Of Conferences and Men

With globalisation, I suppose you could say we have joined the 'real world' - we can now shop like the rest of the West and eat junk....


So with all things global, it would be nice to know about a less obvious outcome of the “Global Conference on Renewable Energy Approaches for Desert Regions” GCREADER held in Amman between 18th and 21st of September last year (nothing on their website). A great declaration was issued, click here: http://www.ju.edu.jo/confernces/gcreader/declaration.htm
Jordan went nuclear, and another war is about to be lauched in the land of the peacock ... and I thought that bird was a protected species!

In the preamble the declaration reads, among other things:
1. The current and an even further increasing world energy demand results in: conflicts for the limited fossil resources; climate changes and other environmental degradations.

3. The desert regions of the world are scarce in water but rich in renewable energy resources: within 6 hours they receive more energy from the sun than the world is using in one year.

4. The use of renewable energy resources, albeit abundant is still very low in all countries of arid and desert areas.

I suppose that last sentence applies to Jordan, so I have to wait until 2008 when they meet again and issue another declaration ... makes for great reading ... or is that what GCREADER stands for in reality - great curious reader. So as the sun beams down its gift to humanity in the desert, we mine for uranium and go nuclear, (so much for clean energy) and dig up the rest for private tourist resorts ...

..... and for the average man in the street? He still can't afford simple solar energy for humble human needs, it's too costly and is still not subsidized by the state; silly me I forgot, the state doesn't control the desert, the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority, or ASEZA for short, does ... J