Description of the Problem

In the pretext of progress and achieving a higher standard of living, recent generations of First World Countries have burnt copious fossil fuels in their obsession with Economic Materialism: 

A.         On average, each of over 300,000,000 Americans is responsible for about 22 tons of carbon dioxide emissions p.a., according to statistics compiled by the United Nations. 

B.         According to the World Wildlife Fund, an average:

 *           U.S. citizen requires 10 hectares of the planet to support their Lifestyle Behaviour.

 *           European needs over five hectares.

 *           each person in Africa draws on about one hectare of the earth’s resources.

C.        The U.S.A. accounts for –

             *           6% of the global population; and

             *           26% of the global Carbon Footprint. 

             Europe and countries like Australia in the Asia Pacific also have very large Carbon Footprints.

Advertising gurus, paid by the multi-nationals, have done a first-rate job in indoctrinating us that greed is good.  A fixation for new, big, fast, shiny, and powerful is wreaking a high price on our planet.  We’ve all been believing that pretentious, showy behaviour by accumulating toys we don’t have time to play with has been a sign of success and power, when it defies the teachings of the six major religions which encourage moderation and caring for our fellow man.

Climate Change is detrimental to QOL and future global productivity.  After more than 100 years of laissez faire economies amidst a preoccupation of the rights of the individual, many First World Countries have achieved a ‘high standard of living’, but with Escalating Fallout.  A welter of eminent scientists have presented compelling and objective empirical evidence that unless humans implement a Lifestyle Behaviour which has a low Carbon Footprint, future generations will pay a high price for recent human indulgences. 

The InterGovernmental Panel on Climate Change (“IPCC”) jointly shared the 2007 Nobel Peace prize with Al Gore for their efforts to –

(i)         gather and disseminate knowledge about Climate Change; and

(ii)        lay the foundations for the measures needed to counteract such adverse Climate Change.

Last May the IPCC, at meeting in Bangkok that drew scientists, environmentalists and government officials from over 120 countries, unanimously agreed that a dramatic shift in lifestyles, rather than dependence on green-friendly technology, is required to reduce Climate Change.

”There was no opposition; it was approved without question,” added Catherine Pearce of the environmental lobby Friends of the Earth International after the close of the week-long meeting ending Friday, with the release of the ‘Climate Change 2007: Mitigation of Climate Change’ report.

The over 1,000 page document, which was the subject of heated debate, was the third such document circulated this year to address the dire consequences the world faces due to GHG Emissions and the global response required.

The summary of 1,000 report, unanimously approved by the ninth session of the IPCC Working Group III, noted:

¨                       ‘’Changes in lifestyles and consumption patterns that emphasise resource conservation can contribute to developing a low-carbon economy that is both equitable and sustainable”.

¨                       ”Changes in occupant behaviour, cultural patterns and consumer choice and use of technologies can result in considerable reduction in carbon dioxide emissions related to energy use in buildings”.

Patently, medium term survival of our planet is not about 3rd World Countries, such as China, India and Indonesia, catching up to 1st World Countries.  Conversely, medium term survival is contingent upon 1st World Countries altering their Lifestyle Behaviour to reduce their Carbon Footprint down to that of 3rd World Countries.

The only way that this will happen is if the citizens in 1st World Countries provide an explicit and comprehensive mandate to their governments to instigate measures, both sociable and stringent, to alter Lifestyle Behaviour to materially reduce present Large Carbon Footprints in the USA and many parts of Europe and the Asia Pacific.

A penchant for Economic Materialism under an open market, free enterprise laissez faire economy with a perpetuation of the rights of the individual, has resulted in Seven Problems, where Climate Change may be the most serious.

Religion is one of the most dominant influences over the 6.65 billion inhabitants of Earth.  Yet no where in the teachings of Christianity, the Muslim Cooran in Islam, Judaism, Hinduism or Buddhism are we encouraged towards Economic Materialism.  In fact, most of these religions, in particular, Buddhism profess the opposite, namely to be content with not having a lot and accepting .

Just as religious fanatics, when it has suited them, have seized upon specific sections of the Old Testament and the Cooran to encourage violence, Governments need to research with theologians in order to cite religious teachings which –

(i)         discourage extravagance; and

(ii)        love our fellow man, most notably, those in future generations by not gouging limited energy resources.

