Available here

Black elongated cats in Celtic knotwork paw their way around endlessly.

After hand forming the metal the cats are encased forever in a glass-like, waterproof, crystal clear, high gloss professional finish.

Here we have a guest post from our learned friend Peter Kirby-Harris, known to the kidz as Kirby / The Kirbster / Kirbalish and is studying for a PHD in Environmental Politics Oooohhhh.............................................................................................. get him!

This boy is an Eco Geeko. A walker by nature and a vegetarian by force, Kirby is more than dedicated to helping us understand how we can be that little bit greener.

So welcome to Kirby our very own Eco warrior and WE wanna see your results - grow it, snap it, show it. munch it, love it.

Get growing.

.....................................................................

Room for growth? Put your home to the test.

Whether it is a desire to be more self-sufficient or the alarm at rising food prices, the issue of how much food can be grown on a local level has never been more important.

From growing herbs in window boxes to allotment gardening, this series of horticultural insights are your guide into the ever increasing world of grow your own (GYO)

The indoor herb garden.

This is something everyone can do no matter what size of dwelling. Minimal time, effort and money can bring about a pleasant although marginal boost to one’s own self sufficiency.

Ingredients – seeds, soil and plant pots. Easy.

Simply plant a few seeds (to increase changes of successful germination) into a pot full of soil and bury it about a centimetre deep. Keep in a warm place until shoots develop then position by window with several hours worth of daily sun. For maximum results try turning the pots 180 degrees every few days to ensure even growth for your plants. Try adding a little compost, if you can manage the smell, or some organic fertiliser.

Continuously harvest when ready for excellent additions to cooking. They could end up looking like this if your good to them.

This should only take about 1 hour a week of planting, watering and composting. This is well worth the effort, not only does it save you £'s per year on herbs and seasonings.

Sainsburys charge nearly £1 for a 25g packet of the stuff and think about it, pizza is just shit without herbs. Mmmmmmm.

So why now? Well, I have a forum--albeit a small one--with this blog. Also, I've been learning a lot more lately and I'd love to share it with people, starting with my friends and family and anyone else who reads this blog. A lot of people are overwhelmed by the prospect of going green. Many people feel that environmental problems are too overwhelming to even think about. Some people think going green has to be an all-or-nothing proposition. Others just haven't been informed and don't know how or where to start. Some people think being environmentally friendly involves a complete lifestyle overhaul and lots of additional expense. Expecting most people to completely overhaul their lives or spend a great deal of time and/or money just isn't realistic. I truly believe that even a small bit of education, awareness, and action is better than nothing, so I'll try to do my part on this little blog in my tiny corner of the worldwide web. If I help a few people make a few small changes, that's great!

My Christine Gets Green posts will all be filed under a category called "Christine Gets Green," which gives you an easy way to read just those posts, if you'd like. Also, use the search box in the upper right corner of the blog to search for keywords or topics that interest you most.

I'm not an expert. I'm just a regular person who is concerned and interested and ready to learn more. I'm not going to lecture or be preachy. I'll simply write about my experiences. I'll write about my questions, concerns, and worries. I'll share books, movies, websites, and products I discover. Please help! If you have an idea for a book, movie, website, or product you'd like me to write about, let me know. Send me an email at calangill@yahoo.com and I'll do my best to write about it. Comment on my posts. Correct me, inform me, encourage me--whatever.

Recebi por email essa escova feita de bambú e essa embalagem de sal de cozinha embalados em bambú.

Notícia do http://drchicletinho.blogspot.com

Kiss My Face has a handy Travel Action Pack for travelers. The Travel Action Pack is a clear airline friendly travel bag filled with shampoo, conditioner, bar soap, deodorant, shaving cream, shower gel, and moisturizer as well. This Action Travel Pack can not only come in handy for people who are traveling but also for people who are spending a weekend at a friend's or a relative's perhaps.

klick here to watch

have a nice day...

...im going to get ready to see obama now!

Lo avevo segnalato qui.

