(토요모임) [ 4. May. 2019 ] Saturday meeting topic

[Scarlet]

Hello ! Everyone !~   It's me Scarlett ! 

This week we have 2 main discussion materials which are connected with

' Sustainable Life Style for a Better world : Meaning of Life, Friendship and Concepts and Application of Sustainable Development Goals'.  Do not be obsessed with all the articles too much. 

Just pick some articles that you have interests in and 

prepare your opinions related to them. :)

Detailed lists are as follows.

◈ Friendship

- Friends: Every episode ranked from worst to best/ There are no fewer than 236 episodes in total

◈ Meaning of Life

- Searching for meaning in your life? This Japanese concept can help you find it

◈ Sustainable Development Goals

- What Are the Global Goals and How Close Are We to Achieving Them?

- How can the development goals be achieved?

◈ Climate Change Adaptation

- These Dutch microgrid communities can supply 90% of their energy needs

- Bangkok is sinking. Here's how a new park can protect the city from flooding

Hope you enjoy the topics

With luv

Scarlett

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Friends: Every episode ranked from worst to best
There are no fewer than 236 episodes in total
Clémence Michallon/ New York  / @Clemence_Mcl / 2 days ago

Over the course of 10 years and 10 seasons, the writers of Friends delivered no fewer than 236 episodes to their ever-increasing fan base.

Fifteen years after the finale aired on 6 May, bringing the adventures of Rachel, Ross, Joey, Chandler, Phoebe and Monica to an end, it is still nigh impossible to pick a single favourite episode. It feels as though each 20-or-so-minute nugget contributed its own signature phrases and cult moments, which remain firmly embedded in pop culture nowadays.

Yet it is interesting to comb through those combined 4,720-ish minutes of television and separate the highs from the lows. Friends will surely always have a special place among the series that set the standards of the sitcom genre. That’s why the show remains a relevant topic of discussion to this day, and why it has come under renewed scrutiny as some (including this writer) have attempted to dissect the way it broached topics such as gender, sexuality, women’s rights, and body politics

Some of Friends’s best episodes still stand out for what they contributed to the history of television – an all-too-rare lesbian wedding, a surrogacy storyline, the empowering tale of a young woman finding her footing in the corporate world. Others are, quite simply, funny in a laugh-out-loud, goofy way, fuelled by the kind of moments that explain why Friends is, for many, the televised equivalent of comfort food.

Here it is, then: a full ranking of all 236 episodes of Friends, from worst to best.

236. The One with Chandler's Dad – Season seven, episode 22
The portrayal of Chandler’s parent – many viewers are now convinced, in hindsight, that Chandler’s “dad” was actually a transgender woman – was problematic throughout the show, and this episode is no exception.

235. The One with the Giant Poking Device – Season three, episode eight
“Ugly Naked Guy” was one of the least funny – and most offensive – gimmicks employed by the sitcom. A large part of this episode revolves around it, so it’s no surprise to see it tumbling towards the bottom of this ranking.

234. The One with the Vows – Season seven, episode 21
There is nothing crucially wrong with this episode, except that it’s made up almost entirely of flashbacks from previous instalments. Can you imagine tuning in, back when Friends was still airing weekly on network TV, only to be served what essentially amounts to a rerun? Boring.

233. The One with the Ick Factor – Season one, episode 22
Monica dates someone younger – whom she presumes to be a senior in college – only to discover he’s actually a 17-year-old senior in high school. Icky indeed. It’s just one of those episodes where the central joke doesn’t land.

232. The One with the Truth About London – Season seven, episode 16
This episode would have occupied the middle of this ranking if not for a brief sequence in which Phoebe wonders what would have happened if Monica and Joey had ended up together. In this alternative reality, a fat Joey struggles to bring his chair up to the table as he sits down to another epic dinner cooked by his partner. It’s fat-shaming at its worst, and it’s profoundly uncomfortable to watch.

231. The One with the Metaphorical Tunnel – Season three, episode four
Ah yes, The One Where Ross Freaks Out Because His Son Wants To Play With a Barbie Doll. OK, Ross. The only redeeming quality is the end sequence in which a young Ross is seen dressed as his female alter ego, Bea, and hosting a tea party.

230. The One with Mac and C.H.E.E.S.E. – Season six, episode 20
Another flashback episode, this time pegged to Chandler’s failure to relay important news to Joey regarding a possible TV show role.

