Tar-sands developers and their spokesman (our prime minister) Harper are ramping up their program of obstruction and misinformation, in time for the world’s climate summit now under way in Copenhagen.  While many of our fellow humans labour to avert disasters, we Canadians ignore the impending train wreck while selfishly attending to our own dirty profits.  For shame, Canada.

-Johnny 0.

Neither Canada nor the world can afford growth of dirty oil

Toronto Star — Published On Mon Dec 07 2009

Today in Copenhagen, the Harper government will walk into the UN climate summit not with the intention of transitioning Canada into a clean energy economy, but instead with the agenda of prolonging the oil industry frenzy in the tar sands in northern Alberta.

It is crunch time to stabilize the climate so that our children inherit a safe world. Scientists tell us there is no more room in the atmosphere for the heat-trapping gasses that result from our burning of fossil fuels, and that we must in fact reduce the concentrations of those gasses if we want some measure of security.

Into this historic moment steps the tar-sands industry, on the one hand breathless when describing the hundreds of billions of barrels of oil it could potentially get out of the ground, while on the other pleading to be seen as a minor global warming villain. But you cannot have it both ways.

The current estimate of recoverable oil from the tar sands is 175 billion barrels, which if processed and burned amounts to over 110 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This alone, if it happened quickly, is enough to increase global concentrations of heat-trapping gasses to levels that scientists consider more than dangerous.

Even the growing emissions from just producing rather than burning tar-sands oil will compromise Canada’s climate efforts and stress our federation. Currently, the tar-sands industry produces 40 million tonnes of emissions, about the same as the entire country of Norway. But, according to Canadian government figures, expansion plans could increase these emissions to almost 110 million tonnes by 2020 – about the same as adding in New Zealand and Switzerland too.

If Canada is serious about reducing national emissions at the same time the tar sands expand, then the proportion of Canada’s emissions from the tar sands could quickly rise from 5 per cent to more than a quarter. Moreover, under a national cap-and-trade system, this growth in tar-sands emissions could squeeze out other industries that compete with the tar sands for finite pollution permits, which is why Ontario Premier McGuinty is calling on Ottawa to design a fair system that does not let this happen.

But won’t carbon capture and storage (CCS) let us have our tarry cake and eat it too? A recent WWF/Co-operative Bank report on CCS in the tar sands showed that even the most optimistic projections for implementation of CCS would still result in the tar sands taking up all of Canada’s allowed emissions by 2050 if the country as a whole makes science-based emission reductions. CCS won’t even bring tar-sands oil down to the “life-cycle” emissions profile of regular oil – accounting for emissions created both producing and consuming the oil.

Given the sobering context of climate science, the debate about life-cycle emissions of tar-sands oil is bizarre. Industry likes to cite one study that says tar-sands oil is just a bit worse than the worst oil on the market, like crude from Nigeria where flaring is rampant. But at this point in history we have no choice but to rapidly switch to the best of the best of transportation fuels, like powering our cars and buses with electricity from renewable energy.

The production phase of tar-sands oil produces on average three times the emissions as producing regular oil, but this average threatens to get worse as the vast majority of the deposit is too deep to strip mine, and requires more energy to access. None of the experimental methods of extraction that could reduce emissions is required by law, and in the meantime the Alberta government has issued draft guidelines to let the industry burn the tar itself for energy, which is dirtier still.

Nor should Canadians be taken in by one-sided industry arguments about the economic benefits of the tar sands. Consider this: tar-sands growth means we now have a “petro-loonie” that rises when the price of oil rises, as it will inevitably do again, causing trouble for our manufacturers as their products get priced out of international markets. The Ontario government estimates that a 5-cent change in our dollar impacts $6 billion of Ontario’s GDP.

The Harper government has refused to table a climate plan in advance of Copenhagen because it knows that Canadians will see that a growing tar-sands industry is incompatible with doing our part to stabilize the atmosphere for our children. So, it will walk into international climate negotiations today playing for time, seeking loopholes for tar-sands polluters, and generally trying to get away with doing as little as possible.

Matt Price, Program Manager, Environmental Defence.

