http://www.cchange.net Covering the transformations to social, environment and economic sustainability Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:08:33 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 Sea Change Radio covers the transformations to social, environmental, and economic sustainability. Change is accelerating in positive and negative directions: the clock is ticking in the race to see which will tip first—the problems or the solutions. Join Sea Change's Host, Alex Wise, as he provides in-depth analysis to help our audience understand possible remedies and potential pitfalls. Sea Change interviews sustainability experts including Paul Hawken, Stewart Brand, Bill McKibben, Van Jones, Lester Brown, and many others. Sea Change airs on over 30 radio stations around the country. Alex Wise clean Alex Wise awise@cchange.net awise@cchange.net (Alex Wise) 2007-2011 Making Connections for Sustainability Sustainability, Climate Change, Human Rights, Environment, Corporate Responsibility, Socially Responsible Investing, Accountability, Stakeholders, Clean Tech, Renewable Energy, Green Jobs, Wealth Divide http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/cwr-images-archive/SeaChangeRadioTAG_square144_sm.jpg http://www.cchange.net Weekly http://www.cchange.net/2009/06/17/banking-futures-making-money-sustainable/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/06/17/banking-futures-making-money-sustainable/#comments Wed, 17 Jun 2009 21:51:18 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=980 http://www.cchange.net/2009/06/17/banking-futures-making-money-sustainable/feed/ 0 Alternative Economic Models,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,doug rushkoff,international finance corporation,Life Inc,Local Currency,Local Living Economies,Lyle Estill,Peter Blom,Renewable Energy,Sustainable Agriculture Banks are increasingly viewed as a bane to a healthy economy.  But done right, banks can play a key role in the shift to sustainability.  Today, Sea Change presents three perspectives on futures for banking.  Peter Blom, (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/PeterBlom-100x150.gif)(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/DougRushkoff-150x150.jpg) Banks are increasingly viewed as a bane to a healthy economy.  But done right, banks can play a key role in the shift to sustainability.  Today, Sea Change presents three perspectives on futures for banking.  Peter Blom, CEO of Triodos Bank (http://www.triodos.com/) in the Netherlands, proposes a shift in the mission of banks, from maximizing profit to maximizing sustainability.  Doug Rushkoff (http://rushkoff.com/), author of (http://lifeincorporated.net/), discusses how a surplus of debt that banks needed to sell triggered the financial meltdown.  (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/LyleEstill.jpg)And Lyle Estill (http://lyleestill.com/blog/?page_id=4) describes the role a chapter in his book (http://www.newsociety.com/bookid/3993) played in a local currency in North Carolina, The Plenty, being carried by a local bank. Triodos Bank was just named Sustainable Bank of the Year (http://www.triodos.com/com/whats_new/latest_news/press_releases/triodos_most_sustainable_bank) in an award (http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/e1dafe8c-51a4-11de-b986-00144feabdc0,dwp_uuid=590f3c26-4564-11da-981b-00000e2511c8.html) from the Financial Times and International Finance Corporation (http://www.ifc.org/).  Last year, Triodos CEO Peter Blom was knighted into the Order of Orange-Nassau (http://www.triodos.com/com/whats_new/latest_news/press_releases/603833) for pioneering sustainable saving and investment schemes.  At the recent Summit on the Future of the Corporation (http://www.summit2020.org/), Blom facilitated a World Cafe (http://www.theworldcafe.com/) session where Francesca recorded his comments on the changes necessary to achieve sustainability -- from the individual to the systemic level. Doug Rushkoff discusses the instrumental role banks played in the current financial crisis.  His new book ,LIFE INC, is about how corporatization is holding our lives as captives, all the way down to our individual identity.  In the book, Rushkoff presents the counter-intuitive notion that a surplus of money caused our collective financial crisis. This is an excerpt from a longer interview he gave Francesca and Bill. Finally, we end with a story of hope: the role banks can play in supporting local currency (http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2009-04-05-scrip_N.htm), and the revitalization of regional economies.  Lyle Estill's story of how a chapter in his book, SMALL IS POSSIBLE, helped inspire a local bank to back a local currency in North Carolina serves as a launching pad for Estill to discuss the larger context of how local economies can help solve our concurrent crises around climate change, resource depletion. This segment is excerpted from a much longer interview he gave Francesca, which we'll air later in the season. Bill Baue clean 29:11 http://www.cchange.net/2009/05/06/community-governance/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/05/06/community-governance/#comments Wed, 06 May 2009 19:35:37 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=840 http://www.cchange.net/2009/05/06/community-governance/feed/ 0 Community Economic Engagement,community governance,corporate governance,Fair Trade,Fair Trade Towns,Green Living,human rights,jessie smith noyes foundation,Labor Rights,Local Living Economies,Shareholder Engagement,southwest organizing project Longtime shareowner activist Steve Viederman discusses the notion of community governance, where communities reclaim democratic power of self-determination from corporations and other external forces.  Exemplifying community governance is the Fair Trad... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/steveviederman-150x150.jpg)Longtime shareowner activist Steve Viederman (http://www.sustainability.com/about/profile.asp?id=84) discusses the notion of community governance, where communities reclaim democratic power of self-determination from corporations and other external forces.  Exemplifying community governance is the Fair Trade Towns (http://www.fairtradetownsusa.org/) movement, where communities commit to supporting Fair Trade (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_trade) commodities such as coffee and cocoa.  We speak about Fair Trade Towns and World Fair Trade Day (http://www.worldfairtradeday09.org/) with Amherst Fair Trade Partnership (http://www.myspace.com/amherstfairtrade) Chair Yuri Friman and Bart's Cafe (http://www.bartshomemade.com/greenfield.htm) owner Al Sax, who is coordinating the launch of the fourth Fair Trade Town here in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_Valley) where we produce Sea Change Radio.  