229. The One with the Rumor – Season eight, episode nine
Rachel Green’s former classmate Will (played by Jennifer Aniston’s then-husband Brad Pitt) wanted to make up an embarrassing rumour about her in high school, and apparently, the most humiliating option was to make Rachel supposedly intersex. This one doesn’t really need to be explained, does it? Activists have spoken at length about the stigma and shame associated with being intersex. This is one example of how pop culture has contributed to those issues.

228. The One with the Ballroom Dancing – Season four, episode four
Look, the storyline in which Joey agrees to help Mr Treeger practice his ballroom dancing is, in part, rather cute – but it’s ruined by the mockery he faces for it. “How goes the dancing? Gay yet?” Monica asks him in one of those moments that will remind you that Friends hasn’t always aged well.

227. The One Where Nana Dies Twice – Season one, episode eight
Ross visits his family as they prepare to say goodbye to his late grandmother, and discovers dozens of sweetener packets (which she loved to collect) tucked away in her bedroom closet. It's a very sweet moment so why, oh why, ruin it with an entire storyline about Chandler’s sexuality and whether he gives off some kind of gay vibe

Chandler (Matthew Perry) and Monica (Courtney Cox) in the classic Friends episode 'The One With All the Thanksgivings' (NBC/YouTube)

226. The One with the Thumb – Season one, episode three
Is it Phoebe’s extremely unbelievable discovery of an entire human thumb in her can of soda, or is it the fact that the show was clearly still struggling to grasp its own identity when this one aired in 1994? Either way, something about this episode feels off.

225. The One with the Male Nanny – Season nine, episode six
Aka The One Where Ross and Rachel Find the Absolute Perfect Nanny After a Difficult Search but Have to Let Him Go Because Ross Has Outdated Ideas About Masculinity.

224. The One with the Inappropriate Sister – Season five, episode 10
Remember that weird time Rachel dated a guy named Danny who had an uncomfortably close relationship with his sister? Yes, I had blacked it out too. That storyline seems plain weird, and the rest of the episode isn’t compelling enough to make up for it.

223. The One with Joey's Interview – Season eight, episode 19
Oh, great, another flashback episode. This time, it’s pegged to Joey’s interview with an entertainment reporter (a tricky exercise for Joey, who tends to put his foot in his mouth while speaking to the press).

222. The One where Ross Dates a Student – Season six, episode 18
As the title would suggest, Ross, a university professor, starts dating a student – and his shocked when he learns that’s not merely “frowned upon” but plainly forbidden by the powers that be. Come on, Ross.

221. The One where Ross Meets Elizabeth's Dad – Season six, episode 21
When the aforementioned student’s father (played rather brilliantly by Bruce Willis) finds out his daughter is dating an older man in a position of authority, he’s none-too-pleased. Instead of accepting that fact, Ross enlists his own ex, Rachel, to talk him up to the student’s father. Of course he does.

220. The One with the Breast Milk – Season two, episode two
When Ross finds out his ex-wife Carol’s partner Susan has tasted Carol’s breast milk, he wants to try it too. But this is Ross, so naturally he’s torn between his rivalry with Susan and his aversion for said breast milk. Not to be overly critical of Ross, but this isn't his finest moment.

219. The One with Monica's Boots – Season eight, episode 10
Monica buys pricey boots and her husband Chandler (who is actually a few episodes away from quitting his job, thus putting financial pressure on his marriage) thinks they’re too expensive. So Monica pledges to wear them forever, and when it turns out they hurt, she tries to hide it from him. I realise Friends is just a fun sitcom, but this episode is enough to make you question whether you'd ever like to have a joint account with anybody.

218. The One with the Male Nanny – Season nine, episode six
Far be it from me to be the Debbie Downer here, but I don’t find jokes about Joey’s girlfriend hitting him particularly funny? Sure, the storyline is played for laughs, but something seems a bit tone-deaf here.

217. The One Where Chandler Can't Remember Which Sister –  Season three, episode 11
Little life tip: if you're going to fool around with your friend's sister, maybe remember which one it was? Looking at you, Chandler Bing lost in a sea of Joey's siblings.

216. The One with Joey's Fridge – Season six, episode 19
Let’s go back to Ross’s decision to date a student for a moment. In this episode, he gets so insecure when his girlfriend goes away for Spring Break (you know, as she should) that he follows her on her beach getaway. The sequence where David Schwimmer is seen dancing on what appears to be MTV Spring Break is almost funny enough to redeem it all. Almost.