Environmental Defence is a national charity with a mission to protect the environment and human health. See www.environmentaldefence.ca

Lately I’ve come back around to considering project management as the next phase in my career.  Project managers are often ex technical people who go on to managing technology projects in (or near) their area of expertise.  I call it a paratechnical role (a role around technical roles).  Because a PM’s technical knowledge is secondary to other skills, it’s easier to be a PM than an engineer outside of one’s core technical competency.

Two promising things that I’ve learned recently:

1. There is a spectrum of jobs between the purely tech-y and the purely PM-y. This is good news because I’m not a certified PMP yet, and the “Project Coordinator” role (Jr-PM) sounds boring and doesn’t pay well.  Lately I’ve come upon other job titles like “Project Lead,” “Project Engineer,” etc.  These mid-spectrum roles are for people who have enough technical understanding to work on highly technical projects interfacing with the engineers, designers, contractors, technicians and the senior PM, and have enough business skills to handle contracts, project schedules and budgets, communications, customer/vendor management, etc.  If the projects in question were renewable-energy or smart-grid projects, I could see this type of role being very rewarding for me; and leading to bigger and better things.
2. Renewable energy developers and EPC service providers are two kinds of companies have lots of these paratechnical roles, and some of them have told me that they value passion and drive above specific knowledge and experience.  Developers get renewable energy projects started: they do the initial wind or solar or geotechnical studies, the grid-tie studies, the market studies, they buy options on land for wind and solar farms, get supply contracts with the hydro companies, get financing, hire the EPC companies, and stand back.  The EPC (Engineer, Procure, Construct) service providers do the detailed design work, buy the hardware, hire the crews, manage construction of the project, and get it on line.  There are lots of developers and EPCs operating in the renewable energy / smart grid space, because it’s the next big thing.

So, roles that I like and am qualified to do, and lots of places where those roles are found.  Things are looking up!

There seem to be a lot of jobs out there in the area of “green buildings”: LEED coordinators, energy management consultants and the like.  Some of it sounds like interesting work, it’s certainly in the right direction green-wise, and I have the skills.  I just lack one thing.  Okay maybe two.  To quote from a recent job posting:

Project Coordinator – Energy

• Experience in the administration of contracts and managing contractors and consultants. Experience in … preparation of specifications and contract documents. Must be able to read and interpret drawings.
• Thorough understanding of energy sources and conservation strategies. Detailed knowledge of building electrical/mechanical system theories and applications including lighting, power consumption, HVAC systems, and water distribution. Knowledge of building automation systems, refrigeration systems, renewable energy applications, water conservation practices.

My question: is there a course somewhere that I can take to get the level of familiarity with (a) the construction industry and (b) with building systems, in order to do jobs like this?  Because there are a lot of them out there!

-Johnny

Yesterday, the Ontario Society of Professional Engineers (OSPE) put on a career-planning session for P.Eng’s who want to get into the new Green Economy.

It was interesting.  The three panelists were a career counselor, a LEED buiding professional, and the executive director of the Ontario Environment Industry Association (ONEIA).

Things that I learned:

• every industry has environmental issues now; be open-minded about where to work
• there’s a skills shortage, not a labour shortage; get the hard skills that are in demand!  ”you probably need a skills upgrade, but not as much as you think.”
• beyond qualifications: demonstrate your interest by being active with associations, reading industry publications
• use job search engines (e.g. wowjobs.ca, eluta.ca, simplyhired.ca), not job boards (workopolis.ca, etc);
  in technical fields, the rule “most jobs never get posted” doesn’t apply!  Don’t ignore the posted job market!
• PMP: OSPE provides discounts with 2 companies that offer PMP prep courses

Jobs to look into:

• LEED Consultant (they’re in demand)
• LEED facilitator (like a Jr. PM…)
• LEED AP (?)
• Energy modeler for LEED (they’re in demand)
• Energy Auditor (NRC has info on getting certified)
• CEM – Certified Energy Manager
• Energy Management Verification professional
• Greenhouse Gas professional
• check out multidisciplinary engineering firms, they have some interesting roles.

The Very Next Steps

• be specific about what industries and companies I’m going after.
• work to identify roles that I can fill, or am interested in filling.  This will require some research & networking.
• work to nail down job descriptions, and the qualifications I’d need.  Research & networking.
• identify ALL the companies that I should be targetting.  Research.  Check their career pages.  Set up auto searches.
• send out CVs.  Keep networking and checking job postings.