The Adrian Smith and Gordon Gill architectural firm has been busy stirring up the world’s skyline with a slew of lean, green superstructures that push the energy-neutral envelope. AS+GG recently unveiled plans for their latest oeuvre: a Clean Technology Tower in Chicago that takes a multi-generative approach to producing its own energy. Harnessing an atrium of wind turbines beneath a roof-top solar shell, the building “utilizes advanced technologies and climate-appropriate building systems to foster a symbiotic relationship with its local environment.”

More on The Clean Technology Tower

RCA

Pierre Sabas’ Airflow concept encases an electric engine and suspension within an exterior constructed entirely of glass, while Jon Radbrink’s Nuaero car integrates sophisticated aerodynamic principles such as airfoils, a venturi tunnel, and a catamaran-esque underbody to maximize its efficiency.

Sergio Loureiro Da Silva’s rocket-red Phoenix car pairs beautiful aerodynamic curves with a system that regenerates lost energy through movement, and Arturo Peralta Nogueras’ futuristic vehicle runs on algae and features an evolving solid hologram technology to adapt to its environment, passengers, and scenarios.

+ RCA
+ INHABITAT

As environmental awareness grows, people are looking for more sustainable ways of living. The internet is a great source of information, but we have our own specific climate and situation in Curaçao when we want to construct environmentally friendly and sustainable buildings.

Landscaping

Trees on the property bring much-needed natural shade, which cools off the area and reduces cooling needs. But be careful to place a tree too close to the building since some trees can uproot foundations. Plant your trees in strategic spots that keep the sun from warming up walls and windows. Great trees that provide shade and are harmless to your buildings are the GUAYACA. It is evergreen and the roots form a pin that grows straight down into the soil. Our local department of agriculture at Klein Kwartier provides information and the products to help create a low-cost, low-maintenance and water-efficient garden or landscape.

Roofs, Windows and Verandas

The roof of a building is the most important aspect of energy efficiency and sustainability of the house. It provides a number ways to help you live green. Roofing materials are key to the climate in your house. Insulation is not a luxury in our climate, because a hot interior will increase your energy bill substantially. Consider installing clerestory windows to help hot air exit the house and improve airflow thus making use of the aero dynamics. But the roof is also an excellent tool to collect rainwater. Architects will be able to help you establish the right roofing materials, slopes and positioning of your roof. A wide veranda around the house, particularly on the sunny sides of the building significantly help cool off the house and provide a great outdoors spot to relax and enjoy the benefits of the outdoor, again eliminating to stay inside and turn on the AC. When building or remodeling your home or office, consider the fact that the size of the windows catching the morning or afternoon sun really makes a difference on the heat load indoor, so narrow windows on the sunny side are a must. Avoid picture windows at the sunny sides.

If you can afford to install solar panels, your roof should be able to effectively carry the solar panels and help the catch the ‘best rays of the day’. Even if can’t afford the solar panels, plan for them. Technology is making energy efficiency even better and cheaper all the time and with the rise in crude oil prices the cost-efficiency of these and other alternative energy resources is growing fast. You may be able to afford them sooner than you think.

Energy Conservation

Replacing electricity with gas is a very viable option here in Curacao. There are refrigerators and dryers working on gas and most modern air conditioning units can easily be converted to work on gas. But it does require a large industrial gas cylinder so plan a suitable spot for this and integrate it in the design. Outdoor lighting on solar panels are already widely available on the market.

Water Conservation

There are simple things you can consider, other than catching rainwater as we referred to earlier.

Re-use your washing machine water to water plants and catch your shower and bath water to flush toilets. Installing a low flush toilet will assist in saving water and filling up your tank less. If you are unable to obtain one of the newer designed toilets put a brick in the cistern of your toilet to reduce the amount of water consumed for each flush. 

Furniture and Indoor Décor

Energy efficient window treatments can greatly reduce the warmth entering your windows and doors. In addition there are a great variety of furniture made from recycled material. Bamboo is quickly becoming the material of choice because of its strength, durability, resistance to water, but most of all because it grows very quickly and does not impact the earth as deforestation does.

