Vanity-Fair, instead of Poverty Alleviation

October 29, 2009 · Filed under Forgotten Poverty, Global Warming & Global Poverty, The Face of Poverty, pvhramani · Tagged Developing Nations, Forgotten Poverty, Global Poverty, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Poverty, pvhramani, Socio-Economic Development

Recently my daughter had an official visit to Melbourne, Australia, along with her various colleagues. The “function” was to organize some managerial meetings/ conferences/ deliberations on certain intra-company business matters. The management of the Company decided that Melbourne could be the venue (instead of Singapore, their HQ), for a “change”! The total costs of the entire “operations”, involving the travel of about a dozen people from Singapore to Melbourne and back (apart from Hotel/ stay/ conference arrangements) are estimated @ US $350, 000. Now, let us try to visualize the possibility of one thousand Corporates (all over the world) undertaking such “extravaganzas” every quarter. Add to this the various expenses (perhaps, we could treble this in the case of Governments) of every nation in this world, whereby each such nation spends hundreds of thousands of dollars for “meetings”, “symposiums”, “seminars”, “conferences” and so-called “work-shops”. The rough estimate of such “vanity fair”, all over the world could be any thing like: US $2, 500, 000, 000 per annum! Here we have not considered the various local Government expenditures for the various day-to-day paraphernalia

Click on each Image to Enlarge the same

Statesmen Meet in Extravaganza

Paraphernalia for Whom?

Who Cares for the POOR?

Every picture above tells us some TRUE Stories!

Where are all the Statesmen and so-called National Leaders? Perhaps they prefer sumptuous foods and exotic living in various far away lands, enjoying on their own, instead of caring for the majority POOR, who vainly elected them! These elected “representatives” may not get a second chance to enjoy this way!!!

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Sustainability and Globalization – Are these Contradictory?

June 4, 2009 · Filed under Global Warming & Global Poverty, Negative Wealth Index & Poverty, Sustainable Development, The Face of Poverty, Zero_Waste Zero_Carbon Clean Tech Business · Tagged Development Economics, Global Poverty, Global Warming, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Socio-Economic Development, Sustainable Development

CERTAIN OBSERVATIONS

Globalization, Sustainability, Millennium Development Goals (MDG), Global Warming, Terrorism … and many more concepts have become common place in contemporary vocabulary; yet, the real significance of every such idea/ concept eludes universal acceptance. The perfect example of contradictory connotations in defining terrorism is such a case! While almost a major part of the civilized world considers the Taliban as “terrorists”, there are a few societies who genuinely believe that the Taliban groups are “freedom fighters”. This writer purposefully wishes to side-step the issue of debating “for or against” on this concept, as the broader idea here is to look at some of the root causes leading to various problems and catastrophe that hover around the various world communities.

An Idea Of Poverty

What meaning do any of the concepts such as Education, Democracy, Socialism, Globalization, Sustainability … etc convey to the poor Mother and Children shown in the photo illustration here? The photograph would convey the truth about what poverty is. This family, here, seem to be a group of Four, perhaps Five, with the father of the children having gone to eke out some livelihood wages, somewhere in the nearby sprawling City of Bangalore, India. There are over 450 million people in India alone (within a population of 1, 150 million), who are in this category or near about – with no proper dwellings and any amenities whatsoever. The world total is estimated to be about 1200 million people in this category!

Now, look at another “Photo-story”

Poor Women family members wait for Water tanker

The story of men/ women/ children waiting for hours or traveling ten kilometers or more for small quantity of potable water is the same as that of the poor family in the previous photo illustration. Here again India has over 450 million people in this category! The entire world would have more than 1000 million people in this category.

What could we do to mitigate these problems being faced by a majority of world’s population? How could we offer “creative” solutions? Or, is it that all our creativity are always directed toward those problems/ needs of the minority “well-to-do”? Do we take into consideration these problems and needs of such poorer communities in our idea of Sustainability? Who decide and define all these? Who are approvers?

THE HUGE DISPARITY AMONGST VARIOUS COMMUNITIES

While an average worker in an advanced country such as the US earns about US $50 per hour that amounts to not less than $10, 000 per month, the average maximum earned by a worker in a general industry sector in less developed nations such as India, Nigeria, Philippines, and Jamaica is US $2.5 per day (amounting to about US $62.5 per month, which is 1/160th of that earned by the US counterpart!!!). This would mean that an average Indian worker (for example) would have to live and work a total of 160 years to reach the annual income volume of an American counterpart.

This writer is of the view that this huge disparity between the livelihood earnings in the advanced nations and the less developed nations is the greatest cause for Poverty and related problems in the world. This is aggravated by the unfortunate exodus of “trained manpower” into advanced nations, from almost all developing nations, exacerbating the already existing difficult situations of economic and social conditions in these nations. Further, almost all of the developing nations have nothing to develop own technologies and Material resources – in fact not one of them really attempt to do the same.

This writer is working hard to initiate at least some action in that direction, and it is hoped that even if we are not able to see this happen in our life time, we would have the satisfaction that our attempts might create the foundation, paving the way forward, to achieve the GOALS set through APIX-SEP programs … http://www.agro-biogenics.com/apix.html, http://sustainabilityengineering.wordpress.com/

Interestingly, although many Governments in such developing nations have special schemes to support the poorer communities amongst them, almost all such schemes are as much pathetic in form and content as the livelihood of those supposed to be served! To quote an example, we in India have a prestigious “poverty alleviation” scheme: National Rural Employment Guarantee program (NREGP). The scheme involves Government sponsored and supported “Development Works” in rural areas, whereby at least one individual of a family would get work and wages for 100 days in a year. Each such beneficiary gets Rs.6000 per annum (about $120) @ Rs.60 per day (about $1.2 per day). It is a sad commentary on the part of these Governments to proclaim vaingloriously that they have such “Poverty Alleviation” programs, whereas the ground level reality is the offer of Pittance to the beneficiaries! The strange argument is that they did not get even half of this earlier, when such schemes were not in vogue!!!

HOW MAY WE DEFINE SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT?

It is fashionable these days to indiscriminately use the paradigm – SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT. The idea connotes different things to different people. For example, for the “vote bank” based politicians (more euphemistically called – Statesmen) it is the so-called “Food, Clothing and Shelter”; for the sophisticated economist it would mean things like GDP, Price Index, etc; for the environmentalist it means more space for the flora and fauna in our surroundings; for the NGO activists, it would mean “No Displacement” of the “indigenous” peoples; for the common folks in the “neighborhoods” it would mean “the availability of at least minimum needs of livelihood”. How do we “filter” an unbiased view from all these conflicting ideas? We need to introspect on certain basic TRUTHS on all natural phenomena.

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT would not be a jargon, if we recognize the impact of TIME and ENTROPY in all our thought and actions. The biggest single factor that contributes to the greatest problems in the race to develop is COMPETITION – competition to equal or excel peer groups. And it holds good for the individual as well as a whole nation. We shall not attempt here to “define” the concept of Competition but suffice it to state that it connotes an instinct in all life forms toward achievement oriented “growth process” of peer groups. The net result is CONFLICT. This writer wishes to define Sustainable Development as optimized socio-economic and environmental development, taking into cognizance the effects of TIME-ENTROPY phenomenon, towards reducing competitive conflicts. We should also recognize that it is humanly impossible to nullify the effects of all of these (Time-Entropy, Competition and Conflict) on our development process. The question may be asked: How do we practically achieve sustainable development? Here again this writer wishes to identify the single biggest effect of competitive conflict – SHIFTING POPULATIONS. People flock to cities and urban agglomerations, from far way dilapidated villages, to earn their livelihoods. Essentially, this results in great stress on city management – congestion, poor amenities, water scarcity, crime, and much more … There is another cause for this shifting population – the so-called industrialization of village areas (the setting up of Steel Plants, Mining centers, Power Projects, Dam construction, etc). Thus, this writer is of the view that sustainable development would need a reversal of shifting population. But how could we achieve that?

LIVING STANDARD – Or non-Standard?

Let us look at two contrasting examples:

Poor people's Village Hut (under construction)

The photo illustration above is a typical village hut, which is the normal “standard” housing arrangement in the coastal regions (stretching across about 600 KM, touching the Arabian Sea) of Kerala State, India. The approximate overall plinth area of such dwellings would be in the range 350 sq ft to 450 sq ft. The main construction materials come from the Coconut trees, which form the biggest tree resource in the entire region. The Main structural posts, roofing reapers, beams and Wall studs are all made of the tree trunk; the roof itself is a “thatched” sheet system, made of the fronds (a typical man-made sheet may be an average size of 4.5 ft x 1.5 ft). These sheets are carefully placed, as seen in the photo, and anchored by using “tie-wires” made of pliable portions of coconut fronds/ leaf systems. The side walls are covered using planks made of coconut tree trunk material, sawn into appropriate sizes. Very little cement would be used, except to make a more water-proof flooring and plinth line. The total cost of one such house, with at least two rooms, one kitchen and a small front gallery/ porch, would be less than Rs.100, 000 (approximating to $2000). The usual household would consist of the main family (Husband, wife – age group 40 +, two children – age group 10 to 15, and parents of either the husband or that of the wife). The typical household may, thus, be considered to include 5.5 adults. Pumped water may rarely be available to such villagers, although in many villages there could be public water supply that are free (the said public supply being highly erratic, often being made available past midnight!). India has about 100 million to 150 million families (over 600 million people) in this category.

