About the Book
All over the world people are searching for answers and explaination of their place in the world in the 21st century. This book is an attempt to raise some of the issues and to provide some solutions or pointers as to where those solutions might lie. One of the Editors, Miriam Kennet having just returned from visiting Athens, is currently involved in rethinking some of the philosophical positions of early writers on ec0nomics. Western philosophy is epitomised by the classical Greek period which produced very clear thinking and Socratic style debate. However in Athens democracy did not extend to women or slaves and so most of the population was entirely disenfranchised. This lack of empowerment has continued to come down to us as a disdain for poverty and a wish to be rich among significant proportions of the population and concerned Socrates at the time and his insistence in worrying about it may have contributed to his untimely death for his ideas. This and is very clearly discussed in Alain de Botton's exciting philosophical work The Consolations of Philosophy. (2000).As the continuous pursuit of riches is really no l0nger viable in the 21st century as we come up against the exhaustion of our finite planet's resources, we must find ourselves a new ethic in order to allow us to understand our place and our role in the globalised economy.
The lack of such an ethic is perhaps creating malaise which is manifesting itself in a mismatch between the rulers and the ruled and in an age of revolution not unlike the 1848 revolutions, during which many countries experienced political unrest. Even the European Union, in many respects a " civilising " force is under particular threat as a specific target of nationalist and populist scapegoating and so it is vital to create an ethic, a code and a feeling of belonging to the whole human family, as we face external threats together, from climate change, sea level rise and general depletion of and damage to the very resources on which we depend, as well as internal threats from over population. Ethics is at once about the moral aspects of philosophy, for which the green movement has been at the forefront of offering life style changes for people to absorb their changed situation.There is also a need for an ethics related to culture and the " way we do things" and a new ethic -" based on the " truth of our situation " enabling us to face for example climate change is very much needed as people are currently so scared as to be in denial.De Botton argues that an appeal to the dictates of reason is the answer .
(P42 De Botton 2001). It is significant that one of the mot influencial philosophers who ever lived was sacrificed by a crowd of men who equated knowledge and thought with a lack of vigour in military campaigns and also how much of ancient Greece's " philosophical and historical output" was concerned with wars. At the Green Economics Institute, we are interested in the most efficient way to run our economy, at all levels and so it is fascinating to revisit Xenophon (Xenophon BC ...)who from the literature appears to have invented the science of Economics as we know it. Even there it is a shame that more was not said about economics but rather its in the shadow of responses to war.It may well be that the philosophers job- and particularly that of the " ethics philosophers job" is to make people re - examine their most intimately held beliefs and norms and to drag them into a new age. In which case philosophers may never be popular because they are saying what people dont want to hear and which cuts against their most comfortingly held beliefs.
De Botton argues that a strong need for the affection from others is what we all crave and this may well be something that philosophers in particular in a time of rapid environmental and social change can never achieve. If they do achieve it then their work may well be largely redundant. It is certainly true that many great thinkers in science and philosophy have been imprisoned and many have been put to death accused of being a danger to the status quo which to a certain extent they are. We can argue that in respect of climate change only Noah escaped this threat and turned out to be proven right. A powerful allegory about how trusting ones views on truth should be relied upon no matter how much mockery one receives from other people.In compiling this book we were overwhelmed by responses, as people clearly are searching for meaning and for answers. The responses and the need we have discussed with people from many countries and we think these may fall into several categories. One is an " ethic " or way of behaving like a code- in the same kind of style as for example Hamurabi, Sargon,Moses, Gilgmesh or Napolean.
These interestingly turn out to be of varying degrees of inclusiveness, for example some very helpful to women and others not at all. It seems people do want some kind of universal ethic, for humanity- as its enlarged neighbourhood now involves. It is perhaps the lack of this which can spread extremist tendencies around the globe so quickly especially among young people People perhaps like to have the certainty of how to behave but also the symbolism of how to belong. The idea of in groups and out groups is very strong -a post tribal feeling reflected in the west with very strong glue like adherence to football clubs and in both the ability to don the symbolic clothing of belonging is significant and makes a statement about the wearer.As local small scale consumption, production and supply breakdown, people are seeking a replacement of that symbolism of a feeling of belonging and so they find it in any way that seems available. We have been struck how much people are seeking this comfort.
We think that some of this comes from the rapid changes in the 20th century and the building of the technological revolutions on 2 foundations, one is neo liberal economics and the other an appeal to or cover of dispationate enlightenment reason. However, these are false premises, as the enlightenment was not always a period of dispationate reason, on the contrary it was ushered in with the utmost revoluti0nary violence and strong feelings and could be used falsely to aruge that ideas such as main stream economics were finally ideology and values free- which in fact nothing is or can be. Secondly the ideas of the end of history,(Fukiyama) the end of boom and bust and the general taming of nature, "there is no such thing as society" (Thatcher)- the idea that humankind is in charge, a steward of the natural world.At the turn of the Millenium, the force of the Asian Tunami which affected people in many countries of the world awoke us from that belief. It suddenly became much clearer that nature is in chage and will always remain so and we disrespect it at our peril.