215. The One with Phoebe's Ex-Partner – Season three, episode 14
In order to keep Rachel from attending a fashion seminar with her colleague Mark (who he's convinced is courting her), Ross decides to accompany her – except Ross doesn’t care about fashion and is so uninterested he falls asleep. In the words of Joey: how Ross got three women to marry him, I’ll never know.

214. The One with Rachel's Assistant – Season seven, episode four
Look, I gave Ross grief for dating his student, but I also wasn’t particularly taken with Rachel’s decision to hire her assistant Tag just because she thought he was cute (even though he was clearly under-qualified), turning down a perfectly fine applicant named Hilda in the process.

213. The One Where Chandler Doesn't Like Dogs – Season seven, episode eight
After a few episodes of lusting after Tag, Rachel finally kisses her assistant and starts a secret relationship with him. Again, I think Rachel – who worked so hard to carve herself a place in the corporate world and really loved her job! – deserved better than this narrative arc.

212. The One with the Race Car Bed – Season three, episode seven
Ugh. When Rachel brings her boyfriend Ross to dinner with her own father, it turns out Dr Green isn’t exactly fond of the palaeontologist. Both men, however, end up bonding over their mutual disdain of certain aspects of Rachel’s lifestyle, such as her decision to consult a chiropractor. Women, am I right?

211. The One That Could Have Been, Part One – Season six, episode 15
Flashbacks in Friends are always uncomfortable to some extent, mainly owing to the portrayal of young Monica, played by Courteney Cox in a fat suit. This episode is no exception to the rule: in this alternative reality, Monica is a 30-year-old virgin, presumably owing to her body shape.

210. The One That Could Have Been, Part Two – Season six, episode 16
More of the same. Part two one gets a slightly higher ranking than the first because the alternative-reality plot resolves to bring all six friends back to their actual situations on the show (meaning Rachel leaves her fiancé Barry, Ross realises his wife is a lesbian, and Phoebe quits her job at Merrill Lynch). As for Chandler, he realises he is in love with Monica, making their storyline slightly more nuanced than the 30-year-old virgin trope.

209. The One Where Underdog Gets Away – Season one, episode nine
Ross is uncomfortable speaking to his unborn child, but gets over his initial reluctance once because his ex-wife’s partner Susan does it. It’s slightly amazing how many of Ross’s actions in earlier seasons were motivated by his desire to compete with his ex’s partner. Also, any episode featuring Ugly Naked Guy automatically loses points.

208. The One in Barbados, Part One – Season nine, episode 23
You know there’s something wrong with an episode when the most interesting one-liners revolve around Monica’s hair and whether or not she’s going to leave The Supremes (because the Barbados humidity made it poofy, get it?). This one also sets up the “Rachel and Joey try dating” story arc, which never really seemed quite right.

207. The One with Joey's Bag – Season five, episode 13
Every time Friends makes a joke about masculinity (Joey wears a shoulder bag! Surely he must be a woman!), an angel loses its wings.

206. The One with Ross and Monica's Cousin – Season seven, episode 19
I could have lived without watching almost the entire Friends cast oggle Denise Richards for the better part of an episode. Meanwhile, Joey’s attempt to conceal the fact that he’s circumcised (for a role in which he has a full-frontal nude scene) with Monica’s help is one of the most bizarre storylines in the history of the show.

Article source : https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/friends-episodes-best-worst-ranked-all-the-one-where-a8802291.html?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR1-lsVQXmKDBi-LFqTB-PwXUjskGWsG4vjOHmkJ7uUGeTCbBJXnBhDuzyA#Echobox=1556360785

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< Questions > 

Q1. Which soap opera do you like the most?

Q2. In 'Friends' soap opera, which episode are the best and the worst for you?

Q3. Who is the most attractive friend character in the 'Friends' drama?

Q4. How would you define 'Friends' or 'Friendship'?

Q5. How many meaningful relationships do you have?

Q6. Do you have any friends who would not run away from you because of your goofy behavior?

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Searching for meaning in your life? 

This Japanese concept can help you find it
A very useful Venn diagram illustrates this concept perfectly.
Philip Perry / 06 February, 2018

In the post-modernist, Western world, religious life has decreased substantially, patriotism has been replaced with a widespread distrust of the government, and getting ahead has become exceedingly difficult. As a result, more and more people are falling victim to ennui. This dreadful feeling of bitter disillusionment stems from the loss of meaning in their lives.

