A graduate's grumble

The age of responsibility

2011-01-28T12:46:00.000-08:00

When considering my next blog move, it made sense to both continue the eco theme and seize the opportunity to publish some of my old articles. I thought this meant I got to do what I enjoy best - copy and pasting, but unfortunately the article needed a heavy update. What follows is a feature I wrote for a group project in my final year of university, edited to reflect the current climate change advances that have occured since the original was written. It also features some thoroughly interesting quotes from some thoroughly interesting people. Cheers 'en!

The hypathetical tide of hooded criminals and teenage mums have parted to make way for the new youth archetype. It's time to say hello to the environmental activist

On the 4th of December 2010, over 2,000 concerned individuals roamed the streets of London as part of the Global Day of Action midway through the UN climate change summit in Cancún, Mexico. The march, which officially called for a zero carbon Britain, mirrored the 2009 efforts timed ahead of crucial UN talks in Copenhagen, a festival of 40,000 blue-clad protesters which became known as the UK’s biggest ever climate change demonstration. In both cases, the majority amongst these banner dwelling activists were young faces, twenty-somethings and their peers taking direct action for the destructive actions of themselves and their elders.

In the 1960’s students and young people alike were chaining themselves to trees, burning their bras and submitting themselves to continual police arrests in the name of human and civil rights. The following decades however unveiled a lull in the radical youth, an introduction of bras too nice to scorch and issues too resistant to change to worry about, eventually leading to the widespread notion that young people are self-absorbed and impassive. That is, until now.

The turn of the decade brings with it a colossal danger. The UN Climate Change summits in Copenhagen 2009 and Cancún 2010 both came to the same harrowing conclusion, that the world will not be witnessing any effective international climate deals in the near future. While the climate emergency is acknowledged on a global scale, UN negotiations continue to fall short of saving the planet. British politics in 2010 saw the arrival of the Tory-Lib Dem coalition, which promised to be the greenest yet. However since the combined forces came into power, the Con-Dem government have cut funds for the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by 30%, pressed ahead with new nuclear power and prepared to sell off 635,000 acres of English woodland and forest.

The effects of climate change are now being taught in schools and media advertisements are advocating eco-friendly cars. The UK Green Party has won its first ever seat in parliament, and has announced its incentive to reduce UK carbon emissions by 90% by 2030.Yet any activist will know that there is still a long way to go, with catastrophes such as the failure to agree to a fair and binding climate change treaty, and our own Prime Minister David Cameron refusing to attend the UN climate change talks.

The new government's green ethos rarely goes beyond their recycled gardening shoes

Activists in Cancún believe politicians are hiding from the big issue

Melting glaciers and starving polar bears could be but a minor detail in comparison to the droughts that will devastate the world’s poorer countries, ironically the countries that have contributed the least carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. Oxfam has reported that over 21,000 people died due to weather related disasters in 2010, more than twice the number of 2009. The situation is deteriorating, and climate change is arguably becoming the new major political issue of the day. A drastic plan is needed, and so the wail of the youthful activist rises once more.

Since finishing his University degree in the summer, 23-year-old Chris Walker has been volunteering for Campaign against Climate Change, one of the UK’s biggest climate change pressure groups. Having participated in similar campaigns for the past five years, Chris strongly believes in the role of youth culture in compelling politicians to make responsible decisions in relation to environmental legislation, stating that: “There is a growth in the awareness that they are going to live with the consequences for a much longer time. I think it’s essential, it shows a generation coming up who are voting, being politically active and who see the emergency they are facing.”

