Even better than Earth Hour

Today I went to see Thomas (Tad) Homer-Dixon speak at a work related conference. His presentation was about climate science, and underlined the need to work on mitigation and adaptation activities immediately (and according to THD, they are not in contrast to each other, as stated in the links I gave). He also discussed geo-engineering as a possibility that climate scientists are now realizing might be necessary, although undesirable (due to the unknown externalities) by putting sulfur in the atmosphere. They discovered this because this is what volcanoes spew.

But, I hear you ask, why is it necessary, and what does it do?

The polar ice caps reflect the sun’s energy back into the atmosphere so the heat is not absorbed by the earth. As the polar ice-caps melt due to global warming, there is a positive feedback loop whereby more ice melts, so there is less reflectivity, and more absorption of heat, leading to….you guessed it, more ice melting. So, spraying sulfur into the atmosphere will reflect the sun’s rays, hence heat, back into the atmosphere, and we will geo-engineer our way out of climate change.

But I have an even better, and potentially more cost effective, idea. I think that we can make a giant white sheet, and hold it over the polar ice caps region, and use that to reflect light. And I don’t think we should stop there: we should get citizens of the earth involved.

Recalling how much fun it was to play parachute games in the school yard during elementary school, I think that we could have an event where millions of people from around the world make a statement about climate change by holding onto the edges of the giant white sheet to reflect the sun’s light into the atmosphere to combat global warming.

I know that anyone with a practical side will say that this is too expensive. But think about it, what can you put on a blank white sheet which is visible to satellite cameras in space? A logo. We can auction off the advertising space to the company seeking to be known as the most advanced corporate social responsibily (CSR) company in the world.

We can also sell off the spots for the trip (by boat, of course, not by air) by telling people that they can “join people all around the world in showing that you care about our planet and want to play a part in helping to fight climate change.”

Of course, all of the proceeds will go towards funding climate change mitigation and adaptation activities.

Quitting haircut and the 71 day countdown

I am quitting my job in 71 work days. I am so excited because I have gotten into a great doctorate program.

Even more exciting is that I am leaving my job by July 4th, and planning my summer vacation! 10 years later, it feels like the end of highschool all over again: we all know I’m going to graduate (quit), but I need to put in the time to make it seem like I’m earning my final credits (pay).

Just like in highschool, apparently I have been pushing the boundaries at the office as a creative thinker, brightly dressed (generally more than 3 colours at a time, and at least one of hot pink or turquoise), a person with pierced nose, and I like to eat free food. Honestly, I never noticed my differences, but apparently they are pretty apparent to everyone else.

Given all of these creative differences I posess, I say, it’s time for a quitting haircut. I think I should get my hair cut on June 20 or 21st, so I can show up with some crazy ‘do on the 23rd, and give my 2 weeks notice. This is my introductory blog into this theme. Feel free to post suggestions and comments. I have found a few photos as suggestions to start us off.

The total angle ‘do:

The asymmetrical on asymmetrical with a bright stripe ‘do:

Or I could just go crazy:

My guide to African culture and politics

I’ve got a lot of opinions on African politics, and a lot of interest in keeping up. Ever since I got back from living in Sierra Leone in 2003-2004, I’ve continued my reading on African, West African and Sierra Leonean politics. This weekend, I went to visit a friend in Montreal and started reading What is the What; The Autobiography Of Valentino Achak Deng by Dave Eggers, and got immediately sucked into it, enough to go out and buy my own copy before heading home. I’m at page 105, and it’s reminding me why I like some african literature more than others. Here are my picks:

The Devil That Danced on the Water by Aminatta Forna. This is an amazing memoir about the daughter of a Sierra Leonean politician. It explains in depth what happened in post-colonial Sierra Leone, and how Siaka Stevens turned Sierra Leone into a single party state (with himself as the leader). When I visited the UN in New York City, I remember the part of the tour which turned to the success of decolonization, and I wasn’t so sure I could appreciate their sentiment unequivocally.

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. I read this Nigerian novel as a high school student for my independent study in grade 12. I am glad I did, since Achebe is a prominent African literary figure it is required reading for students in Sierra Leone in high school, and I got to talk about it with my friends there. This novel takes a look at how social structures were broken down through colonialism through the story of a traditional Ibo man.

My grade 12 independent studies also let me to read The Joys of Motherhood by Buchi Emecheta. Another Nigerian novel, set later than Achebe’s, but about the same culture (Ibo).

Aya by Marguerite Abouet and Clement Oubrerie, (there are 3 in the series) is a comic book! It’s about a teenage girl in Ivory Coast, when the country was going through economic growth in the 1970s. I love this book because it’s colourful, depicts the scenery of a West African city (it’s only missing the smells and the heat…) and tells funny stories about teenage girls while painting accurate portrayals of male-female relationships in West Africa. I really love these books.

a long way gone; memoirs of a boy soldier, by Ishmael Beah. A dear friend of mine gave this book to me due to my connection to Sierra Leone. I really enjoy how articulate Beah is in his writing, and I think one of the best revelations in this book is the power of music for Sierra Leoneans. Beah writes about his love of hip hop as a child, and how music helped him through the rehabilitation process. When he came to Toronto for a book reading I asked a question from the audience on what he thought about the prospects for music to help rebuild Sierra Leone. He lit up and talked about his favourite bands and their messages–Sierra Leoneans love their homegrown music more than anything else, and many of the artists challenge the politicians to really serve the people. However, I think that this book misses the opportunity to have this articulate person (with a BA in political science to boot) describe the politics of this war more deeply, which is unfortunate, and probably has more to do with the publisher than the writer. I understand that as a vehicle to promote more understanding of how child soldiers are really victimized children underneath it all, and to support UNICEF’s work, it’s a little too focused on the conflict than on insights into how it all happened and what it all means. I really hope that Beah decides to work with his success and write a book giving more insight into the politics of Sierra Leone and the war, which I think is still lacking in current literature.

BBC Focus on Africa. This magazine has a real knack for tapping into politics, elections, and pop culture across the continent. I remember opening up an issue on Sierra Leonean hip hop (see above) and seeing the picture of my friend’s uncle! It was so startling and fun to have that connection from the other side of the world.

Not my faves:

How de body? by Toen Voeten. Maybe he had good intentions, I dunno. It’s a horrible, sensational novel. I’m glad he found a noble cause in the end to give the proceeds of the book to, but why was he there in the first place? It reminds me of many other westerners I met there (and worked for) on ego trips, who went there to be able to depict themselves as heroes. This book promotes so many negative stereotypes of Africans, and African bureaucrats, which are all countered in most of the above books or by the above mentioned authors, it really annoys me. Actually, I think this is the only not my favourite right now. It probably is useful if you are planning to go work there in an international aid/development context, because it definitely describes accurately all the characters you will meet. And I don’t mean the Africans.