Issue 21 Spring 2004 ESEE NEWS
Newsletter of the European Society for Ecological Economics Contents ESEE to head to Lisbon for the Society News 1 Biennial Conference in 2005 Committee News 2
Commission News 3
Profile 4
Research Notes 5
Look Round Europe 6-7
In memoriam: 8 James Kay
Conferences 9
Calendar 10-11
The venue for the Sixth International and Brazilian institutions, and undergraduate Take Note 12 Conference of the ESEE has now been confirmed teaching in environmental economics and as Lisbon, Portugal. The general theme of the environmental management, in addition to conference will be Science and Governance - research activities. Current EU research projects The Ecological Economics Perspective. include ADVISOR (Integrated Evaluation for The conference committee chair is Paula Sustainable River Basin Governance) and FRAP Antunes, who is supported by her local team (Development of a Framework for Biodiversity ESEE News is published by the European Society in the Ecological Economics and Environmental Reconciliation Action Plans). for Ecological Economics (ESEE). Its purpose is to Management Centre (ECOMAN), in the The main conference proceedings will take inform ESEE members of developments both within the Society and in other areas of potential interest. Department of Environmental Sciences and place in the Gulbenkian Foundation buildings It is published up to four times a year and is sent Engineering, Faculty of Sciences and in the centre of Lisbon, and close to the New free to ESEE members. The views expressed are Technology of the New University of Lisbon University site. Details on the specific themes those of the individual contributors and do not nec- and further conference information will be essarily reflect the views of the Society as a whole. (UNL). ECOMAN is responsible for an MSc in Environmental Policy and Management, posted to the conference website soon: The European Society for Ecological Economics is taught in combination with other Portuguese http://www.esee2005.org. Book mark it now! a not-for-profit organisation devoted to the devel- opment of theory and practice in ecological econom- ics in Europe. Membership is open to all interested individuals working in Europe or in other areas on ***** ESEE Annual General Meeting at ISEE MONTREAL ***** request. For membership details please contact the Please note that an ESEE Annual General Meeting is scheduled for Monday Secretariat. evening, 12th July, at the conference venue. Hope to see you there! ESEE News Spring 2004
ESEE Administration and Society COMMITTEES Development and Planning Matters
ESEE Administrative Board Members 2003 Report on current membership
President: Clive Spash administration problems ([email protected]) Felix Rauschmayer, Chair of the ESEE Membership Committee Vice-President: Arild Vatn ([email protected]) I am aware that some of you might have administration should send a mail with Vice-President: Sigrid Stagl experienced difficulties in re-subscribing to membership information to all new or renewed ([email protected]) ISEE, or you might not have received members telling them that their renewal has information, or the journal. I would like to been effective and announce this mail on the Secretary: Wendy Kenyon explain some aspects of this situation. membership subscription page. ([email protected]) Subscriptions to ISEE (and thereby to ESEE) 2. Members cannot see easily whether they and to the journal Ecological Economics, are are members for this year or not, as they still Treasurer: Karen Refsgaard handled centrally by Burke Inc., a US secretariat have access to the membership page of ISEE, ([email protected]) commissioned by ISEE. We (the ESEE board) and as they are still listed there as members have been addressing difficulties resulting from even if they currently are not. One could easily Newsletter Editor: Ben Davies this in subscriptions, membership renewals, and add a column on the effective membership year ([email protected]) flaws in addresses, etc, for the last few years, in the membership list available to members. and have been successful in improving individual 3. One mailing action in October and one in Standing Committee Chairs cases, but not in changing the general way of the spring (I was not told when it had been sent administering ISEE membership. out) are not sufficient to remind people. Even Research To give you one example: During the last very active ISEE members (members of boards Fritz Hinterberger ([email protected]) few months, we have sent letters to 2001-2003 of regional societies, for example) forget to ESEE members who have not re-subscribed, renew their membership. We are proposing to Conferences and Meetings: and asked them for their reasons for not re- add an additional mailing in January, and make Sigrid Stagl ([email protected]) subscribing. Some members declared that they sure that every member of the last 3 years really had never received a reminder mail from the gets these reminders. Publications and Publicity: ISEE membership administration (who normally Another issue which we deem important Ben Davies ([email protected]) would have been responsible for this, and who is the introduction of secondary memberships sent out mails, but apparently not to in regional EE societies. This issue is of special Membership and External Affairs: everybody). An astonishingly high number of importance relative to the creation of the African Felix Rauschmayer non-resubscribers thought that they were up- Society for EE (ASEE), as many potential ASEE ([email protected]) to-date members, and did not know that their members work in other regions; but it also re-subscription had not been effective. concerns members who leave their regions for Ordinary Members Unfortunately, apart from individual inquiries some years but who want to remain members to the ESEE board (membership@euroecol of their regional EE societies. Claudia Carter econ.org) or to the ISEE administration Membership administration has been a ([email protected]) ([email protected]), there is no option for problem issue for the ESEE board time and members to check whether their re-subscription again over the last few years - since the Mario Giampietro has been effective or not. In fact, due to our administration shifted to the ISEE directly - ([email protected]) letters, ESEE membership figures rose from 110 without any general improvement. Charles in April 2004 to 193 at the end of June. If you Perrings, the new President of ISEE, promises Sybille van den Hove see higher numbers at the ISEE webpage where to be active on this and will discuss this issue ([email protected]) you can have a look at the membership registry, with the ISEE board during the ISEE conference don’t be taken in: those are joint numbers (and in Montreal. We hope for positive outcomes of Jesus Ramos-Martin members) from all the years 2002-2004. this, and are at the same time considering re- ([email protected]) Three issues arise for us out of all this: assuming control of membership administration 1. It is not clear why so many membership if no substantial improvements result. Tatiana Kluvankova-Oravska renewals have not been effective. We proposed I thought it would be useful to inform you of ([email protected]) inter alia to check the internet renewals or these issues and we hope very much to improve subscriptions on the fax containing the payment things in the near future. details. Additionally, we are suggeting the Best wishes, and see you in Montreal?
