The link between global meat production and global warming (not just those flatulent cows, but the distance their carcasses get flown as well) - is getting stronger. Would you consider giving up meat or at least cutting down on it to improve the welfare of the planet? If I can't convince you on my own, perhaps this short film from EcOutlet will help. Bon appetit.
Sainsbury will become the first major UK retailer to convert a fifth of its online delivery fleet to green electric vehicles. The trial of the battery powered "Little green van" proved so successful that the supermaket has placed a bulk order which will see the vans on UK roads in the next three years.
Sainsbury’s say that by September 2008, 20% of the supermarket's online deliveries will be made using electric vans, saving 45 tonnes of CO2 emissions in the first year. It makes a CO2 saving of 44 percent on a standard diesel van – the equivalent of one round trip from London to Rio de Janeiro or the entire annual CO2 footprint of a small UK household.
Related stories: ‘I’m not a plastic bag’ bag at Sainsbury’s | Sainsbury’s say goodbye to plastic bags for a day
If your children sometimes need calming down – and let’s face it, whose don’t? – I highly recommend Relax Kids with their great range of meditation aids for children as young as two years old. You may be thinking ‘what a load of rubbish’ which I have to admit was my first reaction, but seeing the change in my super-active daughter who was then three years old after reading the book of Fairytale Meditations, I was completely won over!
If you live in the city and dream of growing your own organic veg, but don't have enough dosh to get an allotment, these 'No-dig' potato bags are the answer. The re-usable bags are 35cm x 45cm, so they will fit in the most compact of urban pads, and even the least green fingered city slickers can't fail to grow decent spuds. The bags are made from tough, woven polythene with drainage holes already cut. They hold around 40 litres of compost and cost a mere £14.95 for a pack of three. Available from Natural Collection.
Related: Grow your own veg the easy way | Electrolux VEGE: Grow your own - at home!
Undeterred by the awful Glastonbury weather, People Tree are looking to warmer climes with a sizzling summer holiday-wear range.
The new pieces out this week feature bold, oversized tropical prints that would look great teamed with simple accessories for a chic holiday look. They include a flattering wrap skirt and halter top, in dark green & orange, or zingy lime green. As you'd expect from People Tree, the garments are made from 100% handwoven cotton, and are screen-printed by a fairtrade collective in India.
And for the next two weeks you are entitled to an exclusive 20% off these garments. So this halter top, for example, will come it at just £25. You can find it to order online here!
I don’t know about you, but I love to sleep. If there were an Olympic sport for sleeping I would be in training for it 365 days a year! Which brings me nicely to the main component needed for good sleep – a good mattress. DoJo Ecoshop make a range of natural mattresses and futons to not only help you sleep well, but sleep in a natural and organic environment free of chemicals and toxins. The mattress range has firm and medium types and the futon range includes traditional and springy types. The mattresses are made with natural ingredients like organic cotton, organic British wool, coconut fibre and natural latex (which is 94% natural latex sap from rubber trees). With prices starting at £395 for a single size up to £550 for a king size, you won’t be losing sleep over the cost. You can buy organic mattress overlays/protectors to keep your mattress clean and fresh and with their FSC timber bed frame you can complete the package. A great way to sleep safely, organically and ethically.
It looks a bit like an armadillo, but it's actually a solar powered motorbike by Spanish company SunRed. The idea, which won a prize for innovation at the Barcelona Motor show, is that when the bike is parked the large fold-out solar panels will cover the vehicle and the rays will charge up the bike's battery. It will have a range of around 13 miles and a top speed of 30mph, so not exactly one for a blast down the coast at the weekend, but ideal for city use. This is a concept model, but the company are planning a prototype soon, so watch this space!
[via treehugger.com]
Related: E-max funky electric scooter - The price might be right! | Vectrix electric scooter – Yay or nay?
If Glastonbury was not quite enough for you andyou just haven't had your fill of music festivals for 2007 you might like to visit the Two Thousand Trees Music Festival
The event will run on 13th and 14th July, visitors will get the chance to enjoy the small festival experience at a lovely Cotswolds location.
Tamagotchi should watch their backs. Virtual trees are the next big thing.