Let us look at a contrasting Lavish Construction of a Singapore based Hotel, as presented in the photo illustration below.

Five Star Luxury Hotel in Singapore

Without going into the details of the construction and other related aspects, the estimated construction and finishing costs for such a “Five/ Seven” Star Hotel could be as much as one-hundred and fifty times (tending toward two-hundred and more) higher than that of the unit costs of the village house described earlier! Further, the electrical consumption at the village house would be less than one unit (KWHe) per day, against an estimated average of not less than 200 units per day, for a “group of five” in the case of the latter.

How do we arrive at appropriate definitions for the following, which would take such contrasting “living systems” into consideration?

Sustainable Development
Sustainability
GREEN Products
Carbon Footprints
Poverty
Minimum Living Standard

The world, somehow, seems to be supportive of only the minority (less than One percent population) well-to-do people, relegating the more than 80 percent of the poorest into the background! They are “forced” to bear the brunt of all calamities: War, Holocausts, Tornadoes, Cyclones, Earth-quakes, Terror attacks … the list is endless. Ironically, it is sad to note that even the many “Social Forums” that are purportedly meant to support Gandhian way of life, Sustainability, Village Development, etc… are almost always presented through “show-biz” seminars, conferences and other paraphernalia; or is this writer wrong?

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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS – Answer to Global Warming & Poverty (GWP) – II

January 8, 2009 · Filed under Global Warming & Global Poverty, Sustainable Development, Zero_Waste Zero_Carbon Clean Tech Business · Tagged Alternate Development Model, Clean Tech Development, Development Economics, Global Poverty, Global Warming, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Sustainable Development

Desert Grasses

WHAT CONSTITUTES SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT?

A desert region in Rajasthan, India, would have sparse vegetation growth, mainly due to poor annual rainfall. Yet, we would observe certain definite annually “self generative” vegetation growth in those regions. Closer scrutiny and study would show that there are many animal and other biological systems (including small insect populations), which constitute the totality of Rajasthan Desert Ecology. Given unbridled “freedom of ecological evolution”, there is bound to be a natural “growth process” that would automatically adjust to the surroundings, through a self regulated generation arrangement. We may note that the resultant interactions and “conflicts” amongst various life species would further evolve into (what we may term as) Self Sustainable Rajasthan Desert Ecology-Economics.

The usual rainfall in these regions range from a low of 12 mm to a maximum of 25 mm (which is about 100 times lesser than the all India average rainfall). Yet, we could estimate the average annual vegetation Renewable Resources (RR) generation @ 5 tons per ha (green weight, inclusive of in-situ water).

Every region would, thus, have ecological systems that are peculiar to that region. For example, the vegetation growth in the southern Indian state of Kerala (where annual rainfall is in excess of 3, 000 mm) is estimated @ over 100 tons per annum per ha. This is seen in the illustration showing lush green vegetation, below.

High Growth Vegetation in Rainy regions

The two contrasting ecological systems (those of Rajasthan Desert regions in northern India and the rain fed Kerala state in southern India) would indicate that any local systems of development would have to be dependent on the corresponding ECO-SYSTEMS. That alone would result in optimized development. Such a development model that utilizes LOCAL ecological and biological resources, taking appropriate care to effect Self Regenerative Recycling (SRR) (without over indulgence), would usher in Sustainable Development. These observations directly lead us to the appropriate DEFINITION of SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT:

“SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT: Defined as optimized socio-economic and environmental development, taking into cognizance the effects of TIME-ENTROPY phenomena, towards reducing competitive conflicts.”

Our THRUST is on “optimized socio-economic and environmental development”. Such optimized development would ensure that the disparity in earning power between those in advanced countries such as US and other under-developed (developing?) nations is reduced; and, as we envisage balanced development, in tune with the environmental surroundings in each region, ecological imbalances and environmental degradations would also be minimal. Further, these developments would be dictated by the LOCAL RR, based on local needs, and with full involvement and approval of local people (people’s wisdom). We shall also try, as far as possible, to minimize application of alien methods, technology and other such external inputs, which could create imbalances (not only from the environmental angle, but also in dislocating human settlement, leading to shifting population). Sustainable development would reduce (if not obliterate) all of these negative impacts. Here, the concept of TIME-ENTROPY has to be understood as the worldly effects of Second Law of Thermodynamics: “matter-energy system is dynamic and continually move toward a new state, from the previous state, never reaching the earlier state.”

The different studies on evolutions of species on earth have made us understand that many generations of dinosaurs have propagated themselves and perished over the millennia, and in the wake creating total upheavals. While, hitherto almost all of these species seem to have perished (Time-Entropy phenomenon) due to various extraneous natural causes, human beings alone seem to “accelerate” this phenomenon through self inflicted causes – over indulgence, over exploitation of natural resources, greed, self aggrandizement and “no-care attitude” toward environment.

It is a paradox that over 66% of the total current world populations (an estimated 4 billion people) live at economic levels earning less than $2/50 per day, per-capita, while about 1000 richest people earn more than the total earnings of all of these 4 billion poor people! Further, at least one billion people amongst these do not earn a per-capita of even $1 per day! India alone has about 320 million such extremely poor people, almost all of them do not have personally owned living homes or one square meal every day! Incidentally, this lowly poor are those who are mostly employed (as unorganized labor force) in the constructions of huge projects (infrastructure, housing, luxury hotels, malls, airports and all others) that have absolutely no significance to the livelihood of these very same people.

At the time this is being penned, a huge pomp and show in the form of a “grand Five-Star” three-days culture program is being inaugurated by the President of India at Chennai (Madras), attended and eulogized by the economist Prime Minister of India, apart from the same being graced by a host of Ministers, Government dignitaries and various other VVIP’s, VIP’s and local personnel. The total amount of money spent for such a meeting (essentially being conducted to shower encomiums to the many so-called Indian diaspora, who had gone away in search of greener pastures to the USA and other Western nations!) could run into millions of dollars!!! Interestingly it is this same economist Prime Minister who proclaimed a vainglorious scheme of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS), whereby every village home in this country would have at least one able bodied person who would be offered “job” for 100 days @ US $1.25 per day! … not even a pittance, by any standards. And, it is the very same Prime Minister, who merely proclaimed a National Calamity, when about five million poor people were thrown out of their homes in the North Indian State of Bihar and the Eastern Indian State of Assam, and immediately thereafter went off to tour the US and other Western nations! Those poor people have lost everything they ever had (although infinitesimal by any standards), including their homes. No body talks or thinks about them. It is a horrible TRUTH that those who have been affected in such calamities as early as 2000, are still to get any Government aid, even though TWO Governments have been elected to Power and gone in the interim!

The aforementioned FACTS are being presented not with any cynicism or sarcasm, but all of those represent specific instances that would tell us where and how we go wrong in attempting to create Sustainable Development. For, we need to introspect and ask the question: What constitutes Sustainable Development at the ground level? We shall answer this through a few specific examples of the NEED for Development in India.

IS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT POSSIBLE OR IS IT UTOPIA?

This writer has a younger brother, who like many young frustrated people of India in the seventies/ eighties, went away to the western world, in search of greener pastures. While he earns about US $200, 000 per annum in North America, this writer does not have even his one year’s earnings as bank balance in his entire life savings, living in India! He often expresses that this writer is impractical and utopian, in view of the strong WILL to stay in India and DEVELOP India! Recently, this writer had a “techno-commercial” interaction in one of the prestigious Institutions of learning in India. The subject matter under consideration was connected with PILOTING AND DEVELOPMENT OF LOCAL RENEWABLE RESOURCES FOR CREATING ALTERNATE ENGINEERING MATERIALS AND ENERGY, finally mitigating Global Warming and Global Poverty. One such concept was the conversion of Coconut Tree materials and Banana Trees into Engineered Composites, Bio-Fertilizers, Bio-based Chemicals, Energy and various Alternate Engineering materials. It was estimated that these two Vegetation species alone would offer Alternate Engineering Materials to an extent of not less than 15, 000, 000 Tons, apart from various other products and Bio-fertilizers, and offering Full time Jobs to about a million Local Youngsters. The “learned” professors and other “officials” at the Institution pooh-poohed the concept of this writer as UTOPIAN and IMPRACTICAL. Some aspect of the said themes/ concepts are presented at the website: http://www.agro-biogenics.com

and at: http://www.agro-biogenics.com/apix.html

Yes! Viewed from “skewed” and selfish (negative?) angle of certain individuals, the idea of Sustainable Development could be termed UTOPIAN!