Some Thoughts

Smart Grid / Advanced Metering / Electric Car Infrastructure

• wireless network engineer: designer, optimizer.  Operations?
• project manager

Renewable Energy

• I don’t know, but take another look at the LOCAL industry, find any opportunity to get either PM experience or power tech experience
• be open minded; don’t snort at manufacturing or system integrator or installation work

NGOs

• I don’t know, but try to network or cold-call my way in, and solicit opinions on where I can use my powers for good (& make a living)
• Maybe to work for an NGO, maybe to use them for advice, networking.

When you’re not sure what to do next, choose the hardest thing; it’s usually the right choice.

For the past few months, I have been focussing (or not focussing (see post on procrastination)) on the contract work.  As before, some of it is wireless engineering and some of it is SR&ED consulting.  Which means I haven’t been looking for a job.  Well, a few job opportunities came to me, and I pursued the interesting ones.  But really, I haven’t been looking for a job.  Or, to be perfectly honest:

I have been avoiding looking for a job.

The economy is improving, companies are hiring and building again, and the clean-tech sector is awash in government subsidies and positive public sentiment.  RIGHT NOW is probably the BEST TIME there will ever be for looking for a green job!  Does it make sense for me to keep my nose buried in short-term work which bears no relation to the future that I desire?  No!  So why have I been doing it?  To keep the money flowing in?  Because I like the hours?  (really, the hours are quite good!).  No, I have to admit to myself now, it’s because crappy contract work is less daunting than going after my dream job.

So I’m kicking myself in the ass and getting back to what I committed to do.  Going forward, I’m going to spend half my working hours on going after the career that I want.  That will mean reading industry news, finding and researching local companies that I (may) want to work for, reaching out and building a network of relationships with people in the business, and studying to build new expertise.

The other half of my time will still be spent on crappy contract work.  Gotta keep the money coming in.  ;-)

I had an awesome week… two weeks ago.  The deadline loomed, the pressure was on, and I performed.  I made a month’s worth of income in a week, and good thing too, as I had pretty much pissed away the preceeding 3 weeks.  The week after that was another total write-off, I did almost nothing besides attend a meeting and answer my email.

How can I follow a star-performer week with a useless-johnny week?  Why, after I shake off the procrastination monkey, is it so easy for him to climb back on?

For a while now I’ve been performing well.  The work was new and exciting.  But now it’s all so last-month.  It’s time to bring back some tried-and-true procrastination-beating tactics, and to try out some new ones.  Here’s my New Deal:

• Desk work requires physical fitness. When I don’t get any exercise, I’m too lethargic and grumpy to make myself concentrate on any but the most enjoyable of tasks.  I need to get some activity and some exercise every day.
  Rule #1: Start the day with an active task, like fixing something or cleaning up the kitchen.  Take hourly breaks from the computer to stretch and do some core exercises or run the stairs.  Stay away from the computer on the weekends.
• Separate work and non-work. Sitting at my computer, there are too many things to do that feel like “work” but aren’t: personal emails, looking up songs that come on the radio, writing blog posts…  My friend David (wisely) bought a second computer; one is for video games and other entertainments, and the other is for work only.  When he’s at the work computer, he does not indulge in other distractions.  It’s an excellent work habit that I would do well to develop, but I’ll try doing it with only the one computer.
  Rule #2: When it’s work time, I will close email apps and will avoid any other non-work activities.  If I suddenly get a great idea for one of my non-work pursuits, I’ll quickly write it down and then set it aside until play time.
• Work, then play. Surely in an 8-hour day there’s time for both.  I’ve tried moving fluidly between work and non-work tasks, but I have to admit that it doesn’t work.  Not only does breaking up my work time make it less effective, but I just don’t realize how much time I’m spending on things other than work until I get to the end of the day and nothing’s gotten done.  I have to set aside a certain amount of time every day to concentrate on “work.”  Even 4hrs /day of solid work would be a big improvement over what I’m regularly accomplishing now.
  Rule #3: 10am-12pm and 1pm-3pm are for work only.  Check email before and after those times.   Once I’m routinely accomplishing 4 solid hours per day, I’ll increase the amount.
• Rewards. Procrastination thrives when the rewards for working (or the consequences for not working) seem remote or inconsequential.  I have to make the consequences of my work habits more immediate.
  Rule #4: At the start of a project, I will pick a reasonable deadline (typically 1-4 weeks) and a reasonable reward (e.g. treat myself to a new toy or a night out).  I will tell someone about my deadline and reward, to keep me honest.  IF I finish the project on time, I get the reward.  If late, no reward.

