15 Minutes

Dozens - or hundreds - of cities and millions of people around the world are participating. You're invited to turn off your lights (and any other energy-using device) for one hour.

The event was created by the World Wildlife Fund last year, and this year it's spreading around the world. There are 25 "official" Earth Hour cities representing every time zone, and many others are participating (including my hometown of Denver, and a shout out to little La Plata, Colo., which is listed on Earth Hour's home page earthhour.org).

You can find out a little bit more at the MySpace at myspace.com/wwfus

Overall, this appears to be a "just do it" kind of thing -- neither site seems to have tons of information about the event.

What I think is kind of cool is that huge buildings and structures are going dark (turning off "nonessential" lighting, anyway), from McDonald's arches in Chicago (and maybe elsewhere?) to the Golden Gate Bridge. Imagine the calming effect if, every night, cities turned down the lights. (Better still if they delivered hot cocoa to our doors, but one out of two is nothing to sneeze at.)

Do tell ... will you participate? What will you do? (And does this mean my dream of going to a movie on Saturday night while Little Cheap is at Grandma's is out ...?)

Je profite de cette journée pleine de neige pour vous présenter quelques blogues qui méritent une petite visite. Cette présentation se fait dans la continuité du Blog action Day.

Il y a André, surnommé Aiglestates, est un membre très actif de la blogospère. André a un blogue spécialisé qui touche les nouvelles technologies et l'Internet. Pour les amateurs de vélo et de grand air, il y a Gaétan. Pour les jeunes, un site Internet avec un lieu pour partager ses billets, Québec Jeunes, un webzine pour les ados. L'art du blogue est un lieu d'initiation sur les blogues et la blogosphère. Finalement, le blogue d'Antipollution mérite aussi un  petit détour.

Profitez de votre visite sur ces sites pour laisser un petit commentaire et participer au débats proposés.

Autre texte présentant quelques blogues: http://raymondviger.wordpress.com/2007/10/15/blog-action-day-du-vin-tout-pres-de-chez-vous/

Vänta lite... Blog Action Day? WTF, liksom.

Jag vet, det är krystat. Jag läste det i Metro i förra veckan och tänkte göra det till en kul och annorlunda bloggidé. Idag är det Blog Action Day. Idag är det tanken att alla bloggare ska skriva om miljön på ett eller annat vis.

Självfallet vet jag ingen kommer att göra det. Alla kommer att fortsätta och skriva om sin galna utekväll, små vardagsbekymmer eller betraktelser som ingen ändå vill läsa mer om. Just därför ska jag göra det. Kontroversiell som jag är.

Jag måste medge att det inte är alldeles okomplicerat att kombinera ämnet miljö med bloggens övergripande tema om TV-spel. Men det går, faktiskt. Bara man tänker till lite.

Genvägen till en bättre miljö är att vara snål. Om du någonsin har gått in i en spelaffär som säljer nya spel vet du vad jag menar. Spaltmetrar fulla med kartonger, plastfodral och metalldekorer. Långt i från allt efterfrågas. Långt i från allt säljs. Mycket lämnas kvar.

Handen på hjärtat nu, hur många av er föredrar att köpa begagnat framför nytt? Jag går allltid till hyllorna där de gamla spelen säljs. Givetvis för att göra ett och annat fynd, men också för att jag lever alldeles för osunt för att ha råd med att köpa skokartongsdoftande nyplast. Och jag har kommit fram till att det är en miljögärning.

Tänk om man, i stället för att tvunget köpa alla spel på release, väntade ett par månader, såg intresset svalna av för att sedan plocka upp ett gammalt exemplar. Fungerar minst lika bra, ofta hälften av priset och alla maskroser på ängen lovsjunger ditt namn. Måste säga att jag gillar tanken av att se en hel äng buga för mig när jag går förbi. Lite Alice i Underlandet-vibbar. Minus kaninen.