However, we may note that SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT is possible, feasible and absolutely necessary, for the continued existence and propagation of human civilization … which would also, in turn, mitigate Global Warming and Global Poverty.

More on these would be presented in these columns, later.

PLEASE NOTE: The following excellent blog may also be seen and read by visitors to this blog: http://defeatpoverty.com/ (It is a conversation on global economic issues, ideas & data to help us all become better contributors to defeating the scourge of extreme global poverty)

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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS – Answer to Global Warming & Poverty (GWP)

January 2, 2009 · Filed under Sustainable Development · Tagged Alternate Development Model, Development Economics, Global Poverty, Global Warming, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Sustainable Development

A FEW OBSERVATIONAL INFERENCES

Human civilization could be seen to have progressed over the millennia, under THREE distinct Climatic Zones: TROPICS, TEMPERATE and TORRID. Although the human populations in the torrid zone regions could be considered infinitesimal, we do have certain groups (The Eskimos, for example) that flourish in those regions.
The “ultimate source” of all resources on earth (both so-called non-renewable and renewable) is visualized as the SUN, which is considered the “center” of the Solar system, of which the earth forms a part.
Although it may not be an objective scientific classification, we could subjectively classify the world’s resources into TWO systems: RENEWABLE RESOURCES (RR) and NON-RENEWABLE RESOURCES (N-RR). For brevity, we shall consider all resources that have causal relationship to the quanta of sun’s energy falling on earth as being RR. Examples are: Wind, plants/ vegetation, animal life and solar radiation. By the same yardstick measure, we could also consider the huge deposits of CaCO₃ in the ocean beds as RR. A few examples of N-RR are volcanic lava, basalt and granite.
Greed, pelf and desire for amassing wealth have been the main driving forces that have dictated the way human civilizations seem to have evolved – with the United States being the center for almost all these qualities engulfing the societies under its citizenship, at present. More over, the entire world’s “greedy” populations seem to be flocking en-masse’ to the US, in search of greener pastures. Additionally, almost all of the world’s nations look upon the US Model (and/or ideas/ concepts) as the “ultimate economic development” arrangement, irrespective of the REAL LOCAL Resources availabilities. Thus, the world is seen to be growing into “thuggery” levels of unprecedented nature, with the US leading from the front. We may term this as ECONOMIC THUGGERY, leading to Global Warming and Poverty.
It is observed (as seen in an earlier blog in this series: http://pvhramani.wordpress.com/2008/12/29/global-warming-and-global-poverty-gwp-%e2%80%93-what-should-we-do-other-than-offer-platitudes/) that the REAL CAUSE for GWP is the huge disparity between the earning power of those in the US and other Developed nations, vis-a-vis those in the developing (poorer) nations – the latter is poorer by being 160 times lower than the US. Thus, almost all materials/ resources consumptions are maximized (including those that are exported from the poorer nations) in the US and other developed nations, exacerbating the independent progress of these poor nations. The direction of all economic and development works throughout the world is seen to be dictated on the basis of the US thinking and governance. The net result is that about 4 billion people (60% of the world’s current population) are extremely poor, almost all of them living in the different dilapidated villages (India alone having more than 750 million amongst these) in the tropical countries.
It would not be out of proportion to suggest that the resources of the “resource rich” Tropical nations are being “plundered” under such unipolar economics, reducing almost all of these nations to be either by-standers or subservient. Perhaps three nations could modify this unipolar economic thuggery of the US and other developed (western) nations: Russia, China and India. Here, India alone could (probably) take the better leadership, as we in India have a stable and functioning Democracy, with a total population of about 1.15 billion population (about four times the population of the US). But, as yet, India does not have a Nehru like socio-political stalwart, with leadership, Imagination/ Mission/ Vision.
It is a great tragedy and paradox (if not quixotic) that although the Tropical nations (including India) have the greatest volumes of natural RR, these are the very nations that struggle with huge populations of extreme poverty, living in dilapidated villages and in wretched conditions! (As already explained earlier, India alone having over 750 million people living in such dilapidated villages). Even so the entire world seems to be wrongly following the Western Intellectual Tradition model (WIT), which stems from exclusive experiences within Temperate zone climatic situations (having far lower RR compared to Tropical nations). And, unlike the “high greed levels” seen in these temperate zone nations, those in the tropics seem to have lesser greed, thereby living in lower levels of so-called modernity (“wanting” lesser and consuming lesser). But then, alien technologies and practices in agriculture, industry, education etc force these “economically poor” (although “resource rich”!) nations to the brink, creating continual increase in the gap between the “rich” and “poor”.

(NOTE: The words “thuggery” and “plunder” have been used not to convey the usual, literal meaning, but the writer is NOT able to “find” any equivalent appropriate word to connote what has been felt to be conveyed!)

The seven “observational inferences”, as presented above, are unbiased expressions of an “external onlooker”, independent of the unipolar themes involved in Western Intellectual Traditions (WIT). And, it may be noted that the conclusions do not speak well of the present day happenings around the world. Perhaps we need to look for “Alternate Thinking”.

DO WE HAVE APPROPRIATE ANSWERS TO GWP?

The ONE-WORD answer is: YES! But we need to be BOLD and would have to think and act on the basis of specific NEEDS and RESOURCES that are germane to each situation, without being unduly carried away by alien thought-action plans. Here, when we say “alien”, it pertains to WIT, the economics and business paradigm as “defined” and practiced in all of the “western” nations and others who depend on their “support” and/ or assistance. Interestingly, even the different so-called Alternate Economics thought-action plans are being defined and framed with a “western” tinge! For example, almost all of the “recognized” or approved NGO’s depend totally on systems, procedures, methods and paradigms that are used in the WIT programs, apart from utilizing and relying on support-material and resources from the western world. A “case in point” would be so-called Poverty alleviation programs in the poor regions of Africa.

Hers is an excerpt from one such program:

(ref: http://www.earth.columbia.edu/articles/view/1799):

“With the help of new advances in science and technology, project personnel work with villages to create and facilitate sustainable, community-led action plans that are tailored to the villages’ specific needs and designed to achieve the Millennium Development Goals. Simple solutions like providing high-yield seeds, fertilizers, medicines, drinking wells, and materials to build school rooms and clinics are effectively combating extreme poverty and nourishing communities into a new age of health and opportunity. Improved science and technology such as agroforestry, insecticide-treated malaria bed nets, antiretroviral drugs, the Internet, remote sensing, and geographic information systems enriches this progress.”

Let us mark the words and phrases that are presented in boldface and under-lined. Now juxtapose the statement, “… Improved science and technology such as agroforestry, insecticide-treated malaria bed nets, antiretroviral drugs, the Internet, remote sensing, and geographic information systems enriches this progress,” against our earlier TRUE STORY of a poor farmer in India:

“Thampy (true name withheld) is about forty years of age, and lives in Wayanad District in Kerala State in India. He has just short of one ac of land, which provides all that he could “think of” for his family upkeep. The family consists of himself, his wife and two children (aged 14 and 11 – girl and boy respectively), and his widowed mother who is 65 years old (physically very weak). Although, a few years back, when the crops he obtained through cultivation in his meager land (mainly coffee, pepper and banana) could earn him not less than US $3150 gross, his present gross earnings are not even $1050 – a net annual earning of not more than $750, at the best of times. Five years back he could send his children to a good local school; but with poorer earnings now, he is unable to pay the “high fees” needed to support such “better education”. Further, he has to support his mother, who needs medical attention due to poor health. Although Government health centers are helpful, a combination of corruption and high costs of special medications make it very difficult to support his mother, except those that are possible within his meager earnings level. Though he has cooking gas connection and also electricity connection, he avoids using them except for specifically important needs, avoiding wastage. In the ultimate analyses, the average earnings per individual in this family works out to less than $150 per annum (at the best of times).”

(NOTE: Here we should recognize that although the situations and conditions in the different developing countries, such as Ethiopia, Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania … India, are not exactly the same, the overall REAL problems of Poverty are essentially the same in all these countries.)

Could we (then) “accept” as true the vainglorious statement made in the Columbia University’s EARTH INSTITUTE presentation? Of what use does a poor farmer have of so-called “new advances in science and technology”? On what basis do the “planners” and opinion makers at the Columbia University state: “high-yield seeds, fertilizers, medicines … are effectively combating extreme poverty and nourishing communities into a new age of health and opportunity”? If, as they claim, these villages (and hence the villagers) are able to get better nourishments, enriching their lives towards modern progress, we need to ask a further question: Do these finally result in Sustainable Development of the different villages whereby the average PER-CAPITA earning power of the local people could be substantially increased? For example, could we unequivocally state that the per-capita in all these places would reach a figure of US $1000 or above? In fact, this writer has noted (at least in ACTUAL situations in India) that almost 75% of the local village populations earn a per-capita less than US $200 … what to talk of those countries such as Ethiopia, Nigeria and Kenya?

What, then, are the ANSWERS?

Please await more on these in our next presentation … which would be presented in these columns, later this month.

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Global Warming and Global Poverty (GWP) – What should we do, other than offer platitudes?

