June 6, 2015 — 1 Comment

Plate 1, Carbon Thoughts, by Nancyanne Cowell, oil-mixed media on two canvases, 48” X 36”, 2016

Introduction

February 28, 2015

This book is about human stories and how they shape and influence our relationships to one another, to other species and to the planet. The power of our narratives to include and exclude, and how we have become the ‘Lorax searching for the last lorelai.’ The myths, fables and metaphors of our childhood stories give us embedded and over time unconscious archetypes of good and evil, and indeed, it’s all a question of the stories we are told that so influence our day to day decisions.

It is also about stories within stories, how the story of science may give us false illusions that we can manage the planet for our own ends and that is possible to understand the laws of the universe, that the trolls under the bridge are only illusory. Another story embedded in this book is our own story about life and its meaning, for each of us has undergone unusual transformations that we would wish on no other but that have given us a unique window into the meaning and purpose of life. And it is a story about the failure of sophisticated human societies to ask the right questions, for without knowing the right rabbit hole in which to go down, you can never get to the real solutions, the deep changes necessary for living more harmoniously on this planet. Finally, it is also new stories based on the right questions that give us hope for our future, a future where we reconcile old relationships and build new relationships based on listening and learning again from our roots, the revisiting of our old stories and the power of new stories to carry us and our children’s children into more sustainable futures.

Video

February 20, 2015

Sustainability Blooming

CRCResearch RRU. (2014, January 29). Sustainability Blooming [Video File]. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/Agwmf9gP7Cs

As the Canada Research Chair in Sustainable Community Development program enters its final year, we reflect on the ideas and discoveries that have emerged through the research over the last decade. This animation captures some of the main points of what we have learned in our exploration of how to move toward a sustainable future. The flower in this animation also maps the research program’s website (crcresearch.org), and we encourage you to visit the interactive version (link below) to learn more about sustainable community development.

Academic Articles

February 15, 2015

Dale, A. (2005). A perspective on the evolution of e-dialogues concerning interdisciplinary research on sustainable development in Canada. Ecology and Society, 10(1). Retrieved from https://www.ecologyandsociety.org/

Dale, A., & Newman, L. L. (2007). E-dialogues: a role in interactive sustainable development?. Integrated Assessment, 6(4). Retreived from http://78.47.223.121:8080/index.php/iaj/article/viewArticle/235

Print

February 10, 2015

At what cost: Can the world thrive on 100% renewable energy? (2017, January 13). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/

Clean energy’s dirty secret: Wind and solar power are disrupting electricity systems. (2017, February 25). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/

Electric cars: The death of the internal combustion engine. (2017, August 12). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/

Externalities: Pigouvian taxes. (2017, August 19). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/

Fuel of the future: Data is giving rise to a new economy. (2017, May 6). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/

Garb age: Looking good can be extremely bad for the planet. (2017, April 8). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/

Learning and earning: Equipping people to stay ahead of technological change. (2017, January 14). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/

Renewable energy: A world turned upside down. (2017, February 25). The Economist. Retrieved from http://www.economist.com/