There.  Let’s see if this new regime brings about some positive change.

Ultimately I’d like to be earning a decent living in less than 40hrs /week (it’s certainly possible).  I can use the rest of my time to get back into shape, do more with the wife & kids, work on my career, fix up the house, learn guitar, write a novel, etc.  And I’ll just avoid all that self-abuse that follows a lengthy bout of procrastination.

Wish me luck,

-Johnny O.

What’s in a name?  Attacked By Monkeys: Post #15 on Procrastination

I looked back through my posts so far, and was surprised to find that I haven’t made a single post on this subject, before now.  I’ve mentioned procrastination, but this is the first dedicated post.  I could write a book about procrastination.  If procrastination were a skill, I would be its master.  Unfortunately it’s an addiction, and my own master I am definitely not.  Perhaps I’ll do a series of posts on procrastination, one of these days: what it is, what it isn’t, what works, what doesn’t.  I’ll get started on that, as soon as I have something more important to do. *sigh*

And: the monkeys.  Procrastination is a monkey on my back.  That reminded me of a brief missive that made me giggle my ass off, once upon a time.  My brother lives in Japan, and knows all sorts of other strange Cannuck/Yankie/Brit/Aussie ex-pats who make their home in the land of the rising sun.  It takes a certain type of fellow to seek out the most alien culture on Earth (compared to his own), and make his home there.  My bro knows some characters.  One fellow took off to tour the land of Sony and samurais on his motorcycle.  He wasn’t heard from for several days or weeks, and then at last an email arrived that went something like this:

Crossed Hokaido, and up the West coast.
Saw biggest temple ever.
Ate mangos picked by roadside.
Made great friends in Akita.
Got lost on way to Sapporo.  Bike broke down.  Attacked by monkeys.
Love to all, etc.

I wish I could find the original email, but I think I’ve given a sense of its contents.  Anyway, we all had a great laugh at the mental picture this conjured.  At least we know he’d survived.

It has been a while since my last post.  Why?  I started thid blog in part to find a community of like-minded existential careerists.  Since then I’ve been laid off, joined a career transition program, and met all kinds of like-minded existential careerists. I’m getting in real life what I was looking for online.

And speaking of real life: it’s keeping me busy!  Things taking up my time these days, in order of hours/week:

1. Sleep.  8-9 hrs /night.  It’s wonderful.  I feel more healthy than I have in years.
2. Consulting.  Who would have thought?  I am an SR&ED consultant.  I secure refunds and tax credits for Canadian companies in compensation for time and money that they spend on “Scientific Research & Experimental Development.”  It’s pretty interesting work: I get to research and report on R&D work that is being done in all kinds of different industries.  I get to use two of my key strengths: fast learning and technical writing.  And YES, I am using this as my ticket into the environmental and clean-tech sectors.  I’m working on getting some green companies as clients.
   And I’m currently working a radio engineering contract, as well.  Why not?  Can’t let all that expertise just go to waste.
3. Researching the Green industries.  There’s just so much going on right now!  The Green Energy Act, Smart Grid, the new carbon economy (go Obama! shame on Canada!), the hydrogen economy, electric cars, renewable energy, CCS, new pollution regulations, etc.
4. Networking.  I’ve met some great and interesting people lately.  It’s amazing, the connections you can make when you ask EVERYBODY you know:  “do you know anyone working in…?”  And I’ve just co-founded a networking group of “classmates” from the career transition program (which is more or less done now).
5. Playing with the kids and helping out around the house more.  This is nice. 
6. Music.  I’ve been going to more live shows, and jamming with my friends more.  (But I still don’t practice  )

I’m spending almost no time job searching right now. The consulting work is keeping me busy, and I guess it’s less scary than networking and going to job interviews, so I’m letting it take up most of my time.  If I’m still serious about getting an engineering job in the energy business (for example), then I should get disciplined about spending at least 50% of my working hours doing the job search.  Yes, I said “If…”.  Alternatively, I could just stick with the SR&ED consulting work.  It looks like I could make a comparable income.  And it may eventually let me in the back door of the clean-tech industry.  Maybe I can evolve from SR&ED consulting to carbon emissions consulting.