A lack of purpose can increase the risk of mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, resulting in poorer sleep, worsening health, and in extreme cases, substance abuse and thoughts of suicide. Some have turned to the East, most recently, to the ancient Japanese concept of ikigai, which means, roughly, “to live the realization one hopes for.” Another interpretation, “that which makes life worth living.” Take note that there’s no exact English translation. 

Iki means “life,” whereas gai means “value” or “worth.” Gai comes from the word kai meaning “shell.” This refers back to the Heian period (794 to 1185), when shells were considered valuable. We can interpret ikigai as finding value in one’s life or discovering one’s purpose.

In the West, self-help gurus and movements of one flavor or another have come and gone, and in the wake of each, though often lighter in the pocket, few of their participants find real solace. Perhaps rather than happiness, which is generally momentary and fleeting, we should seek a purposeful life. Exploring the concept of ikigai and the questions that come with it, can help one find a solid purpose and through this, contentment and drive.
The whole concept has been boiled down to four questions:

1) What do you love?
2) What are you good at?
3) What does the world need from you?
4) What can you get paid for?

Here’s a handy Venn diagram:

Credit: Twitter. 

If you’re retired, you may not have to worry about what you can be paid for, so you can delete that one and focus on the remaining three. The idea is not only to find your purpose but the proper balance between all aspects surrounding it. Another consideration, one’s ikigai doesn’t affect the individual alone.

For the Japanese, the concept has a social element. It’s about getting comfortable with your role in your family, job, and society. It’s traditionally split along gender lines. While men usually associate their ikigai with their work and career, women (at least traditionally) associate it with motherhood and their role in the family. And even though ikigai has recently become the latest New Age buzzword in the West, this doesn’t make it any less effective for those who find themselves at a crossroads, with no sign to guide them.

Ikigai author Hector Garcia told The Independent that it all snaps into place when you get engrossed in a task and achieve that flow state. “Have you ever been so absorbed in a task that you forget to drink and eat?” Garcia asked. “What type of task was it? Notice those moments when you enter flow, and your ikigai might be embedded in those moments.”

Author Dan Buettner told the BBC in order to find your ikigai, you should write three lists. The first is your values, the second things enjoy doing, and the last, things you are good at. “The cross section of the three lists is your ikigai,” he said.

Okinawans enjoy great longevity, which they partly credit to their belief in ikigai. Credit: Getty Images.

Lecturer and anthropologist Iza Kavedžija writes in The Conversation, that through interviews with older Japanese, she found that they regarded ikigai as the mastery of something. It was closely related to the phrase “chanto suru,” or doing things properly. The concept of ikigai is strongly related to the Japanese island of Okinawa, whose inhabitants enjoy remarkable longevity. Many centenarians can be found there, and some credit finding their ikigai with a long, healthy life.

One limitation is, if one sees their work as their ikigai, they may neglect their family, friends, and hobbies, which are just as important and fulfilling. Moreover, the Japanese themselves are finding it difficult to achieve ikigai. According to a 2010 survey, just 31% of Japanese respondents said they’d found theirs.

And if you achieve yours, is that the end? Professor Gordon Matthews of Chinese University in Hong Kong told The Telegraph, those who have a clear sense of ikigai can achieve higher aspects of understanding beyond it, such as "ittaikan" or a sense of oneness with one’s social role, and "jiko jitsugen" or self-realization.
To learn more about ikigai, click here:

Article source : https://bigthink.com/philip-perry/searching-for-meaning-in-your-life-this-japanese-concept-can-help-you-find-it?utm_medium=Social&facebook=1&utm_source=Facebook&fbclid=IwAR3kOp2a6DQ5mOLiEhE9rp9y0QpUr_-gIsDSCczmVnE_iHd8NduWpejvdow#Echobox=1556454062

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< Questions > 

Q1. If you describe your life in one sentence, how would you do that ?

Q2. What do you love?

Q3. What are you good at?

Q4. What does the world need from you?

Q5. What can you get paid for?

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What Are the Global Goals — and How Close Are We to Achieving Them?

Experts say the world needs to pick up the pace to achieve the goals by 2030.

July 20, 2018 / By Daniele Selby         

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Why Global Citizens Should Care

Global Citizen’s vision is a world without extreme poverty by 2030. The UN Global Goals are a crucial framework and strategy for seeing that vision through. The goals target the root causes of poverty from gender inequality to food instability to conflict. You can join us by taking action here to call on world leaders to see the Global Goals through and eradicate poverty.