Lyssna noga nu, för detta är kanske det mest präktiga jag någonsin kommer att skriva här; Tänk på miljön och rädda din plånbok. Köp begagnat. Peka finger åt Gates, Hirai och Iwata och göra high-five med din trädgård. Annars är risken att priserna och växthuseffekten ger dig en och annan törn (ouch!)...

schemat: miało być 4 x (26,5 min wolnym tempem -2 min marszem), wyszło 3 x (26,5 - 2) i koniec... razem 1:26

wrażenia: kurczę, a juz myślałem, że dam radę. Wyszedłem bezpośrednio po całej nocy balowania, sporej ilości "napojów rozweselających" różnej mocy i pochodzenia i praktycznie z pustym żołądkiem (łyżeczka masła orzechowego i odrobina tuńczyka to chyba było za mało...) i nawet dobrze mi się biegło dwie pierwsze rundy, ale w trzeciej zaczęło się dziać coś dziwnego i kiedy ją kończyłem, czułem, że nogi i cały organizm po prostu odmawiają współpracy, więc stwierdziłem, że nie będę kozaczył i grzecznie (choć nieco otępiony od wysiłku) wróciłem do domku. No cóż, zawsze to coś...

Garanto que VALE BEM A PENA!!! entrada grátis no jardim botânico em Lisboa... visita guiada que só acontece nesta actividade.... e colaboração divertida na reflorestação... e claro que não é só para crianças

1. Domingo, 9 de Dezembro 2007, Lisboa (Jardim Botânico), 10h00-16h00:
- Preparação de Sementes de Carvalho-cerquinho para próxima sementeira.
- Visitas guiadas ao Jardim Botânico de Lisboa, na Rua da Escola Politécnica.
Actividade acessível a crianças de todas as idades.

2. Domingo, 16 de Dezembro 2007, 11h-17h00:
- SEMENTEIRA de CARVALHOS-Cerquinhos na SERRA de MONTEJUNTO
Actividade acessível a crianças a partir de 4 anos.

1. Preparação de sementes e visitas guiadas no Jardim Botânico de Lisboa (Rua da Escola Politécnica, 58)
Domingo, 9 de Dezembro de 2007, 10h00 - 16h00
Num espaço coberto cedido pela Direcção do Jardim Botânico, vamos estar entre as 10h00 e as 16h00 a preparar sementes para a próxima sementeira de carvalhos. Vamos realizar 2 breves visitas guiadas ao Jardim (de manhã e de tarde), exclusiva para os voluntários que colaborem na preparação de sementes.
A entrada no Jardim é gratuita, para quem confirmar a sua participação até às 15h de sexta-feira, dia 7 de Dezembro.
Caso se inscreva mais tarde, a entrada custa 1,5 euros (adultos), com 50% de desconto para crianças e reformados.

Descrição da actividade:
Vamos seleccionar as bolotas para sementeira, vamos preparar bolas de sementes (pequenas bolas de terra e barro que contêm algumas bolotas no seu interior), e vamos semear algumas bolotas em vasos, para futuras plantações.
A utilização de bolas de sementes é uma técnica utilizada na reposição de vegetação natural herbácea e arbustiva em zonas ardidas ou degradadas. O FAPAS utiliza desde o ano passado esta técnica na sementeira de árvores nativas.
Esta actividade é acessível a crianças, a preparação das bolas é rápida e divertida: amassar pequenas bolas com terra e barro, e colocar algumas bolotas no interior.

Horário da actividade: 10h00 - 16h00.
Pode participar o tempo que pretender, dentro deste horário. As crianças poderão brincar no Jardim quando não quiserem fazer mais bolas de sementes.
Vai haver duas visitas guiadas de cerca de 30 minutos ao Jardim Botânico (facultativas), para quem tiver participado na preparação de sementes.
Horários das visitas: às 12h00 e às 15h30.

Ponto de Encontro:
Na tenda montada junto às estufas do Jardim, nas traseiras do Edifício Cor-de-Rosa. (perguntar pelo FAPAS na entrada do Jardim)
Para quem se inscrever até às 15h de sexta-feira 7 de Dezembro a entrada será gratuita. Quando chegar à bilheteira na entrada do Jardim, basta dizer o nome, que constará de uma lista na posse do funcionário.
Atenção: a bilheteira encontra-se ao fundo da Avenida das Palmeiras, depois de passar o Portão Principal que dá para a Rua da Escola Politécnica (com o nº 58).