2 ESEE News Spring 2004
News from the Community Research COMMISSION NEWS and Development Service
Bayer decides against GM crop Evaluation 21 is available in 20 European SMEs is very significant - they make up 99 per cultivation in the UK languages, and can be easily accessed on the cent of all enterprises and 43 per cent of private Internet. To view the Local Evaluation 21 tool, sector employment, and are estimated to be The German company Bayer CropScience has please consult the following web address: responsible for 60 per cent of all industry’s scrapped plans to cultivate its genetically http://www.localevaluation21.org carbon dioxide emissions, 60 per cent of modified (GM) forage maize variety Chardon commercial waste and eight out of ten pollution LL in the UK, citing government constraints Renewables can meet 50 per cent of accidents.’ for making it ‘economically non viable’. The energy needs by 2040, claims report For further information, please contact: company was the only one authorised to grow Professor Robert Blackburn, Small business GM maize in the UK, and the government The European Renewable Energy Council research centre, Kingston University, E-mail: believes that Bayer’s decision not to press ahead (EREC) has claimed that 50 per cent of the [email protected] with commercialisation means that it is unlikely world’s energy supply can come from renewable that GM crops will be grown in the UK for the energy sources by 2040, but that new policy Insurance industry warned of ‘foreseeable future’. measures, including additional support for nanotechnology risks In a statement issued by Bayer CropScience research and development (R&D) are required on 31 March, the company welcomes the UK in order to make this happen. A major reinsurance company has advised government’s policy announcement on GM According to the EREC ‘Renewable energy insurance companies that they may need to food and crops, published at the beginning of scenario to 2040’, biomass will be by far the reconsider covering products manufactured March. The government announcement had largest contributor to renewable energy by using nanotechnology until more is known confirmed that Chardon LL was both safe and 2010, providing the equivalent of 3.271 million about any possible side effects of the effective, argues Bayer, which they regarded as tonnes of oil in a year. Next will be photovoltaic technology. ‘a positive step towards the development of systems, with equivalent of 784 tonnes, and ‘As a major risk carrier, the insurance plant biotechnologies in the UK.’ then wind energy. industry can only responsibly support the ‘The government has, however, placed a To access the EREC report, please visit: introduction of a new technology if it can number of constraints on this conditional http://www.erec-renewables.org evaluate and calculate its inherent risks,’ says approval before the commercial cultivation of Swiss Re. Swiss Re is therefore calling for an GM forage maize can proceed in the UK,’ the EU adopts Action Plan for organic food open risk dialogue involving industry, scientists, statement continues. ‘The specific details of regulators and the insurance sector. The these conditions are still not available and thus The European Commission has adopted a recommendation is contained in the report will result in yet another open-ended period of ‘European Action Plan for Organic Food and ‘Nanotechnology: small matter, many delay. These uncertainties and undefined Farming’ to boost organic farming in the EU. unknowns’. To access the Swiss Re report, see: timelines will make this five year old variety Setting out 21 specific policy measures to http://www.swissre.com economically unviable.’ achieve this, the action plan pays special attention to strengthening research, particularly Two billion will live in the path of extreme Commission funds online evaluation tool in relation to processing and production floods by 2050, researchers warn for local sustainable development methods; harmonising standards and genetically modified organisms (GMOs). The number of people living under the threat Local authorities will soon be able to easily To consult the Action Plan, please visit: of devastating floods is set to double from one assess their progress in achieving sustainable http://europa.eu.int/comm/agriculture/qual/ billion today to two billion by 2050 unless development, and compare their performance organic/plan/workdoc_en.pdf more attention is paid to prevention and with the rest of Europe, thanks to a new online prediction, according to researchers at the evaluation tool developed with funding from Research finds little incentive for SMEs to United Nations University (UNU). In response the European Commission. go green to this and similar threats, the UNU has opened Since the establishment of Local Agenda 21 a new institute for environment and human in 1992, and the signing the Aalborg Charter of New research has revealed that small security (UNU-EHS) in Bonn, Germany, European cities and towns towards businesses are unlikely to adopt dedicated to researching natural disasters and sustainability in 1994, local authorities had no environmentally friendly practices based on improving countries’ response capacity. simple method of assessing their performance voluntary action, as market forces alone are an The institute’s founding director, Dr Janos in a way that was comparable with other towns insufficient motivation. The finding is based Bogardi believes that huge losses could be and cities. on research at Kingston University, UK. reduced if more attention and spending are Local Evaluation 21 answers this need by ‘Most small firm owners do not accept the focused towards flood prediction and providing an online questionnaire which gauges [UK] government line that going green is good prevention. He points out that countries spend performance in a number of areas of the for business,’ said Andrea Revell, one of the 100 euro in relief for every one euro in disaster sustainable development process. Local study’s authors. ‘The ecological footprint of preparedness.
3 ESEE News Spring 2004
A fire-side chat to a lead- ing figure in Ecological PROFILE Economics about life, the universe and everything
Tatiana Kluvánková-Oravská was born and grew up in Bratislava, the capital city of Slovakia. She has worked in the Swedish University of Agriculture Sciences in Upssala; the Warsaw Ecological Economics Centre, Warsaw University, in Poland; and on the Economic and Social Committee of the EU in Brussels, before her current position as a senior researcher at the Institute for Forecasting, Bratislava.
