had a fascinating conversation about my own racial/ethnic identity with a friend from another country. So interesting to see identities through other perspectives.
* the focus leans toward an analysis of how whites deploy colorblind racism.
The Faces of Environmentalism
Does environmentalism have queer faces? I mean visible queer faces? When people think about the environmental movement or even about environmental justice, are queer folk part of that equation?
I’m hungry for images… hungrier for meaning.
If you see something out there in the world, queer environmentalism, queer environmentalists… let’s see them.
Dear Republicans: EU green energy sector crosses the one million jobs mark
“Employment in the EU’s renewable energy sector has broken through the one million mark for the first time, after the number of people working in the industry increased 25 per cent in 2010.
The latest figures from the European Commission reveal over 1.14 million people were working in green energy in 2010, an increase of a quarter on 2009. Meanwhile, revenue for the sector soared by 15 per cent year-on-year to €127bn.
With separate reports suggesting the sector continued to grow during 2011, the industry is likely to be considerably larger by now.
According to the report, the solid biomass power sector was the largest employer, accounting for 273,000 jobs, followed by solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power, which supported 268,110 and 253,145 jobs respectively.
The UK had the ninth biggest renewable energy sector in terms of employment in 2010, boasting 31,700 jobs. Wind accounted for 9,200 of these, followed by biogas at 6,000, biofuels at 5,300, solar PV at 5,000, and biomass with 2,000 employees.
However, the figures are likely to be already out of date with trade associations reporting that over 10,000 people now work in the wind energy industry, while the surge in demand for solar panels last year is thought to have supported between 20,000 and 30,000 jobs. In addition, further employment growth is predicted across the renewables sector over the next five years after a host of wind turbine firms recently announced plans to locate new factories in the UK.
Germany topped the employment league table with 361,360 jobs, based on strong growth in the PV sector. France came in second place with 174,735 jobs, with Italy, Spain and Sweden making up the top five.
The Germans also ruled the roost in terms of turnover, recording €36bn of revenue across the renewable energy sector in 2010.”
Read the rest at Business Green
I love this…
though recently i read a chapter in Cultivating Food Justice: Race, Class, and Sustainability about the production of hunger among farmworkers (it was a great critique… but anyway). On pg. 126, the author states: “the domestic community’s food security movement has been critiqued for its focus on local self-empowerment and a do-it-yourself voluntarist approach, which eschews structural critiques”.
I of course can’t help but wonder if part of the do-it-yourself approach is an implied critique of a severely broken system. I don’t know.
This poster seems to imply a critique of the system, but then suggests that changing ourselves is what we really need (does that mean forgetting systemic violence? addressing it in new ways because we’ve changed? idk) On the other hand, the term urban homestead alone makes me think white upper-middle class… what to think…
(Source: mugginglace, via pambana)
Breeze Harper, Michelle Williams, and Favianna Rodriguez
are all coming to the CAER Environmental Justice Conference at the University of Oregon, Eugene OR April 7th.
The theme is Response / Ability after Anzaldua’s framing of responsibility as the ability to respond.
Free food all day, no admission price, and if y’all wanna come from far aways I can find you free housing (probably in my house!).
<3
(Source: xicanagrrrl)
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I’m not surprised that no one wants to pay higher energy prices to mitigate climate change, but in a ranking exercise, gay marriage is more important to us than climate change?
J. Whitehead responding to a study about American political attitudes and actions.
I Want to Read Ghetto Plainsman
Has anyone read this book? I’m looking for a copy asap. This man’s experiences and work through the Great Plains Restoration Council sound fascinating!!
An Interview on Halberstam's Latest Work (Trikster)
Above is a link to an interview with Dr. Halberstam on her latest work, The Queer Art of Failure (Duke U Press, 2011). Just started it this morning…