Equipamento aconselhado: Avental e Luvas de protecção (de cozinha ou de jardinagem).

Transportes Públicos:
Metro: linha amarela, estação Rato.
Autocarros: (Largo do Rato) - 6,9,74,720,727,738; (Rua da Escola Politécnica) - 58; (Largo do Príncipe Real) - 790.

NOTA IMPORTANTE: A actividade não será adiada em caso de chuva (realiza-se em local abrigado).

Esta parece-me ainda mais interessante:

2. - SEMENTEIRA de CARVALHOS-Cerquinhos na SERRA de MONTEJUNTO
Domingo, 16 de Dezembro 2007, 11h-17h00
Participação: pode participar na actividade utilizando o autocarro alugado pelo FAPAS, ou com a sua viatura. Se mora na zona de Lisboa, desaconselhamos a utilização da viatura, para evitar a emissão de gases com efeito de estufa.
Descrição da Actividade: Percursos pedestres variados, em zona plana ou levemente inclinada na Serra de Montejunto. Sementeira de bolotas de carvalho-cerquinho, pelo método tradicional, e pelo método de bolas de sementes.
Itinerário: Lisboa - Alenquer - Abrigada - Montejunto, regresso pelo mesmo percurso.
Transporte: A partir de Lisboa, em autocarro de aluguer com passagem por Alenquer e pela Abrigada.
Custo do transporte (no autocarro):
Ida e volta a partir de Lisboa: 1,5 euros (adultos), 0,50 euros (crianças até 12 anos).
Ida e volta a partir de Alenquer ou Abrigada: 0,50 euros (adultos), 0,15 euros (crianças até 12 anos).
O pagamento é feito no autocarro.

Nota: o valor do bilhete será descontado na compra de quaisquer materiais do FAPAS:
Camisolas, Sacos de pano, Guias de Fauna e Flora, revista Tribuna da Natureza.

Horário e Pontos de Encontro:
1 - em Lisboa - na Praça do Saldanha - na entrada do Atrium Saldanha às 11h00. (regresso previsto para as 17h)
2 - em Alenquer - junto à sede do Sporting de Alenquer. Às 11h45 (regresso previsto para as 16h15)
3 - em Abrigada - na entrada da Escola Secundária. Às 12h00 (regresso previsto para as 16h00).

Equipamento aconselhado: Vestuário quente adequado às condições meteorológicas, calçado confortável e resistente, sacos de pano para transportar as sementes. Utensílio para a sementeira - enxada ou pequeno sacho de jardinagem, se não tiver utiliza os do FAPAS. Luvas de protecção (de cozinha ou de jardinagem). Água e farnel para almoço na Serra.
NOTA IMPORTANTE: A actividade não será adiada em caso de chuva (em caso de necessidade pode abrigar-se no autocarro).

Método tradicional: consiste na colocação de sementes directamente na terra, geralmente em grupos de 5 a 10 em pequenos buracos abertos com um sacho de jardinagem, ou simplesmente espalhadas entre a vegetação.
Método de bolas de sementes: previamente preparadas com terra, barro e bolotas, estas pequenas bolas são simplesmente espalhadas na área a semear, numa actividade fácil e divertida, permitindo a sementeira mesmo em zonas pedregosas ou de difícil acesso.

Actividade acessível a crianças a partir de 4 anos.
Local: Serra de Montejunto (entre Cadaval e Alenquer)

-------------------------------------------

Para se inscrever nas actividades:Envie uma mensagem para fapaslisboaarrobaclix.pt, deixando o seu nome e contacto (email e telemóvel), ou ligue para o telemóvel 93 8491355.
Indique qual a actividade, o ponto de encontro, a hora e o número de pessoas.
Colabore connosco na Conservação da Natureza: Ajude o FAPAS a divulgar estas iniciativas.