What was your impression of your local the “morality and environmentalism” of transport in Bratislava city. As in most environment when you were a child? governmental officials. Nevertheless neo- transition countries from CEE, public services I was not impressed since the environment and capitalism in the early 90s re-directed me very are in collapse due to inefficient financing, quality of life, like anything else under the quickly from idyllic park management into the corruption and weak management practices, and communist life style, was “perfect”… hands of economics, so as to be able to provide are unable to operate without the massive arguments in favour of sustainable forest, land governmental subsidies they received in times Can you identify a point when you realised you or tourism practices. past. Public transport, one of the major wanted to work on environmental problems? polluters in the region, is an illustrative example It happened practically by accident… Which environmental problems concern you the of the inefficient “old “ type communist Most likely the crucial moment was when as a most at the moment? management. This is even more frustrating as child I was suffering from chronic bronchitis – Biodiversity and rural development. Both are Bratislava region belongs to the most developed resulting from the “perfect” quality of life in very challenging, as biodiversity in Central and regions in the enlarged EU, but the organisation Bratislava city under communism. My parents, Eastern Europe is rich compared to most of the transport in the city is really similar to a former active sport professionals, used all Western regions and rural activities such agro- developing country. available tools to keep me in good physical tourism, rural tourism or organic farming are shape, thus we often used to travel with father promising sustainable innovations for How do you relax at the weekends? to his climbers’ camps. Once on such a trip I underdeveloped rural communities in the If possible I try to get out of the city to “feed” got acute bronchial problems in the middle of neighbourhood of valuable biodiversity sites. my lungs with fresh air and my brain with an the night, and my parents, completely helpless, Recently also social justice, the relation atmosphere of peace and quiet. I spend a lot of in order to protect rest of the group from their between poverty, social exclusion and time travelling with my husband to see our noisy child left me outside in the winter degradation of the environment in transition favourite sites – ‘hospitals’: for my husband mountain air, where surprisingly my cough countries of Central and Eastern Europe. as a medical doctor these are ambulances, immediately disappeared! Since then regular Presently we have been implementing a pilot surgery and emergency units in real hospitals, outdoor sport activities in fresh mountain air project in my favourite national park, while for me these are national parks where in have become a necessity for my survival, and I Slovensky raj, concentrating on the effects of addition to getting some fresh air I need to check have learned how to respect and live with nature the Romas community in the neighbourhood the quality of resource management and visitors and wildlife. of Slovensky raj NP in relation to regional services such as information centres and resilience. educational trails. Who were the most influential writers for you when you were a student? If you had a year off to do whatever you wanted, What places (cities, regions, companies) have Perhaps it started with Odum’s text book on what would you spend it doing? impressed you with the quality of their ecology when my mental picture about the My private dream for a long time has been for environmental management? complexity of natural ecosystems was built up. a simple mountain chalet at an elevation of at As for my favourite places I admire US national Later on it was Gunnar Myrdal and his “values least 2000m above sea level, where the only park management, and also Teide National park are always with us” ideas. access is by foot and where my dog would be on Tenerife island which I visited while being Certainly most influential was my former my only regular company. That would be an at the Frontiers II conference there. professor and friend Peter Söderbaum and his excellent place to write without the pressure of In the CEE region, most impressive was the concept of the “Political-Economic Person”, city life! primeval forest in Bialowieski National Park, which definitely directed my orientation Poland - the only place where the largest towards ecological economics. Last but not Are you generally optimistic or pessimistic European mammal, Bison bonasus, can still live least Nicholas Georgescu-Roegen for about the future? Has your view changed over in open country; and Triglav NP in Slovenia bioeconomics – a unique interdisciplinary time? which has well balanced tourism and contribution to modern sciences and an Optimistic while there is still room to make conservation activities. impressive personal life story. choices. Fortunately for the majority of issues, As for urban sites, it is Vienna city where individual and local action can still produce Central European traditions are well linked Have your research interests changed since you global effects, and it leaves us with the with a friendly environment and modern life first started working on environmental issues? opportunity to make choices. style. This helps me to believe that perhaps I was quite clear from the beginning of my perfect organisation and order can go hand in studies, that my career would certainly stay What sort of local environmental problems are hand also with a Central European mentality involved with nature. Thanks to “good training” you faced with where you live now? even another 60 km to the East. under the former regime I had few ideals about For the moment this would be unsustainable continued opposite 4 ESEE News Spring 2004
Just released at European Green Week: ‘An Economic Assessment of Costs and Benefit of Natura 2000 Sites in Scotland’, RESEARCH NOTES by Jacobs and partners. As Europe’s most in-depth study of its kind to date, this report looks at the economic costs and benefits of the Natura 2000 network of protected area in Scotland using the concept of Total Economic Value. Using contingent valuation questionnaire surveys and other New EE research group in Germany means of stakeholder consultation, cost benefit analyses were carried out at both a national level (top-down) and a case study site level The University of Heidelberg and the Center for Environmental Research, Leipzig, have (bottom-up). The report quantifies recreational established a joint research group on Ecological Economics. Launched on April 1st, this and non-user willingness to pay values of local, group receives considerable funding from the Volkswagen Foundation and has a particular regional and national residents and visitors as focus on modelling and conceptual foundation. well as international visitors, associated with the continued protection of these sites. In Objectives addition, it suggests ways that public We aim to contribute to the modelling and conceptual foundations of Ecological Econo- preference values could be enhanced and how mics as an interdisciplinary research field. Considering grazing in semi-arid regions as an the cost of providing protection might be example, we develop an integrated modelling approach which enables the analysis