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POPSThe truth about recycling Far too much valuable info here to fit in a clip, so go to the source for interesting discussions of the history of recycling, current status, innovations and concerns about what happens to recyclables being shipped to China and other developing nations. China is now the largest importer of recyclable materials in the world! The explanation of how single stream collection of recyclables works is fascinating. I was not aware of all the new technology being employed to sort and separate recyclable materials. The section on the future of recycling discusses the need for product design to take into account recycling of the product materials to create "closed-loop" cycles where there is no waste. Sustainable packaging emphasizes the use of renewable, recycled and non-toxic source materials to benefit the environment and cut costs. Wal-Mart is jumping on this bandwagon. "Waste is really a design flaw."
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POPSDrinking Beer Can Change the World Aren't we a tad overdue for a beer clip? Anyway! Everyone should have a beer and help save the world, I reckon. If we all stand (and sway) together, the results could be nothing less than *staggering*!! (This clip just has CBGC written ALL over it. Cheers, fellow followers of the faith! .:)) (PS) Thanks to {{BartendingBear}} for the tip off about this site. Taaa buddy!
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POPS Hunger Due to Injustice, Not Lack of Food Worth noting:: "In addition, the offspring of some GM plants are sterile, which means they cannot be stored to grow future crops. Poor farmers thus become dependent on transnational companies, and are forced to buy new seeds every year."
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POPSInternet Access Without Electricity, Connectivity or Phone Services. No Matter Where You Are. what open source collaboration can do.. The terminals includes access to web browsing, email, voip, office, multimedia, software development and web development tools as well as 15,000 other applications. Wifi coverage spans a 2-mile radius, with no fuel costs, no polluting emissions and a long lifespan of up to 20 years with proper maintenance. The entire system, in fact, operates on about the same amount of power as a 100-watt light bulb, GNUveau says.
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POPSDisaster Gives Birth to Greenest Town in America To leverage environmentalism to rebuild and sustain itself in the wake of near total destruction, it just may unwittingly be writing a modern survival guide for rural America. Currently, the town has completed town houses for working class families that are LEED gold certified. Gold certification means these places will be almost twice as efficient as they used to be. A lot of what's happening in Greensburg is some of the first in the country.
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POPSAmerica Buying Big Slices of South America I like the idea of private conservation (better than no conservation at all), but I can also see a scenario in which the rich lay claim to the increasingly scarce resources of the future, such as water (and oil of course i.e Iraq.) I guess only the future will tell, if the rich intend to 'share'.
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POPSWhy cultural transformation is possible "If we are to move beyond the current destructive phase of capitalism, we will do so because we tap the spiritual energy that progressives have yet to tap in any coherent way. Values hold the key. The hungers of the heart can be the bedrock on which we build a new social order."
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POPSNew thin-film solar panels easy to install These new solar panels look and sound easy to install. No price info here but links are provided for more info, including dealers and possible financial incentives available. With electricity prices going ever higher and solar power technology (and hopefully prices) improving, I hope to be able to go solar soon.
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POPSNew study offers solution to global fisheries collapse
The results of this study are certain to have wide-ranging implications as more fisheries in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and elsewhere consider switching to catch shares systems. It is particularly timely for the West Coast of the United States, where the groundfish fishery – which encompasses more than 80 species including sole, rockfish (snapper), hake, and sablefish (Alaskan black cod) – is likely to transition to catch shares. This paper provides the first global evidence that catch shares lead to better biological outcomes, and contributes an important scientific basis to the discussions. The Pacific Fisheries Management Council, which manages the groundfish fishery on the West Coast, will make their final decision on the week of November 2, 2008. Interesting and encouraging: This new study also offers hope that fisheries can resist the widespread global collapse projected two years ago by Boris Worm of Dalhousie University, Halifax and colleagues.
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POPSSustainability To forget how to dig the earth and tend the soil is to forget ourselves. Gandhi
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POPSGlobal Peace Index "The Global Peace Index is intended to contribute significantly to the public debate and highlight the relationship between Global Peace and Sustainability. Because, how will we achieve the necessary global co-operation to reverse global warming, loss of bio-diversity, provide adequate drinking water and a sustainable population without peace?"
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POPSMade entirely from trash, Semakau Island, Singapore Started as a garbage disposal dump - today it is an island, where birds nest and people play, oblivious of the fact that the entire island is made of rubbish! 66 bird species have been recorded here. Along with various marine life (corrals, sponges, starfish, etc), all the animals have been fooled into thinking its a natural island! Singapore has been incinerating its waste here since 1999.
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POPSMillions of Missing Birds, Vanishing in Plain Sight "In our everyday economic behavior, we seem determined to discover whether we can live alone on earth. E.O. Wilson has argued eloquently and persuasively that we cannot, that who we are depends as much on the richness and diversity of the biological life around us as it does on any inherent quality in our genes. Environmentalists of every stripe argue that we must somehow begin to correlate our economic behavior — by which I mean every aspect of it: production, consumption, habitation — with the welfare of other species. This is the premise of sustainability. But the very foundation of our economic interests is self-interest, and in the survival of other species we see way too little self to care. We look around us, expecting the rest of the world’s occupants to adapt to the changes that we have caused, when, in fact, we have the right to expect adaptation only from ourselves."
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POPSMoss-in-Prisons project A recent TV news report about the Moss-in-Prisons and the sustainability projects at Cedar Creek is posted at http://www.kcts9.org/video/green-prison-reform.
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POPS-Are Humans Destroying the Planet's Web of Life? Very sobering, disturbing article. Just put global climate disruption aside and think about what we humans are doin to the life in the oceans and the air and land, the forests, the over fertilizing, the plastics...it's abominable and has to be changed or we die.
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POPSRenewable energy cannot sustain a consumer society It wasn't so long ago when thrift was considered to be the greatest of virtues. As it is! On the other hand, there are at least two generations of Westerners who don't have any experience or knowledge of thrift. Will they get it?
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POPSBeyond Zero-Energy: The World's 1st Positive Energy Building Generates more energy than it consumes. The building’s aggressive approach to sustainability enables it to offer the lowest energy consumption per square meter for its class. The complex will utilize sustainable materials and feature integrated wind turbines, outdoor air quality monitors. In addition to serving as the Masdar headquarters, the building will accommodate private residences and ‘early bird’ businesses starting up in the city. The Masdar development will be constructed over seven phases and is due to be completed by 2016.
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POPSHow to Talk to a Climate Skeptic Don't get caught out again when talking to a climate change skeptic at your next dinner party. Access this comprehensive list of scientific articles which will put your skeptic back in his/her place