Transcript National Centre for Sustainability

Responding to the Sustainability
Challenge…….
+10C and strange things are happening
Linda Condon
Key points

What is happening?

Community sustainability issues facing contemporary Australians

How community organizations are collaborating

Business and Sustainability

Government action

The emerging opportunities for VET

What can we do?
What is happening?
What is sustainability all about?
‘Development that meets the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own
needs.’
Our Common Future, World Commission on Environment and
Development (the Brundtland Commission) 1987.
OR
Enough – for all forever
African Delegate to Johannesburg (Rio+10) - 2002
5
SOME FACTS

Nine of 10 Australians (89 per cent) are now concerned about
climate change

94 per cent of people recognised that they need to make
changes in their own lives to prevent further climate change

78 per cent agree Australia should lead the world in clean energy
(solar, wind and geothermal) use

Growing awareness that climate change will provide businesses
with opportunities in new and emerging industries

Almost three quarters of Australians (73 per cent) expect the
Government to show strong international leadership
Source: CLIMATE OF THE NATION
Australian attitudes to climate change and its
solutions April 2008
6
92% of Australians want action
on climate change
Source: Lowy Institute for International Policy: http://www.lowyinstitute.org/Publication.asp?pid=660
7
Impact on Australia

Ref: IPCC and CSIRO
Across all parts of Australia, we can expect:  temperatures to increase – by anywhere between 20C – 6.40C
 rainfall patterns to change - wetter and dryer
 sea levels to rise – in excess of 1 metres
 extreme weather events such as cyclones and bushfires to
become more frequent and intense
Source: Australian Bureau of
Meteorology
Education VS Military spending
Basic education for all = $6 billion/annum
VS
Military spending globally = $780 billion/annum
VS
Greenhouse Gas Emissions per capita
AUSTRALIA
UNITED STATES
UNITED KINGDOM
NEPAL
JAPAN
INDONESIA
10
Ecological Footprint – www.epa.vic.gov.au
Ecological Footprint (hectares per person)
12
10
Data courtesy of EPA
8
6
Global
Average
(2.2)
4
2
0
USA
Australia
UK
Japan
Brazil
China
Bangladesh
12
Community sustainability
issues
What are the issues for communities?
Some emerging issues for communities

Social equity issues around cost of energy/ water/ waste rising
 Wealthy urbanised populations are better able to buffer themselves
 They have greater financial capacity to import ecological resources.
 Low income earners tend to live in areas more likely to be adversely
affected by climate change
 On average, low income earners spend a greater proportion of total weekly
household budget on energy and water
 Lower income households are currently less able to introduce measures to
improve energy efficiency. – Ref: acoss.choice.acf report
“Energy efficiency is the quickest and cheapest
way to cut greenhouse pollution”
14
Regional communities in particular

Regional communities – their issues
 Water – lack of water, water restrictions and water rights
 Bushfires
 Agricultural instability and crop failure
 Farm failure and extreme weather events
 Indigenous Australians, particularly those in remote communities in
Northern Australia
 Physically relocating
 Needing new skills
15
What are communities
doing?
How community organizations are collaborating
Country Women’s Association and others

Westpac, South Australian Farmers’ Federation, AgForce, Visy, Australian
Conservation Foundation and The Climate Institute

Prosper, strengthen and adapt focus

The Alliance is commissioning research to investigate how rural
communities can create climate change resilient communities and prosper
from harvesting clean energy and farming carbon.
NFF and ACF

Tackling salinity in Australia, with a $1.4B National Salinity Action Plan
17
How community organizations are collaborating
BREAZE – Ballarat

Ballarat Renewable Energy and Zero Emissions (BREAZE) is a nonprofit grassroots organisation
Greening Australia

A network of + 350 staff in locations across the continent, Greening
Australia lives and works with people from remote, regional and
metropolitan communities – Shell, Alcoa and Sensis
 Aboriginal Landcare Education Program
 Hawkesbury-Nepean
 Gondwana Link
CarbonSMART - Land care and carbon neutral

Landholders income - growing and maintaining
native vegetation on their land.
18
Business and
sustainability
Business Sustainability - today
Tangibles
Financials
Financial targets
21%
Investments
Assets
Shareholders
Waterline
Company
Values
Government
Stakeholders
Regulators
Banks
Reputation
Insurance companies
Employees
NGOs
Customers
Competitors
79%
The media
Communities
21
Business and its collaborations

