Carbon is Down – Great Change is Upon Us

“it would be deemed prudent now to adopt the old Boy Scout Motto of “Be Prepared,” along with another often-said truism, “Be safe out there!”

That was our final paragraph in our earlier Blog about the world and the economy after Covid-19.

During the period while most of the planet has been on lockdowns and industry has ground to a halt the benefits to the environment have been clear to see. The marvellous clear skies and modest heat wave has shown us the benefits of  reducing the release of carbon into the atmosphere. The official measures of carbon are at their lowest since the Second World War. The obvious downside is the looming recession, but hasn’t this shown us the way forward, the need for a change in how we do everything?

Will governments take heed of the need for even newer greener policies?

Will companies set their staff free to work flexibly at home or from anywhere they choose?

It must surely now be “out with the old ways and in with the new”, bringing in greener, caring methods of business. Has this pandemic been God’s or Nature’s way of telling us that enough is enough?

In the Chinese Zodiac this is the year of the Metal Rat. It’s symbolic that this the beginning of a new 12-year cycle. This is the new Spring, sweeping through and cleansing the earth, ready for the new beginning. New energy abounds. The first Chinese Zodiac sign is a Rat and the ancient saying is that a rat was the first animal to reach Buddha’s feet before all the others.

We must plant new seeds, put new plans into operation, build up from the cleansing of the earth this year. We have been forced into working along with the new technology, we can virtually all work from home or somewhere suitable without having to travel and pollute. We must learn to use the new methods as new opportunities arise.

Think back only 50 years and how communication was done over a telephone line. In the late 1980’s I remember the advent of the then new technology of the thermal paper fax machines. My company had to have a board meeting about budgeting for those facsimile accompaniments along with huge mobile phones for their cars, to speed up the administration for a large construction project. Now it is all done with a wireless connection through the atmosphere over a computer screen. International business is having to make rapid changes and adapt already. New cleaner forms of energy are already taking over, in Solar and Wind Power, Nuclear is arguably far cleaner than the old carbon-based generators. Governments and Companies must surely now start thinking ‘out of the box,’ and make positive use of the new technology.

The government recently dictated under the emergency legislation for us to prioritise working from home where possible. Would there be an outcry if they made a law to force that to continue under new Health and Safety or Environmental legislation.

As a Writer my work is done completely at home on a laptop, if I go out it comes with me and I work from wherever I have a Wi-Fi network, it could be a posh coffee shop or the library. My dream of the writer’s life is to travel the coast of Europe, living in a Converted Van or Recreational Vehicle (RV), stopping along the way, I can write for anybody, anywhere. I can raise money for local charities along the way and interview local people. I will eventually end up in Asia and keep going. This is possible for all now, I call my dream of the future:

The Freedom to Roam or Stay Home

Businesses have to think ahead even more now. Local shops have all had to be creative to survive by home deliveries, or pubs are now having to change their methods. Why can’t they do like in Europe and have waiter service full time? The new age is coming whether we like it or not.

I know large U.S.A. companies that are now training workers over video only with absolutely no physical contact. They play a video of how to perform engineering tasks with a portable rig in a workshop, then they watch the installers until they get the job right and after the training, the workers get a certificate of competency. These trainees will be building modules in third world countries where the labour is cheap. The expertise is in a higher wage, higher skilled country. Video producers, artists and writers are creating for others to build.

There will be other instances, other industries where new methods will apply in reverse. The Asian technical wizard can get remote access to my computer and fix software glitches, I’ve had hardware sent to me along with a link to a YouTube video instruction in how to install and replace faulty parts. That model will work with cars and garages, especially now that new cars are run by computer software.

Oil and Gas rigs will become redundant and go the way of the old Coal Mining industry, as wind and solar farms take over. Energy companies are now realising that they have to change and are re-investing already. The Oil price has collapsed during the pandemic as nobody is buying oil now. How will that affect those oil dependent countries like Saudi Arabia? If they haven’t invested in alternatives what sort of society will that leave there?

Why do we need big city office blocks now? Surely many of those will have to be converted into living spaces. If the big developers don’t take that on there will be more going bust. But if Councils got imaginative they could solve many housing issues very quickly.

The aforementioned are just my few ideas, can you come up with any others?

Let’s share ideas and maybe we can start to influence businesses, local and national governments by creative suggestions on this blog. Send to me any ideas and I’ll pass them on to wherever I can, maybe I’ll share these blogs on LinkedIn and get more business influencers to listen?

Let us show that our version of the Green campaign is for the good of all.

Sign onto our membership and send us your ideas.

I’ll send a set of my Dream Team Trilogy for the most creative suggestion for the future after the Pandemic.

Author: Brian George

Write your suggestions here and send us along with your contact details and we’ll award a set of my books to the best and most positive creation for a brighter Greener future.