And finally, this week's ViewPoint comes from Liana Foxvog of SweatFree Communities (http://www.sweatfree.org/) on its latest report, Subsidizing Sweatshops II, which identifies how communities can advocate for their state and local governments to avoid buying products such as firefighter uniforms produced in sweatshop conditions. In November 2008, Steve Viederman met with some of the best community organizers in the country at the the South by Southwest Learning Continuum: Southern Echo (http://southernecho.org/s/) from Jackson, Mississippi; Southwest Workers Union (http://www.swunion.org/) (SWU) from San Antonio, Texas; and SouthWest Organizing Project (http://www.swopblogger.org/) (SWOP) from Albuquerque, New Mexico.    "Community governance" was the buzz -- in other words, communities reclaiming democratic power of self-determination from corporations and other external forces.   As longtime president of the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation (http://www.noyes.org/), Viederman helped steer grants to community organizations working to empower citizens and protect their local environment.  For example, the Noyes Foundation helped SWOP engage with Intel (http://www.noyes.org/97pres.html) over environmental issues such as water use and toxics in its New Mexico chip manufacturing facility.  On a recent visit to his grandchildren, Viederman stopped by the studios to chat about community governance. Among other things, he distinguished between communities as stakeholders, the current terminology, and stakeowners, the term Viederman proposes as a more accurate description of communities' rights and responsibilities.   (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/fairtradetown-150x150.jpg)Next, there's a movement afoot for communities to use their collective consumer power to promote Fair Trade, which sets a fair price for commodities like coffee and cocoa and deals directly with worker cooperatives to empower growers globally.  Fair Trade Towns is gaining steam in the US, particularly here in the Pioneer Valley of Massachusetts where we produce Sea Change Radio.  To find out more, we invited Yuri Friman, Chair of the Amherst Fair Trade Partnership, and Al Sax, who's helping launch Greenfield as the fourth Fair Trade Town in the Valley, into the studio. Bill Baue clean 29:31 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/30/the-green-jobs-debate/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/30/the-green-jobs-debate/#comments Thu, 30 Apr 2009 20:22:23 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=824 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/30/the-green-jobs-debate/feed/ 1 bob pollin,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,david johnson,Green Jobs,Green Living,greenbiz,Labor Rights,marc gunther,Renewable Energy,Sustainable Innovation,Sustainable Public Policy Green jobs are all the talk nowadays, which has predictably led to healthy debate.  On today's Sea Change Radio, Co-Host Francesca Rheannon talks with GreenBiz Senior Writer Marc Gunther about his controversial article, "The Phony Green Jobs Debate. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/marcgunther1.jpg)(http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/bobpollin.jpg)Green jobs are all the talk nowadays, which has predictably led to healthy debate.  On today's Sea Change Radio, Co-Host Francesca Rheannon talks with GreenBiz Senior Writer Marc Gunther about his controversial article, "The Phony Green Jobs Debate."  Bob Pollin of the Political Economy Research Institute at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, author of a report criticized by Gunther, responds.  To end the show, Rhennon speaks with David Johnson about Transition Towns. When Sea Change Radio -- under our old name Corporate Watchdog Radio -- talked with economist Bob Pollin about the report he co-authored, Green Recovery – A Program to Create Good Jobs and Start Building a Low-Carbon Economy, he said that a $100 billion green economic recovery program would create two million jobs nationwide in such industries as building retrofitting, mass transit and freight rail, smart grid, wind power, solar power and advanced biofuels.  But environmental economics reporter Marc Gunther, formerly of FORTUNE magazine, thinks these claims may be downplaying the costs of transitioning to the green economy, especially the toll it may take on employment in conventional energy sectors. Gunther thinks the environmental movement needs to level with the public -- and he's gotten some flack from environmentalists for the recent Phony Green Jobs Debate article. After Marc Gunther posted the article, Pollin wrote him to dispute Gunther's claim that we can't forecast the costs to the economy of shifting employment to green jobs. Gunther published Pollin's comments and replied to them . After hearing this ad from the Blue-Green Alliance on green jobs, we talk with both Marc Gunther and Bob Pollin about the costs and benefits to jobs of the transition to a green economy. QUESTION TO LISTENERS: What most motivates you to make changes in your carbon footprint: fear of the long term consequences of climate change or economic benefits right now? Tweet us with your answer @cchange. Or leave a longer answer in our comment section. Transition Towns: As some ponder the role of government investment in creating green jobs, others aren't waiting for government to provide the stimulus for the transition to a low-carbon society. They are joining a grassroots movement called Transition Towns . Featured in the April 16 issue of the New York Times Sunday Magazine, Transition Towns was started in the UK four years ago by ecological designer Rob Hopkins. The Transition Towns (TT) movement isn't about creating a more sustainable industrial, globalized society. Rather, it's about building resilient communities in the face of the shock of declining oil supplies, climate disruption, and the unraveling of industrial society as a result. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/davidjohnson.jpg) TT's goal is to put new systems in place to make local communities as self-sufficient as possible. It's process is to marshall the collective wisdom of those communities in an on-going, democratic, self-organizing evolution. And it focuses on practical efforts that can be accomplished now, but also help set up the conditions for a more profound transformation in the future. One example is the mass planting of nut trees in the small British town of Totnes--which now is the so-called nut tree capital of the world.  Recently, TT trainers came to Amherst, MA to put on an awareness raising workshop for people interested in making their own community a Transition Town. Sea Change Radio spoke with TT trainer David Johnson. He got involved in the TT movement in his native Britain, but has moved to Portland OR to help build the movement there.   