of minimised. coupled ecological and economic dynamics, and can be applied to a broad range of environ- Log on to the Scottish Executive website to mental problems. For this sake, we analyse relevant notions and concepts from both the download a copy http://www.scotland.gov.uk/ disciplines of ecology and economics. library5/environment/ean2k-00.asp. Also to be completed soon by Jacobs, on Approach behalf of NOAA and the American Samoan We start with concepts that are relevant in the context of grazing in semi-arid regions and Department of Commerce, is a report entitled which already exist in both ecology and economics. These are the descriptive concepts ‘An Economic Valuation of Coral Reefs and “stock” (e.g. biomass of vegetation; population of livestock; financial capital) and “variability/ adjacent habitats in American Samoa’. This risk” (e.g. variation in precipitation, or in the farmer’s income), and the normative concepts study assesses both current and future values “optimality” (e.g. maximization of ecological fitness, or of farm income) and “viability” using a location specific GIS based approach (e.g. survival of a population; existence of the farm). We study how these concepts are used to valuation. in both disciplines, and examine the potential and limits of developing them into consistent Contact [email protected] or interdisciplinary concepts. For this purpose, we step outside the context of the individual Stefanie.o’[email protected] disciplines and adopt a comprehensive perspective. At the center of our approach is the development of an integrated ecological-economic model framework which is based on the concepts mentioned above. We begin the model New petroleum policy in analysis with two “good-practice” case studies of sustainable grazing in semi-arid regions Norway in Namibia: commercial sheep breeding at the Gamis-farm, and subsistence pastoral nomadism by the people of the Ova-Himba The Norwegian Parliament has adopted a new In different model scenarios we analyse the consequences of a change in ecological conditions oil and gas policy for Norway. The new policy (e.g. climate) or economic conditions (e.g. credit, savings or insurance institutions). From implies that great parts of the Barents Sea are these scenario analyses we derive general principles for grazing strategies in semi-arid opened for exploratory drilling. One petroleum regions, which are viable and efficient – both in ecological and in economic terms. project is already taking place and another is planned in 2006. Contacts The Barents Sea is part of the Arctic Ocean Dr. Stefan Baumgärtner, University of Heidelberg , Interdisciplinary Institute of located north of Norway and Russia. The Sea Environmental Economics, Bergheimer Str. 20, D-69115 Heidelberg . Phone: +49 area is especially valuable and vulnerable both (0)6221 54-8012, fax: +49 (0)6221 54-8020. e-mail: [email protected] from an economic and ecological point of view. Dr. Karin Frank, UFZ - Centre for Environmental Research Leipzig, Department of The area is especially rich in fish and bird Ecological Modeling, Permoser Str. 15, D-04318 Leipzig, Phone: +49 (0)341 235-2037, populations and plays an important role for fax: +49 (0)341 235-3500, e-mail: [email protected] professional fishing in Northern Norway. The low temperatures in this area combined with Further Information: www.eco-eco.ufz.de; www.eco-eco.uni-hd.de the rich ecosystems make petroleum activity more risky than in other sea areas. The new policy also implies increased carbon Do you have a favourite motto or saying about What is the best piece of advice you’ve been dioxide (CO2) emissions. The petroleum the environment? given? industry constitutes a significant share of the Perhaps a joke which I like to use to wake up It is my Father’s advise from the times of living total CO2 emissions in Norway today. students at my classes on environmental on the other side of the “Iron Curtain”: “There However, the new policy ’s effects on these valuation: “ Degradation of the environment is are always at least two solutions for one emissions are not mentioned in the policy the price we have to pay for a healthy problem and it is just up to you how many documents – neither from the government nor economy”. more you are able to create” from the parliament. 5 ESEE News Spring 2004
French citizens enlisted in war on junk mail
The French government has asked householders to place a new sticker on their front doors rejecting delivery of non-addressed free publicity and similar mail. Environment LOOK ROUN minister Serge Lepeltier noted that each household receives 40 kg per year of such junk mail. If one million households displayed the sticker, 40,000 tonnes of paper could be saved each year, he said. Relevant trade unions and trade associations have pledged to respect the stickers. The anti-junk mail action is part of a Each issue we take a look round the continent to catch up on the latest environmentel national waste prevention policy launched earlier this year. last year of stabilising municipal waste production at current levels by 2008. Norway moves to end all organic waste Among actions affecting the industrial sector, Waste and dumping French energy agency Ademe is to establish a network of 100 companies committed to reducing their waste by 10% in two years. constant; use of disposable nappies increased Norway’s pollution control authority (SFT) “Green design” guides are to be developed for markedly. The results appear to demonstrate has proposed a total ban on the dumping of different sectors. Norms will be created on the efficacy of collection and recycling biodegradable waste by 2009. The proposal product life-time. regulations, the EPA says. goes far beyond requirements in the 1999 EU The government will make voluntary landfill directive (which applies to Norway agreements with industry sectors on waste even though it is not an EU member), for a 65% prevention. It will also support wider use of Italy boasts record car battery recovery reduction from 1995 volumes by 2016. certified environmental management systems rate A total ban would halve methane emissions (EMSs) and expansion in eco-labelling, whether and cut pollution by seepage while boosting through the national NF Environnement scheme district heating generation, the agency said in a or self declarations. A consortium in charge of collecting and statement. The anticipated cut in methane alone Actions aimed at the public include an recycling spent lead batteries in Italy, Cobat, would be “the equivalent of a 40% reduction in awareness campaign to be launched by end- has claimed record recovery rates for 2003. greenhouse gas emissions from road traffic”. 