Save on Energy Bills

Our Verosol line of window treatments offers SilverScreen fabrics. The ultra-fine layer of aluminum on a screen fabric dramatically improves the solar energy performance, while demonstrating excellent view through. It can block up to 70% of the solar heat. Besides, SilverScreen adds a contemporary style to architectural design on the interior as well as on the exterior of the building; functional meets decorative.

Green

SIlverScreen is a green product since it is produced environmentally friendly, it is formaldehyde free and as a result does not harm the health of those frequently using the room. It lowers your air conditioning needs considerably and this leads to less CO2 emissions.

You still SEE through

Before, you had to choose very dark shades or completely non-transparent fabrics to keep the heat and the energy of the sun out of your rooms. With SilverScreen, thanks to the aluminum layer on the reverse side, the heat protection and visual glare are practically independent of color. Furthermore, SilverScreen provides a good visual contact to the outside world. Being in a room with SilverScreened windows feels luxurious and calming.

Flame Retardant

Most of Verosol's products are either flame retardant or can be ordered with the flame retardant option. For maximum safety Verosol's fabrics are intrinsically flame-retardant, which means that their flame-retardant properties are permanently present, unlike some other fabrics which lose their flame-retardant properties over time. The flame-retardant properties prevent the fire from shifting through the solar shades and burning scraps will not fall down.

SilverScreen is available as Roller Blinds or Panel Tracks and is suitable for all windows and doors of both commercial and residential buildings.

"Green means Go!" I'm sure my third grade elementary school teacher never suspected that those words would become a hype. Today going green is not only hip, but extremely essential to our efforts to save Money and Mother Earth. You can't ignore it anymore either, because you are confronted with the need to help save the earth every week, when you fill up the car with gas and every month, when your energy bill arrives in the mail. And although I'm an avid 'safe the earth'-person myself, I am now starting to see green.

Too much of a good thing

When I browse the internet and magazines in search of green products on the market I often find that the Going Green hype is being used by marketers in diverging ways that sometimes cause confusion. I just picked up a recent copy of one of my favorite architectural magazines and the first 20 pages were all about 'going green'. Energy efficiency, environmentally save production processes, products, buildings, carpets, tiles, showers, chairs, fabrics... you name it! 95% of adds throughout the magazine (and let's face it: magz are mostly adds, anyway) contained some form of green claim.

Know what it’s about

The result is that we now we need a way to figure out which kind of 'green' we're talking about, so we can easily find what we're looking for. For instance, Light Green would mean the product is manufactured in a way that is less damaging to the environment than before or as compared to other similar products. Medium Green would refer to products that are made from recycled materials, and Dark Green would refer to everything that refers to the use of alternative resources in our surroundings.

Save

The majority of our suppliers here at Solaris Design Center have always offered energy efficiency and other green aspects to their products, but the green hype is just now taking real flight in Curacao. We offer a great selection of quality ‘light, medium and dark green’ interior accessories including window and floor treatments as well as lamp fixtures and furniture. We are proud suppliers of products that fit the whole green spectrum of colors. So I guess we are seeing green, but we can help you find the right hue for you.

da Folha de S. Paulo

Se a Terra fosse compreendida como um organismo vivo e os seres que nela habitam representassem suas células, o homem poderia ser visto como uma espécie de câncer. Basta imaginar que, somente no Brasil, são produzidas 230 mil toneladas de lixo por dia --o equivalente a duas filas de caminhões de lixo de cinco toneladas, ocupando o espaço de dez pontes Rio-Niterói.

Mas, ainda dentro dessa perspectiva, alguns indivíduos fariam muito bem o papel de anticorpo. Muitas vezes tachadas de "ecochatas" ou "biodesagradáveis", são pessoas que realizam ações corretas em doses homeopáticas, produzindo lá adiante transformações na sociedade inteira.

Plantar árvores em lugares públicos, priorizar o uso de transportes coletivos e de bicicleta, evitar consumir produtos supérfluos ou ecologicamente incorretos e separar o lixo para a reciclagem são alguns desses atos isolados de defesa da natureza --que estão cada vez menos ligados ao romantismo e mais à sustentabilidade.