The extreme flooding of New Orleans delivered a similar message as did the flooding of New York and the return of big freezes. We are not and never can be in charge of nature and its powerful forces. In that respects the very ancient civilisations were actually correct. Strangely worshipping the sun, the moon, thunder and the sea makes much much more sense today than worshipping shopping and big bonuses and posh jobs. We need a radical rethink. No one is suggesting a return to paganism, however a healthy respect for nature and its forces, expressed in other ways, really is important and needs to be reinforced amongst our economists and our political leaders. It is clear that many people in many countries are worried about population growth, and displacement of people's and immigration.They are scared and its true that in the case of Europe its entire personality and history was changed during the age of huge migrations around the 5th century as peoples moved eastwards to form what we understand today as the barbarian invasions.
This movement is however driven in many cases by poverty in the home country and a wish for a better life but also by the advance of climate and environmental change for which at present there has been no official ethic as to how to deal with it. On the contrary some of the richest men on the planet have chosen to put their efforts into denial and an industry aimed at producing false science and telling the public what they want to hear, which is that is no change is happening and the scientists are all wrong, rather than helping people understand it and to modify their behaviour to cope or even to slow down the pace of change. When we add to this the various technological revolutions achieved in the 20th century, oil, cars, space, internet then its clear that ethics, moralism, philosophy took very much a back seat and suddenly in the new world order people are desperate for a feeling of belonging and continuity.Once again they are turning to ethics and morality in huge numbers and anyone offering this is much sought after. Hence this book is coming unexpecetedly for us at a point of need for moral reasoning and moral philosophy or ethics on the part of many people.
It is significant that when we ask people about the huge industry of ethical investment people often dont know what ethics is all about or what it means or is trying to do. They think it is vaguely about " good" or the "good life" described by Aristotle but beyond that, they have no idea. This book is an attempt to begin to answer some of those questions and to begin to give a context for some of those decisions.It is certainly true that the idea of linear and gradual progression has been challenged by the ideas of science and Global Environmental Change. For me that understanding came when it became clear that the monsoon in India suddenly changes from one year to the next- one day it carries sea water and the next it changes course and is dry rather than drier.The philosophy of Black Swan events (Taleb) is very fitting for examining the drastic effects of climate change or increased seismology or even the health effects of nuclear power. The effects do not safely ramp up slowly, the so called " frog in a kettle" syndrome applies.
We are all lulled into a false sense of security, much like the birds fed every day by the farmers wife, and they trust her to keep feeding them and don't realise she is doing it because one day she will kill and eat them. We need to consider the science that supports the Black Swan hypothesis rather than the former idea of gently ramping up climate change. A change in the UK weather to the new position of the jet stream is producing more extreme weather and events. A change in the climate in many countries is non linear and dramatic with more extreme events as more energy is used by the atmosphere to create more and more strong and destructive hurricanes for example. This book is divided into 3 areas, firstly it discusses and different ways Ethics and questions of ethics, codes of ethics, past present and future have been answered before in the past and around different societies.The second part of the book investigates, explores and critiques concepts of Corporate Social Responsiblity and also other areas of social responsibilities and other ways of affecting social change. It explores the social dilemas of responsible behaviour given current knowledge.
The effects on people and on labour are explored by Ietto Gilies in her economics books. This is a new way of examing the output of trade and economics. (Ietto Gilies) and which has been very influential in the development of green economics. Similarly stakholder theory is discussed and often corporate social responsibility has been described as the "instrumental arm of stakeholder theory". (Feedman 1994 and O Carrol) However this is a problem as the aim of stakeholder theory is always to help and to conserve the firm rather than the people. These ideas might be described as a theory or method, loading the dice against the people and towards the power elites in what Foucault would criticise as an institutional power inbalance. On the other hand, its probably better to have them and to have firms at least considering their effects than not worrying about them at all.The book then explores some common dilemas about the Ethics in relation to everyday practises and daily life including green and contemporary issues and debates about the basics of life -food, health, energy, climate, transport.The book also examines aspects of our relationship with nature.
For example is it still ok to eat meat given that we are now certain that other species feel pain and fear and chimps even have culture which was assumed to be a specifically human trait. If culture is no longer uniquely human then do we actually have a unique and special place in the world or was that an erroneous and conceited assumption. If not what is our place in the world amongst other species? Finally we discuss the issue of Economics Governance and some of the Green Economics ideas and literature movements as well as more practical financial possibilities around at the moment. This book refines and nuances the debate about what an ethics for the 21st century would look like and the contested views about the role of corporations and how to work to ensure they produce results which benefit society as a whole.It discusses stakeholder theory, corporate social responsibility and ethical entrepreneurship and strategies for change.It provides a Green Economics Perspective on Ethics, Social Responsibility and Economics Governance.
