A crude awakening: the oil crash

This looks like a really interesting film. Nothing really new, but it seems to portray the urgency of the energy crisis.

I encourage you to check out the website: http://www.oilcrashmovie.com/

Post-election impressions

I'm not surprised with the results of the October 10th Election and Referendum. On the surface, the Ontario Parliament remained essentially the same. We have a Liberal majority government, PC opposition, a few NDPs and no Greens. But, beneath the surface, I sense that change is just around the corner.

Although they didn't win any seats, the Greens increased their support 3 fold from the 2003 election. Up from 2.7% to 8%. No other party has come close to this amount of change. In addition, there were several notable achievements from individual Green Party candidates. Shane Jolley in Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound came a close second with over 33% support. And, in my own riding in Guelph, Ben Polley came in third with over 19% support.

More hope is given to me when I look at the results from the Student Vote - a mock election held in schools. If these students had there way, Ontario would remain Liberal a liberal majority, but would have a Green Party opposition.

As for the Referendum, I have to say, that I was not at all shocked with the results. The change seemed confusing to people. In fact, I have heard several reports from friends working at the election booths, that people weren't sure what the question meant. I don't think that the government did a good job of educating the public (why would they... when they are currently benefiting from the current system).

Did anyone else notice something wrong with the "Your Big Decision" television campaigns? Every time the person in the commercial said "Yes" to the question, something bad happened... hmmm.

In the end, MMP was rejected - overwhelmingly rejected. But, two statistics stand out in my mind that give me hope for the future. Firstly, more people voted in the referendum than in the election (something like 55% vs. 50%). Secondly, of the people ages 18-34, 67% were in favour of adopting the MMP electoral system.

Change happens slowly. For those of you who are disappointed with the results of this election, don't loose hope. There are always more elections. Don't feel defeated, your vote does matter.

California here I come!

I recently got some very awesome news. I was chosen to present a poster of my research at the Behavior, Energy and Climate Change conference held at the beginning of November in Sacramento! Even better, I have the trip and all my expenses covered by the Ontario Centres of Excellence Professional Outreach Award.

I'm super excited. This will be the first time that I've had an opportunity to present my work and my research to a group of other professionals and academics. Also, this will be the first time that I've traveled anywhere on a plane in my adult life. Plus, I get to stay at a really fancy hotel!

Don't worry, there will be plenty of pictures to come!

I want to hear what Frank has to say!

Poor Frank... left out in the cold. And, left out of the leaders' debate... AGAIN!


Please sign the petition to help get Frank included, even if you aren't a supporter of the Green Party. They got 11% of the popular vote! What more do the televisions networks want!?!

The petition is available at http://www.letfrankin.ca/

A bit about my research

My friends and family are always wondering about my research thesis. So, I've copied below an abstract that I've written about the my research. Note, that not all of what has been said here is completed yet, and I haven't analyzed any of my data... though that is going to happen soon. Please feel free to comment or ask questions!

TOU and Vulnerable Households: A case study of electricity consumption behaviour
Through the Smart Metering Initiative in the Canadian province of Ontario, all residential households will be converted to a time-of-use (TOU) rate pricing system for electricity by the year 2010. Although TOU rates are designed to be cost-neutral for the average consumer, research suggests that TOU rates may affect consumers differently depending on their socioeconomic characteristics. In an effort to understand the effects of TOU rates on lower-income and senior-headed households, researchers from the University of Waterloo conducted a collaborative study with Milton Hydro throughout the Summer and Fall of 2007. Ten expert interviews were conducted with Ontario professionals working in government, environmental non-profit and citizen advocacy organizations in order to provide context for the study. Time-differentiated electricity consumption data were then collected from 201 units in affordable housing and senior housing complexes in Milton, Ontario between May and October 2007. Researchers determined if the households were expected, given their then-current electricity consumption patterns, to have their electricity costs rise or fall as they moved from the traditional ‘flat rate’ pricing system to the TOU pricing system. They also determined the household response to TOU rates by calculating the proportion of electricity shifted to off-peak periods or conserved during on-peak periods as a result of the introduction of the new pricing system. This research emphasizes the relationship between energy policy and environmental equity and demonstrates the influence of socioeconomic characteristics in energy conservation behaviour.