Governments need also to overtly explain to their constituents why they are all now being encouraged to abate former indulgent habits which most of us have known as the norm.  A drastic about face at the outset of the 21st century is because Free Enterprise has been allowed a free reign because it has benefited from encouraging Economic Material.  However, the magnitude of Seven Problems, most notably Climate Change, means that Governments, which are elected by the people for the people, need to now implement severe controls over Free Enterprise and their constituents for the medium term survival of the planet.

 

In order for First World Countries to maximise their chance of encouraging Second and Third World Countries to not similarly gorge limited remaining natural resources thereby escalating Climate Change, First World Countries must implement a Local Healthy Lifestyle Behaviour which leaves a lower Carbon Footprint requiring Reduced Electricity Output with a low need for Road And Air Transport.

The old, smaller, slower, well-worn has usually developed character and is generally cheaper than shelling-out for one with more bells and whistles.  If it ain’t broke, and doesn’t blow your Carbon Footprint, why replace it?

 

Department of Climate Change could award a Green Australia Team Emblem to 20,000 circa Australian Sporting Teams and Organisations upon their Adult Participants pledging to live by Ten Green Commandments to produce a Smaller Carbon Footprint

 

1.         Target Market - sport in Australia is characterised by players who
do not want to let the team down

Australians are renowned the world over as being passionate about sport, its tradition and everything associated with it.  To millions of Australia’s 21 million inhabitants, sport is revered in the same manner as religion is in some other countries.

The primary empirical resource to measure participation in sporting activities, both organised and non organised, across Australia is the annual “Exercise, Recreation and Sport Survey (ERASS)” report prepared by ACNielsen.  Annexure A is the 2006 ERASS which lists within in Exercise Recreation and Sport Survey questionnaire 164 different sporting activities which Australians participate in. 

2006 ERASS set out information under the following parameters for Australians aged 15 years and over: 

·         frequency of participation in organised and non-organised physical activity for exercise, recreation and sport;

·         duration of participation in organised and non-organised physical activity for exercise, recreation and sport;

·         type of participation in physical activity for exercise, recreation and sport; and

·         trends in participation over time.

Participation means active ‘playing’ participation, and does not include coaching or refereeing

Annexure B [3 pgs] is a summary of  ERASS 2006.

Below is an extract from Section 3.2 “Organised participation – Overview”:

“During the 12 months prior to interview in 2006, an estimated 4.2 million persons aged 15 years and over participated at least once per week in a physical activity for exercise, recreation and sport that was organised by a club, association, fitness centre or other type of organisation. This represented a participation rate of 25.3% (Table 8) of Australians aged 15 years or older. It also represented 38.3% of the 10.9 million persons who participated at least once per week in a physical activity for exercise, recreation and sport.”

Patently 25.3% od all Australians aged 15 years and older play sport at least once a week which is organised by a club, association, fitness centre or other type of organisation.

Organisation of the activity

 

An estimated 2.3 million persons (13.7% of all persons aged 15 years or older) participated in activities that were organised by a ‘fitness, leisure or indoor sports centre’ (Table 24).

 

An estimated 4.5 million persons (27% of all persons aged 15 years or older) participated in activities that were organised by a sport or recreation club or association (Figure 10 and Table 24).

 

The organised activity with the highest participation rate was aerobics/fitness activities (8.0% of all persons aged 15 years or older).  An estimated 1.3 million persons aged 15 years and over participated in this activity in an organised environment at least once in the 12 months prior to interview.

 

Other sports and physical activities that had high numbers of participants involved in an organised environment were golf (3.8%), netball (3.1%), outdoor football (2.7%), tennis (2.7%), outdoor cricket (2.4%) and basketball (2.3%) (Box 2 and Table 23).

 

The physical activities participated in at least once in the previous 12 months for exercise, recreation and sport that comprise the ‘top ten’ activities by number of participants have remained unchanged from 2001 to 2006 (Box 1). Aerobics/fitness has enjoyed the largest increase since 2001 (61.2% increase). Other activities in the ‘top ten’ to experience significant increases since 2001 include walking (37.9% increase), football (outdoor) (26.5% increase),

cycling (17.0% increase) and running (12.9% increase).

