An introduction

I find sustainability fascinating. There are so many people out there running around telling me that our whole world is on the verge of collapse and that we should be doing everything from implementing emissions trading schemes to preventing the establishment of any new coal mines to save the planet.

What I find most amazing is that while there are so many things that help people 'be green', realistically, very few people do much that actually makes a significant difference. While turning off lights and off-setting our carbon emissions may make us feel good, they don't really change the fact that the majority of the emissions are economic emissions that exist because we live such a high standard of life.

And this is where the irony exists; any action we take to tackle climate change will actually reduce our standard of living. Now I don't subscribe to the economic ruin argument of one 'great' Australian because the simple act of developing solutions will provide a new means of economic activity to replace those we lose, however, things like emissions trading schemes or stopping new coals mines at this current stage do have the impact of increasing the costs of the current lifestyles we all lead.

Perhaps this is a good thing because people are buying more things than ever (just look at our constant economic growth figures for proof) and don't look like stopping this trend just because they are now concerned about climate change. If they were really concerned, they may realise that consumption is actually as much of the problem as anything else. Accordingly, they might choose to stop buying many of the products they current enjoy, even though this probably wont change the situation much either, because there will always be someone else just around the corner to buy it instead of them... and around the corner in this case, might just be someone overseas.

And this is where it all gets tricky; if we do implement measures such as an emissions trading scheme, we actually run the risk of 'exporting' the problem. Australia has some of the highest economic, environmental and social regulations in the developed world. Any good made in Australia probably damages the environment less than some goods made elsewhere, however, if we don't manage the climate change transition appropriately, our companies may just stop making goods in Australia because it is too expensive. Instead they will go overseas, where costs are less, regulations are less, and unfortunately, environmental damage is higher...

and if that happens, how have we created a positive for the global environment by implementing tough new measures to prevent climate change in Australia? Isn't this even more ironic when we consider that our contribution to the global problem is less than 2 percent? Wouldn't it be better if we could encourage more development of goods in Australia, and complement this development by massive investment in R&D to make those goods more sustainable?