Viewed as a generation of energy and creativity, the injection of youthful spirit has given the image of campaigning a thoroughly modern dusting off. Expansive use of web 2.0 has seen a volume of online petitions, social networking campaigns and newly recruited activists reaching new levels of the public unconscious through inspired methods such as Climate Camp, flash mobs and Critical Mass. 21-year-old Maria Tyldesley was compelled to take action after watching Franny Armstrong’s 2009 documentary The Age Of Stupid, wherein a man living alone in the devastated world of 2055 (played by the late Pete Postlethwaite) watches archive footage from 2008 and questions why we didn’t stop climate change when we had the chance. Now the co-founder of Liverpool University’s Campaign against Climate Change group, Maria says that: “This innovation and imagination in the movement amongst young people presents a refreshing take on the issue and shows that people can get into politics and not be a dreaded hippy or a politician with a paunch and a comb over. I guess what I’m saying is that the image of ‘the environmentalist’ or the ‘politically involved’ has been sexed up and is appealing to and becoming more about everyday people.”

Dreaded hippies (although I think they look quite nice)

Modern activists

A common sentiment is that there is still a greater amount of young people who are hesitating to jump in the activism pool than those eagerly testing the water, especially students who are living away from home for the first time, with no parental restrictions or Mum telling you to switch off the bathroom light. Student Switch Off is an energy saving project for Halls of Residence, where 37 universities across the country compete against each other to reduce their energy usage from the year before. The competition is sponsored by the likes of Ben & Jerry’s, Odeon and The Independent, and through such sponsors the project aims to get even the most un-green of students involved. Between 2009 and 2010 the amount of students signed up to Student Switch Off had literally tripled, the campaign achieved an energy usage reduction of 6.9 per cent, saving over 2,100 tonnes of CO2.

The founder of the project, Dr Neil Jennings, recognises the evolution of youthful concern over the last few years, saying: “Things have changed in the media in the way that climate change is represented, as its gone from being uncertain to scientifically proven. Obviously I work with students in halls of residence, and every single one of them knows about it as a general concern.” The prospect of winning a years worth of Ben & Jerry’s and free tickets to student union nights out is undoubtedly a tempting one, but with such a seductive incentive, how can they be so sure these students will stick by their new green ethos? “We’ve done surveys asking why students are involved in the campaigns,” says Neil, “and it has certainly helped by having sponsors like Ben & Jerry’s to attract those who are aware of climate change but not directly involved”. Neil also states that in response to another survey question, 90% said that they would definitely or most probably continue to follow the saving energy act when in private accommodation.

Far yonder on the opposite end of the radical spectrum are those who are willing to sacrifice their pristine criminal record for the sake of getting their voices heard and action taken. 31-year-old Luke Evans has been involved in activism for more than a decade, making climate change his top priority after attending Climate Camp 2008 and soon after being asked to interview the worlds leading climatologist, James Hansen. Luke has been struck by a policeman twice at Climate Camp 2008, and at least twice in London at the G20 protests. “Every time I have encountered violence with police,” he says, “it has been because they have been ordered to end a demonstration or to take control of a situation, one that was, before they intervened, totally harmless. The climate camp movement is a peaceful movement. I have never seen so many people take blows without retaliating.”

Extreme policing at a 2009 Climate Camp

A taste of what's to come: the sun sets behind a burnt tree in Brazil, after 118 days without rain

Chris Walker of Campaign Against Climate Change has similarly played knock-and-run on the door of the law, having organised illegal actions such as Climate Camp. “I think it’s a really important thing to do. It’s a protection of the status quo and it says that people will not keep quiet about this”. 21-year-old student Anne Rogers was threatened with arrest at the coal-fired power station protests at Ratcliffe-On-Soar, and despite only just becoming involved in the activist circuit, the incident has inspired her to continue protesting. “It is ridiculous to be told by big men in riot gear to stop making a fuss about the climate catastrophe, just to make the lives of the authorities easier. This isn’t a belief or a conspiracy theory, it’s a fact, and it’s our future.”

Labelled as a generation of hooded thugs and drunken students who are unable to see past their own romance woes and PS2’s, young people are not only representing a need for political action against climate change, but also representing themselves. After years of environmental mishaps caused by our greedy forefathers, younger generations are ready to stand up and face the burden, sacrificing their own time, money and reputation to amend what those before us caused. The role of the young activist has evolved from a radical minority to a social norm, and they will not stop at anything until politicians make a rapid, fair and sustainable agreement.