Table of Contents:
List of Contributors Part 1A: Ethics and Moral Philosophy for Our Times 1.1 Introduction By Miriam Kennet and Michelle S. Gale de Oliveira 1.2 Ethics By Tore Hoie (Norway) 1.3 Questioning 'Environmental Sustainability': Toward a 'route map' for developing an ecologically orientated philosophy of 'Environmental Justice' By Professor Michael Benfield 1.4 Ecological Values and Bhuddism By Laszlo Zsolnai (Hungary) 1.5 Ethics and the Greening of China By Hans-Guenter Wagner (China and Germany) 1.6 The Pre-moral Problem in Environmental Ethics By W. Thomas Duncanson (Australia) 1.7 Ecology, Justice, and Equality: Green Ideas for Ethical change By Sandy Irvine Part 2: Section A Corporate Social Responsibility: The Ethics of Our Place in the World and Sharing with Other People - The Ethics of Poverty and Inequality 2.1 The Idea of Responsibility By Laszlo Zsolnai (Hungary) 2.2 Green Economics Perspective of Corporate Social Responsibility By Miriam Kennet 2.3 Denying Oil Exploitation and Corruption in the Nile Delta By Grimot Nane (Nigeria and UK) 2.4 Mineral Exploitation and Sustainable Development (case of Democratic Republic of Congo) By Freddy Tshibundu Shamwana (DRCongo and UK) 2.5 The Application of Green Economics in Business and Rural India: Methods and tools By Dr. Natalie West Kharkongor (India) 2.6 UK Retailers' Environmental Aspects of CSR Strategies: Evaluation and Criticisms on Their Performance By Ryota Koike (UK and Japan) Part 2 Secti0n B Poverty and Inequality: Social Responsiblity and Society 2. 7 Green Economics and the Poor By Don O'Neil (St. Vincent) 2..8 Is there a Relationship between Health and Wealth? Evidence from Egypt By Dr Doaa Mohamed Salman and Dr Eyad Mohammed Atya (Egypt) 2. 9 African Development: A New Light for The Next Millennia By Mahelet Alemayehu Mekonnen (Ethopia) 2.10 Global economic integration and urban inequality in Brazil, 1970-2010 By Jose Ricardo Barbosa Goncalves and Maria Alejandra Caporale Madi (Brazil) 2.11 The Food Crisis in Latin America By Carlos Francisco Restituyo Vassallo (Dominican Republic) Part 3: Social Responsibility Health Ethics & governance 3.1 How saving the planet will improve our health By David Flint 3.2 The Descent of Authority in Public Discourse on Environmental Health By W. Thomas Duncanson (Australia) 3.3 Health ethics of workers By Enrico Tezza (Italy) Part 4: Social Responsibility The Ethics of Our Current Food Systems and Governance 4.1 Genetically Modified Food By Bianca Madison-Vuleta 4.2 Global Food Security - Analysis And Solutions By Bianca Madison-Vuleta 4.3 The True Cost of Factory Pig Farming By Tracy Marchioness of Worcester 4.4 Introduction to Food Ethics By Rose Blackett-Ord Part 5: Social Responsibility Women and Inclusion 5.1 Women's unequal pay and poverty By Miriam Kennet and Michelle S. Gale de Oliveira 5.2 Women in the World Today: Women's Political and Economic Status. By Amana Winchester 5.3 Women Doctors at St. Mary's: A History By Dr. Katherine Kennet, MBBS BSC. 5.4 Indian Maternal Health and Welfare Outcomes By Dr. Katherine Kennet, MBBS BSC. Part 6: Social Responsibility, Energy and economics governance 6.1 From Carbon Markets Towards Climate Social Justice By Maria Delfina Rossi 6.2 10 Key Points for the Renewable Energy Society in the 21st Century By Ryota Koike 6.3 Agricultural Greening: Organic Production And Chernobyl Contaminated Areas By Vyacheslav Potapenko (Ukraine) Part 7: Social Responsibility, Transport, and Governance 7.1 How Transport and Access Really Affect Ethics Today By Richard Holcroft 7.2 Flying in the Face of Modern Aviation Rose Bridger 7.3 Bring on a Transport Revolution! By John Stewart 7.4 What Transport Is the World Using? By Richard Holcroft Part 8: Ethics, Social Responsibility, and the Intergenerational Oppression of Unfettered Population Growth. By Chit Chong Part 9: Survivability Ethics, Social Responsibility and Economics Governance: Beyond Endless Growth and Consumption 9.1 The Tragedy of the commons. Why we are not being careful enough By Clive Lord 9.2 Gifting: The New Approach to Economy Manan Jain (India) 9.3 How markets have unsustainability built into them By Stephen Mandel Part 10: Ethics, Social Responsibility and Governance- The Ethics of Survivability, Resilience and Sustainability 10.1 Avoiding Extinction By Graciela Chichilnisky(USA and Argentina) 10.2 The Economics of the Anthropocene By Sir Crispin Tickell 10.3 Reforming the Financial System to create an ethical and inclusive Economy By Professor Chow Fah Yee (Malaysia) Part 11: Moral philosophical questions: The Ethics of our place in the world which we share with people, nature and other species 11.1 Compassion in world farming By Philip Lymbery 11.2 Green economics working for elephants and people in the Sahel of Mali By Dr. Susan Canney 11.3 Striking The Balance Between the Palm Oil Industry and Orangutan Conservation By Nadia Yusticka Bintoro (Indonesia) 11.4 Learning to revalue nature By Kristof and Stacia Nordin Part 12: Debating Green Economics Governance 12.1 Global Governance, Hierarchy of Currencies and Volatile Capital Flows By Maria Alejandra Caporale Madi and Jose Ricardo Barbosa Goncalves 12.2 The Latest Developments and Issues in Environmental and Green Economics By Miriam Kennet and Michelle S. Gale de Oliveira 12.3 The Shadow Market: The Powerhouse of the Sovereign Wealth Funds and the Contemporary Economic World Order By Miriam Kennet 12.4 The Greening of Global Finance: Re-Conceptualizing, Reforming and Reclaiming Finance for Resilience, Survivability and Sustainability in the 21st and 22nd Centuries By Professor Maria Alejandra Madi and Miriam Kennet 12.5 Green Economics: Its recent development and background By Miriam Kennet and Michelle S. Gale de Oliveira Part 13: Green Economics ideas for Economics Governance By Miriam Kennet, Jeff Turk and Michelle S. Gale de Oliveira References and Bibliography Publications
About the Author :