Bill Baue clean 28:36 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/22/phoenix-economy-rising/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/22/phoenix-economy-rising/#comments Wed, 22 Apr 2009 21:47:33 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=796 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/22/phoenix-economy-rising/feed/ 0 Alternative Economic Models,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,john elkington,karen ribeiro,phoenix economy,Social Entrepreneurs,Sustainable Business,Sustainable Public Policy,terry mollner,triple bottom line,william spademan Sea Change Radio Co-Hosts Bill Baue and Francesca Rheannon speak with green business guru John Elkington about the new Phoenix Economy report.  And Sea Change members join in the conversation with Elkington in the second half of the show for the first ... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/johnelkington1-150x150.jpg) (http://stage.volans.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/thephoenixeconomy-201x300.jpg)Sea Change Radio Co-Hosts Bill Baue and Francesca Rheannon speak with green business guru John Elkington (http://www.johnelkington.com/) about the new Phoenix Economy report.  And Sea Change members join in the conversation with Elkington in the second half of the show for the first Sea Change Radio RoundTable.  In this feature, we host a sustainability expert fielding questions from Sea Change members -- this time featuring Calvert Social Funds (http://www.calvertgroup.com/) Founding Boardmember (http://www.calvertgroup.com/about-board-of-trustees.html#social) and Ben & Jerry's (http://www.benjerry.com/) Boardmember Terry Mollner, Ener-G-Save (http://www.ener-g-save.org/) Executive Director Karen Ribeiro, and Common Good Finance (http://commongoodbank.com/) President William Spademan. The Phoenix.  In myth, this bird would build a pyre on which to burn itself and then re-emerge from its ashes.  Volans (http://www.volans.com/), the new venture founded by John Elkington, borrows this imagery to symbolize the current economic meltdown -- and potential re-incarnation into a more sustainable economic order.  Today, we speak with John Elkington about the Phoenix Economy report from his offices in the UK.  Elkington coined the term triple bottom line, referring to people, planet , and profits, and he founded the sustainable development consultancy and think tank SustainAbility (http://www.sustainability.com/) in 1987.  BusinessWeek called him the "dean of the corporate responsibility movement."  Baue started by asking him to describe the notion behind the Phoenix Economy.  He later asks Elkington to distinguish between the Phoenix Economy and the Chrysalis Economy (http://www.amazon.com/Chrysalis-Economy-Citizen-Corporations-Creation/dp/1841121428), the name of his 2001 book.   Elkington also serves on the Sea Change Advisory Board (http://www.cchange.net/advisory-board/), and agreed to participate in the first Roundtable with Sea Change members posing questions of sustainability experts in the second half of the show. Bill Baue clean 28:30 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/15/wangari-maathai-peace-and-environmental-justice-taking-root/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/15/wangari-maathai-peace-and-environmental-justice-taking-root/#comments Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:31:09 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=779 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/15/wangari-maathai-peace-and-environmental-justice-taking-root/feed/ 1 Alan Dater,Alternative Economic Models,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,Green Jobs,Green Living,lisa merton,Local Living Economies,marlboro college graduate school,nobel peace prize,Renewable Energy,Social Entrepreneurs Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue of Sea Change host an intimate chat with Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai about the links between environmental justice, women's empowerment, democratic governance, and sustainability at the Marlboro College Graduate Scho... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/lisamertonalandater-150x133.jpg) (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/wangarimaathaifrancescabill21-150x130.jpg)Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue of Sea Change host an intimate chat with Nobel Laureate Wangari Maathai (http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/2004/press.html) about the links between environmental justice, women's empowerment, democratic governance, and sustainability at the Marlboro College Graduate School (http://gradcenter.marlboro.edu/), where Baue teaches.  Maathai is touring (http://www.greenbeltmovement.org/events.php) the US promoting her new book, (http://www.amazon.com/Challenge-Africa-Wangari-Maathai/dp/0307377407), as well as the documentary, TAKING ROOT: The Vision of Wangari Maathai (http://takingrootfilm.com/index.htm).  In the second half of the show, Rheannon and Baue speak with the filmmakers, Alan Dater and Lisa Merton (http://takingrootfilm.com/production-team.htm) of Marlboro Productions (http://www.marlboroproductions.com/index.html). In her native Kenya, Wangari Maathai saw that deforestation was devastating the environment. Good arable land was eroding, streams were getting polluted or drying up and the women had to go further to find ever-scarcer firewood. So in 1977, she founded the grassroots Green Belt Movement (http://greenbeltmovement.org/index.php). Over the past 32 years, it's planted 35 million trees, bringing back whole ecosystems with it and revitalizing villages. The program has been carried out mainly by women in those villages. By hiring them to plant the trees, it gave them the means to care for their children and protect their environment. The corrupt regime of Daniel Arap Moi sought to stop her, arresting her numerous times and even jailing her. In 1991 she was beaten while planting trees on public lands and suffered a head injury. But she fought on and earned world acclaim for her actions and her courage. In 2004 Maathai became the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for “her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace.” She's in the US to promote her new book, CHALLENGE FOR AFRICA and a new film about her, TAKING ROOT, which aired recently on the PBS program, Independent Lens (http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/takingroot/index.html). Taking a break from her tour of major cities, Wangari Maathai visited the filmmakers near their home in Vermont for a public talk.  