Green Economy

Green New Deal

Published March 30, 2019 | By Tim Reese

The Green New Deal (GND) is not a government spending program or socialism. It is a democratic voter lead proposed economic planning and reinvestment strategy that aims to transition the United State from brown economy to a green economy. From a economic model that denies climate change, is dependent on oil, depletes natural resources, pollutes the environment which makes people sick and natural resources unproductive and where the wealth of the earth and work is concentrated into the hands of the 1% to a economic model that tackles climate change by redirecting investments from oil to renewable, energy conservation, conserving natural resources so the needs of the present are met without compromising future generations needs and sharing the wealth of the earth and work with the 99%. A lot of work for planning a transition from a brown economy to a green economy has already been done. The American proposal for a GND is only part of broader call for a Global Green New Deal (GGND). The GGND is part of the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) Green Economy Initiative (GEI). The UNEP’s Green Economy Initiative (2008) is designed to assist governments in “greening” their economies by reshaping and refocusing policies, investments and spending towards a range of sectors, such as clean technologies, renewable energies, water services, green transportation, waste management, green buildings and sustainable agriculture and forests. The GGND was launched in 2009 as a recommended package of public investments and complementary policy and pricing reforms aimed at kick-starting a transition to a green economy that invigorates sustainable economies, creates living wage jobs and address persistent poverty. This is also the goal of the GND: investing to combat climate change while improving the lives of the 99%. Momentum is building for a Greener and a more inclusive economy. 65 or a quarter of the world’s countries are now pursuing green economy related strategies and 48 of them are taking steps to develop national green economy plans. America needs to become one of these countries and the Green New Deal can lead the way.

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Barbados Works toward a Green Economy

Published May 18, 2017 | By editor

Barbados is on its way to becoming the greenest country in the Latin America and Caribbean region. On September 30, 2013 the Barbados Minister for Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Maxine Pamela Ometa McClean, made a statement at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly highlighting the small Caribbean nation’s quest for a green economy. She told the Assembly that adopting a policy of sustainable development will be a means of survival for Barbados. Barbados is vulnerable to both fluctuations in the price of its imported fossil fuels and at risk from the destruction of its marine and coastal ecosystems from climate change therefore the pursuit of a greener path to economic development is critical to the country.

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People’s Climate March 2017 Lake Merritt

Published April 22, 2017 | By editor

After more than 400,000 people took to the streets in New York City three years ago, the Peoples Climate March is returning on April 29 in Washington, DC. and sister marches across the country in cities such as Los Angeles, Oakland, Houston, New York, Cincinnati and around the world in cities ranging from São Paulo, Brazil, to Kilifi, Kenya. More than 800 organizations have endorsed this year’s March for Climate, Jobs, and Justice. Organizers, 350.org and partners, will come together with hundreds of thousands of people to reject Trump’s attack on communities and climate, and push forward with a vision of a clean energy economy that works for all.

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Organic Agriculture in Cuba

Published April 16, 2017 | By editor

Family run organic farm called Finca Paraiso.

The Cuban revolution in 1959 brought sweeping land reforms and social programs aimed at eradicating rural poverty. However, agricultural policies were deeply influenced by the global trend toward industrial-corporate agriculture known as the Green Revolution. The Green Revolution has negative effects; it produces massive unnatural mono-cultures crops that require vast amounts of land, large quantities of water, petrochemical fertilizer, pesticides and farming equipment. Plus all this equipment requires burning fossil fuels, contributing to pollution, and global warming. The high cost of industrial-corporate farming is beyond the means of small farmers.

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Statement in support of a strong climate agreement from members of the Global Commission on the Economy and Climate

Published November 28, 2015 | By editor

The New Climate Economy News Article November 23, 2015

The UN Climate Change Conference (COP21) in Paris is a vital chance to advance a new era of better growth. Countries at all levels of income now have the opportunity to achieve lasting economic growth which also reduces climate risk, and achieves wider economic and social benefits, including poverty reduction, reduced air pollution, environmental sustainability and better urban quality of life. Momentum is growing around the world towards a New Climate Economy built on low-carbon and climate-resilient development pathways.

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