Now that is something to tell the grandchildren about.

Sources:
http://www.studentswitchoff.co.uk/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2010/nov/29/cameron-cancun-climate-change-summit
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/gallery/2010/nov/29/cancun-climate-change-talks-copenhagen#/?picture=369167393&index=13
http://www.greenpatriotposters.org/

The world is your oyster, but should you eat one?

2011-01-12T15:27:00.000-08:00

In this modern age it is a common occurence for people to recoil at the mention of vegetarianism, so wild is the stand off between resentful meat lovers and those self-righteous preachers advocating less flesh and more tofu, raving about quorn as they stroke their bellies full of leaves.

Yet it has been estimated that if our meat, fish and dairy consumption habits are not re-evaluated sharpish, by 2050 the world's food production would literally need to be doubled in order to feed the human race. The answer to this most sour of pickles is quite literally a new type of agriculture, one that encourages organic, locally grown produce on an international scale, and - oh dear lord - less meat.

A dear friend once described his reasons for being vegetarian, albeit with a mild air of discomfort, using the example that if we took all the land that we use for farming animals and instead grew vegetables on it, we could feed the world. Although a eco-cliche that goes hand in hand with embracing a tree, these are the words of truth. Dennis van Waerebeke's graphic animation 'How to feed the world?' claims that by choosing to buy one can of pulses or lentils instead of one steak, you are consuming one sixth of the farming land and one twelfth of water. What am I going to do with lentils, you may ask. Make a curry man! Make a curry.

How to feed the world ? from Denis van Waerebeke on Vimeo.

Regardless of whereabouts you are perched on the scepticism branch, the dangers of over population, climate change and eradiction of natural resources are undeniable. The destructive nature of the human race seems to have finally reached its peak of no return, the gluttonous ways of the western world coming back to haunt us. Issues as complex as these are impossible to remedy with just one solution, but it would seem that a step in the right direction lies in changing our eating habits.

According to the National Geographic, for every ten tuna, shark and other large predatory fish in our oceans fifty years ago, only one is left. Lord Stern of Brentford, a senior authority on climate change, claims that eating meat could eventually become as socially unacceptable as drink driving due to its impact on global warming, and a vegan in a 4x4 is a bigger friend to the environment than a carnivore in a hybrid car. Factory farming is a colossal culprit within this equation, with author Jonathan Safran Foer stating in his book Eating Animals that 99% of all land reared for consumption or dairy in the United States are factory farmed. But still we continue to buy those brilliantly cheap ready made meals, and chow down on the occasional KFC bucket after one too many lager shandys.

It has been estimated that of all the human beings that have ever lived, 6% are alive now. If we were all to stand shoulder to shoulder, we could fit around the worlds circumfrence 172 times. It seems impossible that in its current state our relatively wee planet could generate enough food to feed such a colossal number of mouths - and that is just the problem, it can't.

Mother nature and her sturdy scale

Out of the 6.8 billion humans currently treading the earth, 850 million suffer from severe undernourishment. As our graphics loving friend Dennis van Waerebeke kindly points out, that equates to one in every seven humans. Who gets fed and who doesn't basically depends on where they are born, and if they were lucky enough to be born in a country that can safeguard them with the most basic human rights. A population growth spurt in developing countries can only lead to further spread of poverty and hunger, in direct opposition to the UN millennium development goals, numero uno being to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger - a goal failing so miserably, it's almost like Nick Clegg has been put in charge of it.

Of the nine countries that are expected to account for 50% of the world's estimated population growth between now and 2050, only two are considered developed and wealthy countries (mighty China and the US). The UN World Population Prospects report states that almost all population growth will occur in the lesser developed regions, expanding from 5.3 billion to 7.8 billion. 15% of the world's population reside in Africa, and yet nine out of 10 of the world's poorest countries are African. So while the developed world continues to blissfully consume cheap factory farmed goods, farmers in the world's poorer countries struggle to make a living and must find a way to share out their already rationed resources amongst an increasing population. This is highly reflective of what George Orwell writes in his widely acclaimed Animal Farm, "All animals are equal, but some are more equal than others". The idealistic view that all men are created with equality doesn't seem to apply in a world where all half of us do is consume with greed, and the other half pay for it.