December 29, 2008 · Filed under Global Warming & Global Poverty · Tagged Development Economics, Global Poverty, Global Warming, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Sustainable Development

While an average worker in an advanced country such as the US earns about US $50 per hour that amounts to not less than $10, 000 per month, the average maximum earned by a worker in a general industry sector in a developing nation such as India or Nigeria is $2/50 per day, amounting to about $62/50 per month. This is 1/160^th of that earned by the US counterpart!. This would mean that an average Indian/ Ethiopian/ Nigerian worker would have to live and work a total of 160 years to reach the annual income volume of an American counterpart!!!

This writer is of the view that this huge disparity between the livelihood earnings in the advanced nations and the less developed nations is the greatest cause for POVERTY and Global Warming in the world. This is aggravated by the unfortunate exodus of “trained manpower” into advanced nations, from almost all developing nations, exacerbating the already existing difficult situations of economic and social conditions in these nations. Further, almost all of the developing nations have NOTHING to develop OWN TECHNOLOGIES and Material resources – in fact not one of them REALLY ATTEMPTS to do the same – and instead, merely mimic and slavishly accept whatever the “advanced nations” (Western world) consider as “being right”.

Nobel laureate Al Gore’ would cajole us to BUY and use CFL instead of tungsten lamps, and tell those in the US to switch over to so-called GREEN fuel instead of petroleum fuels (with a perceived and preconceived view that such a fuel reduces Global warming!); Clinton and other NGO groups would “beg” for donations so that their “foundations” could do something for the poor and the destitute (as though such “tokenisms” are the answer to poverty alleviation); Nobel laureates, Dr. Amarteya Sen and Paul Krugman would theorize about Poverty; yet another Nobel winner Dr. Younus would vouch that “Micro financing” would empower the poor; GREEN Entrepreneurs such as John Doerr and Vinod Khosla would bet on so-called GREEN technologies and entice youngsters to work on the possibility of tapping the “lost in space” cosmic energy of “dead stars” … But alas! Not one of these great personalities seem to have any practical arrangement to make sure that the 3.5 billion poorest people (almost all of them living in dilapidated villages in the tropical countries, and in wretched conditions) are empowered to continually earn their livelihood through SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT programs.

WHY GLOBAL WARMING & POVERTY ARE COROLLARIES?

When Al Gore’ cajoles the people of the US to switch over to Bio-fuels, does he advocate it on the basis of a genuine feeling against Global Warming vis-a-vis the poor on earth? Does he look at the various other possibilities, which could simultaneously solve these TWIN problems (GWP)? Does Al Gore’ advocate the utilization of (leasing?) vast lands in Africa and South America for cultivating Food/ Fuel “crops” for the richer nations, relegating the “LOCALS” to subsistence living? Does Al Gore’ approve the disparity that exists between the rich nations and the poorer nations? We had estimated that an average industrial worker in a developing nation such as Ethiopia/ India/ Bangladesh would have to live and work for about 160 years to earn what his/ her counterpart earns in just one year in the US!!! Are all of these “champions” of GREEN and/ or POOR (great personalities such as Al Gore’, Clinton, John Doerr, Vinod Khosla …) aware of these realities, and are all of their “genuine” concerns for the betterment of the world driven and fueled by THESE fundamental facts?

Now let us look at an interesting observation:

In most of the developing nations there are many “old fashioned” Animal Powered systems of transport and other utility arrangements (animal powered/ driven coconut oil extraction and “bullock cart” transports are examples). India has many bullock carts still in use, in almost all of the village areas, transporting goods across different regions. These are also used by farmers, to till/ plough the land. Would it not be in the best interests of mitigating Global Warming as well as reducing poverty, if we advocate such “animal powered” systems, instead of advocating so-called Green Fuels and Green energy that are endorsed by the “champions”? If this were so, why are these “champions” advocating CFL, Photo Voltaic systems, and Bio-fuels, all of which depend on “heavy” industry arrangements that draw on the meager resources of the earth? Further, CFL and PV cells are bound to cause mercury/ heavy metals pollutions, which may soon become another deadly problem! Or, is there a “hidden agenda” on these moves? Why are the great “knowledge” centers such as Harvard, Massachusetts and Oxford “keeping mum” on these?

A Pair of Bullocks would move about two tons of load

It is estimated that India could offset not less than 10, 000 to 12, 000 MWe power, through appropriate utilization of “animal power” , mainly bullocks (this does not include the possibility of using Elephants for hauling and other related needs!). Power potential based on Bullock systems could be the equivalent of 120 million barrels of oil!!! Many other nations, especially in Africa, could also develop such “BIO-ENERGY” systems for their good as well as to mitigate the twin problems of GWP. However, under the present “unipolar” world wherein almost everything (both the economics and governance of all nations) seem to be dictated and directed by the Consumerism and Energy/ Materials Gulping behavior of the USA, even a democratic nation such as India is totally “bound” within those dictum! Perhaps we may have to “create”a New Nehru to LEAD, so that India alone has the strength and will power to counter the twisted and self-centered thought-actions of the western world, dictated by the US, at the forefront. It is also interesting to note that, if a country like India develops Animal BIO-POWER, not less than 100 million local people would have “FULL TIME” jobs, in villages, thereby uplifting their living standards through better earning power – reducing shifting population to that extent.

Are the GREEN CHAMPIONS listening? Or, do they feel this would “snatch the war” against GWP away from the multinational corporations?

WHAT SHOULD WE DO to Answer Problems of GWP?

“SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT” has become a “catch-phrase”, a front runner for all political and other socio-cultural rhetoric! Added to this is the “biggest rhetoric” that is supported by the UN: MILLENNIUM DEVELOPMENT GOALS (MDG). Here is superb rhetoric:

“Let the future say of our generation that we sent forth mighty currents of hope and that we worked together to heal the world.”

… Prof Jeffrey D Sachs … http://www.millenniumpromise.org/site/PageServer?pagename=home

… The “link” from the above would lead to this:

“Your contribution will support Millennium Promise and our mission to end extreme poverty in Africa. It will help underwrite vital resources and activities such as staffing in Africa, outreach, advocacy, and program oversight that make sustaining Millennium Promise and Millennium Villages possible. *These amounts below represent our total cost for providing these items, including the costs of purchase and distribution, needed technical assistance, and the associated operational costs. Your contribution will support Millennium Promise and its overall mission. The examples provided are symbolic and donations will be used where needed most to help those living in poverty.”

THE QUESTION:

Could we mitigate the effects of Global Warming and Global Poverty through Gifts/ Donations/ Hope/ Prayers/ Government Gratis? Why are the different groups, who apparently seem to work very hard to mitigate the effects of GWP, NOT attempting to develop and bring out effective and REAL Sustainable programs?

While not wishing to go into the detailed analyses of the How/ Why/ What on these “begging” for Donations etc, this writer wishes to express his personal nauseating feelings (with mental agony) about such unabashed “second-fiddling” by almost all of the systems that propound ideas and actions toward mitigating Poverty/ Global-Warming.

Here is a REAL Case study (Actual study done in 2007):

Thampy (true name withheld) is about forty years of age, and lives in Wayanad District in Kerala State in India. He has just short of one ac of land, which provides all that he could “think of” for his family upkeep. The family consists of himself, his wife and two children (aged 14 and 11 – girl and boy respectively), and his widowed mother who is 65 years old (physically very weak). Although, a few years back, when the crops he obtained through cultivation in his meager land (mainly coffee, pepper and banana) could earn him not less than US $3150 gross, his present gross earnings are not even $1050 – a net annual earning of not more than $750, at the best of times. Five years back he could send his children to a good local school; but with poorer earnings now, he is unable to pay the “high fees” needed to support such “better education”. Further, he has to support his mother, who needs medical attention due to poor health. Although Government health centers are helpful, a combination of corruption and high costs of special medications make it very difficult to support his mother, except those that are possible within his meager earnings level. Though he has cooking gas connection and also electricity connection, he avoids using them except for specifically important needs, avoiding wastage. In the ultimate analyses, the average earnings per individual in this family works out to less than $150 per annum (at the best of times). Observations showed that a major portion of the District had many such “Thampy’s”, a few of them having greater economics problems.

The above pathetic “story” is not a freak case, but this writer has seen and interacted with many such families in villages, across the length and breadth of India (moving about 3000 km), noting that almost 70% or more of all village families are extremely poor and in wretched conditions!!!

QUESTION:

What could we do to change this pathetic economic realities in India (and in almost all developing nations)? Would it be enough if we offer platitudes and rhetoric, apart from theorizing and “preaching” various ideas and concepts? Would the various seminars and other so-called “work-shops” aimed at poverty alleviation etc, almost all of them being conducted in Five-Star Hotels at high costs, help? Do we have PRACTICAL propositions and Operational methods so that the average per capita income in villages could be raised to not less than $2000? For example, if we were to enhance the economics standard of “Thampy”, his family income would have to be not less than $10, 000; could we help in achieving this?

