Hi all, I'm Claudio, facilitator for our GAP sessions.
As you can see, we already have some nice discussions going on! Tomorrow afternoon we will finally come physically together for our first session.
For tomorrow, I need that some of you (perhaps some who has posted docs and comments) will present a summary of this preliminary discussions. This will take 5 minutes only, and no more than that
Just after, Gualter, Jean-Louis and Micha will present their stirring papers (them, also, in no more than 5 minutes each).
As you might know, this process is a follow-up of the Barcelona process, whose results have already been posted. So, a final short 5 minutes presentation of those results would also been beneficial to all of us, in order to connect with the earlier part of this process.
As a matter of organizing tomorrow's first get-together, we will of course present each other, then I will ask for some roles -typical for an assembly process- such as the time keeper, the minute keeper, the vibe keeper, etc. be ready for joining in the process, we are all protagonists here :)
See you tomorrow!
Sorry for cross posting, I am still trying to get to used to the interface of this little tool here....
1st working group session on Mobility and Transport
Stirring Paper:
S. Leidig, “Initiative on socially responsible mobility – saying no to traffic madness”, in Fourth International Conference on Degrowth for Ecological Sustainability and Social Equity, Leipzig, 2014.
Leid.pdf (215.75 KB)
Discussion
From the beginning of the working group session it was obvious that the topic of Mobility and Transport is very broad and allows for various controversial discussions. Therefore, participants had the chance to introduce the topics which are most important from their point of view. Here issues such as the growth in the general demand for transportation, the transformation of cities into livable spaces or the power of large multinational car-manufacturers were mentioned. Furthermore, several participants stressed the importance of considering the respective local conditions when developing solutions in order to achieve a more sustainable transportation system. Especially the different economic and cultural circumstances have to be considered.
Questions/Proposals
After a lively discussion on the issues a brainstorming followed where every participant was asked to come up with a concrete question/proposal which might be addressed by the group. Considering the aspects which were addressed by the participants two concepts came up, namely “local and regional design” and “facilitation of behavioral change”. In the following two sessions the working group will be divided into two in order to come up with ideas to tackle the problems related to the two concepts. In regard to the first concept “local and regional design” this will be concrete measures to decrease the use of public space for transportation as well as the use of resources. In the second group dealing with “the facilitation of behavioral change” it will be discussed if how these measures should be realized: Either in a top down or in a rather bottom up manner.
a. How should the issues of “resources and extraction” be approached from the core of the degrowth proposal and perspective?
b. How can the hegemony of developmentalism and extractivism in the global South and the global North be questioned? And what is the role of the DG proposal in the global North in this?
c. How can the experiences of struggles and proposals of the global South contribute to degrowth debates and practices in the global North?
Transition: mid-term; renewables
Consent:
(a) to abandon necessity of EXT … how … long run
(b) dialogue with global South; producing alternatives in common, beyond solidarity
Open questions:
(c) scale issues; alternatives
(d) what is the degrowth perspective?
1st step … to look at proposals yesterday (we propose a systematization)
2nd step: to complement (not too much!)
3rd step: how to continue? We propose to agree on some issues and discuss them in sub-groups; then plenary
4th step: to make more precise to refer to existing experiences, where are commonalities & differences?
- 1. Methodologically / perspectives
a) Regulation & Scale
b) To make resource flows for final products more visible
c) Steps necessary toward implementation & strengthening of necessary institutional arrangements (E-Transparency-promote at local level)
d) Analyze the feasibility of the proposals: consider power relations and possible strategies to achieve the aims
2) Premises / principles
a) How do we abandon the extractivist logic? What alternatives are there for extractivist economies … under which conditions EXT takes place? How to change politics promoting EXT?
b) North South dialogue; logic of EXT goes to the weakest points … need to learn from each other
Abandon in the mid-term the necessity to extract (for workers, states etc.)? HOW? - To define democratically the places where to extract fossil fuels, minerals at a minimum. – Context specific and going hand in hand with democratization; - Participation, self-government
SCALE: dependency of the local; how to change international dynamics?
c) We should not antagonize or idealize an alternative => take into consideration the differences in every scenario
d) Rethinking Technology
- Sufficiency (do we need cars, etc. …)
- How do we produce them (…sustainable, …)
Ex.: Repoliticize Renewable Energies (not because fossil fuels are better BUT because renewable energies also depend on extraction)
Technology transfer
Renewable energies
e) To question manipulative and political power of big corporations
Experience in Ecuador: induction heater subsidied by state in order to lower use of liquefied gas;
In North: obsession for cheap stuff
3) Campaigns / action:
a) Global conference on resource extractivism and alternatives
b) Free public transport
c) “Naming and shaming” of popular brands (e.g. Apple) for negative practices in the supply chain (fair stuff CONFLIFTS with degrowth?)
d) To counter planned obsolescence
- Technology
- Lifestyle
- => course of extractive logic
e) Introducing resource issues into trade unions/ job issues (RSA (?), one million climate jobs)
f) Hegemonizing degrowth
- more presence in mainstream media
- broad educational campaigns
- research (more public)
4) Networking / knowledge flows
a) Good information network => education of affected people
b) Trans-disciplinary education: Engage engineers with socio-economic results
5) Knowledge production / research
a) Identify dependency structures and find ways to avoid/ change it
b) Mapping of resistance – systematize (cf. EJOLT project)
c) Research in “cleaner” and “greener” technologies/alternatives (do not let us be greenwashed)
d) To look at who is benefitting with the renewable energies (e.g.). For what?
Open the ecological to other dimensions