2004, “symbolic” initiatives to reduce use of Nearly 200,000 tonnes were recovered, equal According to SFT’s Merethe Steen, the plastic carrier bags by 20% in three years under to 96% of annual sales and satisfying 40% of “socio-economic utilitarian value” of the a voluntary agreement with supermarket chains, the national demand for lead. As some batteries measure between 2005 and 2016 would total and a code of practice to reduce delivery of discarded in the DIY market continue to slip NKr220m-1.1bn (€24m-133m). If the ban were junk mail. through the net, Cobat last week made an to be implemented, Norway would join a few Environmentalists criticised the plan. A agreement with Italian local authority body UPI other countries, notably Germany and France, spokesperson for waste organisation CNIID, to set up additional collection centres where in putting stricter controls in place than specified Florence Couraud, said that the goal of individuals can dispose of car batteries free-of- in the directive. Many other EU countries face stabilising municipal waste over ten years was charge. a tough challenge even meeting the law’s targets. not ambitious enough, and warned that the plan’s reliance on voluntary measures might be “Nearly all” buildings aluminium ineffective. Last year, government experts recycled France launches waste prevention recommended use of fiscal measures, an area action plan ignored altogether in the action plan. Virtually all aluminium in buildings in Europe is collected for recycling during demolition, a French environment minister Roselyne Denmark successfully cutting study funded by the European aluminium Bachelot has announced a national municipal household waste association has found. Independently waste prevention plan, strongly emphasising conducted research in France, Germany, Italy, the need to raise awareness and engagement Spain, the Netherlands and Britain found among both consumers and companies. The plan A survey by Denmark’s environmental collection rates of between 92 and 98%. These aims to implement a government target approved protection agency has found that household “surprisingly high” levels show aluminium in waste generation is “slowly but surely” falling. buildings to be “an underestimated efficient It dropped 16%, from 1979 and 10% from 1992, scrap resource”, claimed the association. EU to 515kg per household per year in 2001. News coverage is collected from the rules on recycling and purity of demolition Household waste generation rose over the same Environmental News Daily Service materials are revealed as “an important driver” period in most EU countries. Denmark’s (ENDS). What topics do you want to hear for high collection rates, it added. downward trend was most pronounced in about? Email your thoughts to the editor, recyclable materials such as paper, cardboard Ben Davies, on [email protected]. and glass; food waste volumes remained
6 ESEE News Spring 2004
parties and environmental groups. The Green party said it intended to take up the matter with EU environment commissioner Margot Wallström. Irish exports of hazardous waste for treatment abroad have risen sharply in recent years. The proposed incinerator should help to fulfil the government’s objective of self- sufficiency in hazardous waste management D EUROPE capacity.
English waste permits scheme gets go- ahead news. This issue we review some developments in waste management. The world’s first system of tradable permits for the landfilling of biodegradable municipal waste has been cleared for introduction in already given to existing members Ireland and England by final approval of a new law. The Recycling Greece, which cited similar reasons. scheme is designed to help cut organic waste Slovenia asked for and will receive only one dumping in line with targets in the EU’s 1999 extra year. All three Baltic states wanted three landfill directive. Local authorities will be able years, but the Commission says it cannot justify to bank unused allowances or bring forward a longer derogation than for the other states. part of their future allocation. Operational Europe’s largest biodiesel plant The Commission has also rejected both details are due to be finalised early in 2004 launched Lithuania’s request to extend its transposition through an implementation regulation. deadline and a request from Estonia, Slovakia and Lithuania to delay the deadline for setting Construction work has begun in Scotland on up collection facilities. the world’s largest commercial biodiesel plant, Falling Scandinavian emissions being developed with official EU and UK recorded government financial support by Argent Energy Success for Danish drinks pack and Austrian firm Biodiesel International. The return system plant will contribute to EU policies on Recent compilations of environmental renewable energy and waste recycling by indicators in Norway and Denmark have consuming used cooking oils and animal fats, In its first year of operation, Denmark’s new underlined long-term reductions in emissions or tallow, to produce up to 50m litres of biodiesel deposit-and-return system for drinks packaging causing acidification and eutrophication. per year. has achieved recovery rates of 81% for beer Norway’s pollution control authority reported and soft drinks cans and 90% for glass bottles, that sulphur content in rainfall was now down according to preliminary estimates. However, 55-80% on 1980 levels, while levels of sulphur New EU states to get two years’ grace recovery of disposable packaging as a whole, dioxide (SO2) in air were 75-90% lower. on electronics recycling at 82%, was still falling short of the target of 90 Meanwhile, the Danish environmental % by the end of this year. Environment Minister protection agency’s annual round-up of Hans Christian Schmidt said it was noteworthy environmental indicators finds releases of The EU is set to give seven of the ten incoming that retail sales of “new, exciting brands of beer agricultural nitrogen and phosphorous down member states up to two years’ extra time to in bottles and cans” had risen sharply during 25% and 30% respectively over the past meet the electronic waste directive’s collection, the past year and that the number of varieties decade; groundwater consumption fell by 40%. recovery and recycling targets. of beer on offer had increased from 350 to 550. Under the law governments must have For many years before the return system was achieved, by the end of 2006, a four kilogram introduced disposable containers for certain Icelandic recycling fund growing fast per head waste collection rate, plus a waste kinds of drinks were prohibited in Denmark to recovery rate of between 70% and 80% and a protect the market share of refillables. The recycling rate of between 50% and 80%, government finally lifted the “can ban” under depending on the type of appliance. EU legal pressure. A “unique” Icelandic producer responsibility But a draft EU decision released by the fund launched in January is set to nearly double European Commission last Friday gives the in scale to €8.5m next year, figures in the 2004 Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Latvia, First Irish toxic waste incinerator budget show. The budget was approved by Estonia and Lithuania an additional two years approved Iceland’s parliament last week. to meet the deadlines. The decision needs The Icelandic recycling fund builds on an approval from all 15 current EU members, existing hazardous waste fund in operation since though this should be a formality. Ireland’s planning appeals board has marked a 1997. It imposes levies on a range of products, All seven of the new states argue that a milestone in national waste management policy with revenues earmarked to pay for historical recycling deficit and low population by approving plans for the country’s first ever environmentally sound disposal and recycling. density make it hard to meet the targets. The € hazardous waste incinerator. The decision This scheme generated revenues of 1.5-2m extension is in line with the two extra years sparked widespread protest from opposition and will now be incorporated into the new recycling fund.. 7 ESEE News Spring 2004
In memoriam: JAMES KAY
Mario Giampetro and Tim Allen pay tribute to a much loved colleague and friend who sadly died in May this year, James Kay.
