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The Virgin Earth Challenge ~ $25 Million Prize

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rockessence
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« on: April 22, 2007, 06:56:11 pm »

The Virgin Earth Challenge ~ $25 Million Prize

http://www.virginearth.com/


To encourage a viable technology which will result in the net removal of anthropogenic, atmospheric greenhouse gases each year for at least ten years without countervailing harmful effects.

Today, Sir Richard Branson and Al Gore announced the setting up of a new Global science and technology prize – The Virgin Earth Challenge – in the belief that history has shown that prizes of this nature encourage technological advancements for the good of mankind.  The Virgin Earth Challenge will award $25 million to the individual or group who are able to demonstrate a commercially viable design which will result in the net removal of anthropogenic, atmospheric greenhouse gases each year for at least ten years without countervailing harmful effects.  This removal must have long term effects and contribute materially to the stability of the Earth’s climate. 

Sir Richard also announced that he would be joined in the adjudication of the Prize by a panel of five judges - all world authorities in their respective fields:  Al Gore, Sir Crispin Tickell, Tim Flannery, Jim Hansen and James Lovelock. The panel of judges will be assisted in their deliberations by The Climate Group and Special Advisor to The Virgin Earth Prize Judges, Steve Howard (see Editors notes for biographies).

The timing of the announcement of the Virgin Earth Challenge was particularly apt given the recent findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Changes, which last week announced that temperatures on earth could increase by as much as 6.4C by the end of this Century. 

The report, the most comprehensive to date from a UN Agency detailed the catastrophe results which even seemingly small temperature raises could have on our planet:  at + 2.4C coral reefs around the world would become extinct; + 3.4C would result in the rain forests becoming deserts; an increase of + 4.4C would result in the ice caps melting and severe heat waves across the globe displacing millions; the IPCC further predicted that sea levels could rise by 5 metres if temperatures reached + 5.4C which would result in ten of millions of climate refugees. 

For the first time ever a 6.4C raise was mentioned within UN predictions. If this were to occur it would result in most of life on our planet being exterminated.

Sir Richard Branson commented:  “We all now know that something radical has got to be done to turn back the tide of global warming.  By launching the $25 million Virgin Earth Challenge, the largest ever science and technology prize to be offered in history, we want to encourage scientists and individuals from around the world to come up with a way of removing lethal carbon dioxide from the earth’s atmosphere.  By competing for this prize they will follow in the footsteps of many of history’s greatest inventors and innovators.  But in this case potentially save the planet. It is our hope and belief that the winner of The Virgin Earth Challenge will help to reverse the collision course our beautiful world is currently on.  They will not only make history but preserve history for many, many generations to come.



However, it is important to remember that there is a real possibility that no one will win this prize.  Governments, and their people, must continue to use every effort to radically reduce CO2 emissions. “

The Virgin Earth Challenge will initially be open for five years; the judges will meet annually to determine whether a design has been submitted during the previous year that in their view should win the prize and, if so, they may award the prize without waiting for the five year period to elapse.  If no winner has been selected at the end of five years, the judges may decide to roll the prize forward for a further period on the same.

Al Gore commented at today’s Press Conference:  “Carbon dioxide levels already are far above anything measured in the prior 650,000 year record, and just last week in Paris scientists gave us their strongest warning yet of the consequences of inaction.  So the dangers are clear.  But the opportunities, if we take action now, are innumerable, and Sir Richard’s initiative to stimulate exploration of this new approach to the climate crisis is important and welcome.”



James Lovelock continued:  "To escape the consequences of global heating we need far more than Kyoto, far more than renewable energy and sustainable development.  What we need is a near miracle to undo the harm that we have done.  Sir Richard Branson's hugely generous prize could sow the seeds for a miraculous invention that would let us make a sustainable retreat to that lush and comfortable world we once knew. We have all spent far too long sleepwalking towards extinction."

Sir Crispin Tickell:  “We need a significant, lasting and harmless reduction in the volume of green house gases in the atmosphere.  To this technology can make an important contribution.  This Prize is a marvellous encouragement to all who have bright and practical ideas on how best to tackle one of the major problems of our time.”

Dr James Hansen, Director of NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies:  “I think we have a very brief window of opportunity to deal with climate change ... no longer than a decade, at the most. This is why I am supporting the Virgin Earth Challenge as a judge – we must explore all means, both known and unknown, to help alleviate this crisis.”

Tim Flannery, author of The Weather Makers, gave a stark warning on the cost of inaction:  “If we continue as we are, humanity will so pollute our atmosphere this century that we will create another world, the likes of which has not been seen for 50 million years. And we will destroy human civilisation in the process.”



