ECOFUN

Greetings delegates! For those of you on the ECOFIN committee and those of you who have any interest at all about global environmental or economic issues, this is the place to be.

One of the topics that will be discussed in the ECOFIN committee is the question of sustainable technological development. If you're wondering where to start your research, the International Institute on Sustainable Development is the place to go (www.iisd.org). They've got up-to-date information on most everything involving sustainability worldwide. Do remember, however, that we are discussing technological development, so focus your research there. A good topic to start would be sustainable energy technologies. The Delhi International Conference on Renewable Energy was held in late October (www.iisd.org/ymb/energy/direc2010/) and was the latest in an ongoing series of conferences to address future energy issues. As many of you are aware of, there are countless technological directions within sustainable energy. In general, the struggle at the moment is to convince nations reliant on fossil fuels and non-renewable energy sources that renewables will outweigh short-term economic losses with long-term economic potential. It's not about environment vs economy, rather it's about how we can integrate the two into a satisfying solution.

More to come.

NOTE: As of 9:30 AM on Friday November 19, the ECOFIN committee has brought a new word into the english language. This word *drumroll* is... GLOCAL. Fed up with having to choose between global issues or local ones? Glocal issues integrate all your concerns in one tight, albeit rather heavy, package.

Cheers! Hope you guys are all taking advantage of the snow to go ski/snowboard/sled/snowman-build/snowball fight/skate (might be too early if you don't feel like falling through the ice on that last one)