Valuing Water in Rio Tinto
 A five year Group water target for a
ten per cent reduction in
freshwater withdrawal per tonne of
product
 Their Water Standard launched in
2003
 A diagnostic tool that assesses
performance and risk across all
water management aspects

Shared Paths
 Conservation Volunteers Australia
As BP says .. Talk stopped
long ago….
Government action

Successful adaptation requires massive government and
industry intervention, including coercion

Kyoto has now been signed …now targets are needed!!
Greenhouse gas emissions from energy use in Victoria in
million tonnes - 9/05/08 - Compared to last week down 1.7%
Source: The Climate Group

The new legislation in place
 Energy Efficiency Opportunity Bill
 National Greenhouse and Energy Reporting Act 2007
 Carbon trading scheme - emerging
 EREPs - Environment and Resource Efficiency Plans
VET and Sustainability
The emerging opportunities for VET

Training packages allow the integration
sustainability into vocational education
and training.
‘The development of practical
skills which promote
sustainability in the workplace
will be vital for employers of the
future and for the wider
community…’

We already educate through action
learning, group learning and problemsolving

TAFE students are the perfect mechanism http://www.ncver.edu.au/publications/1718.html NCVER Report
for transferring sustainability into the
workplace
World wide, education is regarded as
the key to changing behaviour
Opportunities for VET

The Diploma of Sustainability

 Dual delivery
Guideline Standards for
Sustainability
 Developed in 2004 and rolled
 Only 4 units
out with IBSA, MSA, CPSISC
and the Seafood industry
 240 hours
 Flexible delivery – on-line and
classroom

The National Action Plan

 VET recognised as critical to
change in industry and
community
 Funding to support PD for
teachers
 To be released shortly
The Decade for Education for
Sustainable Development
 United Nations initiative

Look at our website
 Great ideas and resources
 www.swin.edu.au/ncs
The challenges we face in VET





Industry and the community need to articulate their needs for
sustainability education
Encourage a culture of sustainability awareness in the VET
sector
Develop and resource VET teaching and learning practice, which
will promote sustainable development
Embed sustainability principles in VET policy, practice and
training packages
Pursue a nationwide, united transition towards sustainable
development
AFTER YOU HAVE
CHANGED THE LIGHT
GLOBES ……
WHAT THEN!!
Makeup of our 19 tonnes per person
Home Energy :4 tonnes/person(20%)

Ten star design http://www.yourhome.gov.au/

Turn it off and use less

Solar hot water

Cook with gas

Insulation and curtains

Appliances and light bulbs

Solar photovoltaics

Perhaps green power
www.greenpower.com.au
Transport:2 tonnes/person (10%)

Avoid and reduce - Less kms per year

Forestry carbon offset for car and air travel

Optimise trips / car share

Drive at 90 km/hr and try eco-driving

A diesel car or biodiesel

Think hard about the next car

Train, tram and bus
20,000 Km/
year@ 200 grams
CO2/ km = 4
tonnes/year
Our Food:5 tonnes/person (25%)

Cut waste (30% on average)

Less animal products

Buy Australian, buy local

Simple raw foods, less
processed products

Vegetable garden and home
orchard

Buy organic

Integrate healthy diets and
active lives
If we all conserve energy by 10%
Australia will meet the 2020 targets
Repairs & Construction:3 tonnes/person (15%)

Do it right: ten star standards

Long life and low maintenance

Reduce yearly energy
requirements

Think hard about life cycle of
materials

Use recycled if it fits

Seek out the
“alternative”building experts
Retail Therapy:6 tonnes/ person (30%)

Buy less and save

Retire credit cards

Buy Australian, buy local

High quality and long lived items

Research the product life cycles

Share or hire for infrequently used stuff

Buy pre-loved houses, cars, white goods and
clothes
Do I need it
or just want
it?
The HARD challenges

Lifestyle and the economy needs to change

Spending goes from flat screen TVs to energy provision
& emissions avoidance

National wealth and economic resilience can increase

Leaders in government, industry and community make a
difference
Environmental behaviour change
“Let no one be discouraged by the belief that
there is nothing one man, one woman can do
against the enormous army of the world’s
ills….. few will have the greatness to bend
history itself but each of us can work to
change a small portion of events and in the
total of all these acts will be written the
history of this generation.”
President John. F. Kennedy
36
Any questions?
37