Sea Change Co-Hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue  sat down for an intimate chat with Wangari Maathai at the Marlboro College Graduate School, where Baue teaches. The story of Wangari Maathai, and the Green Belt Movement, is captured vividly in the documentary, TAKING ROOT.  The film won a bunch of awards in 2008.  Rheannon and Baue spoke with filmmakers Alan Dater and Lisa Merton of Marlboro Productions from their home studios.  The interview started with the question, what inspired them to tell the story of Wangari Maathai's vision in film? Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/15/storyline-wangari-maathai-and-the-fig-tree/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/15/storyline-wangari-maathai-and-the-fig-tree/#comments Wed, 15 Apr 2009 18:30:31 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=786 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/15/storyline-wangari-maathai-and-the-fig-tree/feed/ 0 Community Economic Engagement,green belt movement,Local Living Economies,wangari maathai Wangari Maathai tells Sea Change Radio Co-Hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue the story of a great fig tree that stood near the village where she grew up in Kenya.  At that time, her mother and the other villagers regarded the tree as sacred -- as t... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/wangarimaathai-150x150.jpg)Wangari Maathai tells Sea Change Radio Co-Hosts Francesca Rheannon and Bill Baue the story of a great fig tree that stood near the village where she grew up in Kenya.  At that time, her mother and the other villagers regarded the tree as sacred -- as the tree of God.  Maathai also told this story in the documentary film about her life and work with the Green Belt Movement (http://greenbeltmovement.org/index.php), entitled TAKING ROOT: The Vision of Wangari Maathai (http://takingrootfilm.com/index.htm). Bill Baue clean 3:39 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/08/closing-the-climate-feedback-loop-with-everyday-citizen-opinions/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/08/closing-the-climate-feedback-loop-with-everyday-citizen-opinions/#comments Wed, 08 Apr 2009 20:58:53 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=759 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/08/closing-the-climate-feedback-loop-with-everyday-citizen-opinions/feed/ 2 Alternative Economic Models,Carrick McCullough,Clean Tech,Climate Change,Colin McCullough,Community Economic Engagement,corporate governance,Green Jobs,Green Living,Lars Klüver,nell minow,OurRenewableNation Lars Klüver of the Danish Board of Technology talks about the World Wide Views on Global Warming project he directs that will gather opinions of everyday citizens in 45 countries globally in September 2009 to feed into negotiations at the United Nation... Lars Klüver (http://www.tekno.dk/subpage.php3?page=sekretariatet/person.php3&toppic=om_os&id=1&language=dk) of the Danish Board of Technology (http://www.tekno.dk/subpage.php3?page=forside.php3&language=uk) talks about the World Wide Views on Global Warming (http://www.tekno.dk/subpage.php3?article=1497&toppic=kategori11&language=uk&category=11) project he directs that will gather opinions of everyday citizens in 45 countries globally in September 2009 to feed into negotiations at the United Nations Climate Change Conference (http://en.cop15.dk/) (COP15) in Copenhagen in December 2009.  And Colin and Carrick McCullough of OurRenewableNation.org (http://www.ourrenewablenation.org/index.htm) talk about their "cross-country eco-video adventure" where they will visit, video, and interview folks advancing sustainability solutions -- as well as everyday folks on their thoughts about climate change and this shift toward renewable energy.  Finally, this week's Sea Change ViewPoint comes from Nell Minow (http://www.thecorporatelibrary.com/info.php?id=62) of The Corporate Library (http://www.thecorporatelibrary.com/) with commentary on first steps on toxic assets. Last year at a monthly get-together here in Amherst, Sea Change Co-Host Bill Baue met Dick Sclove, and the two chatted over a beer or two.  Sclove worked for years with a nonprofit that coordinated community consultations around the world, and now he's senior advisor to World Wide Views on Global Warming.  That's an initiative spearheaded by the Danish Board of Technology to gather input to COP15 -- the United Nations Conference on Climate Change happening in  Copenhagen in December 2009.  WWV is coordinating community consultation meetings in 45 countries two months before the conference to gather opinions from everyday citizens on what kinds of climate change policy they'd like to see enacted at COP15.  Baue recently spoke with WWV director Lars Klüver from his office in Denmark. Klüver has agreed to coordinate with Sea Change Radio to cover the events of September 26, and continue following up with interviews of WWV participants around the world. On the day of producing this episode of Sea Change Radio, the New York Times ran an article (http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/08/business/energy-environment/08greenoil.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper) on big oil companies expressing skepticism about the shift to renewable energy.  On the other end of the spectrum, the McCullough family is full of optimism.  They're gearing up to embark on what they're calling a "cross-country eco-video adventure" to visit, video, and interview folks working hard to make the transition to  renewable energy a reality -- no matter what big oil says.  They're heading out from central Massachusetts in early May, and you can follow their progress on the web at OurRenewableNation.org (http://www.ourrenewablenation.org/index.htm).  Sea Change Radio Co-Host Bill Baue spoke with Colin and his nine-year-old son Carrick, who has been nominated for the President's Environmental Youth Award (http://www.epa.gov/enviroed/peya/index.html). The McCulloughs have agreed to send dispatches from the road to Sea Change Radio with interviews of folks working on renewable energy and everyday folks' views on how to tackle climate change. Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/01/a-new-morality-for-capitalism/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/01/a-new-morality-for-capitalism/#comments Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:40:21 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=748 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/01/a-new-morality-for-capitalism/feed/ 0 Alternative Economic Models,Community Economic Engagement,hazel henderson,human rights,Labor Rights,Sustainable Public Policy,William Greider William Greider talks about a new moral order for capitalism, drawing from his new book .  