O secretário do Verde e do Meio Ambiente de São Paulo, Eduardo Jorge, 55, chama essas atitudes de "revoluções pessoais". Ele dispensou o uso do carro oficial para ir trabalhar todos os dias de bicicleta. "Detesto ser chamado de ecologicamente correto. Sou um rebelde", diz ele, que afirma ter trocado a visão leninista que tinha aos 18 anos pelas pequenas transformações individuais.

"Devemos ser a mudança que queremos para o mundo, como dizia Gandhi. A postura do homem diante do lixo é mais importante do que mudar o governo. É a forma como ele se relaciona com a produção e o consumo de bens", afirma o secretário, que instalou duas caixas de papelão na sala de casa para colocar o lixo reciclável. "Minha mulher dizia: na sala não, é feio. E eu dizia: é lindo". As caixas acabaram na cozinha.

No fim do ano passado, o músico paulistano Marcelo Dworecki, 24, saiu do apartamento da mãe e foi morar com a namorada e um amigo numa casa. A primeira coisa que fez foi realizar um sonho antigo: instalar sua própria composteira (um lugar para transformar lixo orgânico em adubo) no quintal. Ele mistura os restos de alimentos, como cascas de frutas e legumes, com folhas secas em uma área reservada no jardim. O composto precisa ser remexido com um enxada todos os dias para evitar o mau cheiro.

Dworecki doa parte de seu lixo reciclável para uma cooperativa de catadores perto de sua casa. Os "lixos mais legais" (como latas e caixas de papelão em bom estado) ele leva para uma escola de música que realiza oficinas de construção de instrumentos com sucatas. Dessa forma, não sobra quase nada para o lixeiro. O administrador Rodrigo Gomes Ferreira, 24, morador de Florianópolis (SC), tem carro, mas, na maioria das vezes, deixa-o na garagem. "Procuro privilegiar a bicicleta como meio de transporte. Minha segunda alternativa é o ônibus. Uso o carro mais no fim de semana, quando vou a algum lugar mais longe."

Ferreira diz que fala sobre suas atitudes, mas não gosta de ser "missionário". "O que faz diferença é o próprio exemplo. A militância quase nunca funciona. Quem não está muito a fim acaba não mudando por birra", afirma. Seu exemplo já deu frutos. Quando ele era adolescente, criou o hábito de separar o lixo para reciclagem. Seu pai, que era síndico do prédio, levou a prática para o edifício todo.

Outro bom exemplo é a geógrafa Julia Ribeiro, 25. Na vila onde mora com o marido, no Rio de Janeiro, havia um canteiro meio abandonado, em uma área comum a todos os moradores. Ela resolveu fazer uma horta no local e plantou manjericão, hortelã, boldo, alface e cebolinha. Vendo a iniciativa, alguns vizinhos se animaram e começaram a cultivar também.

Para a geógrafa, o exemplo é a melhor forma de convencer as outras pessoas: "Eu simplesmente faço a minha parte. Não adianta encher o saco de ninguém, uma hora a ficha cai".

Já a química Rita Cavalcanti, 23, não consegue ficar quieta quando vê uma atitude antiecológica. "A gente não corrige só por corrigir, mas para criar consciência. No futuro pode faltar recursos para o meu neto." Ela conseguiu convencer seu noivo a apagar as luzes quando sai de um cômodo e a reaproveitar papéis.

Em casa, Rita e sua família adotaram várias atitudes responsáveis. A água que sai da máquina de lavar é armazenada em baldes e reaproveitada para lavar o chão do quintal. Os cartuchos de tinta para a impressora são recarregáveis. O papel usado é aproveitado para rascunho. Além disso, eles usam apenas pilhas recarregáveis. "Isso evita ter que comprar sempre e gerar mais pilhas para os lixões", diz.