 

Participants in organised physical activities for exercise, recreation and sport engaged in an average (mean) of 1.5 different organised activities in the 12 months prior to interview (Table 21). This was highest among 15 to 24 year olds who engaged in an average of 1.9 different organised activities.

Australian Adults in thousands of Sporting Clubs (ie Northern Districts C.C., South Sydney District Rugby League Club, Indooroopilly Golf Club, Grampians Horse Riding Club) play these 100 circa Sports. 

In addition, there are thousands more local Sporting Groups which don’t have any formal structure, whose participants marshal together for bicycle rides, bushwalking etc on a regular basis.  These Sporting Groups, whilst not having a formal identity, still possess the same traits of a Sporting Club.

Many Australian Adult Participants–

(a)       are passionate about their particular sporting activity;

(b)       value their personal integrity/credability amongst their fellow team mates (what their sporting mates think about them matters to most of Adult Participants); and

(c)        do not want to let their team down.

The following are powerful inate human qualities:

(i)         psyche of Australians who value their particular sport(s) and the fellowship of sharing it with other like-minded Australians; and

(ii)        the energy/power of creating for people of different persuasions a
Common Purpose.

Of the current Australian population of 21 million, over 4 million participate in a Sport Club or Sporting Group, either as an adult player or an adult administrator, hereinafter an Adult Participant, on a regular basis and can relate to their Sporting Team of fellow Adult Participants.  “A regular basis” includes Adult Participants which may play say cricket in the Summer only or football in the Winter only.

There are over 15,000 Australian Teams whose Adult Participants –

(i)         have a Carbon Footprint smaller than the average Australian adult because of their penchant for active sport, many played in the great outdoors; and

(ii)        are more likely to be -
*           keen to reduce their Carbon Footprint because outdoor sport is a high priority, and
*           keen to attest on the public domain to that intent.

 

Appealing to the Sporting Conscience of the Adult Participants of >15,000 Australian Teams to overtly pledge on the public domain to live by Ten Green Commandments to produce a Small Carbon Footprint would cost-effectively –

(A)       expeditiously educate Australians how to actually reduce their Carbon Footprint; and

(B)       kick-start a Green Australia Team Theme to materially reduce Australian citizens (Adult Participants and adolescence) Carbon Footprint by establishing a Common Purpose to –

*           dismiss our penchant for bigger, faster and thirstier; and

*           replace it with a want for smaller, lighter, cheaper and safer.

 

Australians with a Large Carbon Footprint such as owners of motor racing cars, motor bikes, drag racing, large motor boats are not included in the above forecast >15,000 aggregate Australian Sporting Teams.

 

Adult Participants in Australian Sporting Teams generally –

(a)                   have a smaller Carbon Footprint than the average Australian adult who may consider Formula One ‘et al’ to constitute sport etc and driving a heavy motor vehicle for lots of miles to be entertainment;

(b)                   don’t upgrade their motor car as frequently, because they are not Petrol Heads;

(c)                    use public transport, a Hills Hoist, etc more often;

(d)                   do not use a dishwasher, electric clothes dryer etc as much;

(e)                   recycle waste and conserve water; and

(f)                      welcome government assistance to -
*        recognise their Green bent; and
*        encourage other Australians to similarly reduce their Carbon Footprint.

 

This Memorandum recommends that Department of Climate Change (“DCC”) utilise the cost-effective magic of the Internet, coupled with the intrinsic passion generated amongst many Australian Sporting Teams to award those Australian Sporting Teams whose Adult Participants Pledge on the public domain to -

(i)         alter their Lifestyle Behaviour if they have a Large Carbon Footprint;
(ii)        strive to maintain a Small Carbon Footprint; and

(iii)       live by Ten Green Commandments,

with a DCC Green Australia Team Accreditation, whereupon –

 

A.        the following would appear on a Register Of Green Australia Teams on DCC’s website which displays -

(i)                      Name of each Australian Sporting Team which has been awarded Green Australia Team Accreditation;

(ii)                    Level of Green Australia Team Accreditation awarded to each Australian Sporting Team by DCC either -
*        Gold Green Australia Team Accreditation; or
*        Silver Green Australia Team Accreditation; or
*        Bronze Green Australia Team Accreditation; and

(iii)                  Name of each Interested Adult Participant in the particular local Sporting Team who completed an e-Research Eco-Personal Profile to quantify their Carbon Footprint and the Green Australia Participant Accreditation each achieved ie Gold, Silver or Bronze; and

 

B.        those Australian Sporting Teams may -

 

(i)         display (on their own Sporting Team website) a link to the specific page on the DCC Register of Green Australia Teams webpage;

(ii)        wear a Green Australia Team Emblem on their Sporting Team clothing; and

(iii)       include the Green Australia Team Emblem on paper based Sporting Team literature.