And in the Sea Change ViewPoint, Hazel Henderson of Ethical Markets Media predicts the rise of "new financiers" whose prime currency is information, not money. - (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/williamgreider-150x150.jpg) William Greider (http://williamgreider.com/about) talks about a new moral order for capitalism, drawing from his new book .  And in the Sea Change ViewPoint, Hazel Henderson (http://www.hazelhenderson.com/) of Ethical Markets Media (http://www.ethicalmarkets.com/) predicts the rise of "new financiers" whose prime currency is information, not money. Journalist Bill Greider has been writing about capitalism and democracy for decades. And about how these two value systems are in collision. National Affairs Correspondent (http://www.thenation.com/directory/bios/william_greider) for The Nation (http://www.thenation.com/) and author of numerous books (http://williamgreider.com/books), Grieder wrote about globalization in (http://www.amazon.com/One-World-Ready-Not-Capitalism/dp/0684835541%3FSubscriptionId%3D0CD9RCQYM0TBVH55NB82%26tag%3Dviaposit-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D0684835541), the military-industrial complex in (http://www.amazon.com/Fortress-America-American-Military-Consequences/dp/1891620452%3FSubscriptionId%3D0CD9RCQYM0TBVH55NB82%26tag%3Dviaposit-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D1891620452), and creating a moral economy in  (http://www.amazon.com/Soul-Capitalism-Opening-Paths-Economy/dp/0684862204%3FSubscriptionId%3D0CD9RCQYM0TBVH55NB82%26tag%3Dviaposit-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3D0684862204).  His new book is COME HOME, AMERICA: The Rise and Fall (and Redeeming Promise) of Our Country. Sea Change Radio Co-Host Francesca Rheannon started by asking Greider what lessons he drew from AIG bonus scandal and their relevance to his book. Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/01/viewpoint-hazel-henderson-on-the-new-financiers/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/01/viewpoint-hazel-henderson-on-the-new-financiers/#comments Wed, 01 Apr 2009 18:37:58 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=743 http://www.cchange.net/2009/04/01/viewpoint-hazel-henderson-on-the-new-financiers/feed/ 0 Alternative Economic Models,Community Economic Engagement,green economy,Green Living,hazel henderson,Local Living Economies Commentator Hazel Henderson of Ethical Markets Media thinks the outline of a new, moral financial system is beginning to rise from the ashes of the old. Its being ushered in by what she calls "the new financiers"... - Commentator Hazel Henderson (http://www.hazelhenderson.com/) of Ethical Markets Media (http://www.ethicalmarkets.com/) thinks the outline of a new, moral financial system is beginning to rise from the ashes of the old. Its being ushered in by what she calls "the new financiers"... A venture capitalist friend of mine asked me in a recent discussion about the financial meltdown, “who will be the new financiers?” I answered immediately, “the new financiers will be the high-level information brokers. They'll also be the dealmakers in creating the growing green economy.” Media and  information drive markets. But the new financiers are largely invisible to the traditional Wall Streeters and asset managers. That's because information, not money, is the new financiers' prime currency. Not that the new deal-makers don't value money. But they have a different approach to it than the high flyers on Wall Street. They value the role of honest, well-managed currencies that remain tied to the real economy of goods and services. Money is a special kind of information.  When backed by real-world goods and services, money can accurately track and score human ingenuity, productivity and transactions interacting with the natural wealth of resources of our home: Planet Earth. The problem with money is keeping it honest.  From the kings who shaved of the edges of coins to today’s bankers who create our money out of thin air, we humans have found many ways to debase our currencies. Money was invented back around 3,000 BC (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Money#History_of_money).  It evolved from clay tablets, shells and cows to metal tokens, gold, silver, and today’s paper money and electronic currencies that are blips on millions of financial trading screens. With the Industrial Revolution in Europe, our need to trade and exchange grew exponentially. Our money systems of exchange had to grow, too.  Gold became too constricting – there just wasn’t enough of it. Soon, the lack of gold led governments to issue paper “fiat” currencies backed only by promises and a fraction of actual gold.  Some countries went off the gold stadard entirely (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gold_standard#Post-war_international_gold_standard_.281946.E2.80.931971.29), including the USA in 1971. Our current financial crisis goes way beyond earlier recessions and panics caused by the lack of gold or sufficient supplies of credible paper money. Today, the globalization of finance and technology caused money-creation to go wild, leading to a credit bubble and mountains of debt. The money supply surpassed real economic growth. Risk-analysis took a back seat, as bankers ignored real-world conditions. For example, the bets on who might default -- those infamous credit default swaps -- grew to  some $680 trillion dollars of contracts (http://www.bis.org/publ/otc_hy0811.pdf) -- while real global production measures only the $62 trillion of global GDP. Today, central banks are in a frenzy of printing money.  But no amount of ink and paper can print enough new money to close the hole between that $683 trillion of false promises and the world’s real GDP. The only issue is, who will take the hit.  Up to now, the political clout of financial sectors has forced taxpayers to bail out financiers. The blatant unfairness of this has caused huge outcries from outraged citizens.  Those billions given to irresponsible bankers could have financed universal healthcare and college education. I predict this is the end of finance based only on money and fiat currencies, not on the real economy of goods and services. Enter the new financiers and their bringing a new hybrid economic model with them: half the old money-based competition and half information-based sharing, cooperation and exchange.  The rise of Google (http://www.google.com/), e-Bay (http://www.ebay.com/), Microplace (https://www.microplace.com/), Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/), Facebook Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/25/seeding-the-solidarity-economy/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/25/seeding-the-solidarity-economy/#comments Wed, 25 Mar 2009 21:03:49 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=729 http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/25/seeding-the-solidarity-economy/feed/ 0 Alternative Economic Models,center for popular economics,chilo villarreal,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,emily kawano,Fair Trade,forum on solidarity economy,Green Jobs,Green Living,human rights,Labor Rights The Center for Popular Economics (CPE) recently hosted the first Forum on the Solidarity Economy at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst -- home of Sea Change Radio.  