O diretor de educação ambiental do Ministério do Meio Ambiente, Marcos Sorrentino, acredita que existam dois tipos de impacto ambiental derivados dessas iniciativas pessoais. "Um deles são mudanças no clima, no número de árvores das cidades e nos aterros sanitários que parecem pequenas, já que as transformações mais significativas vêm por meio de políticas públicas. O segundo, e mais importante, é cultivar uma postura de cuidado com a vida, que visa a construção de novos modelos de sociedade", afirma.

O biólogo Rogério Parentoni, doutor em ecologia e professor do Instituto de Ciências Biológicas da Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, também acredita na força desse tipo de ação: "Se muitas pessoas adotarem essas mudanças de hábito, darão uma boa contribuição para que os recursos sejam preservados para as gerações que virão".

De acordo com Parentoni, há um efeito multiplicador associado às ações individuais. "Outras pessoas observam e acabam reproduzindo esse tipo de atitude", diz. Para ajudar na mudança de hábitos, o biólogo defende a educação ambiental em escolas. "Crianças são ótimos exemplos para os mais velhos. Os adultos ficam envergonhados se elas têm uma atitude ecologicamente correta e eles não."

Estudante se acostumou a ser chamada de "ecochata"

A estudante de geografia da Universidade de São Paulo Gabriela Prol Otero, 23, já perdeu a conta de quantas vezes foi chamada de "ecochata". "Sou extremamente rotulada. Quando um professor alfineta os ecologistas, o pessoal da sala cochicha: 'A 'ecochata' não vai falar nada?'"

Entre as atitudes que adota no dia-a-dia, Gabriela toma banho rápido, fecha a torneira enquanto escova os dentes e não usa copos descartáveis. "Nem pensar. Levo uma garrafa plástica comigo e, no meu trabalho, cada um tem sua caneca para tomar café." No prédio onde mora, ela dispensa o elevador e usa a escada para descer e subir quatro andares. Apesar de ser chamada de chata, a estudante conseguiu convencer várias pessoas a agir de forma parecida. Mas já teve também brigas com a mãe, que costuma usar filmes plásticos para embalar alimentos e lavar o chão com mangueira. "Faço questão de limpar eu mesma usando balde para economizar água", diz.

Autor do livro "Meio Ambiente: Sua História - Como Defender a Natureza sem Ser um Ecochato" (ed. Insular), o escritor e jornalista Paulo Ramos Derengoski, 60, acredita que o termo "ecochato" esteja mudando de significado.

"Quando comecei a escrever sobre o ambiente, há mais de 20 anos, o 'ecochato' era um radical de direita da ecologia, um cidadão que não tinha uma visão dialética", afirma.

Segundo ele, essas ações pessoais de patrulha ecológica são importantes. "Dessa forma, ser chamado de 'ecochato' é um elogio. Daqui a pouco eles serão considerados 'ecolegais'. Acredito que a ecologia represente um novo idealismo para a juventude", diz. Em seu livro, Derengoski usa uma linguagem simples -no lugar do que ele chama de "ecologuês"- para defender políticas ecológicas sustentáveis. E rentáveis: "Tudo que não tiver valor econômico no futuro está condenado ao fracasso. É preciso juntar valor econômico a defesa do ambiente."

Consumo consciente começa na compra do produto

Quando vai a um supermercado, a estudante de geografia Gabriela Otero toma algumas precauções para fazer as compras. No seu carrinho, não entram alimentos transgênicos nem produtos embalados em bandejas de isopor. Folhas verdes, só se forem orgânicas ou hidropônicas. Tudo é carregado em sacolas plásticas que ela leva de casa. Ao lavar frutas e verduras, ela se preocupa em não gastar muita água. Ao se desfazer das embalagens, separa o lixo reciclável e envia para a coleta seletiva.

Gabriela pode ser considerada uma "consumidora consciente", ou seja, uma pessoa que busca a harmonia entre a sua satisfação, a preservação do ambiente e o bem-estar social.

O maior representante desse movimento no Brasil é o Instituto Akatu pelo Consumo Consciente (www.akatu.org.br). "Todos os dias fazemos escolhas ao comprar um produto ou serviço e ao decidir a forma de usá-lo e de descartá-lo. Temos responsabilidade até o fim. Para isso, precisamos de informação séria e fundamentada", diz Maluh Barciotte, gerente de mobilização social do instituto.

