emer O Siochriu.
• Open Discussion and AOB.

(8) Education

The Feasta Education Group is pleased to announce that a report on the proceedings of the 'Strengthening the role of Higher Education in Support of Sustainable Development' conference (which was held in Tipperary Institute last November 2001) will be available on the Feasta website, or can be sent out by post or e-mail on request from the Feasta office, or Tom.Campbell@dsckim.ie

The group are planning a 'where to from here' meeting in AbbeyLeix Manor Hotel, Abbeyleix, on Thursday 7th November at 2pm and any Feasta members who participated in that conference, or would like to get involved in the Education group are very welcome to come along (contact Tom Campbell at the above e-mail for more details).

Also of interest is the latest developments in the design of a third level distance learning course in sustainability to be offered in partnership with, and accredited by the Department of Adult and Community Education, NUI Maynooth. David Flemming who gave last year's Feasta Lecture has been commissioned to update and prepare new materials for this course which we hope to be ready to pilot by summer 2003. The course will draw students' attention to the existence of a radical position on economic and environmental prospects and it should seek to equip them to recognise the limitations of a public policy dominated by economic convention. It should enable students to make well-informed judgments about the concept of sustainable development and its relevance to the current state of the world and to their own lives, families and careers. If they have misgivings about sustainable development, they should be encouraged with good information, teaching and discussion, to develop their alternative visions of the future.

(9) Democracy

It is clear that the configuration of the liberal democratic state is not capable of achieving sustainable environmental and economic outcomes. At the core of this incapacity is the contraction in political participation, and the limiting of discursive dialogue accorded to citizens and non-citizens by the institutions of the western nation-state. It is therefore appropriate that groups such as FEASTA ­ dedicated to a solution-based approach ­ initiate, and complement existing, debate and reflection on constructing alternative democratic models.

These new models for a 'transformed democracy' would augment FEASTA's existing work on sustainability and ecological economics. Correlating economic models with democratic models of governance would not only result in a better contextualisation for both, it would widen and deepen the quality of the solutions to our contemporary crisis that FEASTA is offering.

A new FEASTA discussion group on the topic of Democracy is being established. The purpose of the group would be to:

• Subject the contemporary liberal-democratic political model to analytical critique under assorted sustainability, ecological and participative-democratic criteria;
• Develop the broad outlines of a new, appropriate model of democracy that would be required as part of the sustainable way of life that is urgently required - in association with the World Wide Democracy Network.
• Within these broad fields to specialise in the connections between the developments in economics being advocated by Feasta and the development of democracy.

The World Wide Democracy Network has been formed to link people in a process of mutual learning - see www.wwdemocracy.org

(10) Feasta On-Line

The new FEASTA presence on the world wide web can be found at www.feasta.org

The Feasta website aims to be a world-class site for research into sustainable economics on the Internet, and any comments or suggestions which improve the usability of the site are always very welcome. Richard Douthwaite's 1996 book, Short Circuit, is now almost out of print - Feasta has the last few copies - and Richard has decided not to bring it up to date for a new edition. Instead, all the existing text is to be put on the Feasta website with hyperlinks to current information on each of the topics it covers and to the websites of the organisations concerned.

The FEASTA discussion list.
The Feasta e-mail discussion list allows us to share information and discuss new ideas. You can subscribe to this list by sending an e-mail to ... feasta-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

(11) Books available form Feasta

A wide selection of books are available from the FEASTA office on subjects relating to the work of the foundation.

The Feasta Review
The aim of the Feasta Review is to reflect and extend the thinking process going on in the international network of which Feasta is a node. Names like Daly, Korten and Robertson (three of our contributors) are the equivalent of Bach, Mozart and Beethoven in classical music. The lesser-known writers were equally impressive: here was well researched, thoroughly thought out and clearly presented argument, hammering nail after nail into the coffin of mainstream economics and constructing over its grave an elegant building in which to develop the new economics.

The Feasta Review - €19.00 (€13 Members)

*new new new new
BioRegional Solutions For Living on One Planet
By Pooran Desai and Sue Riddlestone. ISBN 1 903998
The 8th Schumacher Briefing

If you are interested in sustainability you are probably thinking bioregionally. BioRegional Solutions brings the global and local stories together in a clear, accessible, and comprehensive overview of the economic, social and environmental effects of working bioregionally. What's more, it is an enjoyable read.

Moving logically and easily from the BedZED urban Ecovillage in South London, and other BioRegional Development Group projects, to broader issues involving London and rural areas around the UK and other countries, the book clearly explains how sustainability and bioregionalism are entwined, and how they constitute the most reasonable path for development.

BioRegional Solutions €9.50 (€8.50 Members)

Contact the Feasta office for a full list of books available feasta@anu.ie Check with Feasta for availability before ordering.

(12) Feasta Membership

Membership of Feasta gives you the opportunity to support the foundation's work and entitles you to a discount on the Feasta review due out next month, two newsletters, quarterly e-mail bulletins, and concessions on our events and publications.

€12 for a years membership (€20 after January 1st 2003)
€6 concession for students and unwaged (€10 after January 1st 2003)
€20 for a voluntary group or organisation (€30 after January 1st 2003)
€60 for a funded group or organisation (€65 after January 1st 2003)

If you are not a member please consider becoming one. Donations are very welcome.