Or is that just me taking the path of least resistance?  I don’t know.

For now I’m almost too busy to think about it.  And busy is good.

-Johnny

Australians are much like Canadians in their friendly demeanor, cosmopolitan culture and British-empire roots.  They may not share our fascination with doughnuts, but then they have Lamingtons instead.  As a Canadian I feel right at home there.

Our nations differ in one important respect, though.  Global climate change is already having a serious impact down under.   And this month, things turned deadly.  As Canadians, operators of the most polluting oil projects on Earth, shouldn’t we feel some responsibility?

Re-posting a great article from the Toronto Star newspaper, of Feb 23rd.

An Aussie’s plea to Canada: Help fight global warming

Arwen Birch

The recent bushfires in Australia that claimed more than 200 lives were not merely random natural disasters or the sole fault of pyromaniacs, lightning or fallen power cables. They were forecast by climate scientists’ years earlier and are the result of a changing climate that is likely to get worse in the future.

I am an Australian desperate to tell Canadians about what is happening to my country. Although droughts and fires are a natural part of Australian life, what we have suffered over the past 10 years is far from typical.

The deadliest fires prior to this year were the infamous “Ash Wednesday” fires of 1983 that claimed 75 lives. The death toll from this year’s fires has already reached three times that amount.

They began when Melbourne experienced its hottest day on record – 46.7 Celsius. They came after months without rain. Backed by strong winds, they travelled at more than 100 km/h. People in their path did not stand a chance.

I grew up in the state affected by the fires in the 1980s. In summer the garden hose was always utilized; it was a backyard toy, used to water lawns, and served to cool us down on those 30-degree days. Now outdoor use of water is not permitted for anything – there is simply not enough of it.

Our heat waves are now in the 40s instead of the 30s. Even our tough native trees are dying, not only from lack of water, but because the sun and air are too hot.

A friend grew up on a farm where you could not step outside in winter without wearing rubber boots because the ground was too wet and muddy. No one on that farm has worn rubber boots for 10 years.

My parents moved to the countryside 12 years ago with the hope of growing their own food. They built a large dam that filled within two years and was four metres deep. The winters were wet and green and the water that fell kept the garden and orchards alive through the hotter months. Rainfall has decreased steadily each year since then and this year the area will go completely dry for the first time. In about three weeks, my parents will be flushing their toilet with buckets from their drinking water tanks.

The droughts of the past were bad, single years that would be followed by a few good ones when reservoirs, dams and tanks could restock. Fires were also less frequent and were rarely deadly because they were more easily contained and fought.

The current drought has lasted more than 10 years and Melbourne’s water stocks are now at only 30 per cent levels. There are entire towns where the supply has completely dried up. They line up at a local caravan park where water is trucked so that they can wash themselves.

Australians are fearful because they believe the weather they are dealing with now represents only the beginning of global warming.

The climate has also been changing in Canada but perhaps not as starkly as elsewhere in the world and not enough yet that people feel an immediate sense of urgency.

We need to realize that global warming is not just an imagined future but something that is real for millions of people right now.

To avoid the worst of global warming, scientists are recommending emissions cuts of around 80 per cent by mid-century, or ideally, zero emissions as soon as possible.

If you have changed your 90-watt incandescent light bulbs to 15 watt fluorescent ones that is a good start – as David Suzuki says “every kilowatt counts.” However, much more is needed.

Fossil-fuelled heating, cooling, and transportation are some of the biggest energy guzzlers and these are areas we can all cut back on. Perhaps you could air-dry your clothes overnight rather than running that 5,000-watt dryer. Maybe you could ride your bike, walk, or take public transportation to get around the city. And when the next summer heat waves come around, some curtains to block the sun, an open window, and a 15-watt fan might be a reasonable substitute for that 4,000-watt air conditioner.

There is no end to handy hints on how to reduce your emissions, but the main thing is to start somewhere. Please.

Arwen Birch is a teacher with a degree in environmental studies. He grew up in Australia and has been living in Toronto for the past year.