Segundo Barciotte, o Akatu trabalha na linha de "pequenos gestos, grandes transformações". "Buscamos mostrar para as pessoas que elas são protagonistas. Uma ação pequena feita durante muito tempo por alguém já tem um efeito fantástico. Quando é feita por muitas pessoas, o impacto é maior ainda", diz. Além disso, trabalha-se com a idéia de que o consumidor consciente age conscientemente em vários setores de sua vida, interferindo, por exemplo, nas políticas públicas.

Em 2002, o instituto realizou uma pesquisa para detectar se o brasileiro consome com consciência. Foram ouvidas 1.200 pessoas com idades entre 18 e 74, moradoras de nove regiões metropolitanas e duas capitais do país.

Os entrevistados tinham que responder a freqüência com que adotam 13 comportamentos -evitar deixar lâmpadas acesas em ambientes desocupados, usar o verso de folhas de papel já utilizadas e separar o lixo para reciclagem, entre outros.

De acordo com as respostas, os entrevistados foram classificados em quatro grupos: 3% foram considerados individualistas (que adotam no máximo dois comportamentos), 54% iniciantes (de três a sete comportamentos), 37% comprometidos (de oito a dez) e 6% conscientes (de 11 a 13).

Barciotte diz que o número de consumidores conscientes vem crescendo e que há menos preconceito contra eles. No entanto, ela observa que ainda tem gente que acha que quem se preocupa com a questão ambiental é "ecochato" ou "nerd". "Na verdade, são apenas pessoas que percebem que não há separação entre o homem e o ambiente e que preservar a natureza é melhor para todos, inclusive para elas."

FONTE: http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/equilibrio/

Karen Kawawada

WATERLOO

Getting ordinary plastic bags to rot away like banana peels would be an environmental dream come true.

After all, we produce 500 billion a year worldwide and they take up to 1,000 years to decompose. They take up space in landfills, litter our streets and parks, pollute the oceans and kill the animals that eat them.

Now a Waterloo teenager has found a way to make plastic bags degrade faster -- in three months, he figures.

Daniel Burd's project won the top prize at the Canada-Wide Science Fair in Ottawa. He came back with a long list of awards, including a $10,000 prize, a $20,000 scholarship, and recognition that he has found a practical way to help the environment.

Daniel, a 16-year-old Grade 11 student at Waterloo Collegiate Institute, got the idea for his project from everyday life.

"Almost every week I have to do chores and when I open the closet door, I have this avalanche of plastic bags falling on top of me," he said. "One day, I got tired of it and I wanted to know what other people are doing with these plastic bags."

The answer: not much. So he decided to do something himself.

He knew plastic does eventually degrade, and figured microorganisms must be behind it. His goal was to isolate the microorganisms that can break down plastic -- not an easy task because they don't exist in high numbers in nature.

First, he ground plastic bags into a powder. Next, he used ordinary household chemicals, yeast and tap water to create a solution that would encourage microbe growth. To that, he added the plastic powder and dirt. Then the solution sat in a shaker at 30 degrees.

After three months of upping the concentration of plastic-eating microbes, Burd filtered out the remaining plastic powder and put his bacterial culture into three flasks with strips of plastic cut from grocery bags. As a control, he also added plastic to flasks containing boiled and therefore dead bacterial culture.

Six weeks later, he weighed the strips of plastic. The control strips were the same. But the ones that had been in the live bacterial culture weighed an average of 17 per cent less.

That wasn't good enough for Burd. To identify the bacteria in his culture, he let them grow on agar plates and found he had four types of microbes. He tested those on more plastic strips and found only the second was capable of significant plastic degradation.

Next, Burd tried mixing his most effective strain with the others. He found strains one and two together produced a 32 per cent weight loss in his plastic strips. His theory is strain one helps strain two reproduce.

Tests to identify the strains found strain two was Sphingomonas bacteria and the helper was Pseudomonas.

