A Crack in the Asphalt

Environmentalist Elizabeth May to Speak in Oakville

Thursday, August 10, 2006
7:30 - 9:00pm

South Atrium, Oakville Town Hall
1225 Trafalgar Road
Oakville, ON, Canada

Environmentalist, author and Order of Canada recipient Elizabeth May's biography reads:

Elizabeth May is an environmentalist, writer, activist, and lawyer. She has been Executive Director of the Sierra Club of Canada since 1989. She is a member of the Board of the International Institute of Sustainable Development and is former vice-chair of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy. In 1999, Dalhousie University created a permanent chair in her honour, the Elizabeth May Chair in Women’s Health & the Environment. She has receivednumerous rewards, including the United Nations Global 500 award and 2 honourary doctorates. She is the author of four books. In 2005, Elizabeth May was honoured to be appointed as an Officer to the Order of Canada. She is currently running for leader of the Green Party.

Sponsored by The Green Party, the event is free and open to the public; however, those planning to attend are asked to RSVP to Nancy Robertson 905-842-8126.

Come experience a more richly connected way of life in our world-renowned ecovillage and cohousing community in Ithaca, NY.

Enjoy a balance of nature connection, personal renewal and hands-on learning while:

There will also be time to create delicious meals from local foods, swim in our pond, and explore Ithaca's famous gorges. For more information, click here.

The Oil Depletion Protocol is an international agreement that will enable nations of the world to cooperatively reduce their dependence on oil. It was proposed by Dr. Colin Campbell, a prominent petroleum geologist and founder of the Association for the Study of Peak Oil and Gas (ASPO), in 2002.

By agreeing to reduce oil imports and exports by a specified amount each year, about 2.6 percent, signatory nations will help mitigate the negative consequences of an over-reliance on cheap oil and help prepare for a global decline in the world’s oil supply. The premise of the Protocol is inherently straightforward: oil importing nations would agree to reduce their imports by an agreed-upon yearly percentage, referred to as the World Oil Depletion Rate, while oil producing nations would agree to reduce their rate of production by their National Depletion Rate. This simple and sensible formula will produce, in effect, a global rationing system. If the entire world adopted the Protocol, global consumption of oil would decline by almost 3 percent per annum, thus stabilizing prices, preserving the resource base, and reducing competition for remaining supplies.

To read the Oil Depletion Protocol as drafted by Dr. Colin Campbell, click here.

LIGHT OBJECTS: A Design Competition On Sustainability
Presented by Dassault Systèmes

The impact of our exponentially escalating consumer culture on the environment has blossomed into a widespread and heavily discussed global concern. As the creators and innovators of the objects of consumption, designers have a great potential to influence, shape, and even redirect these trends.

Light Objects asks participants to submit design concepts--for any product, service or system--that are thoughtful, forward-looking, elegant and environmentally beneficial. Designers are encouraged to go farther than making their entries 'sustainable' or merely reducing the negative impact that production or use of an object has on the environment. Entries should push the concept of lightness in every way, from material selection and reduction to objects that actively improve our environment through use. The idea of "light objects" creates new opportunities for sustainable innovation in the future.

(Note: The focus of this competition is not about lighting or light fixtures, though such products may be entered; rather, we are looking for design solutions in all areas of human enterprise.)

Dassault Systèmes, is committed to furthering sustainable design practice, and this exhibition will highlight how their software tools can help designers reduce and track material usage, increase production efficiency, reduce energy consumption and promote design for disassembly. For this show, Dassault Systèmes is looking for 5 exemplary designs that lead the way in sustainability innovation

Winning designs will be realized into 3D models — complete with manufacturing considerations — and shared with the public in a 10-month symposium starting on October 17, 2006 at the Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie of Paris.

Dassault Systèmes will work with winning designers to faithfully realize their entries, sharing modeling, manufacturing, and part geometry knowledge along the way.

Dassault Systèmes will be awarding US$9000 in prize money for the winning entries. In addition, experts from Dassault Systèmes will realize the winning entries using a variety of computer 3D modeling software packages, including CATIA for design and ENOVIA for specific Eco-Design practices (material tracking, extensive sourcing, regulatory compliance.

For complete details of how to enter, click here.