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It’s not often that politicians all agree on something. But in 2015, leaders from around the world joined together at the United Nations and agreed that we need to take action.

They created a plan to transform the world into one free of poverty and hunger, where every child can go to school, where oceans and forests will be around for future generations to enjoy, and where everyone is equal — all by the year 2030.

In order to realize that vision, they set 17 goals, known as the Sustainable Development Goals or Global Goals. And while 17 goals in 15 years certainly sounds ambitious, every one of those goals is crucial to ending extreme poverty by 2030.

■ 17 Goals to Change the World

The 17 Global Goals — which build off the eight Millennium Development Goals set in 2000 to be fulfilled by 2015 — aim to tackle poverty at its root causes. The goals range from ending hunger and achieving food security to promoting peaceful and inclusive societies.

Image: The Global Goals for Sustainable Development

Each goal is accompanied by several specific targets that hone in on specific strategies to achieve the Global Goals. These include measures like eliminating forced marriage and genital mutilation, increasing the number of qualified teachers worldwide, and increasing energy efficiency.

The Global Goals call on governments, companies, and everyday citizens to join together to address these economic and social development issues to ensure that everyone has access to nutritious food, quality health care, education, clean water, and decent paying work.

How Close Are We to Achieving the Goals?

The goals are lofty, but major progress toward achieving them has already been made.

In the last 30 years, the number of people living in extreme poverty — surviving on less than $1.90 a day — has been reduced by more than 1 billion. Between 1990 and 2010, the global poverty rate was cut in half

Yet over 700 million people

At the its current rate of progress, the world is not on track to meet all 17 of the Global Goals by 2030.

Though quality of life has improved for many people around the world and people are generally leading healthier lives, climate change and conflict have hindered progress on ending hunger and forced displacement.

Nearly 800 million people continue to face hunger regularly and millions of children experience stunting and wasting, developmental conditions related to malnutrition, the UN reported

Approximately 263 million children and youth are out of school, UNESCO reported

And girls are still more likely than boys to never set foot in a classroom, particularly if they come from families living in poverty. Gender inequality is still deeply entrenched in social attitudes and cultures. In 2015, one in four women between the ages of 20 and 24 was married before her 18th birthday, according to UN data

Read more: The World May Miss Its Goal of Ending Child Marriage by 2030

What’s Next?

In order to achieve the Global Goals, experts say efforts must focus on supporting the most vulnerable populations, but leave no one behind. People, as individuals, need to do their part to help combat the effects of climate change and global warming, and use their voices to hold companies accountable for their actions and ensure governments remain committed to the Global Goals.

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Sustainable Development

How can the development goals be achieved?
23 Sep 2015/ Oliver Cann/

Head of Strategic Communications, Member of the Executive Committee, World Economic Forum

This weekend in New York, the United Nations will agree a new roadmap for humanity’s development. The fact that a consensus on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has been agreed in the first place is in itself impressive; that they are so long on ambition and comprehensiveness is even more so. But are they achievable? We asked World Economic Forum experts for their take, and round-up the best content from our blog, Agenda, on each of the 17 goals.

Goal 1: End poverty in all its forms everywhere

Is this goal ambitious? Yes. But it can be achieved. By dedicating ourselves to a human-centric, rights-based approach across all the other 16 sustainable development goals will not only end poverty but also bring dramatic improvements in quality of life, the environment and governance for everyone. – Alexandra Lopoukhine, Community Lead, Civil Society and Innovation

Goal 2: End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

Hunger can be eliminated within this lifetime, if we create better opportunities for farmers and focus on the needs of undernourished groups. Sustainability means using fewer natural resources to produce food and reducing food waste and loss. Improved nutrition means reducing both hunger and obesity through improved education, and access and availability of quality foods – Lisa Dreier, Head of Agriculture and Food Security Initiatives

Goal 3: Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

Innovation in terms of delivery models and technology mean is bringing the goal of healthy living for all within sight. Business models based on public-private cooperation unlock crucial investment without the need for massive infrastructure investment; meanwhile, telemedicine, precision medicine and other advances are bringing dramatic improvements in terms of effectiveness and cost – Arnaud Bernaert, Head of Global Health and Healthcare Industries