A researcher in Ireland has found Pseudomonas is capable of degrading polystyrene, but as far as Burd and his teacher Mark Menhennet know -- and they've looked -- Burd's research on polyethelene plastic bags is a first.

Next, Burd tested his strains' effectiveness at different temperatures, concentrations and with the addition of sodium acetate as a ready source of carbon to help bacteria grow.

At 37 degrees and optimal bacterial concentration, with a bit of sodium acetate thrown in, Burd achieved 43 per cent degradation within six weeks.

The plastic he fished out then was visibly clearer and more brittle, and Burd guesses after six more weeks, it would be gone. He hasn't tried that yet.

To see if his process would work on a larger scale, he tried it with five or six whole bags in a bucket with the bacterial culture. That worked too.

Industrial application should be easy, said Burd. "All you need is a fermenter . . . your growth medium, your microbes and your plastic bags."

The inputs are cheap, maintaining the required temperature takes little energy because microbes produce heat as they work, and the only outputs are water and tiny levels of carbon dioxide -- each microbe produces only 0.01 per cent of its own infinitesimal weight in carbon dioxide, said Burd.

"This is a huge, huge step forward . . . We're using nature to solve a man-made problem."

Burd would like to take his project further and see it be used. He plans to study science at university, but in the meantime he's busy with things such as student council, sports and music.

"Dan is definitely a talented student all around and is poised to be a leading scientist in our community," said Menhennet, who led the school's science fair team but says he only helped Burd with paperwork.

Other local students also did well at the national science fair.

Devin Howard of St. John's Kilmarnock School won a gold medal in life science and several scholarships.

Mackenzie Carter of St. John's Kilmarnock won bronze medals in the automotive and engineering categories.

Engineers Without Borders awarded Jeff Graansma of Forest Heights Collegiate a free trip to their national conference in January.

Zach Elgood of Courtland Avenue Public School got honourable mention in earth and environmental science.

The Record original article

Details of Burd's project/Awards won (check out the biography!)

http://www.poconorecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080506/MULTIMEDIA02/80505016

This Florida News briefing made possible from the sale of Green License Plates and EarthRehab

Florida has been a hot spot for Environmental News over the last 30 days. I would like to highlight and link to a few great moments.

June 24, 2008- Governor Crist tells US Sugar to pack their bags and buys back a section of the “River of Grass.”

The Sugar Deal

July 7-11, 2008- To kick off the 11^th International Coral Reef Symposium, Governor Charlie Crist signed a bill to close all of the sewage pipes that pump 300 million gallons of untreated sewage into the Atlantic Gulf-stream. Ed Tichenor and Reef Rescue of the Palm Beaches get the hard won victory and credit.

The Sewage Deal

July 16, 2008- Surfrider Foundation and the City of Lake Worth join in a lawsuit to stop the useless Dredge and Fill projects that suffocate the Reefs.

The Dredge Lawsuit

July 16, 2008- Ciguatera Outbreak, 5 cases reported in Florida. Ciguatera is a disease caused when you eat reef fish that have consumed Harmful Algae Blooms.

The Ciguatera Outbreak

July 17, 2008- EarthJustice files a lawsuit for Clean Water Act enforcement in Florida vs. Harmful Algae Blooms.

The Clean Water Lawsuit

Help celebrate Environmental Victories and support Nature Research with the 100% Bright Blank Recycled Green License Plate by EarthRehab.

Check out the photos.

However, I am lucky to now live near the Tennyson Road shops, which include a great bakery, an organic produce store and (rapidly becoming my regular Sunday evening haunt) The King of Tonga bar. There's also a coin laundry, but I'm enjoying using the one on Brighton Road which is next to a cafe with wi-fi. You can live without a washing machine and still be civilised...

Locuitorii Germaniei consumă de cinci ori mai multe produse alimentare organice decât noi.  

Nici 1 la sută din alimentele pe care le mănâncă românii nu sunt ecologice. Piaţa românească a acestor produse organice este sub media europeană.

