by Russell Craig
I'm a former New Zealand public servant with a long background in e-government and public management. I've also spent time working in the NZ health system and at the OECD. Now that I'm with the ... More about Russell Craig
Discussion
Be the first to start the discussion with a comment.Peak Moment: Oil and Gas -- The Next Meltdown?
This may be a little off topic for TCR, but my guess is that many visitors to this site have been a bit mesmerised by the global economic implosion currently in progress. While that crisis unfolds, it is easy to forget that other, potentially more serious, problems remain to be addressed.
I assume you are all well aware of peak oil and are likely to have heard of Matt Simmons I think he is someone worth listening to although, as this video shows, what he has to say is not pleasant.
The scenario Simmons examines, if (or more likely when?) it comes to pass, has profound ramifications not only for the USA but globally.
As to the relevance of this to TCR, two things come to mind. First, Simmons emphasises the importance of "liberating the workforce" (via telecommuting) as one of the most vital short-term responses required to reduce the risk of the scenario eventuating. For IBSG folk this is just a further argument in favour of changing the way people work in governnment or elsewhere.
Second, the peak oil story, like the economic implosion story or climate change, can be viewed as a case where the fate of billions of people depend on many things, but three in particular, namely:
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Vital decisions taken by elites, the processes by which they or their views are excluded from (witness here the overwhelming but futile public resistance to the US financial bailout package).
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The importance of information channels, control of which can skew opinions or decisions (an interesting unfolding case of which can be found in the battle that Al Gore's Alliance for Climate Protection is currently fighting with ABC.
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The increasing need for people to use networks to connect with one another in order to learn and respond to these types of challenges in ways that either augment or substitute for the (in)actions of government or business.