Sir Richard Branson concluded:   “We would also like to call on governments and members of the international community to join us in The Virgin Earth Challenge by matching or adding to the prize pot available to encourage the greatest number of entrants of those who could come up with a solution which could save our planet.  If the greatest minds in the world today compete, as I’m sure they will, for The Virgin Earth Challenge, I believe that a solution to the C02 problem could hopefully be found – a solution that could save our planet - not only for our children but for all the children yet to come.”

The creation of the Virgin Earth Prize is one of a number of initiatives including investment in renewable energy research, development and production as part of Virgin Group's "Gaia Capitalism" project and 3 billion dollar Clinton Initiative pledge of September 2006.



Editor’s Notes:

Sir Richard Branson comments on the use of Prizes to fuel innovation:  “History has shown that Technology Prizes have been invaluable in encouraging technological advancements and innovation in many, many areas of science and industry.  From the very first recorded prize offered by the British government in 1714, offering three financial incentives to the inventor who developed a device capable of measuring longitude within a given degree of accuracy.  The Prize, which has been immortalised in the book Longitude, was won by John Harrison, a self-educated clock maker.  Harrison was awarded £20,000 in 1773 for devising an accurate and durable chronometer. 

But prizes were not just the domain of the British; in the 18th Century the French also used Prizes as an incentive to fuel innovation.  In 1775 a 100,000 franc prize was offered to the individual who could produce an artificial form of alkali – the wining of this prize was to form the basis of the French chemical industry.    Today, vacuum packed food in our fridges and cupboards is nothing remarkable, but it may surprise some to know that it was actually a Prize offered by Napoleon in 1810 which led to Nicolas Appert coming up with a method of vacuum packing cooked food in glass bottles – it took him 15 years of experiments but in the end won him 12,000 francs!

It wasn’t long before newspapers and private sector companies became involved in setting up Prizes to encourage development in many areas.  The American automobile industry was encouraged to grow through inducements to win prizes by competing in races set up by newspapers such as the Chicago Tribune in the late 19 th Century.  Aviation and the development of long distance flying were greatly encouraged by similar prizes to those offered in America for the fledgling automobile industry. The Daily Mail prize for example, for the first flight across the Channel, was won byLouis Bleriot in 1909; and ten years later, Alcock and Brown won the Mail prize for crossing the Atlantic. Lindebergh was competing for a prize when he flew in the Spirit of St Louis, non-stop from New York to Paris in 1927. The Spitfire was the result of the Schneider trophy, which was a series of prizes for technological development.



The most recent technological Prize was awarded in the area of space travel, and is one that I have come to know very well - the Ansari X Prize – a $10 million dollar Prize set up by Peter Diamandis and funded by the Ansari family.  The Ansari X Prize was won in 2004 by Paul Allen, Burt Rutan and Scaled Composites when they successfully flew SpaceShipOne to space and back twice within two weeks.  The technological feat of SpaceShipOne resulted in the Virgin Group licensing that technology to build five space ships and two White Knight carrier crafts and has given birth to a commercially viable space tourism industry for the future. Using the latest technology in hybrid rocket motors and next generation turbo fan engines SS2 and WK2 will be environmentally benign.”



earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Study/LivingEarth/

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

NEW NASA/CSA MONITOR PROVIDES GLOBAL AIR POLLUTION VIEW FROM SPACE

www.gsfc.nasa.gov/gsfc/earth/terra/co.htm



PS...The illustrations I got from various places on the internet and were not with the article on the site.
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ILLIGITIMI NON CARBORUNDUM

Thus ye may find in thy mental and spiritual self, ye can make thyself just as happy or just as miserable as ye like. How miserable do ye want to be?......For you GROW to heaven, you don't GO to heaven. It is within thine own conscience that ye grow there.

Edgar Cayce

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Trevor Proffitt
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« Reply #1 on: April 23, 2007, 01:19:32 am »

Nice choice, Rockessence, Happy Earth Day everybody.

Wonder if any of the scientists we have here are enterprising enough to take Branson up on his challenge..?
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rockessence
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« Reply #2 on: April 23, 2007, 02:06:39 am »

I am going to submit something.  One of the original bases of Rock-Medicine addresses this exact problem beautifully.  I included the satellite pic because they are part of the plan. The problem is, no one will make money off it.  It is freely available to anyone to use, and it doesn't cost much to do it (not counting the satellites!). 
The point of the contest is to develop commercially viable methods of reducing "anthropogenic, atmospheric greenhouse gases ". 
« Last Edit: April 23, 2007, 02:23:12 am by rockessence » Report Spam   Logged

ILLIGITIMI NON CARBORUNDUM

Thus ye may find in thy mental and spiritual self, ye can make thyself just as happy or just as miserable as ye like. How miserable do ye want to be?......For you GROW to heaven, you don't GO to heaven. It is within thine own conscience that ye grow there.

Edgar Cayce
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