Civilisation is facing peak everything, and climate change is but one symptom

Electra Business Breakfast – B2B networking – Sponsored by Electra

Nau mai haere mai Electra Business Breakfast is looking forward to welcoming Dr Mike Joy from Victoria University of Wellington where his fields of research include freshwater ecology and applied economics.

Civilisation is facing peak everything, and climate change is but one symptom. Here in Aotearoa, we are not immune to all threats resulting from these peaks. They are the biophysical realities we have ignored and are the manifestation of planetary boundaries we are hitting, they are the limits to growth we were warned about starting in the 1970s. Mike will give examples of exceeding limits showing up in our freshwaters.

In discussing the Government Emissions Reduction Plan Mike will reveal how we all take cheap energy for granted, without realising just how much our life is dominated by fossil fuel energy and how hard it will be replacing even a fraction of this with “renewable” alternatives.

Mike will also introduce the crucial importance of a concept known as energy returned on energy invested (EROI) and discuss the major implications this has for humankind. He will discuss the energy transition away from fossil carbon, including energy density and its consequences and the possibilities for New Zealand’s energy transition.

See you there! Book early to avoid disappointment.

COVID UPDATE

Electra Business Breakfast can operate at the Karaka Orange traffic light with no limits on attendance, you just need to wear a mask when you are not eating. We no longer need to seat, separate or serve our guests so when you arrive, you will choose your own random table number – seating will be tables of eight. Our caterer will be masked and serve everyone from the buffet. When the crew ask you to be seated and masked, please follow our instructions at all times for the safety of you, the crew and the venue, ka pai.

We will keep you informed along the way of any changing circumstances, and if Covid prevents us from operating, we will reschedule first and then transfer or refund tickets as needed. Please get boosted for you, your whānau, your community, and please don’t attend if you are feeling unwell or are a household contact of someone isolating.

About the Speaker: Dr Mike Joy - PhD, MSc(Hons), BSc Massey University

Mike was a late starter in academia, first attending university in his early thirties to gain his BSc, MSc and PhD in Ecology from Massey University. He began lecturing there in ecology and environmental science in 2003. After seeing first-hand the decline in freshwater health in New Zealand, he became an outspoken advocate for environmental protection.

Mike has received several awards for this work and was a semi-finalist for the 2018 Kiwibank New Zealander of the year. He has been an Associate Editor of Marine and Freshwater Research Journal (Australia) since 2015, associate editor for the Springer Journal – Biodiversity and Conservation since 2019 and an Editorial Panel Member for Transylvanian Review of Systematical and Ecological Research since 2010.

Mike has developed bio-assessment tools used by many regional councils and consultants and has published scientific papers in many fields from artificial intelligence and data mining to the freshwater ecology of sub-Antarctic islands. He has been working for two decades at the interface of science and policy in New Zealand with a goal of strengthening connections between science, policy and real outcomes to address the multiple environmental issues facing New Zealand.

Electra Business Breakfast is an independent networking programme that seeks to INSPIRE, CONNECT and ENGAGE where everyone is welcome.

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