Friday, 12 October 2012

The people who run the world



In the face of the huge and wide ranging changes we as a species are forcing upon the planet you might be forgiven for wondering what one person can do. Can a single man or woman do anything to alter the course we have collectively set for the world? Probably not. Certainly as a private citizen there is no direct action that you or I can take as an individual to stop what is going on around us. By all means turn off your lights and recycle your takeaway packaging but, as the more cynical among us often point out, it will only make a real difference if everyone does the same.

However there are some people who can do more than most. From Washington to Whitehall, Berlin to Beijing those who govern have, more than anyone else, the power to control how we shape the future of the planet. There are Presidents and Prime Minister (who you’ve probably heard of), cabinet ministers (who you might have heard of) and special advisors (who you won’t have heard of). All of them are, in one way or another, responsible for the policy that governs what we can and can’t do to the planet. 

This blog aims, in the beginning at least, to shine a light on the decisions that these people have made (and continue to make). From funding for renewables to arctic drilling rights it is important that we know what decisions are being made on our behalf and how they will change our world. We must also ask how we as a wider society are contributing to the anthropogenic changes to the Earth. Is it the energy companies and multinationals than need to change their ways or do we all need to look in the mirror first?

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