Trying to explain in a few lines what James addressing the hard nuts in physics and personality was the ease with which he could Kay has represented for us is an impossible engineering, James was also looking into the get into different disciplinary fields, task. By “us” we mean those working in the applications of principles of non-equilibrium comfortably handling their respectively field of sustainable development, especially thermodynamics to real situations in the different types of scientific challenge. His hard those exploring innovative ideas, approaches analysis of health of ecosystems. There was science background notwithstanding, he had no and tools in practical terms. Paradoxically, too the dimension more related to information problems in acknowledging the unavoidable James was good at it, exactly because he was theory (e.g. in relation to network analysis). existence of ignorance and the need for dealing an exquisite theoretician. As a theoretician he His theoretical work has real time practical with semantic definitions that cannot be reduced was able to interpret the concept with rigor, applications in terms of development of to formal characterizations. This is a very rare but at the same time daring to violate taboos indicators of ecosystem health. mix indeed: he was someone that was able to be when it was needed. He could do that because Being a good theoretician James was very more rigorous than the most hard-nosed he knew exactly what he was talking about. He concerned about the abuse of concepts such as scientists, and at the same time he was took a thermodynamic stance with regard to entropy and exergy in existing literature. We spectacularly good at interacting with both sustainability, which is often not available to can almost hear his voice when reading the social scientists and the regular people they the majority of the students of that field. On following passage: “I have not seen a good study. Especially, he was a scientist capable of the other hand, he was also rightly confident general treatment of the relationship between listening to people much more than talking at and effective in addressing the human elements, entropy change, entropy generated in a system them. His delightful ability to interact with the value laden soft parts of the system, the and environment and exergy change . . . This is other people is clearly illustrated by his success parts with which hard science as teacher, as colleague, as member thermodynamicists are often of his home-town community, as unfamiliar. In spite of his hard an invaluable friend for many of background in physics, network He said that in the equations it all us. analysis and thermodynamics, he In the last 10 years, many of us was perfectly at ease with Post- boils down to differences in entropy had the privilege of getting Normal Science and participatory being a change of averages, whereas involved with him in a few wild- processes held at the community eyed projects. The memorable level. There are experts in hard differences in exergy are averages of organization of the first meeting science, and another class of experts of the Dirk Gently Gang in in modeling and guiding human changes! Cortina, in which we had to go affairs, but then there was James ahead, flying people across the Kay, who stood almost alone in his Atlantic, with no funds, no plans ability to be rigorous as to the “hard” and above all no sponsors but a parts, while reflexive enough to deal with the the reason that dissipation and degradation are local wine-maker. The participants claim that “soft” side of sustainability. The combination used in sloppy ways as it is never quite clear if it was one of the greatest scientific experiences of his breadth of experience and vision was one is talking about entropy change, entropy of their lives. Then, there was the organization breathtaking. generation, exergy change, gradient change, or of a series of panels and special sessions on His joint work with Eric Schneider on the heat transfer and if it is for the system, or system complexity and post-normal sciences in the analysis of the self-organization of ecosystem plus environment.” The clarity of his most disparate locations, often at conferences development represents a goldmine in which expression was terse and wonderful. He said of Ecological Economics. These were always there is still plenty to be found. More recently, that in the equations it all boils down to executed so as to achieve excellent results, in with Roydon Fraser, James has covered the differences in entropy being a change of averages, spite of all kinds of difficulties. Then again there thermodynamics and meaning of the concept whereas differences in exergy are averages of were the sessions he organized dedicated to of entropy. They have been casting biological changes! Too few practitioners were either theoretical ecology in the Biennial Workshop thermodynamics as a set of different logical reading or listening, and so very few seem to be in Advances in Energy Studies of Porto Venere, types of exergy. Biological systems can only aware of these distinctions. The material he in which James always played the crucial role use certain inputs – a gallon of gasoline is of no put together in his home page - http:// of the “skipper fighting in the typhoon”. use if you have a donkey cart. Furthermore www.jameskay.ca/ - in relation to these issues Having James on the team was a guarantee of organisms have flexible means of using their should be made a mandatory reading for those success. In spite of his gentle demeanor he was fuel, such that, in James’ terms, “biology keeps working and publishing in this field. To our a rock solid person with an impressive changing the dead state.” James and Roydon great relief, his family is committed to keeping determination. After having committed himself have found it necessary to redefine energy so up the web page. he just delivered, no matter what. that it is more than a bookkeeping device. While Another remarkable aspect of James’s continued opposite 8 ESEE News Spring 2004
2004 World Water Week August 15-21, CONFERENCES Stockholm, Sweden
