Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1096093
17 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 24 MARCH 2019 INTERVIEW electric cars. A few years ago, it was almost unheard of for Maltese people to 'want' an electric car. Today, importers are bringing them in by the cargo-load. Isn't this an example of capitalism bringing about change? It's actually a good example of what I'm saying. I had an electric car myself, up to a few years ago. If you ask me, elec- tric cars merely shift the prob- lem to somewhere else. They still require power; and unless you know as a fact that the en- ergy you use comes from solar, or wind… for all you know, you might still be relying on fossil fuels. Ultimately, an electric car is as 'clean' as the source of its electricity. If the energy is being imported through the intercon- nector, and we don't know the original source… in our case, we don't really get to see where our interconnector is getting its en- ergy from. I tried to obtain this information myself, without any success. So it could be nuclear… coal… anything, really. So even if the cars themselves pollute less, they still contribute to global pollution. And there are other is- sues: traffic congestion, parking problems, and other such issues which will not be solved by elec- tric cars. They might even make matters worse: most electric cars are, in fact, bigger than conven- tional ones. And when you see a truck pumping out black clouds of exhaust… you can see the pol- lution with your own eyes. With electric cars, it's out of sight... … and therefore, out of mind. I see what you're saying, but at the same time it doesn't leave us citizens with many options. If individuals are powerless to have an affect through their own choices, and the economic model has no intention of reforming itself… it suggests that change can only be achieved through a thorough, radical shake-up of the entire system. How realistic is that? And is it really a case of drastic measures for drastic times? We must be realistic about how drastic the problem really is. Un- fortunately, we are now bracing ourselves for the next stage: a to- tal collapse of eco-systems. This is now already being mentioned in the mainstream media as well. Since the 1970s, around 60% of all mammals, birds, reptiles and fish have been completely wiped out. Not in terms of species go- ing extinct; but in terms of popu- lations… More recent studies are now showing that the same or even worse is happening with insects. At the risk of a controversial question: how much does the global human population, in and of itself, contribute to the problem? There are seven billion human beings on the planet, all plugged into a system that promotes consumerism at all costs… I've been meaning to write about the population factor for some time now. To me, the is- sue has more to do with inequal- ity, than the global population in itself. To give an example: there are individuals – individu- als, not countries – in places like the USA, who consume as much power and resources as an entire small community somewhere else. A single super rich indi- vidual can cause as much dam- age as an average person does in five years. I don't have the exact figures at my fingertips, but this clearly shows that there is a huge gap between high-end and low- end consumption. It's astonish- ing, quite frankly. Then there's also a question about energy poverty. Friends of the Earth Europe was recently involved in a study which measured the energy poverty levels in the 28 EU member states. How much energy is needed to heat or cool homes; how much clean energy is used for transport, etc. We then gave a score based on the sustainability of the energy mod- el. Malta, for instance, came in at 17, out of 28 countries… Not a very high score… out of curiosity, how did other countries do? At number one, with 95%, was Sweden; Bulgaria was at the bot- tom of the table… This raises the question of what Malta is doing – or even what Malta can do, given its size – to counter climate change. As I recall, we still have Kyoto Protocol targets to reach by 2020 – next year – and it Is an open secret that we are not going to meet them, or even come close. Is it simply too late to do anything now? And if not: what can tiny Malta do, anyway? Let's be honest: even if Malta did go 100% green and renew- able… it would still have negligi- ble impact on the global produc- tion of CO2. But while we are too small to make a tangible impact, we are not too small to be an ex- ample to the rest of the world. Malta could make a difference, if it showed the world that a small country can still meet its inter- national obligations on climate change. But you're right, we're not going to meet them. There was a letter in the papers just yesterday, by Maltese academics, complaining about the inaction that led to this very fact. It might not have been the most forceful statement ever made; but it was good to see Maltese academia taking a clear stand. More sig- nificantly still, from my perspec- tive, we also saw Maltese youths participating in a global initiative organised by students. That was particularly refreshing, because there used to be a lot of apathy among University students in the past. To be fair, though, it does seem to be changing. So yes, there are still things we can still do. As for whether it's too late… I don't think it's too late to start implementing and enforc- ing existing laws, for example. Malta enacted a climate change law some years ago; and on pa- per, government is obliged to do all sorts of things that it is not doing… I hate to say it, but the picture you paint is still rather bleak. Governments don't abide by the treaties they ratify; industry has no motivation to change… and in the local scenario, we also have an entire regulatory framework that is designed to perpetuate the status quo. The Planning Authority sanctions illegalities, the ERA turns a blind eye to environmental and resources issues… yet you talk of hope. What hope is there, really? As you can see from the poster on the wall behind me, 'Hope' is in fact what we are working on right now. I wouldn't give up hope just yet. It might be the only thing we have left [laughing] But yes, I am hopeful that change will come from younger generations. The student protest I mentioned earlier is a case in point. I was re- lieved to see such a turnout: not just because past environmen- tal protests have traditionally been poorly attended, but be- cause it indicates that attitudes, among the young, are changing. The only thing I didn't like was the sight of all those politicians jumping on their bandwagon. They weren't exactly 'youths'… most of them, at any rate. To be honest, I myself chose not to at- tend. I think my generation and earlier should be very ashamed of not having done very much, in so many years. But that, to me, is where hope lies. The younger generation sees things different- ly. They will be the ones leading communities in future; and I be- lieve that change – if it comes at all – will come from within com- munities, not from the present, failed system. younger generation… I think my generation and earlier should be very ashamed of not having done very much, in so many years. But that, to me, is where hope lies. The younger generation sees things differently PHOTOGRAPHY BY JAMES BIANCHI