CPE Executive Director Emily Kawano explains the theory and practice behind the s... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/solidarityeconomy.gif)The Center for Popular Economics (http://www.populareconomics.org/) (CPE) recently hosted the first Forum on the Solidarity Economy (http://www.populareconomics.org/ussen/node/99) at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst -- home of Sea Change Radio.  CPE Executive Director Emily Kawano (http://www.populareconomics.org/bios/kawano_e.htm) explains the theory and practice behind the solidarity economy, and discusses strategies and next steps for the US Solidarity Economy Network (http://www.populareconomics.org/ussen/) in cultivating a socially and environmentally sustainable economy.  And Chilo Villarreal (http://www.ruralco.org/aboutus/board.html) of the Coalición Rural (http://www.ruralco.org/index.html) in Mexico illustrates solidarity economy concepts through story.   Finally, the News Analysis examines the business of water. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/emilykawano.jpg)As our existing economy collapses under the weight of its own unsustainable growth, what economic forms will replace this failed system?  Policymakers bend over backwards to prop up a the broken status quo, while idealists around the world envision more equitable and ecological alternatives.  The solidarity economy -- that's one such vision.  Last week, these visionaries traveled from around the world to the Forum on the Solidarity Economy here at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, hosted by the Center for Popular Economics.  This week, after the dust had settled, Center for Popular Economics Executive Director Emily Kawano visited us in the WMUA studios.  Sea Change Host Bill Baue opened the conversation by asking Emily, what is a solidarity economy, and what role can it play in helping fix the current economic breakdown? Kawano identifies three priorities for advancing the solidarity economy by focusing on leverage points where the current economic system is failing or has gaps: housing, finance, and cooperatives. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/chilovillarreal.tiff)The colorful wrap draped across her back immediately caught the eye of Sea Change Host Bill Baue at the Forum on the Solidarity Economy.  When he saw her later in an empty classroom, he jumped at the chance for an interview.  She introduced herself as Altagracia Villarreal -- but everybody knows her as Chilo.  Since 1995, she's served on the board of the Coalicion Rural, a collaboration between 17 organization in Mexico.  Its partner in the US, the Rural Coalition, is made up of 70 to 80 organizations throughout the country.  He opened by asking Chilo how she defines solidarity economy, and later asked Chilo to describe a specific example that illustrates the solidarity economy in action, and she answered in both Spanish and English.  You'll hear her Spanish underneath her English response. Bill Baue clean 29:30 http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/11/building-green/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/11/building-green/#comments Wed, 11 Mar 2009 22:01:47 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=657 http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/11/building-green/feed/ 2 Alex Wilson,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,Erin Gorman,Fair Trade,Green Building,Green Jobs,Green Living,human rights,Karl Frisch,Labor Rights,Local Living Economies BuildingGreen.com founder Alex Wilson discusses the history, current state, and future of the green building movement. Erin Gorman, CEO of Divine Chocolate USA, welcomes the move by Cadbury to source Fairtrade cocoa from the Kuapa Kokoo cooperative in ... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/alexwilson-150x150.jpg) BuildingGreen.com (http://www.buildinggreen.com/) founder Alex Wilson (http://www.buildinggreen.com/about/staff.cfm) discusses the history, current state, and future of the green building movement. Erin Gorman, CEO of Divine Chocolate USA (http://www.divinechocolateusa.com/), welcomes the move by Cadbury to source Fairtrade cocoa (http://www.csrwire.com/News/14719.html) from the Kuapa Kokoo (http://www.kuapakokoogh.com/) cooperative in Ghana that owns Divine, and Bama Athreya of the International Labor Rights Forum (http://www.laborrights.org/) also applauds (http://www.laborrights.org/stop-child-labor/cocoa-campaign/1971) Cadbury's move.  And Karl Frisch (http://www.karlfrisch.com/) of Media Matters (http://mediamatters.org/) brings us the ViewPoint on how the mainstream media is dropping the ball on covering climate change. Alex Wilson founded BuildingGreen in 1985, when the green building movement was in its infancy.  As executive editor of Environmental Building News (http://www.buildinggreen.com/articles/), the bible of green building, Wilson has provided the information that has formed the building blocks of the movement.  In November 2008, Wilson received the Leadership Award for Education (http://www.buildinggreen.com/press/leadership_award.cfm) from the US Green Building Council (http://www.usgbc.org/), whose board he served on from 2000 until 2005, the crucial period when the organization created the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) (http://www.usgbc.org/leed/) certification. Wilson launches the conversation with a primer on green building and its history, starting with an explanation of LEED.  He then compares indigenous structural design, such as the Anasazi, who oriented their dwellings toward the sun to capture solar energy, compared to design that developed in the age of cheap fossil fuel, which abandoned age-old principles of efficiency.  Wilson points out, however, that the Anasazi  civilization collapsed due to reliance on unsustainable water use -- a fate our current culture may share with them. Wilson highlights solutions, such as green roofs (http://www.buildinggreen.com/auth/article.cfm/2009/1/30/Integrate-Food-Production-and-Green-Building/) and urban agriculture which integrates into the built environment (http://www.buildinggreen.com/auth/article.cfm/2009/1/29/Growing-Food-Locally-Integrating-Agriculture-Into-the-Built-Environment/), citing the example of City Farm (http://www.resourcecenterchicago.org/70thfarm.html) in Chicago.  