Editorial team and writers -but about 40 other writers will be included:Professor Michael Benfield, Volker Heinemann Green Economics, Miriam Kennet Green Economics, Michelle Gale Human Rights Tore Hedin (Norway) Ethics and the corporation and integration of ethics Rose Blackett Ord PhilosophyDr Eyad Mohammed Atya (Egypt) is a Professor in the Economics Department of Zagazig University, Egypt. Professor Michael Benfield has been a delegate to UNCTAD for the Commonwealth Human Ecology Council, a Founder Member of the Community Land Trust, and advisor to the trustees of the Walter Segal Self-Build Trust, which promotes the use of timber frame structures for low-cost self-build housing and other community structures. As a member of the Faculty of Building's prestigious Low Cost Housing Committee he presaged many of the sustainable building issues now coming to the fore. He is one of the four co-founders of what is now the international Green Party and movement. Professor Benfield is a frequent speaker at environmental, timber, construction and housing-orientated events, nationally and internationally.He is former chair of the UK TFA's Construction Industry Training Committee and currently serves as a board member of the national New Homes Marketing Board, the Home Builder's Federation (Wales) executive, the Wales Forest Business Partnership and Wood Knowledge Wales, which he chairs. He is also managing director of the Benfield ATT Group (Advanced Timber-Frame Technology), Chartered Building Consultants and Chartered Surveyors, who design, manufactures and build engineered timber frame structures for housing, schools, leisure, hospitality, health care, etc. and provide 'one stop' professional services for timber-frame projects. Nadia Yusticka Bintoro is a recipient of the British Chevening Award 2010/2011, she holds an MA in International Multimedia Journalism from University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK and Bachelor of Business (Marketing) from Swinburne University of Technology, Australia. She has worked with the Press Association and BBC World Service in London as a journalist and communication specialist. Currently, she is a contributing journalist for several English newspapers in Indonesia; specialising in culture, travel and social phenomena in Indonesia. She's also pursuing an active career as Head of Marketing Communication for Surfer Girl Indonesia - a lifestyle brand which was crowned as the biggest brand in social media in South East Asia by the Techinasia in 2012. Rose Blackett-Ord is a graduate of Oxford University and Le Cordon Bleu. She now works as a freelance chef and writer, and has a particular interest in rural and green issues relating to food. Her work includes local, seasonal and wild food recipes. Rose writes green and gourmet recipes for a number of publications, including for the Green Economics Institute, where she co-edited a number of books, including Green Economics: the Greening of Food, Farming and Agriculture and the Greening of Poetry and the Arts. Rose Bridger has written about aviation for several years for a range of publishers, and her first book about aviation, 'Plane Truth', was published in October 2013. She recently spoke at a conference at the House of Commons about aviation before the chair of the Transport Select Committee. Rose also has vast experience in food and the environment, on which she has produced a large volume of writing, and she has worked on the Local Agenda 21 and environmental policy in London and Kirklees. Dr Susan Canney has worked on a variety of nature conservation projects in Africa, Asia and Europe (living for several years in Niger and Tanzania) and as a research officer for Sir Crispin Tickell at the Green College Centre for Environmental Policy & Understanding. With MAs in Natural Sciences, Landscape Design, and Environmental Policy, and a Doctorate for understanding the drivers behind changing human land use and its impact on a protected area in Tanzania, her current research activities are centred on the use of spatial techniques for understanding human impact on ecosystems and wildlife. This understanding is used to find sustainable solutions in order to manage human-wildlife conflict; plan and implement conservation strategy; and develop participatory approaches to conservation management. Current projects include assuring a future for a unique population of elephants in the sub-Sahara of Mali as Project Leader of the WILD Foundation's Mali Elephant Project. Based in Oxford University's Zoology Department, she teaches global ecology and is interested in the shift in scientific perspective presented by systemic approaches such as Lovelock's Gaia Theory; and in exploring the implications of this shift for society, its institutions, as well as for the individual's experience of Nature. She is the Secretary and a Co-founder of the Earth System Science Special Interest Group of the Geological Society of London, and of the Gaia Network. She teaches on the issues surrounding the notion of valuing nature for the Green Economics Institute and is a member of their Biodiversity Group. Professor Dr Graciela Chichilnisky PhD (USA and Argentina) has worked extensively in the Kyoto Protocol process, creating and designing the carbon market that became international law in 2005. She also acted as a lead author of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which received the 2007 Nobel Prize. A frequent keynote speaker, special adviser to several UN organisations and heads of state, her pioneering work uses innovative market mechanisms to reduce carbon emissions, conserve biodiversity and ecosystem services and improve the lot of the poor. She is a Professor of Economics and Mathematical Statistics at Columbia University and the Sir Louis Matheson Distinguished Professor at Monash University. Chit Chong has been an environmental campaigner and environmental professional for over two decades. He has been a member of the Green Economics Institute since it started. He was the first Green Councillor to be elected in London and is now a member of the Alliance for Future Generations which seeks to promote the representation of future generations in the decision making processes of today. He works as an environmental consultant helping organisations and individuals to reduce their emissions from their buildings. www.LowCarbonKnowHow.co.uk Dr W. Thomas Duncanson, Ph.D.,(Australia) is an Associate Professor in the Department of Communication at Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, USA. His research and writing has focused on the "speech thought" of Eugen Rosenstock-Huessy, as well as issues of communication ethics and public