Goal 4: Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

Technology can help us to fundamentally transform education delivery and, with the right mix of policies and incentives, we can scale up early success stories. But we need to move beyond “first study, then work” to a model based on lifelong learning. Content and quality, too, must change, with the emphasis on critical thinking, collaboration and flexibility alongside “hard skills”. Business must play a critical role in the constant skilling, reskilling and upskilling of employees and broader communities – Saadia Zahidi, Head of Employment and Gender Initiatives

Goal 5: Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

We will not achieve any of our goals if girls and women are not equal partners to boys and men. We have made tremendous strides in awareness of the gender gap – from schools to boardrooms – it’s time to translate these movements and campaigns into action. Workplaces, governments and healthcare and education systems must be designed to provide a level playing field. Practices that have worked already must be adapted more broadly. – Saadia Zahidi, Head of Employment and Gender Initiatives

Goal 6: Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

Let’s tackle wastewater, especially in towns and cities. This is a good way in, as 80% of it is currently not treated. Accelerating technology, partnership models and financing mechanisms to scale wastewater treatment solutions can create “new” reuseable sources of water for industry and agriculture and free up lots more fresh water for humans and nature. – Alex Mung, Head of Water Initiative

Goal 7: Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

Evolution of distributed energy technology, maturity of financial tools and a greater awareness across stakeholders offer a new opportunity for solving the global issue of energy access. With technology largely available, the critical factors to overcome are the financial challenge – by making long-term investment projects both bankable and scalable – and the capability constraints. Enabling those will allow energy systems to reach their goal of affordability and sustainability today. – Roberto Bocca, Head of Energy Industries

Goal 8: Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

Well-functioning and transparent institutions that effectively protect property rights, reduce red tape, combat corruption and keep nepotism in check are essential. Getting this right will create a stable and predictable business environment, which will, in turn, fuel investment, create jobs and facilitate the production of higher value goods and services in an economy. – Margareta Drzeniek-Hanouz, Head of Global Competitiveness and Risks

Goal 9: Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

Through a resilient, trusted digital infrastructure we have a unique opportunity to add 2 billion people to the innovation process. Let’s enable collaborative innovation processes focused on eliminating waste of resources instead of replacing labour with technology. – Jim Hagemann Snabe, Chair, Centre for Global Industries

Goal 10: Reduce inequality within and among countries

We need new policy frameworks and solutions that give economies every chance to drive growth that is inclusive and not limited to small elites. This means looking beyond redistribution to other levers that promote broad-based increases in living standards; for example, entrepreneurship, well-functioning financial systems and the upholding of ethical values in business and public spheres. – Jennifer Blanke, Chief Economist.

Goal 11: Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

A truly smart city needs multiple layers of intelligence – smart, transparent governance which devolves power to the city; a smart economy which promotes job creation and formalizes the informal; smart environmental management through the creation of intelligent infrastructure and a circular use of resources; and smart planning which creates dense, walkable, inclusive urban spaces. – James Pennington, Knowledge Networks Specialist

Goal 12: Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

Let’s move on from a DUD (dig, use and dump) model, which pollutes nature and wastes money. We can constantly reuse resources and turn linear supply chains into value-adding closed loops. Less a DUD and more a circular economy. Technology and the internet of things can drive this. Governments can help too, by removing environmentally harmful subsidies and pricing natural resources right. – Bernice Lee, Head of Climate Change and Resource Security Initiatives

Goal 13: Take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts

It starts with Paris. An ambitious global climate agreement will accelerate climate action and low-carbon growth. Putting a value on reducing carbon will help. Then, we must move the mindset from carbon compliance to “carbon positive” solutions. There are many cost-saving, value-creating, low-carbon innovations which will make your life and your business better. – Bernice Lee, Head of Climate Change and Resource Security Initiatives

Goal 14: Conserve and Sustainably Use Oceans

Healthy oceans provide 50% of our oxygen, 20% of our protein and 30% of our oil and gas. They are suffering. We must 1) recognize the problem; 2) form new partnerships for fishing, acidification, waste, marine transport; 3) forge new forms of regional and global governance to manage our blue commons. – Nathalie Chalmers, Manager, Global Agenda Council on Oceans

Goal 15: Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

This is a big one. Critical solutions include: sustainable intensification and climate-proofing of agriculture; best practice landscape-level ecosystem management; scaled land-use planning with satellite observation; ecosystem economics and natural capital modelling; doubling down investment in sustainable rural development; empowering rural, indigenous and forest people; sorting land tenure and enforcing law, including for trafficking endangered species. – Marco Albani, Director, Tropical Forest Alliance 2020

