We've just instituted a carbon tax in British Columbia, so this is a good time to talk about incentives to get businesses and individuals to do what needs to be done to address and tackle global warming. Some people say that incentives won't work until the technology is in place to reduce greenhouse gases. There are a number of countries in Europe that disprove that. But it's also disproved by the good people at Pacific Gas & Electric, northern and central California's utility company.

Peter Darbee, PG&E CEO, explained how the right incentives, in the right alignment, made a huge difference. He cited "California’s success in holding per capita energy use flat over the past 30 years, while the rest of the country has seen a 50 percent increase. The state adopted aggressive energy efficiency standards for buildings and appliances, funded programs to commercialize more efficient technology, and allowed utilities to earn a fair return by promoting energy savings rather than increasing energy sales. The key in California was smart policy that aligned all the incentives."

Pacific Gas & Electric is also the name of a band who had a hit in 1970, titled "Are You Ready?" This live version doesn't have the female backup singers on the studio recording (which made its obvious gospel elements more overt), but it's still galvanizing.