AGRO-BIOGENICS – A MINUSCULE GROUP: working toward mitigating the effects of GWP

http://www.agro-biogenics.com

This is a small (but highly determined and dedicated) group, constituted through a “chance interaction” in the forum of CR4. The members of the group (numbering less than twenty at this moment, after One year of interaction through the net) have come together with the main thrust being: Mitigation of Global Warming and Global Poverty, through defining and creating a NEW BUSINESS PARADIGM, which measures the rate of increase of business/ economic development as being proportional to the closing of the gap between the “rich” and “poor”. The said new business paradigm DOES NOT wish to depend on doles/ donations/ gifts/ Government subsidies and other philanthropic “offerings”; but the new business would wish to COMPETE side-by-side mainstream economics, working on an estimated worldwide business volume of over $4 trillion for every $150 per capita increases earned by the poorest 3.5 billion people on earth!!! Here is an excerpt from an Introduction to the themes at Agro-Biogenics:

“If you think technology means sophisticated gadgets and hybrid systems … think again! Just look around us at our backyards … we would have the greatest business potentials there … we need to use all available local renewable resources, including human resources, toward solving the needs and problems of local people. This “localization” would be the answer to the present day problems of global warming and green house gas emissions. We have all the energy and materials needs of the local people, within local surroundings. Our estimate of these business potentials indicate a value of not less than US $4, 000 billion!!!”

At this juncture, we also need to “define” the connotation: AGRO-BIOGENICS:

“We may observe that agriculture and plant systems are the starting point for all human activated phenomena on earth; it is further noted that the future of humans would directly depend on how we shape the productivity/ efficiency of agriculture and all related activities and processes, thereby optimizing on land utilization, food generation and processing, eating habits, cultural habits, and reducing wastage and reversing shifting populations. The acronym, AGRO-BIOGENICS, connotes a very broad theme conveying the totality of the systems of Materials and Energy that are germane to life on earth. AGRO-BIOGENICS may be defined as the totality of the system environment that encompasses the whole of Renewable Resources (and could include both living and non living things) and all energy sources. The first word system (AGRO) connotes the theme that the resources are artificially created agriculture and plantation activity resources, including both plants/ vegetation based and animal based. The word – BIOGENICS – connotes the material and energy systems/ resources involved in the entire life forms and those that emanate from them (living and nonliving). We may also note that Agro-Biogenics would be the future, not only in terms of the human resources and energy needs, but also in creating the greatest New Ventures of the future.”

The Group Vision is summed up as follows:

“The turmoil that we see all around us is the result of a system that maximizes wealth in the hands of a handful of people, when the majority merely ekes out their existence. The results of the so-called industrial revolution that began about 250 years ago and culminated in the twenty first century Technology revolution have had little impact on the majority, keeping them at subsistence levels. There are about 4 billion people in this category, as per the UN, and growing at enormous pace. The disparity between these “poor” and the “rich” is growing at exponential level. If we do not take these into consideration and make sure that the lower end strata people are not uplifted to levels above their present paltry incomes of US $150 to $200, we shall have to see a catastrophic backlash, which could result in greater consequences than the perceived catastrophe due to Global warming.

“We at AGRO-BIOGENICS view Global Poverty and Global warming as corollary to one another, as presented elsewhere. And, it would be our endeavor, through propagating the concept of Agro-Polymer Industry Complex-Sustainability Engineered Projects (APIX-SEP), which has been explained at length elsewhere, toward solving these twin problems, simultaneously. And we are also of the view that Business alone would have the competency, imagination and resources to deliver.

“AGRO-BIOGENICS is one small but important step in that direction”

The group benignly calls upon great thinkers, economists, Nobel laureates and all advocates of GREEN TECH and Poverty alleviation programs to ADVICE and support us in our deliverance. We would also call upon all those involved in supporting the development of the Poor: OXFAM, FOE, The Earth Institute, Bill Gates, GOOGLE … and every other such group/ individual, to support the cause for which we PLEDGE to work.

(Note: It is never the intention of this writer to pooh-pooh the excellent and other humanitarian works being rendered by these great institutions and other Groups/ individuals; but the sad commentary is that not one of these GOOD WORKS seems to offer REAL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PROPOSITION)

More about AGRO-BIOGENICS could be downloaded here:

http://www.adrive.com/public/c27158b285448843cdbaec7e2c14712173e4a32667fc9ba1d007d766ecdf0381.html

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Global Warming and Global Poverty are corollaries – Part-II

November 20, 2008 · Filed under Global Warming & Global Poverty · Tagged Development Economics, First & Second Laws of Thermodynamics, Global Poverty, Global Warming, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Heat Death of Universe, Thermodynamics & Global Warming, Time-Entropy Phenomena

THE GLOBAL WARMING BANDWAGON/ LOBBY

Earlier, we had attempted to define: Poverty and Poverty Index (http://pvhramani.wordpress.com/2008/11/16/developing-nations-poverty-index/). We have also touched upon the effects of our “over indulgence” exacerbating the impacts of Time-Entropy phenomena, which force us toward the “Heat Death” of the universe!(http://pvhramani.wordpress.com/2008/11/18/global-warming-and-global-poverty-are-corollaries/). We may also note that more things are said/ written/ “podcast” than actual practices on Poverty, Global warming and the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDG). World leaders meet very often, spending huge amounts of money and “human work-time”, discussing these over and over … and finally nothing seems to be coming up to mitigate the problems and effects of both global warming and global poverty. Economists and academicians, journalists and soothsayers … each group vies with one another, trying to outwit the other in exposing and espousing the various “negative” impacts. Nobel Prizes are bestowed on others; and special awards are constituted, and awards ceremonies “celebrated” with great aplomb and fanfare – all for some perceived works that are said to mitigate these “twin-problems”. But alas! The twin problems of Global Warming and Global Poverty (acronym GWP) continue to flourish unabated; the rich also continue to become richer; nations, with greater “know-how” to plunder the meager world resources, continue their unilateral indulgence, unchecked. Renowned names of “Mahatma” Gandhi, Adam Smith, Schumpeter, among many others, are recalled and their ideas re-kindled. Every one toms-toms about various new methods/ theories/philosophies to combat the twin problems, and new businesses are defined and approved by Governments through public subsidies, toward “mitigating” the twin problems. The cycle goes on … and sooner than later, we would once again come up with another huge crisis, which could be triggered by these “twisted” actions, being taken now, in the name of mitigating GWP!

Now the question may be asked: What is it that this writer is wishing to tell?

The following may be noted;

If we dispassionately research through the “pages of history” from the days of Alexander (or beyond back in time) till the twenty first century, we would observe that the world’s progress (or regression?) has always been dictated by a handful of people/ groups. And, today, even though we talk high of Democracy and Socialism, the effective Governance methods have been totally in variance with the basic principles – always the majority being under the “dictates” of a minority! Let us consider Two Examples: India (which is painted as the “biggest” democracy) and China (which is considered to be a “communist/socialist” set up). In India a recent catastrophic flood havoc had devastated the lives of about five million people; and the Government instead of attempting to solve these poor people’s problems is more concerned with the “stock brokers” and other “financial clubs”, all of whom seem to have had “melt down” in the recent global financial crisis (created by their own extravaganza) – the poor flood victims continue to fend for themselves in pathetic and desperate conditions. So also in China, a few million people in Tibet are being “muzzled” under the weight of the so-called communists proletariat (a minuscule group) to toe their line, against the collective wishes of the people!
Ever since the idea of Global Warming was “strongly” presented through the UN in the nineties (although the basics were known very clearly, even in the early Fifties!) and finally culminating in the MDG, there appears to be absolutely NO concerted, honest and cohesive “formulas” and “problem-attack” to mitigate the effects of global warming or global poverty. The biggest tragedy is that, as large amounts of FUNDS are needed to promote and “re-engineer” development of systems and appropriate techno-economic ventures to mitigate GWP, almost all the works of the MDG Funding are being entrusted to the very perpetrators of the GWP-Problems! For, in the current scenario, they alone seem to have the financial muscle and clout to INVEST!
The two aforementioned factors could be further elaborated to present the pathetic situation – that of nonchalance and further “self-aggrandizement”. Two examples would suffice to make this claim more acceptable.
1. ETHANOL TO REPLACE GASOLINE: Billions of Dollars are invested and thousands of “brain-power” in the form of young engineers, scientists and “knowledge workers” are lured into the new focus of Ethanol/ Biofuel bandwagon.
2. CFL INSTEAD OF TUNGSTEN LAMPS: In the name of reducing Global Carbon emission, Tungsten lamps are being assiduously replaced by CFL. Many Manufacturers, in collaboration (or collusion?) with various NGO’s and do-gooders are moving heaven and earth to cajole various Governments to subsidize and switch over to CFL!
Why do we consider the two examples of “the frenzy to do a quick-buck business” through so-called Bio-fuel and CFL (instead of Tungsten) as being ploys for “self aggrandizement”? The answer would be evident when we note the following: (i) every ton of “green biomass” could generate 75 Kg of methane gas (with 937, 500 K-cal Heat value/ energy value), 130 Kg of non-polluting CO₂(convertible into about 800 Kgs “Carbon Sink Engineered” Products), 63 Kg of superb Bio-fertilizer (dry weight), and about 400 Kg reclaimable water. If instead we were to convert the cellulosic matter in the vegetation into Ethanol, we would have about 90 Kg “proof” alcohol (having energy value of about 601, 706 K-cal); we note here that, even if we were not to consider the “extras” in the “methane gas systems” the base energy available in that process-conversion is greater by a factor of 150%. (ii) Now look at the “dangerous” proposition of converting all Tungsten lamps into Mercury based CFL (each lamp having about 2 gm pf mercury). If a city such as Bangalore (India) were to replace all Tungsten lamps with CFL, the annual Mercury pollution to be handled could be of the order of not less than 5 tons! Are we to consider Mercury pollution as more benign to the atmosphere/ environment than CO₂?