He then proposes the idea of passive survivability (http://www.buildinggreen.com/live/index.cfm/2008/10/14/On-the-Path-to-Passive-Survivability), the notion of designing our buildings to survive the kinds of challenges that will become more prevalent as the climate changes, such as power outages and water shortages.  The beauty of this idea is that it's exactly the kind of design we need to achieve sustainability. Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/11/newsanalysis-fairtrade-cocoa-goes-big-league/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/11/newsanalysis-fairtrade-cocoa-goes-big-league/#comments Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:59:49 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=653 http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/11/newsanalysis-fairtrade-cocoa-goes-big-league/feed/ 0 child labor,Community Economic Engagement,equal exchange,Erin Gorman,Fair Trade,Ghana,human rights,Labor Rights,Local Living Economies,Social Entrepreneurs,Sustainable Business,West Africa Cadbury, the popular British chocolate maker, just agreed to source Fairtrade cocoa for Cadbury Dairy Milk, the top-selling chocolate bar in the UK. The move effectively triples sales of Fairtrade cocoa for farmers in Ghana, (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/cadburydairymilk-150x150.jpg) Cadbury (http://www.cadbury.com/Pages/Home.aspx), the popular British chocolate maker, just agreed to source Fairtrade cocoa for Cadbury Dairy Milk (http://www.csrwire.com/News/14719.html), the top-selling chocolate bar in the UK. The move effectively triples sales of Fairtrade cocoa for farmers in Ghana, where Cadbury sources from Kuapa Kokoo (http://www.kuapakokoogh.com/).  It was one of the first cooperatives there to be Fairtrade (http://www.fairtrade.net/) certified in the '90s.  In the late '90s, Kuapa Kokoo also started its own brand, Divine Chocolate, to keep more of the value that typically gets skimmed by middle-men and big chocolate companies.  Erin Gorman, CEO of the Divine Chocolate USA (http://www.divinechocolateusa.com/), welcomes the move, which validates its model of Fairtrade sourcing.   Bama Athreya, executive director of the activist NGO International Labor Rights Forum (http://www.laborrights.org/) (ILRF), also supports the development (http://www.laborrights.org/stop-child-labor/cocoa-campaign/1971).  (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/bamaathreya-150x150.jpg)Athreya and other activists have been campaigning for over eight years to convince major chocolate companies such as Nestle, Mars, and Hershey's to purchase Fairtrade cocoa.  The Commitment to Ethical Cocoa Sourcing (http://www.laborrights.org/stop-child-labor/cocoa-campaign/resources/861), a set of guidelines signed by activists and progressive chocolate companies such as Equal Exchange (http://www.equalexchange.coop/), argues that Fairtrade helps stop the worst forms of child labor and trafficked labor.   Both are widespread problems on cocoa farms in West Africa. Chocolate companies balked at the Fairtrade solution.   Erin Gorman of Divine points out how Fairtrade addresses not just the symptom of child labor, but also the root causes that underpin child labor.  Check out the Divine Chocolate website for videos of Kuapa Kokoo (Gorman of Divine points out how Fairtrade addresses not just the symptom of child labor, but also the root causes that underpin child labor.) members. Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/04/the-mindful-path-to-sustainability/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/04/the-mindful-path-to-sustainability/#comments Wed, 04 Mar 2009 21:24:37 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=616 http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/04/the-mindful-path-to-sustainability/feed/ 2 Alternative Economic Models,Aron Cramer,business for social responsibility,Clean Tech,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,corporate governance,environmental action,Green Living,Labor Rights,Renewable Energy,stephanie kaza Stephanie Kaza links buddhism and sustainability in her new book, .  Sea Change Co-Host Francesca Rheannon covers coal protests at the Mount Tom Power Plant in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where she interviewed local activists Glen Ayers and Tina Clarke. (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/stephaniekaza-150x150.gif)Stephanie Kaza (http://www.uvm.edu/~skaza/) links buddhism and sustainability in her new book, (http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-1-59030-583-6.cfm).  Sea Change Co-Host Francesca Rheannon covers coal protests (http://petervickery.blogspot.com/2009/03/mount-tom-demo.html) at the Mount Tom Power Plant (http://www.firstlightpower.com/generation/mttom.asp) in Holyoke, Massachusetts, where she interviewed local activists Glen Ayers and Tina Clarke.  And finally, this week's ViewPoint comes from Business for Social Responsibility (http://www.bsr.org/) CEO Aron Cramer (http://www.bsr.org/about/staff-bio.cfm?DocumentID=2), who proposes three corporate reforms. Witnessing the unfolding disaster of our ecological crisis can be a lonely burden to carry. And our loneliness also keeps us from being able to do anything about it. Now environmental educator and meditator Stephanie Kaza has stepped in to lead us on the “green practice path.”  In her book, MINDFULLY GREEN: A Personal and Spiritual Guide to Whole Earth Thinking, she offers a simple, Buddhist-inspired philosophy for taking up environmental action in ways that overcome our separation from ourselves, each and our world. Kaza is a Professor in the Rubenstein School of Environment & Natural Resources (http://www.uvm.edu/~envnr/) at the University of Vermont (http://www.uvm.edu/).  Her previous books (http://www.uvm.edu/~skaza/?Page=publications/default.html) include (http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-1-57062-475-9.cfm),  (http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-1-59030-172-2.cfm), and   (http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-1-57062-251-9.cfm). Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/03/viewpoint-corporate-reform-the-bigger-picture/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/03/viewpoint-corporate-reform-the-bigger-picture/#comments Wed, 04 Mar 2009 02:01:06 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=611 http://www.cchange.net/2009/03/03/viewpoint-corporate-reform-the-bigger-picture/feed/ 2 Alternative Economic Models,Aron Cramer,business for social responsibility,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,corporate governance,corporate structure,Labor Rights,Sustainable Business,Sustainable Public Policy Corporation 20/20, an organization promoting alternative corporate structures, just announced the Second Summit on the Future of the Corporation, slated for this June in Boston.  