------------------------------------------------

O FAPAS é uma Associação de defesa da Vida Selvagem com 16 anos de existência, e uma vasta actividade na defesa e estudo da Natureza e Vida Selvagem em Portugal. Sede: Rua Alexandre Herculano, 371-4º Dtº, 4000-055 PORTO (telef.22 200 2472).
Publicações: o FAPAS edita trimestralmente a revista Tribuna da Natureza, e publicou, entre outros, uma série de Guias de Campo de fauna e flora: Aves de Portugal e Europa, Mamíferos de Portugal e Europa, Árvores de Portugal e Europa, Anfíbios e Répteis de Portugal, Fauna e Flora do Litoral.
Para ser sócio do FAPAS: consulte www.fapas.pt , ou contacte-nos por email ou telefone

Quotas anuais - adultos: 19,00 Euros (inclui a assinatura de 4 números da revista Tribuna da Natureza); ou 10,00 Euros (sem a assinatura);
juvenis (até 15 anos de idade): 5,00 Euros (sem assinatura).

--------------------------

Saudações Ecologistas

FAPAS - Lisboa
tm: 93 849 1355
fapaslisboa @ clix.pt

If your mail box stuffed with unwanted mail order catalogs, your tables, floors, countertops, closets, drawers filled with catalogs that you've never bought from and probably never will - you're up to your eyeballs in paper...clear out the clutter, make room to have space in your life.

Want to do something about it that is effective, fun and easy? What if getting off those mailing lists saved thousands of trees each and every year?

Here's the solution...

What is Catalog Choice?

• Catalog Choice is a free service that allows you to decide what gets in your mailbox. Use it to reduce your mailbox clutter, while helping save natural resources.

• Catalog Choice is a sponsored project of the Ecology Center. It is endorsed by the National Wildlife Federation and the Natural Resources Defense Council, and funded by the Overbrook Foundation, the Merck Family Fund, and the Kendeda Fund.

The Catalog Choice Mission

• The mission of Catalog Choice is to reduce the number of repeat and unsolicited catalog mailings, and to promote the adoption of sustainable industry best practices. We aim to accomplish this by freely providing the Catalog Choice services to both consumers and businesses. Consumers can indicate which catalogs they no longer wish to receive, and businesses can receive a list of consumers no longer wanting to receive their catalogs.

Did You Know?

• Over eight million tons of trees are consumed each year in the production of paper catalogs.

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• There are other significant environmental impacts from the catalog cycle. The production and disposal of direct mail alone consumes more energy than three million cars.

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Fill out our online registration form using your name and primary mailing address. Your contact information will only be used for the purpose of declining (opting-out of) catalogs.

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Find and decline your catalogs, using the Catalog Choice search facilities. We'll then contact the catalog providers on your behalf, requesting that your name be removed from their mailing lists.

Step 3: See the results.
It can take up to ten weeks to process your request, after which time you should no longer receive your declined catalogs. If you do continue to receive them, you can return here to report the infraction, and we'll follow up with the merchant.

Catalog Choice is designed for your continued use. Upon receipt of additional unwanted catalogs, return here to decline them. As a registered user, you'll also discover additional features related to declining catalogs at multiple addresses, adding new catalogs to our database, recording personal notes, and "going paperless".

The Benefits for you, merchants and the environment

The Catalog Choice service is designed to benefit everyone!

• You benefit by reducing mailbox clutter, and the amount of time you spend sifting through unwanted mail.

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• Your participation as a member of the Catalog Choice community will collectively make a huge positive impact on our environment, as together we reduce the energy consumed, the carbon emissions, and the lost forests resulting from the current annual production and discarding of more than 19 billion paper catalogs.

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Help Spread the Word

• The collective positive impact that the Catalog Choice community has on the environment is directly related to the number of people using the service. You can help spread the word, by displaying one of the Catalog Choice linked badges on your own website or blog.

Get Started Now...

