Extracts from Murder in the Climate Assembly
The novel is structured (see structure) with a story within a story: the main narrative is Iris Tate’s story i.e. the campus novel segment, then there is the whodunnit set in a climate assembly – the story within the story. In extract 1, Iris gets the idea to include repair as a climate solution from her colleague down the pub, and in extract 2 you see how she’s written it into the whodunnit.
Extract 1 (in the pub)
‘It’s all about identity politics. It’s a distraction, isn’t it?’ Percy glared round the table; his brows knitted majestically. ‘I can’t tell you how bored I am with the endless navel-gazing of what does it mean to be a man, or what it means to be British.’
‘What does it mean to be a citizen of this planet and utterly beholden to it? That’s what I want to talk about,’ I said.
‘Is that going in your talk, professor?’ GG asked.
I glugged my wine. ‘Every time there’s a legitimate complaint against the powers that be – they’ve rigged the rules in their favour, undeclared business interests, trashed the environment, they just press the patriotism card and suddenly it’s all about nationhood.’
Marcel downed his wine and poured another. ‘You English, you think you’re some big shot country, but you’re nothing since you left Europe.’
GG leaned towards me. ‘On the second bottle, Marcel remembers he’s French and hates the English.’
‘In France, law has changed so business must address society and the environment,’ Marcel declared.
‘Has it?’ I leaned forward, interested.
‘Only in France, have they banned planned obsolescence—’
‘It’s capitalism.’ Percy cut him off, mid-rant. ‘You can’t just ban it.’
‘What’s that?’ GG asked.
‘They design products to fail because it makes them more money.’ Marcel put his glass down to have both hands free to wave around. ‘France has right to repair. They must show how and make parts available even if it isn’t profitable.’ He glared at me. ‘Did you teach that in the Business School?’
‘Marcel also hates the Business School,’ GG said.
Extract 2 (from the whodunnit)
‘Back in the seventies, appliances were expensive, and most people rented them. We repaired televisions rather than throw them away. A fridge from the sixties was built to last sixty plus years, whereas today not more than twenty. We’re not shown how to properly use, maintain, or even clean appliances to extend their life.’
Jason listened intently to the repair man. His mouth was dry. He’d been told not to mix his meds with anything else, but cannabis didn’t count. He needed it anyway to calm his anxiety. He poured a glass of water and looked round the room. Needles was knitting and nodding. Devanika was staring at Andrew, looking puzzled. Steve was eyeing up Naomi. Barry looked sleepy in the heat. Sarah was trying to close the blinds. Naomi looked bored.
‘Extending the lifetime of smart phones from 3 to 10 years would save 6.2 million tonnes annually – a 42% reduction.’ As the repair man spoke, Andrew jotted down the numbers.
Jason wondered how old Andrew was. His calm air reminded him of his dad. A wave of emotion rose in him, stopping his breath for a moment. Stay calm. Ride it out. It’s just the hash cookie kicking in.
‘Producing a smart phone requires 12000 litres of water. It contains 75 grams of metal, which means drilling through 6 kg of ore, and emits 7 kg of emissions while it’s being produced, 300 times the weight of the phone itself. So it’s not just the water, it’s the resources and energy going into making them.’
As Sarah adjusted the blinds, a ray of light shone a spotlight on the brand-new iPhone peeking out of Naomi’s bag.
‘I always recycle my old phones,’ she said, looking round.
‘Recycling isn’t the issue,’ the man explained. ‘You can’t get back all the materials in a product. Repairing means we don’t have to keep making products and causing these environmental impacts in the first place.’
‘This is sounding like the library of things proposal,’ said Devanika.
‘Very perceptive,’ agreed the repair man. ‘Most libraries of things have an associated repair café as the principles are the same. Avoiding waste, extending the life of a product.’
‘You modern folk, you just chuck stuff away without a second thought,’ said Needles.
‘The thing is Granny, that stuff is cheap, and time is precious,’ said Steve. ‘I’d rather be playing a round of golf than huddled over some workbench with a screwdriver.’
‘I took the kids to a repair café once, as we had so much broken stuff, but the kids got bored waiting. To be honest, I just don’t have time,’ Barry said.
Needles gazed at him sternly. ‘You say you love your kids, young man. You keep going on about them and how scared you are for their future.’
‘I’m bloody terrified. I saw the film too.’