moral argument. In recent years Duncanson has written primarily about environmental advocacy and economic rhetoric. David Flint is a Senior Visiting Fellow at the Cass Business School, London. He has spent thirty years studying Information Technology and its application and interpreting his findings for senior managers in business and public service. He has written two books and a great many reports, advised hundreds of organisations and lectured on four continents. Professor Dr Jose Ricardo Barbosa Goncalves, holds a PhD in Economic History. Professor and researcher at the State University of Campinas, Brazil. His recent publications include: Corporate social responsibility: credit and banking inclusion in Brazil and Private equity investment and labor: faceless capital and the challenges to trade unions in Brazil. He currently works at the intersection between labor rights, social inclusion and economic development in a historical perspective. Dr Nane Grimot is a researcher at London South Bank University, department of Development Studies. A specialist in Nigeria, Dr Grimot's research interests lie in the economics of governance and the corruption history of economics. He specialises in the Political Economy of Development, Energy Management and Business Development of SMEs. Dr Tore Audun Hoie has published 5 books, and is now working on new book on Nordic Management. One book received a national prize in 2006. Participating in a political project to "create the best school system in the world." Guest lectures in technology in nursing. Experience from consulting in more than 50 organisations. PhD computer science, HND management, BSc(Hons)civil engineering. He writes especially on ethics. Volker Heinemann is an economist who studied at the Universities of Goettingen, Kiel and Nottingham. He is a specialist in international and developing economics, monetary economics and macroeconomic theory and policy. He is author of the book "Die Oekonomie der Zukunft," "The Economy of the Future," a book outlining a green structure for a contemporary economy that accepts the pressing changes that are needed to outdated current economic thinking. He is co-founder and Director and CFO of the Green Economics Institute, a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales, trained at PWC and other major Institutions and is a Deputy Editor of the International Journal of Green Economics. He is a popular radio and TV speaker in Europe and a former Die Gruenen Councillor. Dr. Mayer Hillman is Senior Fellow Emeritus of the Policy Studies Institute. He is the author of numerous reports and books and has made significant contributions to policy debates on a huge range of issues from transport to daylight saving. Lord Young of Dartington has described his work as 'outstanding' and 'formidable'. To mark his 70th birthday the Policy Studies Institute published a book of essays about him called Ahead of Time. He lives in West Hampstead, London. Dr Mayer is a specialist in quality of life and expert in transport issues,and in particular alternatives to car transport who has carried out very important research into such issues as transporting children to school by car as an important contributor to overall car usage and how to reduce this by lifestyle changes. Richard Holcroft is an economist and mathematician at the University of Durham researching in aspects of transport and its environmental and socio-economic impacts. He recently ran a conference at the House of Commons on transport and climate change, chaired by Louise Ellman MP, chair of the Commons Transport Select Committee, whom he compiled a report for on transport policy. He has delivered this research at the Oxford Union. Richard is a delegate of the Kyoto Protocol, attending COP 19 in Warsaw, November 2013. Additionally, worked in freight management at SMC Industrial, an international engineering company in the Netherlands. Sandy Irvine writes about Green Ethics and is active in Newcastle and originally joined the then Ecology Party back in the early 1980s. He is an active member of the national charity Population Matters. Amongst other published work, he co-authored the book A Green Manifesto and a pamphlet Beyond Green Consumerism for Friends of the Earth. Prior to retirement, he worked in a local Further Education college where his specialism was Film Studies. His M.Sc. was a thesis on reforesting the uplands. Recently he has been very active in local land use battles triggered by the pro-growth strategies of local and national government. Manan Jain An economist from India, specialising in the Gift Economy. Manan addressed the Green Economics Institutes Conference at Oxford University in 2012 Dr Katherine Kennet is a medical doctor who trained at Imperial College, London University, UK and also is a Global Health specialist. She is now based in the UK and has practised medicine in Nepal as well. Her research focus is on women's health status and the link to wealth and poverty. She has written extensively on materal healthcare in India and outcomes for maternal health and well being in Nepal, and is also interested in mental health and pyschiatry. Miriam Kennet is a specialist in Green Economics and is currently researching into new ways of looking at Ethics, Stakeholder Theory and Corporate Social Responsibililty. She is especially interested at the moment in Ancient Greek ideas and their ethical ideas. She is the Co-Founder and is CEO of the Green Economics Institute She also founded and edits the first Green Economics academic journal in the world, the International Journal of Green Economics, and she has been credited with creating the academic discipline of Green Economics. Green Economics has been recently described by the Bank of England as one of the most vibrant and healthy areas of economics at the moment. She was taught about ethics at Oxford University during her studies there. She is a member of Mansfield College and the Environmental Change Institute, both at University of Oxford. The BBC has made a special programme about her life and work. She runs regular conferences at Oxford University about Green Economics. Publishing regularly and having over 100 articles, papers and books. She has been featured in the Harvard Economics Review and Wall Street Journal as a leader. Recently she