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PCI Staff

Founder & Director

Julian Darley

Policy & Mobilization

David Room

Executive Director

Celine Rich

Administration Manager

Christina Olsen

Development Coordinator

Liz McDowell

Education Coordinator

Chris Borstad

Outreach Coordinator

Shelby Tay

Assistant to Director

Madeleine van Roechoudt

Coordinator

Milton Ariail

Post Carbon Newsletter #10 December 2005

1. Feature Story: The Oil Depletion Protocol

2. PEAK OIL: The Reality Behind Syriana

3. More on New Money Systems

4. New staff - Chris Borstad, Education Coordinator

5. Post Carbon Institute Bay Area visit

6. Featured Outpost: San Francisco East Bay

7. Post Carbon Fellow - Dr. Colin Campbell

8. Fundraising Update: Help Us Plan for Peak!

9. Next Newsletter Preview

1. Feature Story: The Oil Depletion Protocol

The Oil Depletion Protocol is an idea that was first put forward by Colin Campbell and is currently being championed by Post Carbon Fellow, Richard Heinberg.

The idea of the Protocol is straightforward: oil importing nations would agree to reduce their imports by an agreed yearly percentage (the World Oil Depletion Rate, namely annual production as a percent of what is left). Production in the producing nations declines after peak at approximately the national depletion rate, thanks to the immutable physics of the reservoir, and producers too would have a part to play in the new global policy.

It is unnecessary for all nations to ratify the Protocol in order for it to have a beneficial effect; if even one nation adopts it, that nation will benefit. However, if a substantial number of nations sign on this will create a platform for international economic stability and cooperation.

The primary benefits of the Protocol will be as follows:

1. world prices will moderate, averting global economic collapse and allowing the poor to afford their minimal needs;
2. the massive financial transfers associated with profiteering from shortage will end; and
3. consuming nations will be forced to reduce waste and turn to renewables, with the proceeds of the high domestic price of oil being used to ease the transition.

Efforts are continuing to publicize the Protocol and communicate it to the general public. It is hoped that a few courageous politicians in each country will understand its importance and bring it before their governing bodies for consideration and adoption.

Richard Heinberg is a major proponent of the Protocol and is working with us to advance this important international treaty. His next book, to be published by New Society Publishers in June 2006 will be titled, 'The Oil Depletion Protocol: A Plan To Avert Oil Wars, Terrorism, And Economic Collapse'.

For more information on the Protocol (including the current text of the Protocol) visit Richard Heinberg's Museletter or Global Public Media. For more on other policy responses to energy decline see Section 9 'Newsletter Preview' below.

2. PEAK OIL: The Reality Behind Syriana

Coincident with the national release of the geopolitical thriller 'Syriana', Post Carbon Institute initiated a grassroots flyering campaign - “PEAK OIL: The Reality Behind Syriana”.  The campaign is intended to alert Syriana audiences to possibility that the dire ramifications of oil supply disruptions similar to those portrayed in the film’s trailer could actually happen and that we need to begin preparations locally as soon as possible. We are mobilizing volunteers to distribute educational flyers to moviegoers before and after showings of Syriana. The flyers are intended to grab the reader’s attention, make them aware of peak oil and channel them to a landing page that gives them more information about peak oil and what they can do.

3. More on New Money Systems

Last month we talked about some aspects of local or community (or "complementary") currencies and you can find details of some of the ideas that are circulating and the projects that are being tried on the websites listed below. The key reason why the money system is going to have to change radically and new money systems are going to have to be used is that our present money system is based on the assumption of constant economic growth. As a result, our economy breaks down if growth is not achieved. Since, as we know, economic growth is going to be very difficult to achieve in a post-carbon world and the world economy will contract sharply as oil and gas supplies decline, ideas about the new national and international money systems required are needed now. Earlier this month, Post Carbon Director Richard Douthwaite submitted proposals on behalf of Feasta to a British government enquiry into how economies are
going to have to adapt to a lower-carbon-emissions world. The submission
may be found here on the Feasta website.

More information about community currencies:

• The Worldwide Database of Complementary Currency
• Current and legacy LETSystem and openmoney

• Money and community

• The money problem

Click here for additional links

4. New staff - Chris Borstad, Education Coordinator

Our new intern Chris Borstad has joined us as Education Coordinator. Chris will be working on a number of projects, including establishing an Educational Advisory Panel, organizing educational material on the Post Carbon website, soliciting academic material for publication and dissemination, and helping to compile and create lecture and course material for distribution to universities, schools, and community groups.