The programme for the 2004 World Water Week is now complete and can be viewed at: http://www.siwi.org ESEE 2005 Since 1991, but even more so in recent years, the Stockholm events have become June 14-17th, 2005 an integral component in the global effort to improve human welfare and the planet’s Sixth International Conference of the health. This year is no exception. Urban water issues and future food requirements European Society for Ecological Economics are among the broad range of issues being taken up by the Stockholm Water Lisbon, Portugal. Symposium, “Drainage Basin Management Regional Approaches for Further details will appear soon at: Food and Urban Security,” and its eight workshops. In addition, World Water http://www.esee2005.org Week plenary sessions, panel debates, side events and a record 24 different, independently organised seminars make the 2004 edition the most comprehensive to date. In total, some 47 leading international organisations and programmes are convening or co- Workshop: convening activities. Integrated assessment of the land system: The Registration for the World Water Week is open now. To register, or for more future of land use information, visit www.siwi.org. 28-30 October, 2004
His passing marks a point at which we must Institute for Environmental Studies, restart the engine. In the last year, he was Amsterdam, the Netherlands annoyed by the fact that there is a lot of work still to be done, and his health problems were preventing him from doing all he would have The workshop is co-sponsored by the Land Use and Cover Change (LUCC) community liked to do. Looking over the edge of eternity and the European Forum on Integrated Environmental Assessment (EFIEA) and aims at: he was worried that his work might not amount to what it should, that it would fall short of its 1. Providing a state of the art view of Land Use and Cover Change (LUCC) activities potential. That was a luxury we can forgive in 2. An Integrated Assessment of the future of land use in Europe him, even if we find it difficult to understand 3. Linking the networks of Integrated Assessment (EFIEA) and LUCC how he could come to such a conclusion. In spite of his regret, he did leave a huge legacy to We aim to bring together scientists that are involved in LUCC or land use/cover modelling us, in terms of books, papers, intuitions, and those involved in EFIEA or Integrated Assessment. Your research should be dealing enthusiasm, contacts, friendships, shared with (agricultural) land use issues, should be multidisciplinary and preferably involve experiences, memories, ongoing projects, multiple actors at multiple scales. We especially invite those who employ participatory personal example. There have been many times methods and involve stakeholders and policy makers. when a group of splendidly intelligent and creative people were in some meeting room on The workshop focuses both on land use modelling and related data issues (Day 1), and on some continent, and the only thing they all had more qualitative methods and how those can be linked to those quantitative tools (Day 2 in common was that they knew James Kay. and Day 3). For Day 2, we are inviting only those whose work is within Europe.
Many of us start now realizing that we are all th pieces in James’ big game. Just in case we Deadline for submission: 15 August 2004. might falter we should take seriously our responsibility to make a good use of what James http://www.lucc.nl under ‘Workshop’. has given us.
9 ESEE News Spring 2004 CALENDAR EVENTS
August 1-4, 2004 September 1-3, 2004 American Agricultural Economics Work, Employment and Society Conference Association Annual Meeting 2004 Manchester, UK. July Denver, Colorado. With journal Work, Employment, and Society. http://www.aaea.org/meeting/aaea/2004/ http://www2.umist.ac.uk/management/ewerc/ wes2004/wes2004.html August 9, 2004 July 11-14, 2004 Tenth Biennial Conference of the International September 5-7, 2004 ISEE Eighth Biennial Conference. Association for the Study of Common Property Fourth Conference on the Capability Approach: Montreal, Canada. (IASCP). Enhancing Human Security http://www.ecologicaleconomics.org/ Oaxaca, Mexico. Pavia, Italy. conf/conf.htm Email: [email protected] http://cfs.unipv.it/sen/index.html
July 14-16, 2004 August 15-21, 2004 (**NEW**) September 6-7, 2004 (**NEW**) ‘History of Work’ Comtemporary British Second International Symposium on Riverine Taking Stock of Risk. History Summer Conference. Landscapes: The Scientific Basis of Restoring Nottingham, UK. London, UK. Watercourses in Landscapes. Organised by British Sociological Association Organised by Centre for Contemporary Bresdel, Alvsbyn, Sweden. Risk and Society Study Group. British History, School of Advanced Study, Organised by Landscape Ecology Group, http://www.britsoc.co.uk/Library?risk6- University of London. Umea University. 7Sept04.doc Email info: Virginia. [email protected] http://www.riverine-landscapes.ch/index.htm September 8-10, 2004 July 14-16, 2004 (**NEW**) August 16-20, 2004 (**NEW**) Culture and Impact 2004. International Dialgue on Tourism, Cultural Diversity and Sixth International Conference on Social Conference on the Impact of Technology on Sustainabel Development. Science Methodology: Recent developments Culture and Norms. Barcelona, Spain. and Applications in Social Science Cadiz, Spain. Part of Universal Forum of Cultures Methodology. Universities of Bergen and Cadiz. Barcelona 2004. Amsterdam, The Netherlands. http:www.wessex.ac.uk/conferences/2004/ http://www.biospherehotels.org/ Organised by Research Committee on Logic culture04/index.html tourism2004/ingles and Methodology, International Sociological Association. September 8-10, 2004 (**NEW**) July 25-30, 2004 http://www.siswo.uva.nl/rc33/ Economic Sociology: Problems and Prospects XI World Congress of Rural Sociology: Rethymno, Crete, Greece. Gloabalisation, Risks and Resistance. August 15-21, 2004 (**NEW**) Organised by Dept. of Sociology, Univ. of Crete Trondheim, Norway. 2004 World Water Week. and the Economic Sociology Research Network Organised by the International Rural Stockholm, Sweden. of the European Sociological Association. Sociology Association. http://siwi.org For details email: [email protected] http://www.irsa-world.org/XI/index.html 25-28 August, 2004 September 16-18, 2004 July 26-31, 2004 Workshop on Carbon and Energy. Eighth Luso-Afro-Brazilian Congress of International Conference on Water Security Stockholm, Sweden. Social Sciences: ‘The Social Question in the for Future Generations. Initiative of the European Science Foundation New Millenium’. Changchun, Jilin Province, China. (ESF) Standing Committees for Life, Coimbra, Portugal. Organised by Northeast Institute of Environmental and Earth Sciences (LESC) and Organised by Centro de Estudos Sociasis, Geography and Agricultural Ecology, CAS. the Social Sciences (SCSS). University of Coimbra. http://www.neigae.ac.cn/conference/ http://www.esf.org/ http://www.ces.uc.pt/lab2004 20030227htm September 17-18, 2004 Environmental Economics: Institutions, Competition, Rationality. Wuppertal, Germany. August September Organised by International Network for Economics Research (INFER). http://www.infer.info