It is not our intention here to “counter” all attempts to “think and act against the impacts of GWP”, but instead the proposition here is to “think, observe, analyze and go down to the base/ genesis level”, before we act in the same “wrong way”. This would also need that we STAND UP boldly against the present GLOBAL WARMING BANDWAGON LOBBY, so that we DO NOT become pawns in their hands, unwittingly being lead to believe their “truths”. Much damage has already been caused by this “bandwagon”. Great “brain power” and “Mahatma Gandhi Power” are needed to counter them!

So, what is in store for all of us common people? In fact every citizen of the world is being directly impacted and involved in one way or the other in the processes that finally lead to GWP.

Please await more details in the next few days: to read “Global Warming and Global Poverty are Corollaries – Part-III”

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Developing Nations & Poverty Index

November 16, 2008 · Filed under Negative Wealth Index & Poverty, The Face of Poverty · Tagged Developing Nations, Negative Wealth Index, NWI, Poverty, Poverty Index, PVI

INTRODUCTION

‘DEVELOPING NATIONS’ is a euphemism to express the plight of UNDER-DEVELOPED NATIONS. Incidentally, almost all of these nations are those spread across the entire tropical regions (the regions within the Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn). Hereafter, we shall refer to these nations as TROPICAL NATIONS (TN).

world-renewable-resources-comparative-development

World Renewable Resources vs Development

Although the UN and the Word Bank estimate the population living in DIRE POVERTY (“lowest development” regions and “improved development” regions in the illustration above) @ 2 billion or lesser, this writer would like to differ. Further, the UN also enunciates four categories of nations, based on income (lowest income, low middle income, upper middle income and high income). Here again, this writer would like to differ. The following observations are the main themes/ concepts that constitute these differences:

The world could be differentiated into TWO categories: Organized Economies based on Western Intellectual Tradition (WIT) and the Unorganized Economies (almost all of them being Tropical Nations – TN)
The world view of WIT group depends on Temperate Zone climatic situations, as opposed to the Tropical climate of TN group.
While the temperate zones of WIT group are deficient in natural resources (including the most valuable resource of human potential), the TN group is endowed with huge natural resources (Natural Resources here are the Renewable plants/ vegetation, water, rain, wind, sunlight, animals and humans … collectively called Renewable Resources – RR)
It is a paradox that, although 70% of the world’s RR are in the TN group regions, the WIT nations score over them on an economic differential in the scale 1:25 (the TN group being poorer @ 1/25^th of the WIT nations)
It is noted that the poverty of the TN group is a result of alien technology/ economics/ business/ education/ governance systems (mainly based on WIT themes) forced on these poor economies by the local leaders, inadvertently (or otherwise) supported by the Western World. This wrong approach has resulted in non-utilization of local resources, based on local needs, and also without relying on local wisdom.

The green and red colored nations in the illustration above fall in our Unorganized Economies group (mostly TN), and the blue colored nations are the WIT group nations (the advanced nations). It is a remarkable observation – that the entire regions of the Temperate Zones, where WIT based economic development models are practiced, are far more developed than all of the Tropical zone regions! Exceptions are the Oil rich nations such as the Gulf region nations, Japan and a few other tropical nations

Business/ Economic Growth vs Poverty/ Environmental Effects

The illustration here depicts a strange (paradoxical) phenomenon: the rate of increase in environmental degradation and poverty is proportional to the rate of increases in economic/ business development. This conclusion is based on the way poverty and global warming have increased in the last two centuries, ever since the so-called industrial and technological revolutions ushered in the unprecedented “growth” in the WIT nations. The impact is of exemplary nature in the TN world.

Faces of Poverty

Although the theoretical expressions and mathematical derivations analyzing the genesis of Poverty and Global Warming may not be universally agreed up on, that both these do have some causal connection is becoming clear. This writer wishes to define Poverty as follows:

POVERTY: is a human living condition, resulting due to deprivation of livelihood needs of the majority. We may state that it is inflicted on them by a minority of consumers, by their propensity to consume and assertive ability to corner more of the resources of the world. If we go a step further in our analysis, we might state that poverty is a corollary of present day Economic development—the said poverty being inversely proportional to the economist’s yardsticks of GDP, and GNP (or any other terms defined by them to specify the ‘one-sided’ concept of development)—the greater the “development”, the greater is the state of poverty.

As mentioned earlier, it is strange, but true, that global warming has paralleled poverty (or vice-versa). And, in a world where the effects of human-nature interactions are crossing national boundaries, resulting in so-called “Globalization”, we need to think and act “inclusively”, if we were to avert catastrophic consequences. Unilateral decisions, based on WIT, cannot and will not work hereafter.

EXTRAVAGANZA AT ITS ZENITH (This Photo was received through “mass” E-mail)

The above Photo-illustration is not the photo-illustration of a “star” hotel showcasing the Mercedes Benz and other luxury cars for tourists; but it is the residence of ONE Arab Sheik – telling us that not only the hanged Saddam Husein, but almost all of the Arab Billionaires are extravagant! The “silver” bodied” car in the foreground is original silver! The cases of many Western “celebrities” could paint greater extravagant pictures .

THE WRETCHED CONDITION OF POVERTY (This is a poor family's dwelling near the International Airport in Bangalore, India)

THE WRETCHED CONDITION OF POVERTY (This is a poor family dwelling near Bangalore International Airport (India)

In contrast to the extraordinary levels of luxury flaunted by the Arab Sheik, the wretched existence of the poorest in a City in India is depicted above. The condition is pathetic. In fact India has about 300 million people in this condition; another 300 million people live in slightly “better” conditions! (depicted below)

A MORE “WELL-TO-DO” POOR FAMILY's HOME!

The idea of presenting some of the dramatic pictures, shown above, is to drive home the basic “faces” of poverty.

Measuring Poverty (POVERTY INDEX)

Although economists would present it in terms of “per capita” GDP, etc, which do not tell us the real on the ground picture, at this juncture we do not have any other yardsticks to “measure” poverty. Yet, this writer wishes to audaciously state that POVERTY has to be measured on the local micro level, whereby all of the economist’s yardsticks have no meaning in their present definitions/ formats. Instead, we may redefine and measure poverty on the basis of NON UTILIZATION OF LOCAL RENEWABLE RESOURCES.

We shall look at India, on the basis of this yardstick:

Land Area ……………………………. 3, 287, 590 sq km

Arable land area ………………….. 1, 605, 330 sq km (48.83%)

Permanent crop land ……………. 92, 053 sq km (2.8%)

Population …………………………… 1, 147, 995,904

Labor force …………………………. 516, 400, 000 (60% in agriculture)

(https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/in.html)

Average Annual rainfall ………. 1, 200 mm (http://www.krishiworld.com/html/water_resources2.html)

Total water available (based on rainfall) … 3, 945 cu km (usage @ less than 650 cu km)

Estimated Non-Utilization level

Land area (based on 30% as virgin forests) …………………….. 2, 209, 260 sq km

(Here, land areas of 30% forest cover + 2.8% permanent crop areas have been excluded)

Estimated Available RR in the form of vegetation matter @ 15 T/ annum/ha … 3.31389 billion T

(this is the estimated “green weight” of the RR in the form of all available vegetation/ organic/ animal resources)

Estimated non-utilized labor force (all of the agricultural labor) ………………………… 309, 840, 000

(Agricultural based workers are in the non-organized category and they do not have more than 100 days real work… also, their wages are very low @ US $2 per day, during the number of days worked)

Estimated non utilized water resources ………………………………………. 3, 295 cu km

This writer would “measure” India’s Poverty Index (PVI) as follows:

The estimated 310 million non-utilized labor force would have earned a total of US $232.5 billion @ $750 per capita (almost all of them would not be earning more than $150 at the moment). This would need that this entire population would have sufficient jobs, through productive works. If their earnings were an estimated 7% of the total businesses, the ultimate business volume for this to happen should be a whopping $3, 321.4285 billion! India’s PVI is this staggering number!