Această situaţie este generată de lipsa procesatorilor autohtoni. Materia primă românească este exportată, produsele sunt fabricate în străinătate şi se întorc în ţară de patru ori mai scumpe.

Locul 16 la suprafaţa cultivată eco

„În România, consumul de produse ecologice este sub 1 la sută din totalul alimentelor. În Germania, consumul este de 5 la sută, în Anglia şi Austria, de 3 la sută, iar în Ungaria a ajuns la 2 la sută", a declarat pentru NewsIn, directorul general al companiei distribuitoare de produse ecologice şi naturale „Natura Land", Radu Panait.

În ce priveşte suprafaţa cultivată ecologic la nivel mondial, potrivit aceleiaşi surse, România ocupă locul 16 în funcţie de suprafaţa cultivată. Din datele companiei "Natura Land", un studiu efectuat în 2005 arată că vârsta celor mai mulţi consumatori de produse ecologice este cuprinsă între 26 şi 39 de ani. Din punctul de vedere al nivelului de educaţie, alimentele ecologice sunt consumate de românii cu studii superioare.

Reguli pentru un produs organic

Pentru ca un produs alimentar să fie ecologic, acesta trebuie obţinut din materii prime provenite din agricultura eco. Asta înseamnă că tehnologiile folosite nu trebuie să fie poluante. Utilizarea îngrăşămintelor chimice şi a pesticidelor este interzisă, fiindcă doar aşa poate fi apărat ecosistemul agricol.

Menţinerea fertilităţii naturale a solului este o altă regulă de bază a agriculturii ecologice, iar organismele modificate genetic (GMO) şi iradierea plantelor sunt de neconceput. Aditivii chimici de sinteză nu au ce căuta într-un aliment care poartă eticheta de produs
organic.

Tradiţional şi eco

Produsul alimentar ecologic este obţinut din materia primă provenită din agricultura eco.

Produsul natural provine din agricultura convenţională. Pentru obţinerea lui nu se întrebuinţează aditivii alimentari de sinteză.

Produsul alimentar convenţional este obţinut din materie primă provenită din agricultura normală, în care s-au folosit şi substanţe chimice de sinteză. Astfel de alimente conţin aditivi sintetici.

This is essentially an extract paragraph from an earlier blog I wrote about becoming a successful ethical business and it’s something that came back to me at the weekend when we were promoting Aquapax at the Horsham eco-fair in Horsham Park AND at the Lambeth Country Show in Brockwell Park. [Not bad going for a company with limited resources and not possible without the heroic efforts of a certain ‘friend called Hagar’ who a number of new Aquapax customers are meeting at events across the country this summer.]

By and large, the majority of people who we meet at these events are open minded and wanting to learn, after all, that’s why they presumably left their homes on any particular day to venture out to a fair.

Irrespective of whether these people ever buy an Aquapax from us or from one of our retail partners, the fact they enquire about our less carbon intensive production process, the recycling options, the reasons why we chose the very particular Fläming Felsenquelle source water, how we actually carbon balance our business and ensure the thinking is all joined up, is done with genuine interest and sometimes with humorous challenge and fun along the way.

Then there are the frustrated comedians who talk about water coming out of the sky and laugh heartily as they reference only drinking tap water while simultaneously carrying an overpriced (and well known) brand of flavoured tap water in their rucksacks (I don’t mind them – at least they’re cheerful) or the third type – the energy sappers…

These people wander around at shows without any apparent joy; they attack with energy and robust (loud) rebukes as if we were peddling something outrageously illegal and then walk off rapidly without giving any opportunity to engage at an intellectual or any other level.

I actually got accused of being an irresponsible cause of the well publicised credit crunch by one ‘gentleman’ and it’s sad that following a weekend of great positivity, the venomous comments of ‘a nutter (in my humble opinion) who wouldn’t engage’ hurt the most. I don’t feel in the slightest bit responsible for any crunch in the credit market, but it’s always sad to see someone growing old without learning anything…

Available here

Red mushroom on a black background encased forever in a waterproof, super shiny, and crystal clear high gloss finish. Comes with a 30" ball chain which can easily be cut to desired length.