Goal 16: Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

Over 4 billion people, in almost all countries of the world, lack access to justice. Helping these people have their basic human rights respected means thinking creatively about how to implement reforms that enable efficient and accountable institutions that foster peaceful societies. Crowdsourcing platforms, such as http://www.ipaidabribe.com/, for example, offer a brilliant way of raising awareness and fostering broad-based support for systemic change. – Lisa Ventura, Manager, Global Agenda Council on Justice

Goal 17: Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the global partnership for sustainable development

The SDGs say “what” to do, now we must figure out “how”. We need new alliances like those described above that tap the innovation of businesses, civil society, cities and governments. We need new models of using limited public money to draw in more private finance. There is room for us all to hack and innovate across every SDG, at large or small scales. We must. – Dominic Waughray, Head of Public-Private Partnership

Author: Oliver Cann, Head of Media Content, Media Relations, World Economic Forum
Image: Boys walk home for lunch from school in the village of Kogelo, west of Kenya’s capital Nairobi, July 16, 2015. REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya

Article source : https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/09/how-achievable-are-the-sustainable-development-goals/

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< Questions >

Q1. What are the sustainable development goals?

Q2. SDG goals suggest many agenda in our society which should be dealt with. Do you think which agenda is the most serious item in Korean society?

Q3. Why do we need thoes SDG goals? Is it effective approach?

Q4. Among 17 goals which one is the most urgent agenda to be tackeld for our society?

Q5. Do you take any action to achieve one of the SDG goals? What is that ? Please share your stories.

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These Dutch microgrid communities can supply 

90% of their energy needs
14 Sep 2018/ Johnny Wood / Writer, Formative Content

The power to switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources could rest in the hands of local communities. New research suggests decentralized, smart microgrid systems are capable of providing most, if not all, of our future energy needs.

The Netherlands is pioneering a new approach to generating and sharing energy which could mean neighborhoods of the near future could produce their own renewable power.

The Aardehuizen: a neighbourhood microgrid

A study commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and the Netherlands Enterprise Agency is monitoring the performance of three microgrid projects in Amsterdam and one in Olst.

Microgrids connect a neighborhood to a localized energy network that operates independently of the mains supply, to share local energy between households. The grid communities are decentralized and owned and run by each village or neighborhood.

The system combines several compatible technologies, including rooftop solar panels, electric vehicles, heat pumps and storage batteries, to intelligently harvest and distribute clean energy to the community.

Using real-world data, researchers found that microgrid technologies could make local communities 90% energy self-sufficient, with potential to become fully self-reliant in the future.
If optimized effectively, the grids could serve as a focal point in the country’s drive to adopt renewable energies.

The report’s author, Florijn de Graaf, predicts almost half of all EU households will generate renewable energy by 2050, with a third of these working as part of a local energy community.

Meeting climate targets

As part of the Paris Agreement, the Dutch government has pledged to reduce the nation’s carbon dioxide emissions by 80-90% by 2050, with plans to switch 14% of energy output to renewable sources by 2020.

This figure is below the EU target of converting 20% of member countries’ output to renewables by 2020.

Sweden leads the charge among EU countries with 53.8% of its energy output generated by renewable sources, already surpassing its 2020 target of 49%. The Netherlands is some way behind with a current total of 6%, but there is room for optimism.

Optimized properly, microgrids could play a vital part in supporting efforts to transition to renewable energy systems and meet climate targets.
“As time progresses, costs go down and climate awareness goes up, more and more people will start owning one or more of these technologies,” De Graaf explains.

The future of microgrids
Currently, microgrids power individual appliances – like cars or heat pumps – in isolation, which places heavy demands on the system; much like an electricity power socket overloaded with too many plugs. As more appliances are added, expensive upgrades may be required to sustain the power supply.
The future of microgrids lies in what the report labels SIDE systems: Smart Integrated Decentralized Energy.

A SIDE network uses an intelligent management system to integrate different components and balance local supply and demand, reducing costs. For example, solar panels collect energy when the sun shines and charge electric vehicles; any surplus power is either stored in a battery or sent by the system to power other houses in the community.
The study data shows SIDE systems are less expensive in the long run than conventional grid-powered systems and don’t require expensive infrastructure upgrades.

