Category Archives: Climate Change

Fighting Fire with Fire?

Posted on 4 July, 2021 by The Steady State Manchester team

Mathew Lawrence and Laurie Laybourn-Langton (2021) Planet on Fire: A manifesto for the age of environmental breakdown. London: Verso. 280pp. £12.99 (hb).

Jonathan Neale (2021) Fight the Fire: Green New Deals and global climate jobs. London: Resistance Books. 348pp. Available as free e-book at: https://theecologist.org/sites/default/files/2021-02/Fight_the_Fire_0.pdf.

These are two very different books but with much in common. Both are concerned with how to respond to the climate and ecological emergency. Jonathan Neale’s (JN) focus is on the global level, while that of Mathew Lawrence and Laurie Laybourn-Langton (L&L-L) is primarily on the UK. Both argue strongly for a social democratic approach, by which I mean an emphasis primarily on public provision and governmental regulation to address the crisis. Continue reading →

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The timidity of Transport for the North (TfN)

Posted on 14 June, 2021 by The Steady State Manchester team

Transport for the North has released what it calls its Decarbonisation Strategy.  It is also asking for comments on it via its consultation process. Occasional contributor to this website, Peter Somerville, has provided the following commentary. The timidity of Transport … Continue reading →

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Bigger cuts for Manchester – in its annual greenhouse gas emissions

Posted on 30 July, 2020 by The Steady State Manchester team

Manchester now needs to make bigger cuts to its annual greenhouse gas emissions: A commentary on Manchester Climate Change Agency’s Annual Report A brief Annual Report for 2020 has been issued by Manchester Climate Change Agency. It is not a … Continue reading →

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Greater Manchester must heed Heathrow judgement on airport expansion

Posted on 27 February, 2020 by The Steady State Manchester team

GM-CAN’s Response to the Decision on Heathrow’s Proposed Third Runway We, the members of Greater Manchester Climate Action Network (GM-CAN1) welcome the news that Heathrow’s plan to build a third runway has been ruled unlawful. This ruling is a reminder … Continue reading →

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Re-focussing the economy in times of climate emergency and economic exclusion

Posted on 11 February, 2020 by The Steady State Manchester team

Re-focussing the economy in times of climate emergency and economic exclusion. Mark H Burton Based on a talk given to Manchester Labour Backbenchers’ Committee, 6 February, 2020. Republished at themeteor.org resilience.org and shorttermwealth.com    click for a pdf version In … Continue reading →

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Carbon budgets and footprints: a guide

Posted on 23 November, 2019 by The Steady State Manchester team

Greater Manchester Climate Network, with Green Drinks, organised a session called “Carbon Jargon Buster Workshop”. It was addressed by Joe Blakey from the University of Manchester. Joe has specialised in understanding the various methods and tools of carbon accounting, with … Continue reading →

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Net Zero Government? A submission to the Environment Audit Committee Inquiry

Posted on 21 October, 2019 by The Steady State Manchester team

Submission to Parliament Environment Audit Committee by Richard Shirres EAC INQUIRY INTO NET ZERO GOVERNMENT SUMMARY: This paper stresses why there is an urgency for Government Action; argues why the Government’s (June 2019) target is unambitious; the importance of Natural … Continue reading →

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How Green is My City? A Response to Manchester City Council leader’s blog post.

Posted on 16 October, 2019 by The Steady State Manchester team

Response to Manchester City Council leader’s blog post: How Green is My City Mark Burton (Submitted as a comment on Manchester City Council website and annotated here with links.  Comments appear to be disabled on the Leader’s blog, although the … Continue reading →

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