What can we do about global warming?
(to the tune of What can we do with the drunken sailor?)

Chorus: What can we do about global warming?
What can we do about global warming?
What can we do about global warming?
Shrink our carbon footprint!

1. Walk, cycle, bus and train
Car share, avoid the plane
Holiday at home, learn to love the rain
Shrink our carbon footprint!

2. Insulate homes and get them lined
Stop oil, gas and coal being mined
Use tidal, solar, wind and find well
Shrink our carbon footprint!

Chorus

3. Organic, local, seasonal eating
Recycle, mend, turn down the heating
Share, cooperate, stop competing
Shrink our carbon footprint!

Watch out! The seas are rising
Cry out! The seas are rising
Bale out! The seas are rising
Save our lovely planet!

4. Dont believe the greenwash, keep on prying
Tax millionaires, stop envy buying
Climate change deniers, theyre all lying
Shrink our carbon footprint!

Chorus:
We can do a lot about global warming
We can do a lot about global warming
We can do a lot about global warming
Save our lovely planet!

Lyrics by Oliver Swingler and Making Waves choir, Cullercoats, UK Version 3 March 2013

Tories Make UK “Fracking Mad’: Even Charles Worries

“Andy Chyba, Co-Founder of The UK Anti-Fracking Network joins World View with Denis Campbell to discuss the Tories mad dash to frack for natural gas across the UK and the potential newest ally in the anti-fracking/climate change wars, none other than Prince Charles.”

FROM LIZ MILWARD:

We had a very positive leafletting session in Llantwit yesterday, with many people saying that they would ‘do something’. There was a particular interest in a petition.

Denise met one of our local (independent) councillors who had interesting things to say. Basically, he says that all the three current planning applications are in tory-held council wards, and that all the local councillors are now in favour of COG’s proposals. Whilst this is bad news for those communities, it does at least clear the decks so to speak! Nationally the Conservative party is clearly behind fracking, so it is not a surprising development.

It seems to me that our current best hope is the Welsh Government. There is very interesting research from the USA that finds that success in defeating energy projects is positively associated with two things:

• a local campaign (however small)
• a dispute over jurisdiction – for example between local and national government

The research also suggests that even where permission is granted, with these two conditions, the projects don’t get built.

With all that in mind, I suggest that we organise a meeting, to involve all interested parties, to plan a campaign focussed on the Welsh Government.

FROM ANDY CHYBA:

http://www.greenpeace.org.uk/newsdesk/energy/investigations/who-owns-rights-drill-gas-uk

Extract:
A Chinese state owned oil firm, CNOOC, linked by human rights organisations to allegations of rights violations in Tibet and Myanmar (Burma) is an investor in the UK’s onshore drilling industry – according to an analysis of publicly available data by Energydesk.

The oil giant, which completed its acquisition of global oil and gas firm Nexen in February has also been linked to oil spills in the South China Sea.

The company it holds a stake in, Igas, has an interest in a license area which includes chancellor George Osbornes constituency.

Igas is one of the largest holders UK drilling rights alongside fellow unconventional gas explorers Dart, Cuadrilla, Viking and Coal Mine Methane firm Alkane. CNOOC is also linked to Cuadrillas co-owner, AJ Lucas through a Hong-Kong based investment fund.

The ownership of many of the firms proved impossible to verify as the full list of share owners was obscured by large nominee share holdings through financial institutions. One firm, Viking, is owned by an investment division of Barclays.

The latest development comes as the UK’s onshore gas industry enters a period of rapid change – thanks to the prospect of tax breaks and exploratory drilling licenses for unconventional gas.

Whilst global energy giants including BP have suggested that UK shale gas will not be a ‘game changer’, smaller firms – many from Australia, Asia and Canada – and some UK aspiring gas barons have taken an interest in the UKs relatively low-cost exploratory drilling licenses

This means they would be amongst the first to benefit from any profits in the industry.

The UK’s Department Of Energy and Climate change (DECC) has made significant efforts to make all license and block ownership information public and their data, showing ever UK onshore drilling license and its owner, is now available on a Google Map here.

Ken Corn and Lucy Male of Atlantic College are Global Faculty advisers at Atlantic College which is loacted at St. Donat’s, Llantwit Major, Nr Bridgend.

Estyn inspects quality and standards in education and training providers in Wales.

This week, I am informed, they are inspecting the Bridgend Christian School.

You can see what I have had to say about this establishment, and its previous Estyn Report, here: https://bridgendgreens.wordpress.com/?s=bridgend+christian+school

I sincerely hope that ESTYN see fit to actually challenge the miseducation that goes on here.

The ACE (Accelerated Christian Education) is utter nonsense and surely cannot be sanctioned by ESTYN as acceptable. The last inspection – following principles established by Michael Gove, saw fit to skirt around the issue that they teach ridiculous nonsense to innocent children who should be able to expect the state to try to protect them from such abuses.

If you think I am over-stating tings, I would urge you to read this article from the Rationalist Association:
http://rationalist.org.uk/articles/4146/a-fundamental-problem

At least the Bridgend School is not on the list of such schools in receipt of taxpayers money. But given that Estyn is funded by our taxes, should we not expect them to establish at least some sort of standard of intellectual rigour in what is being taught to the Welsh kids (admittedly less than 40 of them currently) being brainwashed and inculcated (using established cult methodologies).

We should all be embarrassed to have this institution in our midst.

Open your mind to consider this young man’s fission vision.

Taylor Wilson was 14 when he built a nuclear fusion reactor in his parents’ garage. Now 19, he returns to the TED stage to present a new take on an old topic: fission. Wilson, who has won backing to create a company to realize his vision, explains why he’s so excited about his innovative design for small modular fission reactors — and why it could be the next big step in solving the global energy crisis.

http://www.ted.com/talks/taylor_wilson_my_radical_plan_for_small_nuclear_fission_reactors.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Naked_Gardening_Day

Modest gains by the Greens overshadowed by surge in UKIP vote and moves us from 4th to 5th position electorally.

The BBC analysis of our performance in the 34 councils that voted yesterday is fair enough:

“In the battle for attention amongst the minor parties, there is no doubt Nigel Farage of UKIP easily outgunned the new leader of the Green Party in England and Wales, Natalie Bennett. But consider their relative starting points in local government.
Before these elections, the Green Party held 134 council seats across England and Wales. In other words, far, far more than UKIP. In Natalie Bennett’s first big electoral test as leader, the Greens haven’t made a huge leap forward, with a net gain of just five seats. One striking result came in Warwickshire, where the Conservative leader of the county council lost his seat to the Greens.

The Green Party acknowledge that UKIP has “touched a nerve” with voters, but some in the party are irritated that an outfit like UKIP, with what they see as simple but implausible ideas, is attracting so much attention and support.

While they have lost their place as the fourth biggest party in local government in England, the Greens can take comfort in some encouraging results of their own.”

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-22396433

Amongst those encouraging results is a resounding win for former Wales Green Party Elections Co-ordinator in Oxford. Well done Sam Coates!

http://mycouncil.oxfordshire.gov.uk/mgElectionAreaResults.aspx?ID=113

More analysis here:

http://greenparty.org.uk/news/2013/05/03/greens-celebrate-steady-success-across-county-despite-ukip-protest-vote/