7 Billion and Growing

Today our planet reached a human population of 7 billion people. That number is beyond comprehension, but the more remarkable part is the rate at which we got to 7 billion. However, my subject is not our numbers but rather, the pressing need to adapt.

Can we adapt fast enough to sustain this growth in human population?
Adaptation is essential and the concept is likely well accepted. However, on most fronts adaptation  is sluggish and lacking in  focus and urgency.

If I was to form an action plan based on my  view  from my window, I wouldn't change a thing. From my personal perspective  it is hard to imagine a more benign environment on the entire planet than the one I see here in Georgetown, Ontario, Canada. It is only when I look at the scientific data and the long term trends that the urgency becomes apparent.

For me it is a real joy to meet people who believe in adaptation and are willing to invest in it and  talk about it with enthusiasm and optimism. Yesterday I had the opportunity to hear such a person who isn't just talking about it, he is doing it. That person is Dave de Sylva, partner in Del Ridge Homes along with George Le Donne.

They have made business choices based on principles of sustainability. They are shunning old building practices and adopting new ones that make more sense on every level including economic.

They are set to build the Green Life Business Centre, Canada's first Net Positive Condo Office Building in Milton, Ontario. Net positive means that this office building will create more energy than it uses. It won't be a drain; it will be a faucet, pouring energy into the grid instead of sucking it out, burning it up and spewing waste into the atmosphere.

This is not their first project to be at or near "Net Positive". They have built residential condos that have condo fees so low people wonder what the catch is. There is no catch. These buildings are built in a different way to firstly, reduce energy waste and secondly, use the renewable energy that is in the ground  below and in the sky above.

Dave de Sylva and George Le Donne understand that we have a very big problem to solve and so they have set out to do what they can to solve it. They get absolutely no help from any level of government to do this and yet they are steadfast in their personal pursuit of responsible action.

The things that Del Ridge Homes is doing should be incorporated into our building code so that all of our new buildings, whether they are residential, commercial, industrial or institutional are built to reduce energy wastage and make optimal use of sustainable energy sources.

In my opinion this is a wonderfully optimistic story of determination and positive action to adapt to important threats that are all to easy to ignore if one is looking out the window in Georgetown Ontario Canada.

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