Thus, we may arrive at an appropriate definition for POVERTY INDEX:

Poverty Index (acronym, PVI) is the optimum business generation needed to offer full time employment to the non-utilized “active” labor force (both unskilled and semi-skilled) in a nation, so that the average actual income of all of this labor force is well above the minimum “decent” living standard. The yardstick for “decent” level would have to be based on costs of living, taking into account the following:

FOOD
ENERGY
HOME/ HOUSING
MOBILITY
EDUCATION
MEDICINES/ HEALTH
LEISURE/ ENTERTAINMENT
FAMILY
OLD AGE SECURITY/ PROVIDENCE/ INSURANCE

NOTE: If the phrase POVERTY INDEX paints a “wrong” impact, we may rename the same as NEGATIVE WEALTH INDEX (NWI).

The questions are:

Is it possible to arrive at such “utopian” levels of development?
Do we have the resources, technology and managerial/ entrepreneurial competence to transcend and transform?

The writer wishes to recapitulate the prophetic wisdom of the economist Dr. Richard T. Gill (1967)

“Advanced western technology … is by no means ideally suited to the typical under-developed country … Ideally, the under-developed countries would employ neither the western technology of a century ago (which is defective) nor the most modern western technology (which is adopted to a different economics context), but a THIRD technology which consists of an adaptation of modern methods to the special conditions of the under-developed world … but, such a technology does not exist …”

Please visit the site: http://www.agro-biogenics.com … to understand how POVERTY of Developing Nations could be tackled;

….. also view: http://www.globalissues.org/article/26/poverty-facts-and-stats

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Clean Tech through Total Recycling

October 30, 2008 · Filed under Zero_Waste Zero_Carbon Clean Tech Business · Tagged Agro-Polymer Industry Complex, Alternate Pterochemicals, Alternative Energy, APIX-SEP, Bio-Composites, Bio-Energy, Bio-Fertilizers, biomass, Carbon Sink Engineered Products, clean tech, Energy-sustainable, environment, GHG reduction, Green Composites, green engineering, recycling, renewable energy, Self Regenerative Recycling, Sustainability Engineering

Global warming is intimately connected to global poverty; the two being corollary to one another. Our attempts to solve these twin problems through so-called “high-tech” systems and engineering would only exacerbate the already troubled situation. For, any attempts to develop all these “high-tech” systems would only draw more of the depleting resources.

Let us consider just one example. We have been cajoled to use CFL bulbs instead of Tungsten bulbs for our lighting, so that we do reduce the power consumption, mitigating CO2 increases to that extent. But, we need to analyze the manufacturing processes involved in creating CFL bulbs, and we should also try to understand the impact of large scale mercury spillages involved in CFL bulb disposals. The question here would be:Is mercury pollution better than CO2 increase in the atmosphere? This is a serious issue that needs to be answered!

This writer is of the view that “clean tech” systems are to be begun in our backyards, where we could Recycle almost all the huge wastes – both organic and inorganic. We need to recognize that almost 93% to 95% of all materials, and energy that we use are either wasted or never recovered – in automobiles, electric cookers, agriculture, wood industries … and so on. Thus, it is logical to conclude that recycling these Wastes would be the most appropriate answer to counter Global warming – not creating more wastes through more sophistication.

Let us look at an example: Agriculture and Nonfarm vegetation systems.

Plants and Vegetation systems for recycling

To understand how these organic materials would be the starting point for CLEAN TECH systems, let us look at another illustration:

Zero-Waste Zero-Carbon Business model

The above illustration is the Zero_Waste Zero_Carbon Business Model in a banana plantation region. Virtually every gram of plant/ vegetation materials (both the wastes generated from agriculture operations as well as those which are called weeds) would be used through Self Regenerative Recycling (SRR). While the FIBROUS matter would be converted into Engineered Composites that could replace wood and even metals in many engineering applications, the sludge portions (inclusive of all available water) would be converted into Methane gas, Chemicals and Bio-Fertilizers. Methane gas could be further converted into either Energy or Alternate Petrochemicals. Incidentally all these would be CLEAN TECH products or GREEN products, having business potentials through Carbon credits as well as excellent markets. The entire processes involved could be inter-connected through a systematic process engineering; the same is named: AGRO-POLYMER INDUSTRY COMPLEX_Sustainability Engineered Processes (APIX-SEP). It may also be noted that by recycling and processing the CO2 spewed through burning methane gas, we could produce many utility products, named: Carbon Sink Engineered Products (CSE)

Alternate Petrochemicals through Biorefinery_Bio-Methane gas platform

The last illustration is the schematic of a Biorefinery that starts with the methane gas generated using agrowastes and other organic wastes.

It is noted that if we attempt to develop and convert the available vegetation resources (which are renewable in nature), every 1000 ha areas in the so-called underdeveloped nations (termed as APIX_1000) could be transformed into wealth producing systems through SRR, resulting in processed foods, alternate energy, alternate engineering materials, alternate petrochemicals and Bio-fertilizers. The result would be the development and commercialization of CLEAN TECH products (energy and materials) resulting further in unprecedented improvements in the livelihood qualities of the poor people who now live in these nations. The estimate is that each 1000 ha based APIX-SEP unit could create businesses worth US $15 million to 20 million, apart from offering direct and full time employment to 2, 000 local people in each such unit.

This writer, being from India, is more conversant with the systems and conditions prevalent there. In the specific case of India, it is estimated that “clean tech” businesses through APIX-SEP could be a whopping $3, 000 billion, in a total of about 150, 000 APIX_1000 units (units based on 1000 ha clusters). The different other underdeveloped countries could create APIX-SEP businesses of another $3, 000 billion!

These and many more concepts/ information may be noted in the website: http://www.agro-biogenics.com

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Global Warming and Global Poverty (GWP) are corollaries – Part-III

December 7, 2008 · Filed under Global Warming & Global Poverty · Tagged Development Economics, First & Second Laws of Thermodynamics, Global Poverty, Global Warming, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Heat Death of Universe, Thermodynamics & Global Warming, Time-Entropy Phenomena

This is the THIRD Part of the series: “GLOBAL WARMING & GLOBAL POVERTY (GWP) ARE COROLLARIES“. However, it is noted that two more of the “blog-parts” in this series (pvhramani’s blog) are to be read in unison. At this juncture, it would be appropriate to recapitulate a few “definitions” …

1. POVERTY: is a human living condition, resulting due to deprivation of livelihood needs of the majority. We may state that it is inflicted on them by a minority of consumers, by their propensity to consume and assertive ability to corner more of the resources of the world. If we go a step further in our analysis, we might state that poverty is a corollary of present day Economic development—the said poverty being inversely proportional to the economist’s yardsticks of GDP, and GNP (or any other terms defined by them to specify the ‘one-sided’ concept of development)—the greater the “development”, the greater is the state of poverty.

2. POVERTY INDEX (acronym, PVI) is the optimum business generation needed to offer full time employment to the non-utilized “active” labor force (both unskilled and semi-skilled) in a nation, so that the average actual income of all of this labor force is well above the minimum “decent” living standard. We may also name PVI as NEGATIVE WEALTH INDEX (NWI)

See here: http://pvhramani.wordpress.com/2008/11/16/developing-nations-poverty-index/

3. We had also noted that Global Warming and Global Poverty are intimately connected through the “Laws of Thermodynamics” (and Time-Entropy phenomena), especially the Second Law: “matter-energy system is dynamic and continually move toward a new state, from the previous state, never reaching the earlier state.” A few of the human inflicted phenomena that exacerbate the effects of Time-Entropy phenomena (and in turn that of Global warming) are enunciated here:

Our over indulgence in eating, in excess of need
Extravaganza in terms of “show-biz” affairs, maximizing wealth, self aggrandizement
Spending in excess of need for defense/ War systems
No care attitude toward the “less developed” and poor
Heavy withdrawal from the meager world resources to support a minority (rich)

NEED FOR A NEW BUSINESS PARADIGM – to solve GWP

The world seems to be concerned about GWP. Every national leader, the UN, many groups/ NGO’s, and various Philanthropists are working overtime to solve the problems of GWP. But alas! The more every one seems to work toward mitigating the twin problems, the more we note that the problems seem to be increasing – more and more people become victims of poverty, at alarming rates, and pollutions and excessive resource consumptions increase global warming. These on-the-ground conditions have dictated us to Define Poverty as expressed earlier – poverty being the inverse value of economic development.

This writer wishes to express a STRONG observation: It would be impossible for us to solve the problems of GWP through any of the present day “half-measures” (including the attempts through the UN MDG). While poverty needs proactive EMPOWERMENT of the poor whereby every able bodied person gets minimum livelihood upkeep in the form of wages or otherwise, the indiscriminate (unabashed) consumption and arrogated extravagance of a minuscule group would exacerbate any programs aimed at mitigating the effects of GWP. Added to this is the infusion of salt into the injury, when the nations of the world (including the august world body, UN) entrust the tasks of countering these negative effects to the very same perpetrators of these “crime on humanity”! All these seem like “the blind leading the blind”

What then is the ANSWER? … not rhetorics, moralizing, admonition or preachings!