Children can learn more about the environment and climate change by at Raise A Tree
This nifty variation on a virtual pet allows children to raise their own virtual tree anywhere in the world. If their tree is unlucky enough to suffer from a natural disaster that affects its growth the child will learn about what happened and why.
A report published by the UN Environment Programme following an 18 month study of Sudan concludes “Darfur…holds grim lessons for other countries at risk”. The report basically says that the conflict in Darfur has been driven by climate change. The region has suffered a 30% drop in rainfall over the last 40 years and the Sahara desert is advancing by over a mile each year. This is causing tensions in the area between farmers and herders as they fight over disappearing pastures and drying water holes.
The RSPB need our help to monitor the number of swifts in our skies. The birds, which incredibly spend 99% of their time on the wing, have declined in number by 21% between 1994-2005. It's believed a lack of suitable nesting sites may be to blame, as old buildings are demolished or renovated around the city and countryside. The RSPB are asking the public to complete a survey to help them determine if the numbers are still dropping, and if there are areas of the country where the situation is better or worse. Obviously they don't expect you to count them one by one, but there are some general guidelines to assist you. The survey can be completed any time over the Summer months, and the best time of day is from early evening until dusk.
Related: RSPB Great Garden Birdwatch - results are in! | Learn birdsong the fun way with this RSPB wall clock
Tony Blair leaves office on an eco-note with the final official bilateral of his premiership due to discuss climate change with the former Hollywood star turned governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The meeting will be picking up from Mr Blair's visit to Los Angeles last year. The talks at No. 10 come as the Prime Minister prepares to quit Downing Street and hand over the reins of power to Gordon Brown, the new Labour leader.
Environment Secretary David Miliband will join in the discussions, which will be followed by a round-table meeting of business leaders. Asked if the meeting would be Mr Blair's last bilateral talks at No. 10, his official spokesman said: "I suppose that will be the case."
[via PA]
Related stores: Does Tony Blair want to be the next Al Gore? | Blair optimistic on climate change at G8
Al Gore, once almost a president of the USA now turned eco-activist, has once again spoken out about climate change. In a new forward for his revised book ‘Earth in the Balance’ he makes some very valid points about the scientific community and raises some quite disturbing issues with the Bush administration. Mr Gore says with amazing hindsight “I wish that we could have had in the 1990’s the deafening scientific consensus that has emerged in more recent years”. I do believe there were some scientists and many environmentalists talking about rising global temperatures in the 1990’s, but they were either ignored or ridiculed. The US government, like all governments, chooses carefully which scientific advice to follow at any given moment, usually the advice that matches its own aims. In the case of the Bush administration, this was taken to new levels as Mr Gore states that under Bush the US pulled out of the Kyoto treaty, reversed their pledge to regulate CO2 as a pollutant and replaced key scientific advisors with ones suggested by ExxonMobil.
Yes, you heard me right, you can carbon offset your sprog, your driving and your flights. Allgreenthings.net offers various Carbon Clear packages. Many parents choose disposable over re-usable nappies. With a Carbon Clear package for £10, you can help to offset 650kg of greenhouse gases created by your baby’s nappy use for the first 2.5 years of life, via the planting of 7 trees. These trees will absorb: nappy manufacture, including transport to the retailer, electricity and packaging at the retailer, transportation to your home and disposal impact, including land use and methane emissions.
Playing around with the UK Government's new carbon calculator, Gareth Kane asks are we being honest with ourselves?
Last week I tried out the UK Government's swanky new Carbon Calculator. I threw in my stats and got a grand total of 3.82 tonnes - compared with a national average of 4.48t - pretty good but helped by the fact that I haven't flown in over a year. The calculator is very swish and easy to use, but I was concerned with what it didn't count - food, clothing, other products, work, waste disposal etc, etc.
This got me thinking. Environmental author Chris Goodall reckons that if you take the UK's total carbon dioxide emissions and divide them by the population, then you get 12 tonnes each, not 4.5tonnes. So we are responsible for almost three times as much carbon dioxide what the Government is telling us we are responsible for. But is that the whole picture?
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