Chris grew up in Colorado and received his Bachelor's degree in Physics at Colorado State University. He is currently a graduate student in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of British Columbia. After finishing his Master's degree studying avalanches, he will be starting a PhD in January 2006. He loves teaching and looks forward to being part of the Post Carbon Institute team.

Please contact Chris if you have any suggestions for curriculum material or if you are an educator looking for material which he may assist with developing.

5. Post Carbon Institute Bay Area visit

In mid November Julian Darley (Director), Celine Rich (Executive Director) and Liz McDowell (Development Coordinator) visited the San Francisco Bay Area in California. Along with Dave Room (Director Policy & Mobilization) we invited all of the Outpost coordinators in the Bay Area to meet with us and meet each other. We had lunch in a charming local restaurant in Emeryville. Eleven Outpost members were able to make it and we all learned a lot about both their sucesses and the challenges that face coordinators as we begin working to relocalize our communities. We let them know that we will be working to improve their website templates and online system. We talked about our new book, 'Relocalize Now!', due to be published in the spring. Dave Room told us about developing a Relocalization Assessment for the Bay Area. Thank you to all who attended.

6. Featured Outpost: San Francisco East Bay

The Bay Area Peak Oil outpost has functioned as an incubator for a number of additional outposts in the San Francisco Bay region.  Initial meetings were organized by Dave Room and others during the summer of 2004 when Dave used Meetup as a membership feeder to good success.  These groups have stayed loosely interrelated and today they include Bay Area Peak Oil, San Francisco Post Carbon, SF Oil Awareness, and the East Bay Post Carbon Solutions Group.  Most recently the San Mateo County Outpost was formed.

These groups have organized activities such as: film screenings, discussion panels, lectures, visibility at regional festivals (Solfest, SF Green Festival, Bioneers), community solar energy installation, a local peak oil conference, an educational poster on peak oil; a college-level course on peak oil and have traveled to attend peak oil conferences in other parts of the world (ASPO Portugal, ASPO Denver, and The Community Solution in Yellow Springs).

Monthly meetings typically include discussion of current events, screenings, announcements of local events, special presentations, and working groups focused on specific projects. Read more details about SF East Bay, or join the SF East Bay Outpost.

7. Post Carbon Fellow - Dr. Colin Campbell

Dr. Colin Campbell received his Ph.D at Oxford in 1957 and entered the oil industry as an exploration geologist. His lengthy professional career took him around the world, from Borneo to Norway to Papua New Guinea. He was a geologist for Texaco, BP and Amoco. He has held executive positions or consulted for Mobil, Shell, Esso, Amoco, and many others across the globe- including serving as Chairman of the Nordic American Oil Company and consulting on oil for the Bulgarian government.

Dr. Campbell is the founder of ASPO and ASPO Ireland, he is a Fellow of the Post Carbon Institute, and serves as Trustee of the Oil Depletion Analysis Centre.

Specializing in oil resource assessment, Dr. Campbell has published and spoken widely, including in the Palace of Westminster (UK). Based on the formerly authoritative data of Petroconsultants, Dr. Colin Campbell co-authored several major studies on the size and depletion of world oil and gas reserves. His published work includes "The Golden Century of Oil" (1991), "The Coming Oil Crisis" (1997), "The Essence of Oil & Gas Depletion" (2003), "The Truth About Oil & the Looming World Energy Crisis" (2004), and "Oil Crisis" (2005).

Dr. Campbell's views are provocative yet carry the weight of half a century of international experience in the petroleum world.

8. Fundraising Update: Help Us Plan for Peak!

At Post Carbon Institute, we are working hard to assist communities across the world to live more locally. If you agree that the work we do is important and urgent, please commit to ongoing support by becoming a Post Carbon member or giving a donation. We thank all of those who have already pledged their support for 2006.

9. Next Newsletter Preview

More responses to global energy decline: Richard Douthwaite & Feasta have just produced "Energy Rationing & The Oil Price Crisis" and Richard explains the principles behind this mechanism designed to reduce energy consumption in the light of both peak oil and worsening carbon dioxide emissions.

• Begin building Parallel Public Infrastructure (we are working on research and guidelines)


• Write letters to the editor of your newspapers and to your local politicians-- (mention Peak Oil and Gas)


• Tell your friends and neighbors what's happening


• Start a Post Carbon Outpost


• Forward this newsletter to others


• Support our efforts by becoming a member

The Post Carbon Institute newsletter is designed to inform you of the work of the Institute, which is to help educate and prepare communities for a world of declining oil production. For North Americans and those in the British Isles and New Zealand, peak oil is compounded by heavy dependence on now declining natural gas production.

Help us get this message out to the rest of the world -- please forward this email and encourage your friends, family members, co-workers, planners, policy makers, and politicians to subscribe.

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