‘We’ve got to help our young people prepare. My grandson don’t even know food comes from the ground. He couldn’t tell a screwdriver from a piece of string.’ Needles knitted furiously, shaking her head. ‘I told him, forget about your exams sweety, they ain’t going to help yer. His mum won’t let me see him now cos she don’t like what I have to say. But he’s so vulnerable, he wouldn’t have a clue, the sweet babe. He needs to be taught don’t he?’
Barry jumped as a needle was pointed at his face.
‘As their father, you should know how to repair things and show your children.’
‘My dad used to show me how to repair stuff,’ said Jason.
‘I also need to fix the fence, sort the tap, help Millie with her homework, and sell everything we don’t need on eBay so I can pay the energy bill,’ Barry snapped at Jason.
‘It’s easier just to buy new, isn’t it?’ Naomi appealed to the group. ‘You get the latest thing with instructions and guarantee. All nicely wrapped and shiny.’
‘Colonialism rules supreme,’ said Devanika. ‘We enjoy our latest smart phone and let the developing countries deal with the toxic waste.’
‘When was the last time you repaired your phone, Dev?’ Steve asked. Naomi shot him a grateful look.
‘It’s Devanika!’
‘You didn’t answer the question,’ Steve said.
The repair man jumped in. ‘You made a good point, Devanika. E-waste is increasing rapidly all over the globe and poses significant hazards. The toxic materials, heavy metals and acids leak into the soil and contaminate water supplies. You see increased prevalence of cancer and birth defects in surrounding communities. Children are especially vulnerable, affecting brain function and development.’
‘It’s capitalism. The manufacturers design products not to last because that’s the most profitable business model,’ said Devanika.
‘What are you going to do? You can’t exactly pass a law about it?’ scoffed Steve.
‘You can,’ the repair man countered. ‘France implemented a right to repair policy.’
‘I took my radio alarm back and they wouldn’t repair it,’ said Needles. ‘Said it would be easier to buy new. “Young man,” I said to him, “this isn’t even twenty-five years old, and you want me to chuck it away?”’
Barry snorted involuntarily. Steve laughed, Devanika shared a sideways smile with Jason, and Naomi collapsed into giggles.
‘Yes, just like you. He laughed in my face,’ said Needles.
‘Well, it isn’t so funny,’ the repair man insisted. ‘Sorry to get heavy, but we all saw the same video. These figures matter. Over 200 million smart phones are sold every year in Europe. Each time one of these phones is made, it releases more carbon emissions.’
The anxiety of his tone and the increasing speed of the knitting needles created a panicked hush as everyone remembered day one and the video.
‘It’s urgent, people. Repair and reuse are the key. The future of our planet depends upon it.’
Jason felt his anxiety mount. ‘This is getting heavy. I gotta watch my mental health.’
‘The thing is, even if there are repair cafés, doesn’t mean we’d use them,’ said Naomi.
‘But I like this one,’ Jason cried.
‘Most of us don’t know how to repair,’ said Devanika.
‘That’s why crafts are so important,’ said Needles, waving her knitting in the air.
‘YouTube videos show you how to repair things,’ said Jason.
‘And what if the internet goes down and you don’t have Google?’ Needles warned. ‘You’ll rue the day.’
‘Needles is right,’ said the repair guy. ‘Back in the day, the three R’s meant reading, reckoning and repair. We propose they teach it in schools.’
‘I loved design and technology,’ said Jason wistfully. ‘It was the only thing I was any good at, but then they stopped running it.’
‘People report immense satisfaction and empowerment when they learn how to do something for themselves,’ said repair man.
‘We were without Google last year,’ said Naomi, suddenly coming to life. ‘For five days. I was up in Scotland with my sister during the blackout. We couldn’t get television, and everything had run out of charge, so we worked out how to repair the torch and then managed to fix the old transistor radio. It was actually amazing.’
Repair man lit up. ‘Exactly! Yes! Now just imagine if our culture changed. What if, instead of having the marketing people calling the shots, getting us to buy, buy, buy, how about we value what we have? If we consider everything as precious as gold and throw nothing away, but repair and re-use? Preserve our precious world instead of trashing it? The repairers would be the new elite, valued as they should be.’
Jason beamed, the dream of a world where he felt useful hovering like a mirage on the horizon.
Steve tutted. ‘You just lost Naomi, mate. She’s in marketing.’
Jason looked at Naomi, gutted. She was shaking her head.