was named one of 100 most powerful unseen global women by the Charity One World. She is also a regular and frequently speaks at public events of all kinds, most recently to the North West Region of the National Health Service on the latest ideas in Health and Well Being. She is a popular after dinner speaker, and has advised in the Uk Parliament and the Bank of England and in Brussels on the Eurozone crisis, the high speed rail and the general economics situation. She has taught, lectured and spoken at Universities and events all over Europe, from Alicante to Oxford and Bolzano, and to government officials from Montenegro and Kosovo to The UK Cabinet Office, Transport Department, National Government School and Treasury and spoken in Parliaments from Scotland to Austria and The French Senat and Estonia. She is also very active in spreading Green Economics in Asia, China, and all round Africa where people find it may be one of the beacons of hope at the moment in an age of Austerity and Cuts as it provides a completely new way of looking at the world. She is on the Assembly of the Green European Foundation. She has a delegation to the UNFCC COP Kyoto Climate Change Conferences and headed up a delegation to RIO + 20 Earth Summit: Greening the Economy in RIO Brazil where she is very active. She regularly speaks on TV around Europe. Dr. Natalie West Kharkongor, currently an Assistant Professor of Economics at IIM Shillong, received the Broad Outlook Learner Teacher Award from the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh in 2004. She also received the Rashtriya Gaurav Award with Certificate of Excellence in 2011 in New Delhi. She has presented and published a number of papers. She was the Joint Secretary of North Eastern Economic Association and the Vice President of Meghalaya Economic Association. Ryota Koike is a researcher from Japan, analysing post-Fukushima Japanese energy policies. He has a broad range of academic interests from peace and development to environmental and nuclear issues. He is a regular speaker and a trainer in workshops and a popular lecturer on green economics and energy policy including at a conference held at Oxford University. Clive Lord was a founder member of the English and Welsh Greens in 1973, He served as a Probation officer for 30 years, retiring in 1994. Clive's book, 'A Citizens' Income - a Foundation for a Sustainable World' was published in 2003, but he is hoping to have an improved update published in future. He maintains that his cohtrbution to the debate on sustainability is fundamental to those from others able to take matters forward. Philip Lymbery is Chief Executive of Compassion in World Farming. Please visit ciwf.org to find out more about Compassion in World Farming Professor Dr Maria Alejandra Madi, holds a PhD in Economics. She works at the intersection between macroeconomics, finance and socio-economic development. Retired Professor at the State University of Campinas, Brazil, she is currenty Director of the Ordem dos Economistas do Brasil and Counselor at the Conselho Regional de Economia - SP. Besides her participation as co-author in chapter books edited by the Global Labor University, she is a regular author with the Green Economics Institute. Steven Mandel After spending more than 20 years as a development economist working both as a civil servant in Africa and a consultant in Africa, South Asia, Pacific and FSU/Eastern Europe, specialising in transport, national and sectoral planning, aid management and budget reform, Steve joined the New Economics Foundation where he worked on Third World Debt, international financial institutions and reform of international financial architecture. He is now a freelance consultant working on these issues and a research associate of the Department of International Development at Birmingham University and a member of the Green Economics Institute. Mahelet Alemayehu Mekonnen is an Ethiopian economist qualified in economics and political science from Richmond The American University in London. She heads up our Africa team. She is economics advisor for the management team. She is a firm believer in education and believes in tackling one of the most important problems we are facing in the global world, particularly the issue of climate change and inequality towards women. Her work relates to examining large projects and questions of sustainability - and development. Kristof and Stacia Nordin are the co-founders of Never Ending Food, a community-based endeavor to improve the health of the planet and all of its living organisms through the use of natural, restorative, and sustainable design principles. They have been living and working in Malawi, Africa since 1997 in the areas of HIV, food security, nutrition, and community education. Stacia is a Registered Dietitian and Kristof is a Writer with a background in Social Work and Community Organizing. They both hold Diplomas in Permaculture Design. Their 9 year old daughter, Khalidwe, was born in Malawi and is already an aspiring Permaculturalist. "In 1997, my wife and I were asked by the government of Malawi, Africa to move to this sub-Saharan nation to work on issues of HIV and nutrition. We quickly came to the realization that our initial efforts of attempting to integrate HIV with nutrition were incomplete without an additional emphasis on agriculture, economics, overall health, and sustainable living. When we began to explore the issues pertaining to Malawi's agriculture, we found that the great majority of the country had become dependent upon the production of a single staple crop - maize (corn) - to meet the demands of 'food security'. We also found that it was this limited agricultural focus which was leading, both directly and indirectly, to many of the other problems that the country faced in terms of malnutrition, poverty, disease, and environmental degradation,. This compelled us to begin looking for local solutions to these local challenges. What we found not only amazed us, but transformed our entire perception of terms such as 'agriculture', 'food security', 'economics', and 'development'." Michelle S. Gale de Oliveira is a director of the Green Economics Institute, UK.She is a member of the Law School of the University of London School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), holding