Industrialised farming technology reduces our need to buy produce from developing countries, leaving these local farmers unable to afford imports they are dependant on - prices that continue to sky rocket throughout the global food market. A double barrelled kick in the face, these methods of farming are not only damaging to the livelyhood of developing countries but sincerely detrimental to the environment, as according to the UN the global livestock industry produces nearly a fifth of global carbon emissions. And which countries will begin feeling the effects of climate change before any others? Thats right, the ones who did the least to cause it.

Fuck you Jessica Simpson!

Fuck you lentils!

It may seem like an eccentric idea, but if we were all to amend what we put on our plates, and consume less meat, fish and dairy, the world's edible resources may just stretch that tiny bit further, enough to feed everyone and not just those who happen to live in the wealthier continents. Despite where you reside on the resources debate, it couldn't do any harm to ration ourselves. We're on the cusp of a new age of responsibility, where we should pay the appropriate price for the food we consume. We all know that the pork used in Tesco's £1 Bangers and Mash ready meal was probably not an organic, happier version of Babe the pig. According to Jonathan Safran Foer (hes my hero, and I'm going to keep quoting him) the average American consumes 28 birds annually. Surely instead of one of these birds, you could instead eat an apple? You could even make an apple pie.

Without getting into what constitutes free-range and organic (because that is an entirely different kettle of cow) the population is expanding and our resources are faltering. It would be reckless to assume that the world can continue to consume at the rate we do and that everything will somehow work out for the better. Instead of biding our time relying on scientists to come up with a miraculous solution, there are things we mere mortals can do ourselves.

A collective society giving up meat all together is simply not going to happen, and it would be a sad world without cheese. But we can pay a higher and more appropriate price for local produce, make an effort to buy Fairtrade and research alternative farming methods such as permaculture. There are meat and fish products sitting our supermarket shelves that aren't overly detrimental, and can actually be restorative to the environment, such as this little fellow...

So go ahead, have an oyster. Just don't wash it down with too much cow.

Sources:
http://vimeo.com/8812686
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2009/oct/26/palm-oil-initiative-carbon-emissions
http://www.bbc.co.uk/bloom/actions/eatinglessbeef.shtml
http://www.eatinganimals.com/
http://fc04.deviantart.net/fs43/f/2009/122/8/0/Sad_cow_by_96hakan.jpg

Celebrating ten years of hardcore ladies

2010-11-24T09:14:00.000-08:00

Last weekend, the pub in which I work hosted Ladyfest 2010, a DIY women's festival with a specific focus on feminist ethos. The original concept was concieved in Olympia, Washington and has since expanded to global heights, from New Zealand to Madrid. The festival promotes and celebrates womens creativity, and all raised funds went to a London-based charity that provides housing support for vulnerable women. Once I had stationed myself comfortably behind the bar, a gin and tonic assembling machine, two questions entered my head: 1) Why have I never heard of this festival before? and 2) Where are all the leery beer battered men?

The weekends featured entertainment included live music, caberet, ukulele and beat boxing workshops and comedy, the headlining act for Saturday night being Shazia Mirza, well known for her stand-up comedy career and documentary 'F*** Off, I'm a Hairy Woman', a piece of television gold that gave hope to bewhiskered women throughout the country. Featured discussion topics included same sex marriages, racial issues and overly optomisitic straight men, hell-bent that all the lesbian population requires in order to amend their ways is a night with a 'real' man.

I have never previously dwelled on whether or not I am a feminist. Do I agree with equal rights for women, admire the plight of the suffragettes and think The Sun tabloid is a sexist, exploitative bundle of tripe? Of course I do. I always assumed that being a feminist in the 21st century was innate, yet it would seem that there are a sizable amount of females who refuse to admit that they are a feminist, because they 'don't like the word'. Perhaps they would like to borrow my time machine, go back to the 1950's and chain themselves to the kitchen sink.