The ultimate goal is to use SIDE technology to create future “Smarthoods” where circular flows of water, food and energy would make communities entirely self-sufficient, recycling water, materials and waste wherever viable.
If the success of the Dutch trials can be replicated at scale, this could dramatically alter the energy landscape and go some way towards achieving the ambitious renewable energy targets set by the Netherlands.
Success on a global scale will depend on many country-specific factors, like energy policy and regulations. Places with plenty of wind, water and sunshine – especially if accompanied by high local electricity prices and costly energy tariffs – should, in theory, be good candidates for microgrids.

Article source : https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/09/these-dutch-microgrid-communities-can-supply-90-of-their-energy-needs/

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Bangkok is sinking. Here's how a new park can protect the city from flooding
10 Sep 2018/ Alex Gray/ Senior Writer, Formative Content

This year has seen extreme weather conditions wreak havoc across the globe, from record-breaking temperatures to heavy rain causing major floods.

The International Organization for Migration says that climate change will force an increasing number of people to move as extreme weather events become more intense, sea levels continue to rise and environmental degradation worsens.
Adapting to climate change is a huge challenge for major cities, especially those in coastal areas. A low-lying location, urbanization and extreme weather events linked to climate change make Bangkok particularly vulnerable to flooding. And to make matters worse, the city is sinking by one to two centimetres a year.
To help the city combat the effects of climate change, Thai landscape architect Kotchakorn Voraakhom has created a public park in Bangkok designed to withstand frequent flooding.

A park that acts like a sponge

Bangkok used to be known as the “Venice of the East” because of its waterways. Today though, many of the city’s canals have been paved over to make way for urban sprawl.

The problem is that those waterways acted as conduits for rainwater, which now has nowhere to go. As a result, Bangkok experiences frequent flooding.
“When I was young, there were rice fields and canals in the city,” says Voraakhom. “I could hear boats from my house in central Bangkok. Now, all those fields and canals have been stopped with concrete and covered by highrises. All of the buildings and concrete become obstacles for water to drain, so the city floods.”
Chulalongkorn University Centenary Park, or CU Centenary Park, is part of a new wave of design that aims to increase urban resilience and to protect vulnerable communities from the devastating effects of climate change.
During rainy season the park collects and stores water that is then used for irrigation in the dry season.

Capturing rainwater
The park takes up 11 acres at the centre of Chulalongkorn University and includes space for outdoor meetings, an amphitheatre, a lawn for recreation, playgrounds, and a small museum. Crucially, though, it has been built to flood.
The park can hold up to one million gallons of water. That’s the equivalent of an American football field being completely filled with water at a depth of 1.13 metres, or 3.71 feet.

It does this by using various floodwater-management systems: a green roof, wetlands, a lawn with a detention basin and a retention pond.

The museum features Thailand’s largest green roof with 5,220 square metres of native grasses and weeds. The grasses absorb large amounts of water during the July-to-October wet season and are hardy enough to weather the March-to-June hot season.

Three large tanks below the roof and museum can hold up to 250,000 gallons of runoff from the green roof. During the dry season, these tanks will provide enough water to keep the park irrigated for up to 20 days.

The park sits at a very slight angle, so that gravity pulls the water from the highest point – the roof – to the lowest point, the retention pond. “No drop of water that falls into the park is wasted,” says Voraakhom.
This design method is called “urban porosity”, and Voraakhom is the founder and CEO of Porous City Network, a landscape architecture social enterprise working to increase urban resilience in Southeast Asian cities.
“We want to re-introduce permeable surface back into the city, through a network of public green spaces projects, like small parks, urban farms, and canals. Urban porosity is critical to managing water stress in Bangkok,” states the Porous City Network on its website.

Bangkok suffered devastating floods in 2011, which affected 13 million people and left many areas underwater for months, as well as wiping 9% off Thailand’s fourth-quarter GDP that year.

Vulnerable cities such as Bangkok need to prepare for a future of more extreme floods, and projects such as CU Centenary Park could help to mitigate some of the impact of climate change.

Article source : https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/09/bangkok-has-created-a-sponge-park-to-combat-future-flooding

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< Questions >

Q1. Why does the 'Urban regeneration project' required for our urbanized area? 

Q2. How much do you like your residential area? 

Q3. Have you ever heard about the microgrids? What is it? 

Q4. How do you think about the Denmark decentralized, smart microgrid systems which is designed for supplying the future energy needs?

Q5. What causes blackouts in cities? Have you ever experienced before? 

Q6. What is the most important design concept for your residential area? Security, functionality, conveniency or asthetic perspective? 

Q7. How to Conserve Energy in Our Daily Life?