an MA in Human Rights Law with a focus on Islamic Law, Peace-Building, and Developing Countries, specifically South Sudan. Founder of the Gender Progress Consortium, she holds degrees in Political Science and International Relations from Richmond, the American International University in London (RAIUL). She is a deputy editor of the International Journal of Green Economics. Her writing has been featured in Europe's World, one of the foremost European policy magazines. She lectures and speaks on Human Rights, Environmental and Social Justice, Gender Equity, International Development and Green Economics internationally. She also ran a conference on women's unequal pay and poverty in Reading, UK, lectured at the Oxford University Club on the human rights of land reform, is a regular speaker at international conferences and has appeared in the media in Africa, Europe, and Latin America. In 2010/2011, she was a delegate to the UNFCCC's COP15/16 in Copenhagen and Cancun, and in 2012 led a delegation to the United Nations' RIO+20, Sustainable Development Conference where she ran our three side events on green economics. Don O'Neal has a BSc(Hons) in Mathematics and an MA in Environmentalism and Society. He has been the Oxfordshire Green Party Treasurer from September 2000 to date and is a political columnist for The News and The Vincentian, national newspapers in St. Vincent and the Grenadines. He is a co-founder of St. Vincent and the Grenadines Greens. Maria Delfina Rossi is a young academic and green activist. She has an honours degree in Economics from the Autonomous University of Barcelona and a Masters of Research in Economics in the European University Institute. Delfina works in the European Parliament for a Green MEP and was also the co-spokesperson of the Federation of Young European Greens. Professor Doaa Mohamed Salman (Egypt) of the Faculty of Management Sciences, Modern Sciences and Arts University (MSA), Egypt is a regular contributor to our Green Economics Institute work, our academic journal and led our Youth in Action, EU Programme at Oxford and Glastonbury. She is an Associate Professor, Modern Sciences and Arts University, MSA, Egypt. She holds a PhD in International Economics. She earned her BSc (1994), MSc (1999) and PhD (2004) from Ain Shams University, Egypt. Her current research interests relate primarily, though not exclusively, to the following areas: development institutional setting, and the role of entrepreneurs to robust economic systems. Dr. Doaa as a certified trainer she participated in Education Development Program for Egyptian universities (EDU Egypt) for three consecutive years, which is a milestone in bridging the employability gap. She is a member of Egypt Political and Economic Association and Middle East Economic Association, and a member in the Middle East Economic Association (MEEA). She is a reviewer of numerous academic journals including China-USA Business journal. She has taught, trained and lectured recently post and underground program in many Egyptian universities. Her current research interests relate primarily, though not exclusively, to two areas: development and growth, and effective role of institution. Her research appears in journals such as : European Journal of Economics, Finance, Journal of International Business & Finance, International Journal of Green Economics and International Journal of Development and Conflict. She can be reached at Modern sciences and art university, MSA, Egypt. Freddy Tshibundu Shamwana qualified in Biology at ISP/ Lubumbashi DR Congo, and in Environmental Strategy at Surrey University, UK. He is an associate member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA). His current research is sustainability management of the natural resources in the DR Congo. He previously worked in the teaching sector and tourism industry in Southern Africa. John Stewart was named by the Independent on Sunday as the UK's 'most effective environmentalist' in 2008. He has worked in the transport field for 30 years, campaigning at a local, national and international level, and he makes regular appearances in the media. He is the lead campaigner of Stop Heathrow Airport Expansion and chair of HACAN Clear Skies. In that capacity, he was a central figure in the coalition which defeated plans for a third runway at Heathrow Airport. He also chairs Airport Watch, the network of community and environmental organisations opposed to the aggressive expansion of aviation, and he is President of UECNA, the European body which represents airport campaign groups in Europe . Since its inception in 2000 he has chaired UK Noise Association. He was prominent in the campaigns against road building in the 1980s and 1990s, co-founding and chairing ALARM, the national network of 250 community groups which helped destroy GBP23 billion national roads programmes. He is a past chair of Campaign for Better Transport and RoadPeace, the body which campaigns on behalf of road traffic victims. For nearly a decade he was a Board Member of Transport for All, the body campaigning for fully accessible transport. He is the author of a number of publications including The Green Transport Revolution, Why Noise Matters, published by Earthscan in 2011, and Victory Against All the Odds, the seminal account of how the Heathrow third runway campaign was won. Dr Enrico Tezza is a senior training specialist and has a background in social research and evaluation studies. After a career in the Italian Ministry of Labour and local public institutions, he joined the International Labour Organisation in Turin in 1992. He is labour market advisor for the Green Economics Institute. Subjects covered vary from training policy to employment and active labour market measures. His current focus interest is on social dialogue for green jobs. His main publication was Evaluating Social Programmes: the relevance of relationships, and his latest publications include Dialogue for Responsible Restructuring and Green Labour Market for Transitions. Sir Crispin Tickell, GCMG, KCVO, FZS, is a British diplomat, environmentalist, and academic. He went to Christ Church, Oxford, graduating in 1952 with first class honours in Modern History. He joined the British diplomatic service in 1954, serving at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office