On Friday 13 Dec,  after the CA talk, the expert Videoby Lars Zimmermann (Mifactori) was Circular Economy: how it works and can help solve the ecological catastrophe problem.

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 'We share the vision of a circular economy. An idea for a truly sustainable future that works without waste, in symbiosis with our environment and resources. A future where every product is designed for multiple cycles of use, and different material or manufacturing cycles are carefully aligned, so that the output of one process always feeds the input of another.'

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Question for discussion: How to overcome barriers and implement a circular economy.

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Discussion outcomes:

 

1

 

Freeing spaces (public spaces) and allocating money to create circular economy test communities all around Germany.

 

Law to make all producers of goods responsible to publish open source documentation and provide tools/replacements pieces for their goods.

 

Allocating billions of public money into research of how to build a circular economy/design circular products.

 

2.

 

Taxes on products (replacing VAT) which allow incorporate/internalize the costs to recycle/reuse products besides other impacts on environment.

 

Standards for components to make them easy to reuse/replace/fix

 

Public and private organizations’ procurement processes should prioritize products allowing for circular economy through specific requirements in the call (some sort of subsidy for this).

 

3.

It is hard to imagine a circular economy/production in a monetary system as it is right now. It does not value equilibrium. So it seams those need to be smaller patches of society, which detach from the current ’rat race’ and then connect in terms of exchange of products. This can be a model that actually works and thus shows that a circular industry is feasible. These need to be enough people connected though to scale things up to the necessary level.

 

4.

Put realistic prices on natural resources (material, emissions, waste)

 

Subsidize products that will be easy to reuse ( parts or material)

 

Set up a system where you can sell back broken things and get back money depending on how easy it is to recycle

 

5.

Inform all parts of society on an educational level so that they better understand as most them don’t know about the possibilities of alternative economy.

 

Change the capitalist system of growth and consumption all the time and producing new products only for throwing away. Stop one single use products.

 

Recycle, reuse, reduce, repair, fix it, open source.

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The expert talk - PLACING HUMANS AND BIODIVERSITY IN THE EQUATION - starts with a short video from Stefan Rahmstorf PhD on the climate emergency. Just after, Joe Mac will provide factual elements about our society that will enable the group to discuss what happens when we place human well-being and biodiversity as a priority at a Citizens Assembly on climate change. The group proposed recomendations to the following question: How Can Govt Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions To Net Zero And Halt Biodiversity Loss By 2025, in a way that prioritises everybody’s well being and regenerate ecosystems?

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Discussion outcomes:

 

1. Heavy progressive tax on the rich. Impose very low limits to inheritance. Universal income, so people are not afraid, fear is the enemy of spiritual evolution.

 

2. Subsidise more healthier products, sustainable technology, and public transport systems at the same time tax the harmful products and technologies. Invest in education for all parts of society and promote in commercials a healthy lifestyle. Support products, which have universal/repair easy design.

 

3. Society must change. System change: we should change the way we treat each other. Stop consuming all the time. Consume less and live more. Use more public transport of bike. Reduce waste and stop using plastic. A sustainable living is a easy way of living.

 

4. Create local small communities to discuss topics that people find Important. People should inform each other. Inform the population through the media about state of the arte discussions and topics such as technologies/better sustainable ways of living. Give recommendations how to act.

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Ulrich Sommer provided expert talk on: 'Professional Climate Change Deniers, Their Goals and Their Arguments'. The group explored the question: How to overcome their discourse and spread science based facts.

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1. Don’t treat climate denying as a reliable option – don’t give them too much space in the media. Try to make climate deniers feel the impacts of climate change by themselves – exhibitions with different rooms, in which impacts will be shown (similar to “Klimahaus” in Bremerkaven, Germany).

 

2. Hold those most at fault accountable – possibly through education – but not placing all pressure on average people.

 

3. Expropriate key industries and large corporations and put them under deliberative-democratic control: no more anti climate change lobbyism will be necessary (there will be no more corporate interests to lobby for)

 

4. Government must give a stage to Scientifics to explain the current situation and solutions. Media must declare the climate emergency and inform citizens in detail of the current situation with information provided by Scientifics,  and focus on their consensus. They should promote critical thinking.

 

5. Clearly expose climate change deniers ‘experts’ links to the fossil fuel industry. Massive increase coverage of climate change topics in the media. Offer free classes on climate change. Make it clear that we have a better world to offer than the climate change deniers. Exclude deniers the same way fascists  are excluded.

 

6. Academics should take up more responsibility by actively joying public debate. Their opinions should be based on concrete examples.

 

7. Go with the climate deniers to a bleached coral reef, show them lovely beaches full of plastics, remind them the missing voices of the birds, let them talk to the mayor of Venice. Let them feel the climate change. Tell them what made you change your thinking. Let them ask young people why they don’t want to get children anymore.

 

8. Force politics to start a public clarification campaign: so everybody will know and nobody will deny and doubt any more. The media must take the most important part to spread the word.

 Expert talk on wealth inequality and group discussion question: What steps should we take to reduce wealth inequality in order to better act on the climate and ecological crisis.

 

'Suppose a Citizens Assembly on climate crisis had to chose only one subject to deliberate about. What should it be? transport? renewable energy? According to the economist and geopolitics analist Joe Mac it should be wealth inequality -Group discussion after the talk.'

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Wealth inequality group discussion outcome: group recommendations to reduce wealth inequality

 

1. Current level of automation should allow distribution of profits more equally through a basic income. Find new sources of self-steam through practices and activities that do not contribute to the ecological crisis. Companies must be accountable for their ecological external costs and develop an understanding of social equality.

 

2. Make environmental costs running corporations, individuals’ purchasing decisions, etc more explicit via taxes. Use money generated from this as a form of wealth distribution and as tax incentive for environmentally conscious practices.

 

3. Change the education system by showing people that aiming at status is wrong. Forbid privileged schools and mix kids of different income levels. Provide impartial teachings for adults about how the world functions, so they can judge what is going around.

 

4. Change peoples’ and companies’ mentality and attitude. People should be able to spend time on real problems, work less, and receive a basic income.

 

5. Create a basic income for all. Do not let the financial corporations control the economy anymore. Production outcomes should belong to the workers. Share the wealth created by the whole humanity.

 

6. Create voluntary bonus on products from poor countries and strengthen awareness concerning wealth inequality.

 

7. Produce less waste in rich countries and less exploitation in poor countries

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Amazing presentation with a lot of lessons learned. The question proposed is: How to implement composting at a national level.  The group discussion reached the following conclusions:

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- Bioenergy, burning biological waste to generate energy, not only produces CO2, it destroys rich nutrients that could nourich agriculture land.

- Energy generated from bio material should totally stop. A new economy of composting and regenerating the land should start.

- Some states in the US for example, have massive composting policies but are isolated cases.

- The government don't have enough expertice in this matter, also does not envisage any action in the direction of composting.

-Composting is key to deal with future food shortages caused by global warming and pollution

- Fermentation destroys the live nutrients and is not an alternative to composting

- what is normally called by industry compost is in reality not the rich compost discussed here and necessary to recover the land

-There is no political or economic will to develop the composting sector.