 

Procedure for an Australian Sporting Team using e-Research Questionnaire Techniques on DCC’s website to apply for and receive a Green Australia Team Accreditation enabling them to display a Green Australia Team Emblem

 

In approx 10 mins on the Internet, a Primary Adult Organiser in each Sporting Team (which has at least a dozen active Adult Participants) with the concurrence of at least three other Adult Participants, completes an “Application For A Green Australia Team Accreditation” on DCC website which provides:

(i)                      Type of Sporting Team (ie. cricket, football, netball etc);

(ii)                    Name of Sporting Team (Northern Suburbs Netball Club);

(iii)                  Tenure of Sporting Team (ie. formed in 2002 - 5 years old);

(iv)                  Frequency of sporting activities (ie bushwalk on 1st and 3rd Sunday of each month with scope to postpone a week if inclement weather or cricket on one day of each weekend from October to March inclusive, ocean swimming about 4 events each Summer);

(v)                    Number of Adult Participants (must contain at least 12) to be eligible to apply; and

(vi)                  First and Surname of at least a dozen Adult Participants.

 

In approx 20 mins on the Internet, each Adult Participant [who has been nominated in (vi) above by a Primary Adult Organiser for a particular Sporting Team] then voluntarily submits to the CDD website, by answering Multiple Choice Questionnaire, their Eco-Personal Profile which Pledges to -
*           reduce their Carbon Footprint; and
*           live by Ten Green Commandments. 

 

Questions in the Multiple Choice Questionnaire would not be simple no-brainers, but rather effectively measure each Adult Participant’s existing Carbon Footprint and if it is a large Carbon Footprint, establish that the Adult Participant is, in fact, intent on reducing their Carbon Footprint by altering their Lifestyle Behaviour to burn materially fewer GHGs.

Software in the Eco-Personal Profile measures the Carbon Footprint of each Active Participant out of 100.

 

If at least 12 active Interested Participants submit on the DCC website their Eco-Personal Profile where the average Carbon footprint is –

 

>=90 from a possible 100, the –

(a)       DCC software awards the Sporting Club or Sporting Group a Gold Green Australia Team Accreditation; and

(b)       the particular Sporting and Sporting Club or Sporting Group may display a Gold Green Team Emblem.

(The green emblem/motif/crest has a gold tinge.)

 

>=80 from a possible 100, the –

(a)       DCC software awards the Sporting Club or Sporting Group a Silver Green Australia Team Accreditation; and

(b)       the particular Sporting Club or Sporting Group may display a Silver Green Australia Team Emblem.

(The green emblem/motif/crest has a Silver tinge.)

 

>=70 from a possible 100, the –

(a)       DCC software awards the Sporting Club or Sporting Group a Bronze Green Australia Team Accreditation; and

(b)       the particular Sporting and Sporting Club/Group may display a Bronze Green Australia Team Emblem.

(The green emblem/motif/crest has a bronze tinge)

 

Department of Climate Change to agree and display on DCC website Ten Green Commandments which are Climate Change Lifestyle Behaviour Protocols not limited to:

 

Trees and other flora perform a vital role on Earth by inhaling Carbon Dioxide and releasing Oxygen which –

(i)         Humans, and other mammals, need in order to breathe; and

(ii)        the Planet needs in order not to overheat.

 

A welter of esteemed Scientists have presented compelling empirical evidence that Green House Gases, which ostensibly come from burning Fossil Fuels, are materially heating the Earth due to, inter alia, Australian citizens over reliance on Fossil Fuels.

 

Up to 1/3 of Australia’s CO2 emissions is from domestic power, and 1/3 of a typical domestic power bill is for hot water. Buy energy-efficient air-conditioners, furnaces, and refrigerators.  Alter automatic sewerage systems that incessantly flush water.

A Carbon Footprint is a measure of the impact human activities have on the environment in terms of the amount of greenhouse gases produced, measured in units of carbon dioxide.