Discussion amongst those who attended the first Summit in November 2007 w... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/aroncramer-150x150.png)Corporation 20/20 (http://www.corporation2020.org/), an organization promoting alternative corporate structures, just announced the Second Summit on the Future of the Corporation (http://www.summit2020.org/), slated for this June in Boston.  Discussion amongst those who attended the first Summit in November 2007 was abuzz about the future of boards of directors. In the broader press, fingers are pointing, primarily at the banking industry as the culprit and at outrageous executive pay.  As accurate as these points may be, the troubles run deeper and wider, according to  Aron Cramer (http://www.bsr.org/about/staff-bio.cfm?DocumentID=2).  He's CEO of Business for Social Responsibility (http://www.bsr.org/index.cfm) (BSR), a  global nonprofit network of businesses focused on sustainability, and he's on the convening committee for the Future of the Corporation Summit.  In this week's Sea Change ViewPoint, Cramer calls for more structural reforms. It seems everyone needs symbols of our generation's economic meltdown. It’s easy--and tempting--to focus on how GM's Rick Wagoner traveled from Detroit to Washington, or how much of an allowance Bank of America's John Thain got for remodeling his office. But these stories are more useful as fodder for late-night comedy than for serious policymaking. 

These days, many people are treating executive pay as the litmus test of how serious we are in re-ordering the priorities of business. But the brou-haha over compensation is missing the bigger picture: the need to revamp the models that structure how  companies run. It’s called “corporate governance” -- and the way it’s done now lies at the root of many of today’s problems. It's time for Washington to focus on lasting reforms that may prevent a crisis next time. Reforming corporate governance could send some scurrying for the door. They remember the unhappy experience with Sarbanes-Oxley -- once considered the answer to the wave of accounting scandals exemplified by Enron. It required companies to jump through hoops without really improving the situation. But this crisis may give us a second chance to get it right -- to respond to a collapse of trust in business by making more effective changes in the way companies are governed. Three reforms will help business avoid the next crisis.  First, it’s time to reconsider corporate purpose. There’s been a lot of thinking in recent years about whether our current definition of fiduciary duty serves business or society. Right now, the idea is that corporations should consider only the interests of shareholders in making decisions.  In the US, some companies are employing hybrid business forms such as the "B Corporation (http://www.bcorporation.net/),”  and elsewhere, companies like Novo Nordisk are governed by foundations with a broader purpose.  These models redefine what a business is for by including the interests not only of shareholders but of employees, communities, and the environment in its charter.

 Second, more attention should be given to how well directors really know their companies' activities, products and services. While it seems ludicrous to ask whether directors have the core knowledge needed to perform their duties, recent months' events suggest otherwise. The increase of exotic financial instruments raises the question of whether directors have the basic knowledge to exercise effective oversight. When I was in China last summer, an advisor to several Asian boards told me that he observed many directors who simply didn't understand their company's activities. He said this was a ticking time bomb. The bomb now appears to have gone off. 
Third, it's time to  consider the inclusion of Directors who can help companies consider the interests of stakeholders, like workers and communities as well as the environment in guiding corporate decisions. Bill Baue clean http://www.cchange.net/2009/02/04/slow-money-compost-growing-new-economy/ http://www.cchange.net/2009/02/04/slow-money-compost-growing-new-economy/#comments Wed, 04 Feb 2009 21:00:32 +0000 Bill Baue http://www.cchange.net/?p=514 http://www.cchange.net/2009/02/04/slow-money-compost-growing-new-economy/feed/ 2 Alternative Economic Models,Climate Change,Community Economic Engagement,Fair Trade,Green Living,jessie smith noyes foundation,katy lederer,Local Living Economies,steve viederman,Sustainable Agriculture,Sustainable Business,Sustainable Innovation Today we measure the speed of money.  Woody Tasch discusses his book, .  And Katy Lederer transforms her experience working in the fast money culture of Wall Street into poetry in the book , . - We're all reeling from the roller coaster-ride of fast m... (http://www.cchange.net/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/woodytasch-150x150.jpg)Today we measure the speed of money.  Woody Tasch (http://www.chelseagreen.com/authors/woody_tasch/) discusses his book, .  And Katy Lederer (http://www.boaeditions.org/authors/lederer.html) transforms her experience working in the fast money culture of Wall Street into poetry in the book , . We're all reeling from the roller coaster-ride of fast money, where trillions of dollars transact daily across silicon microchips, and trillions evaporate in the shifting sands unfettered capitalism.  The solution?  Slow money, according to Woody Tasch, recent founder of the nonprofit by that name (http://www.slowmoneyalliance.org/).  In his book, also called Slow Money, Tasch consciously riffs on the notion of Slow Food (http://www.slowfood.com/), the Italian-gone-global movement of reconnecting our eating with the land that produces our food.  As he hints in the subtitle of his book -- Investing as if Food, Farms, and Fertility Mattered -- Tasch plays on the agrarian metaphor of slow money as compost in which to nurture a new kind of economy. For a decade, until 2008, Woody Tasch chaired the Investor's Circle (http://www.investorscircle.net/), angel investors who deploy patient capital toward a sustainable future. In the 1990s, Tasch served as treasurer of the Jessie Smith Noyes Foundation (http://www.noyes.org/).  There, he and foundation president Steve Viederman first critiqued the dissonance (http://www.noyes.org/94essay.html) between foundations' grantmaking, which aligns with their missions, and investing, which often counteracts social and environmental commitments of their missions.  They sought to harmonize their foundation's mission with its investing, which typically accounts for 95 percent of an endowment, as well as its granting, which accounts for the remaining 5 percent. Bill Baue clean