Imagine the reaction of the women of yesteryear as they discovered that they were fighting this battle of rights and equality for a generation too embarrased of being seen as a strong woman, lest they are identified as butch and unattractive. If the fact that you don't need protecting makes you unappealing to someone you are trying to woo, then they probably aren't worth the bother. The sad truth is that a majority of us are a world away from the radical Women's Movement, the new generation being more likely to empty their purses in Ann Summers than burn their Topshop bras in a symbolic rage.

Despite this supposedly modern age, I find myself daily presented with situations that I would not be in if I were a man. Beastly drunken men on the other end of the bar, convinced that the patch of drool on their Arsenal shirts makes them endearing, and the ever dreaded nightbus journey home. Walking through Peckham on your lonesome at 3am is no-ones idea of a good time, but when you're a female the sense of anxiety tends to press down on you like a bad smell.

I constantly find myself growing angry that I have to feel intimidated like this, that simply because I happened to have been born without a bodily instrument that can be used as a weapon, I have to scutter all the way home like a frightened rabbit. I have had kindly housemates insist that if I'm ever especially worried, they'll come and meet me at any hour, and I have no doubt that they would do so willingly. Yet I am determined to power through on my own, because there is only one thing worse than a poor graduate, and that is a poor graduate that is too yellow-bellied to walk down the street without a man to hold their hand.

This is the kind of thing that Ladyfest participants are advocating - women who refuse to submit to the stereotypes of their gender. What struck me most about the event was how relaxed the atmosphere was purely because of the almost all-female audience. The drinks and dancing existed purely for the sake of a good time, with no overtly sexual connotations or perverts lurking in the corners - although one man did get escorted out for touching himself.

The 'feminist' label is often delivered with a mixed sald of negative implications, but where would we be today without those who were brave enough to stand up for their rights. Attending an incredible festival full of envisioned, embittered intellectuals, or baking cookies? This blog certainly wouldn't exist, as most likely I wouldn't a graduate, but just a woman.

A weathered female in a hasty city

2010-11-15T18:34:00.000-08:00

As a journalism graduate living in the bitter capital, I've been struggling to find an outlet for my journalistic urges and incessant rage. And since no-one will hire me, I've decided to start a blog.

I'm hoping this wee piece of internet blather will document my search for the job of my dreams - or at least one that is ever so slightly related to my degree. A topical subject considering recent revelations of rising university fees, student protests (you sprightly young'uns make me feel so old...) and Cameron being his usual arsey self.

I currently work in a bar in North London, and live in South London. This daily commute paired with serving beer to cretins has created an anger within my soul, completely unjustified of course - what reason do I have to resent spending £9375 on education fees, only to spend my golden years covered in ale and at the mercy of drunks. I may not write for the Guardian, but I do pour a bloody good pint.

I also volunteer for an international charity, my general career aim being to enter the non-profit sector vis-a-vis communcations and PR work. While this is not exactly journalism, it still entails the general writing side, enticing donors and encouraging their support through a hard hitting story. Sadly it would seem that many graduates have had the same idea, consequently resulting in the majority of us working for free until gaining enough experience to secure a job that pays for more than our travel and sandwiches. Despite this, I find it incredibly heartening that so many young people are willing to sacrifice a weighty salary for a job within the third sector, reaffirming that a career does not have to be based purely on money, but a sense of fufilment and the possibility to make a difference. And they say that all we young people care about is Playstation and vodka!

I hope this blog will discuss a variety of issues, with a few pieces of my previous journalism thrown in for good measure. As a female who has a mind under her hat, the concept of feminism and archaic attitudes towards women features high on my list of pressing matters, as well as the constant struggle of being green, social and political activism, international development, relationships (why can't anyone be alone anymore? I'm alone in my room right now and I'm having a whale of a time) and of course, the never ending struggle of the eager university graduate.

And so it begins. Thankyou for reading! Please come again!