Thursday 22 December 2011

A rooster takes credit for the dawn


Time check, 10 seconds to midnight, 31 December 1999,countdown begins
with baited breath and ends…..nothing happened…there is two ways to look at it …having heeded all the warnings about the Y2K bug …forearmed we, together, took action and a potential catastrophe was averted…or the whole thing was a hoax..fast forward to 31,December,2050, global warming by all available,known measures is averted. Will we be  able to say for sure it took human intervention to reverse the trend or was it part of a larger trend unaffected by human intervention, that is to say, a part of life on a living planet?

Part of life in Uganda today is incessant power cuts that can last at least 12 hours a day in response to this more folks are turning to alternative sources of electricity and heat for their daily needs such as cooking, lighting, phone charging, Barefoot Power Uganda offers some affordable solutions to this end. The goal of 100% renewable energy by 2050 is of no consequence to ordinary folks looking to keep the lights on after the latest delay in Bujjagali coinciding with the GoU falling behind on its payments to electricity suppliers making load shedding necessary.

Inadvertently foil that plan(100% renewable energy by 2050) or enable it…but then how can anyone claim credit or apportion blame? Its easy to say that the developed nations,  US& Europe,the old world if you will and the developing nations, the BRIC countries,Brazil,Russia,India and China failed to agree on what collective action to take to combat climate change at the recent UN climate summit in Durban, South Africa, therefore impending disaster looms for all, as the news media tells it.

In criminal law, intent trumps motive in a murder case, in other words, what one's intentions are determine guilt rather than why? This is why euthanasia is a crime, Dr JackKervokian pleaded in his defense that  he killed his patient to put him out of his misery for he  was terminally ill and in agony. The judge sentenced him to 10-25 years in prison for murder  not because the good doctor wanted to kill his patient's pain but because he killed him, on purpose.

Idealism kills the deal, in the words of Gordon Gekko, what has, my need to warm my food, boil water to drink, turn the light on to do my homework at night;got to do with saving the world? So I need charcoal for my stove, if it proves too expensive I will look for a stove that doesn't use charcoal, maybe gas or invent one. I don't know and don't care for the world except mine.



Thursday 15 December 2011

Population Control in the renewable energy debate

 A few weeks ago NTV run a feature in their 9pm bulletin highlighting population control and in particular neutering males. This means interfering with the sperm ducts and therefore with the man's ability to impregnate the woman. Has it come to this? Ddamulira Robert of WWF Uganda in this appearance on national television here in Uganda doesn't go that for but is he thinking what you are thinking?

Monday 12 December 2011

Good News: Discovery WILL Air Climate Change Episode of 'Frozen Planet' | OnEarth Magazine

Good News: Discovery WILL Air Climate Change Episode of 'Frozen Planet' | OnEarth Magazine

India's Climate Change Ground Zero | OnEarth Magazine

India's Climate Change Ground Zero | OnEarth Magazine

We begin this week with a comment raised by guest on the show, Julius Wandera the PRO(spokesman) of UMEME (feel free to fill in your version of the acronym). Is anybody considering putting the board of directors and shareholders of that utility company out of its misery and for it to be reposessed by GoU (feel free again, to  interpret that acronym).

This if I recall is the UEB arrangement and the power blackouts of yester year, no thank you, atleast now the coat has a hook to hang on, so to speak. Not some nameless face less government organisation, a situation more aptly known as the tragedy of the commons. Today everyone knows that if you pay for curra and go a week without it, its UMEME's fault.

The problem with public ownership is that ultimately no individual is responsible for it and that results in negligence and crap service delivery or in the case of UBC, equipment disappearing and turning up in the most unlikely places.

The fact that UMEME's contract is up for renewal, their initial 7 years is up, now is the time for such questions to be raised and perhaps other service providers tapped up all except the GoU.

Friday 9 December 2011

I want to prove

Here is a thought, why not spend less time venting about UMEME incompetence, at this rate it will become full time occupation. Instead we ought to borrow a leaf from one Harry Oryem , a guest on our show as well as an inventor of renewable energy applications. A solution orientated populace ready and willing to solve its own problem will mean that the services supposedly provided by UMEME are not needed. Now there is a thought, I can render UMEME obsolete.

It is not difficult, it requires basic training which Harry is willing to dispense and a willing mind or one that is fed up with the status quo, 4 days and counting I haven't had curra. I personally haven't watched any of the broadcasts on WBS or UBC and I am supposed to engage with the viewers on behalf of the show.  As the the saying goes Nnanyini Muffu...this is our body (country) nothing will work unless we do.

Friday 2 December 2011

visit eldis.org to learn more about climate change

STRENGTHENING THE STATE PETROLEUM ADMINISTRATION OF THE UPSTREAM PETROLEUM SECTOR IN UGANDA

ECON Pöyry (2011)
This review looks at the overall results of the Petrad Capacity Building Programme for strengthening the State Petroleum Administration of the upstream petroleum sector in Uganda and assesses the extent to which the Programme has achieved its objectives. The Programme commenced in January 2006 and ended in June 2009. This end-review has been carried out in the period February- June 2011.



The Programme was divided into three overall projects: policy, legal and regulatory framework; capacity building for Petroleum Exploration and Production Department (PEPD); and technical and economic studies).



Main conclusions and recommendations:




* at an overall level, the Programme has been successful in achieving its purpose  -to strengthen the State petroleum administration in Uganda with regard to policy, institutional framework and administrative functions, to strengthen the planning and regulatory functions in PEPD and to study the conditions necessary for commercial development of oil and/or gas in Uganda

* the long-term relationship between the Norwegian and Ugandan institutions involved in the project, and the use of highly qualified advisors, have contributed to well-functioning and efficient Programme management

* the Programme was too ambitious in the number of activities and outputs which were to be achieved within the Programme period

* the Programme would have benefited from having clearly defined baselines, and some Programme outputs were budgeted too low

* a more specific challenge going forward concerns the establishment of new regulatory, monitoring and management bodies

* it is urgent that project activities and outputs which were not achieved during the Programme period are completed

* in terms of sustainability, the Ugandan government and the economy overall are benefiting from competent institutions in the petroleum sector, and should consider the long term sustainability of institutional building financed by Norway

TO READ DOCUMENT, PLEASE GO TO:
http://www.econ.no/stream_file.asp?iEntityId=4837

20 Cool Rocks and Rock Formations

20 Cool Rocks and Rock Formations

Fire Waterfall of El Capitan

Fire Waterfall of El Capitan

Urine Controlled Video Games

Urine Controlled Video Games

Thursday 1 December 2011

Nnanyini Muffu

This is a line about lasting solutions to climate change and the energy crisis. Thanks to the recent black outs in the environs of Kampala, Uganda, more people are aware of an energy crisis, it is immediate rather than looming. This is an opportunity for the climate change lobby that to be honest is struggling to convince the public of the existential threat that is climate change.

By pointing to the obvious effects of the energy crisis, communities can rally to solve this problem with the resources at their disposal that is to say renewable sources of energy like the sun, we are at the equator after all, and inadvertently provide solutions to climate change.

As the saying goes, " Nnanyini Muffu ya kwata awawunya" which loosely translates to the owner of the corpse is not afraid to touch it.