10 ESEE News Spring 2004 CALENDAR EVENTS
October December May
October 20-24, 2004 Agro Environ 2004: The Role of Multi- 2005 2005 2005 2005 Purpose Agriculture in Sustaining Global Environment. June Udine, Italy. http://www.dpvta.uniud.it/agroenv/ home_page.htm#coord January June 11-12, 2005 October 25-26, 2004 (**NEW**) Nature in the Kingdom of Ends. Sustainable Innovation 04: Towards Selfoss, Iceland. Sustainable Product Design http://www.midja.is/fraedslunet/ Farnham, Surrey UK January 5-6, 2005 (**NEW**) http://www.cfsd.org.uk/events/tspd9/ Contemporary Issues in Economic June 14-17, 2005 (**NEW**) Development of Small States. 6th International Conference of the European October 28-30, 2004 (**NEW**) Bandar Seri Begawanm, Brunei Darussalam. Society for Ecological Economics: ESEE 2005. Integrated Assessment of the Land System: The Organised by Faculty of Business, Economic Lisbon, Portugal. Future of Land Use’ and Policy Studies, University of Brunei Conference theme: Science and Governance - Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Darussalam. The Ecological Economics Perspective. Cosponsored by Land Use and Cover Change http://www.ubd.edu.bn Organised by Ecological Economics and (LUCC) community and the European Forum Environmental Management Centre on Integrated Environmental Assessment. (ECOMAN), New University of Lisbon. http://www.lucc.nl/ http://www.esee2005.org February June 26-July 1, 2004 (**NEW**) XX International Grassland Congress: Grasslands - A Global Resource. Dublin, Ireland. November http://www.igc2005.com/
November 4-6, 2004 March Science in Europe - Europe in Science: 1500- 2000. July Maastricht, The Netherlands. Organised by European Society for History of March 13-19, 2005 (**NEW**) Science. Ninth International Conference on Energy and http://www.gewina.nl?dutch/Sience% Environment. 20in%20Europe.html Cairo, Egypt. Organised by Supreme Council for Research, Do you know of forthcoming Egypt, and Wayne State University, Detroit, Novermber 8-10, 2004 conferences and workshops in Leading Edge Sustainability 2004. http://ee9.sat-eng.com/ Sustainability in Water Limited related areas? Please forward Environments. details (preferably with a Sydney, Australia. website) to the editor at: Organised by International Water April [email protected] Association. http://www.LES2004.iwa-conferences.org
11 ESEE News Spring 2004
Food for Thought: Take Note Past Greats The inherent vice of capitalism is the uneven division of blessings, while the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal division of misery. Initiative underway to found African Winston Churchill If all economists were laid end to end, they Society for Ecological Economics would not reach a conclusion.
(ASEE) George Bernard Shaw
There are two kinds of statistics, the kind Kevin Urama you look up and the kind you make up.
On 25 March, the inaugural meeting of the work of several networks of scholars, which Rex Stout steering committee for the current initiative to have been taking shape across the continent establish an African Society for Ecological within the past decade. A liberal is someone too poor to be a Economics (ASEE) was held at the Macaulay Over the past several months, following their capitalist and too rich to be a communist. Institute, Aberdeen, Scotland. Dr Kevin Urama Aberdeen meeting, the ASEE steering committee (acting president of the ASEE steering has been working to connect with these Anon committee) is a post-doctoral researcher in the ecological economics associated networks Institute’s Socio-Economic Research across Africa. One of the main tasks for the That man is richest whose pleasures are Programme. During the day-long meeting, ESEE current initiative is to identify and liase with cheapest. President Clive Spash, ISEE President Charles individuals and institutions both across the Perrings and Macaulay Executive Director Prof continent and across the world, that are active Henry Thoreau Maggie Gill joined delegates from eastern, in African countries. western, northern and southern Africa and During the 8th Biennial ISEE Conference, Three things are necessary for the salvation several European supporters in exploring and Montréal, 11-14 July 2004, the ASEE steering of man: to know what he ought to believe; confronting the opportunities and obstacles of committee hope to bring this initiative to a new to know what he ought to desire; and to bringing ASEE into being. Following on from stage. In tandem with the convening of affiliated know what he ought to do. this meeting, the next step for the ASEE steering regional societies – on Wednesday 14 July at committee will be to formally present their 18:30-20:30 – the ASEE steering committee plan St Thomas Aquinas plans and strategy to the ISEE Board and to convene a first general meeting of ASEE membership during the meetings to be held this members and to (a) elect an interim committee Reality is not always probable, or likely. July in Montréal. for ASEE, (b) discuss and approve the draft For readers less familiar with its history, it is constitution for ASEE and agree on a suitable George Luis Borges important to note that the current ASEE African state for formal incorporation of ASEE, initiative is a continuation and combination of (c) discuss the process towards the convening If you would be a real seeker after truth, it earlier and existing efforts to establish societies of an ASEE Ordinary General Assembly, in is necessary that at least once in your life for ecological economics in Africa. Current Africa, after formal incorporation in 2005, and you doubt, as far as possible, all things. efforts are part of an iterative process. In (d) nominate membership to the ASEE particular, the present initiative owes a great Advisory Committee. Rene Descartes deal to the convening of the 7th Biennial ISEE The ASEE steering committee is committed conference in Sousse, Tunisia (March 2002) to establishing a democratic and inclusive and the FRONTIERS conference in Tenerife, society and invites interested researchers to Spain (February 2003). At Sousse, French- please contact them directly. You can write to English simultaneous translation opened the either the acting president at ESEE Secretariat, event to the widest possible range of African
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