in London until 1955. He was responsible for looking after the British Antarctic Territory; the experience gained may have laid the foundations for long term interests in the environment. He then had posting at the British Embassy in The Hague (1955 - 58)); Mexico City (1958 - 61); London (1961 - 64); Paris (1964 - 70); and Private Secretary various Chancellors of the Duchy of Lancaster (1970 - 72) during negotiations for the UK entry into the European Community. He was later Chef de Cabinet to the President of the European Commission (1977 - 1980), British Ambassador to Mexico (1981 - 1983), Permanent Secretary of the Overseas Development Administration (now Department for International Development) (1984 - 1987), and British Ambassador to the United Nations and Permanent Representative on the UN Security Council (1987 - 1990). He was appointed MVO in 1958 and later knighted as a KCVO in 1983 on the Royal Yacht Britannia, to mark the conclusion of Queen Elizabeth's Official Visit to Mexico. He was appointed GCMG for his work at the UN in 1988. Sir Crispin was President of the Royal Geographical Society from 1990 to 1993 and Warden of Green College, Oxford between 1990 and 1997, where he appointed George Monbiotand Norman Myers as Visiting Fellows. He was President of the Marine Biological Association from 1990 to 2001. From 1996 until August 2006 he was chancellor of the University of Kent when Sir Robert Worcester took over the position. He is currently director of the Policy Foresight Programme of the James Martin 21st Century School[5] at the University of Oxford (formerly the Green College Centre for Environmental Policy and Understanding) and Chairman Emeritus of the Climate Institute, in Washington DC. He has many interests, including climate change, population issues, conservation of biodiversity and the early history of the Earth. Margaret Thatcher credits Tickell for persuading her to make a speech on global climate change to the Royal Society in September 1988 (though the speech was written by Thatcher and George Guise). He chaired John Major's Government Panel on Sustainable Development (1994 - 2000), and was a member of two government task forces under the Labour Party: one on Urban Regeneration, chaired by Sir Richard Rogers, now Lord Rogers (1998 - 99), and one on Potentially Hazardous Near-Earth Objects (2000). A man of strong environmental convictions, he has been described as influential in Britain, although his environmental message has not always travelled as easily abroad, particularly to the United States. His 1977 book 'Climatic Change and World Affairs' argued that mandatory international pollution control would eventually be necessary. Despite his non-scientific background, he is internationally respected as having a strong grasp of science policy issues. He has been the recipient, between 1990 and 2006, of 23 honorary doctorates. He is currently the president of the UK charity Tree Aid,[7] which enables communities in Africa's drylands to fight poverty and become self-reliant, while improving the environment. He is also a patron of Population Matters. His main recreations include climatology, paleohistory, pre-Columbian art and mountains. Formerly he was :Non-executive Director, IBM UK (1990 - 1995),Trustee, Natural History Museum (1992 - 2001),Trustee, Baring Foundation (1992 - 2002),Publications: Climate Change and World Affairs, with a preface by Solly Zuckerman (1977, second edition 1986, Harvard International Affairs Committee).and Mary Anning of Lyme Regis, with a preface by John Fowles (1996, 1998 and 2003). He became Sir Crispin Tickel KCVO and GCMG in 1988. Carlos Francisco Restituyo Vassallo comes from the Dominican Republic. Because of his background living in Santo Domingo he is very familiar with the ailments of developing nations. Currently in the Economics Department at Richmond, the American International University in London, his academic interests include economics, philosophy and the environment. He brings a young academic's perspective to the development issues of Latin American nations. Bianca Madison-Vuleta is highly trained and experienced in the areas of holistic, ecological and sustainable living. Bianca has been actively involved in the work of numerous national and international human rights and environmental NGOs as a committed and inspired campaigner, fundraiser and public speaker. A passionate humanitarian and environmentalist and Co-founder of The Sustainable Planet Foundation, Bianca works tirelessly to be the change in the world. Dr Hans-Guenter Wagner is an economist and educationalist who teaches management and Chinese language at the University of Co-operative Education in Plauen (State of Saxony, Germany). Dr. Wagner worked many years in China and Albania where he was in charge of development aid projects in the field of vocational education and higher learning. His current research focus is on bioeconomics, and the business ethics of Eastern religions. Amana Winchester instructor at Bikeability. She studied Geography and anthropology at UCL and co authored our book about Africa and the Womens Book. Tracy, Marchioness of Worcester is a campaigner for the greening of food, farming, agriculture and cruelty free farming that opposes agribusiness. She is a patron of International Society and Culture, a trustee of the GAIA Foundation, The Schumacher Society and the UK Soil Association. Professor Dr Chow Fah Yee, Associate Professor from University Teknologi MARA, Malaysia. Currently, she is an active member of Green Economics Institute, contributing articles and papers to GEI books and journal. She is also an editorial board member of International Journal of Green Economics. She obtained her Ph.D from University Malaya, Malaysia. She has been an actively presenting papers in various countries. (Malaysia). Professor Laszlo Zsolnai is professor and director of the Business Ethics Center at the Corvinus University of Budapest. He is chairman of the Business Ethics Faculty Group of the CEMS (Community of European Management Schools; The Global Alliance in Management Education). He is Research Affiliate at the Cannon Chair of ESC Rennes Business School in Farnce. He serves as editor of the "Frontier of Business Ethics" book series at Peter Lang Publishers in Oxford.