ZERO-WASTE ZERO-CARBON BUSINESS MODEL (ZW-ZC-BM)

Reader is also directed to: http://pvhramani.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/clean-tech-through-total-recycling/

and http://pvhramani.wordpress.com/2008/10/30/clean-tech-through-total-recycling/agro-polymer-industry-complex-in-banana-plantations/

The biggest fallout of GWP, is SHIFTING POPULATIONS – men and women from villages moving away to crowded towns and cites; a whole flock of people’s shifting to a new country, alien to them, resulting in problems and conflicts. This has to STOP! We consider that these cannot be solved except through a New Business—that which closes the gap between the “rich” and the “poor” … a business that would measure its PROFITS in terms of closing this gap. This would need opportunities to be provided to every local/ village man and woman. There are over 3, 500 million people on earth needing this. This NEED should be the PLATFORM for the new Business Paradigm, which would generate sustainable businesses that drastically reduce PVI/ NWI.

Is such a business theme possible? The answer would be an emphatic YES!

BUSINESS is defined differently by different thinkers and practitioners. But, whatever be the ideas and esoteric rhetoric, beneath all such noting and euphemisms, there is one thing that should be categorically accepted as the prime DRIVER of business: PROFITS and ECONOMIC POWER.

We look at business in a new orientation, giving new dimensions to profits and economic power. In this new paradigm, while PROFITS would continue to be a prime DRIVER of business, the definition of “profit” would be inclusive, not exclusive. It would define profits for the entire stakeholders in the business chain. And the old idea that “monopoly is a myth” may have to be re-written as: “monopoly of the business chain of stake holders alone would bring competition and innovation”.

The result would be ECONOMIC POWER – capability to sustain equitable livelihood and comfort needs of those who are considered employees/ advisors/ managers; capability to give values to those who are considered owners/ shareholders; capability to build a group of committed vendors/ service providers/ suppliers; capability to service the needs of the creditors; capability to offer the greatest satisfaction to all customers/ consumers/ society, through creating and catalyzing Sustainable Development. Unlike the classical Business Philosophy that looks at ONLY the Marketable Products/ Services as the “value additions”, the New Business Paradigm would look at all of these as value additions. A business that creates space within this paradigm and works itself within the constitution of democratic values would not be interested in Tax benefits, Subsidies and other Government/ outside Vested interest doles. Instead, it would be this New Business that would be courted by others, for their economic benefits and Economic Power.

Only business has the capability and NEED to innovate – a psychology (if not philosophy) to “stay ahead” of peer competition, leading to innovation. The thrust of this innovation is SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT that would look at the world not as scarcity ridden system (scared into hoarding and maximizing) but as a system with bounties of RENEWABLE RESOURCES, including human resources that are the GREATEST in value.

The single biggest “cause for worry” is the apparent “shrinking” of the world (in terms of lesser availability of materials, energy and livelihood conditions), whereas the world population continually seem to increase! This is in tune with the “Time-Entropy” phenomenon of continual increase of “unavailability”, leading to the “Heat Death” of the universe! We, as humans, could either increase the speed/ rate of unavailability or mitigate the same (visible to us as GWP). The latter condition would necessitate every human on earth to think, develop and act in a manner that would result in ZW-ZC-BM. Mere show-biz seminars, work-shops and intentions such as UN MDG would not answer the problems. In fact this writer would request/ suggest all these “high-flying actors” of GREEN TECH, MDG and POVERTY ALLEVIATION programs to introspect: Would the world’s poorest (3.5 billion people) be uplifted from their present wretched livelihood levels by huge amounts of money spent on seminars, conferences and work-shops? (including large consumption of fossil fuels burnt to support the thousands of Jet/ Aircraft Travel for these purposes)

The next part in this series would present plausible answers/ solutions to the problems created by GWP; and it would also present how this writer, along with a few others, has taken up these tasks through the forum of AGRO-BIOGENICS – a Group that would offer FREE Technology/ Managerial support to develop ZW-ZC-BM in any part of the world.

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Global Warming and Global Poverty are corollaries

November 18, 2008 · Filed under Global Warming & Global Poverty · Tagged Development Economics, First & Second Laws of Thermodynamics, Global Poverty, Global Warming, Global Warming & Global Poverty, Heat Death of Universe, Thermodynamics & Global Warming, Time-Entropy Phenomena

We had defined Poverty in our last blog: “Developing Nations & Poverty Index”. However, the said definition purposefully side-stepped the issue of Global Warming, although we had a cursory reference to Globalization and Environmental Degradation. Here we shall look at Poverty and Global warming as two sides of the same coin.

POVERTY: is a human living condition, defined as the corollary of Global warming, resulting due to deprivation of livelihood needs of the majority. We may state that it is inflicted on them by a minority of consumers, by their propensity to consume and ability to corner more of the resources of the world. If we go a step further in our analysis, we might state that poverty is a corollary of present day Economic development—the said poverty being inversely proportional to the economist’s yardsticks of GDP, and GNP (or any other terms defined by them to specify a ‘one-sided’ concept of development)—arriving at the end-result: the greater the “development”, the greater is the effect of poverty (see: http://pvhramani.files.wordpress.com/2008/11/business-poverty-increases.gif)

THE CAUSAL CONNECTION BETWEEN GLOBAL WARMING AND POVERTY

We need to recognize two natural laws, which dictate the way life on earth evolves. These are the FIRST and SECOND Laws of Thermodynamics.

FIRST LAW: Matter and energy can neither be created nor destroyed; but may be changed/ modified, keeping the sum-total as constant.

SECOND LAW: Both energy and matter are bound by TIME-ENTROPY phenomena, which essentially connotes that matter-energy system is dynamic and continually move toward a new state, from the previous state, never reaching the earlier state.

Let us look at two worldly examples:

MINING OF IRON ORE ETC FOR STEEL MANUFACTURE:

Steel is essential for human needs. Hence, steel manufacture is important. But the manufacturing processes involve, among others, three mining operations – Iron Ore, Coal, and Dolomite/ Limestone. These are huge operations that virtually destroy the entire original state of a regional environment, apart from generating huge volumes of pollutants. Without going into the details of the operations and other aspects, suffice it to state that these “extractive” mining operations irrevocably change the matter-energy balance of the earth, through a combination of energy inputs and materials transfers, creating a new “equilibrium. While it may be true that the total input-output analyses might look balanced, the “original state” of affairs would be changed once and for all.
OUR AGING PROCESS:

We all grow from childhood to adults, and grow older still, before death stalks all of us. Likewise, iron rusts; water would fall from hilltop, and not the other way. Here, we observe that the time-entropy effect would not allow us to “travel” backward in time to finally enter back into our original mothers’ wombs!

It may be noted that these are related to Global warming, as explained herein. While the first example is a “human life inflicted” worldly phenomenon, the second is a “natural” phenomenon. Both these examples indicate the ultimate irreversible nature of the different phenomena, under consideration. Further, although these ultimate effects might not be completely obliterated and altered, we could attempt to mitigate their effects, through human interventions – especially the “human inflicted” phenomena. However, human greed and propensity to consume and flaunt uncontrolled extravagance are two human inflicted phenomena that come in the way of moderation. A few of the human inflicted phenomena that exacerbate the effects of Time-Entropy phenomena (and in turn that of Global warming) are enunciated here:

Our over indulgence in eating, in excess of need
Extravaganza in terms of “show-biz” affairs, maximizing wealth, self aggrandizement
Spending in excess of need for defense/ War systems
No care attitude to the “less developed” and poor
Heavy withdrawal from the meager world resources to support a minority (rich)

Does this mean that we need to stop development? … Not at all! But, we need to redefine and re-engineer development yardsticks and all development activities such that the only aim and objective of development should be to mitigate poverty. The classical/ traditional economists and “capitalistic” paradigm thinkers and actors might counter this as mere rhetoric and populist. However, in the interests of the continuity of humanity, with lesser conflicts and greater cohesiveness, it is imperative that we do create and take advantage of the GREATEST FUTURE MEGA-BUSINESS potentials in the business of mitigating poverty and global warming—estimated @ $4000 billion for every $100 extra earned by the poorest 4000 million people in the world. If we do not visualize these “writings on the wall” and redefine our programs of development and business economics/ social themes, we are bound to reach the “proverbial” HEAT DEATH of the Universe, sooner than later!

NOTE: PART-II of this, a continuation of these discussions, would be presented in a few days from now!

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Pvhramani’s Blog

Vanity-Fair, instead of Poverty Alleviation

Sustainability and Globalization – Are these Contradictory?

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS – Answer to Global Warming & Poverty (GWP) – II

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS – Answer to Global Warming & Poverty (GWP)

Global Warming and Global Poverty (GWP) – What should we do, other than offer platitudes?

Global Warming and Global Poverty are corollaries – Part-II

Developing Nations & Poverty Index

Clean Tech through Total Recycling

Global Warming and Global Poverty (GWP) are corollaries – Part-III

Global Warming and Global Poverty are corollaries

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