Other environmental posts on my blog:

Gardeners and Farmers - rebuild soils with beneficial soil organisms, good for us, plants and environment

Warning - dryer sheets contain cancer causing chemicals

Aromatherapy Candles and Reed Diffusers - what are the REAL benefits

Coco-cola, Kellogg’s, Mattel and Takeda Pharmaceuticals Win Award for Abusing Consumer Rights

Ecological Footprint - how do you score?

Pacific Trash Tsunami - nearly every bit of plastic ever made still exists

took this during the 'earth from above' exhibition at darling harbor last summer. the pieces were from yann arthus bertrand and they were amazing. you can read up on his work, chairing goodplanet.org, the non profit organization dedicated to the promotion of sustainable development.

Michael Jacksons "Earth Song" er mere relevant end nogensinde før. Den kommer omkring alle de dårlige sider af verden, som den er lige nu: Krig, Fældningen af regnskoven, Den globale opvarmning, sult og mere.

Vi mennesker passer alt for lidt på den planet vi nu en gang er blevet givet. Vi tænker simpelthen nogle gange for lidt over hvad vi gør og hvorfor vi gør de ting vi gør.

Et rigtig godt eksempel kan være måden vi kommer til og fra arbejde på: Rigtig mange mennesker tager ene person bilen på arbejde. I stedet for burde man enten samles flere kollegaer om at køre i en bil, eller endnu bedre, benytte offentlige transportmidler som bus og tog. Også
Også fældningen af regnskovene er et stort problem. Regnskovene er en forudsætning for, at der kan leve mennesker på jorden. De er med til at omdanne en del af den kuldioxid til ilt. Desværre tænker de fleste, ikke over at de rent faktisk har så stor en betydning for livet på jorden, og fælder derfor træerne uden egentlig at tænke over hvilke konsekvenser det har for verden. For at rede regnskovene, burde man indtil det er nogenlunde stabilt igen, indføre en regel der hedder, at for hvert træ man fælder, skal man plante mindst ét nyt!

En sidste ting, som vi mennesker er 100% skyld i selv, er al den krig, der foregår forskellige steder rundt omkring i verden. Hvorfor kan mennesker ikke lære at leve i fred sammen med hinanden, uden at skulle skyde hinanden til døde? Hvad får man ud af at føre krig? En masse dræbte mennesker, og ødelagte byer. Hvis man ikke kan nå til enighed før en krig, så kan man i hvert fald slet ikke efter en!

Sidst men ikke mindst, er der sulten i nogle dele af verden, specielt i Afrika. Jeg har hørt nogle have den holdning, at verden ikke skal hjælpe dem, fordi de udnytter alligevel ikke de resurser de får. Jeg kan simpelthen ikke forstå, hvordan man kan synke så dybt, som at sige det. Problemet er, som jeg ser det, at ulandsbistanden fra den øvrige verden simpelthen er så lav, at det ikke er nok til at hjælpe alle, og det er (selvfølgelig) det der fokuseres på. Medierne har desværre en tendens til, altid at vise de negative sider af en sag frem for de positive.

Sin comentarios...

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Fuente - Suscríbete

Véase también:

• Deshielo polar - Blog Action Day

Do you have Brazilian teakwood floors in your luxury home? How about Brazilian cherry cabinets? Any Brazilian mahogany items? Well, I certainly hope you are enjoying them. They might have come to you at a huge cost… well beyond what you paid for them.

There is a good chance that that those exotic hardwoods were harvested by slave labor. Perhaps they were even harvested by child slave labor. But the cost for these materials goes even beyond its toll on slaves or your pocketbook. On average, your Brazilian teakwood floor eliminated 7.5 acres of irreplaceable Amazonian rain forest. But Brazilian hardwood floors look great.
(...)
To be fair, you might be unaware of how these materials are obtained. Most people are.
(...)

относно оголения хълм и липсата на зеленина ще пиша друг път. но вие и сами може да се досетите за причината.

Divertido cuestionario que nos llega desde la propuesta del Blog Action Day, donde podrás averiguar que tipo de blogger eres. Yo ya he realizado una prueba y los resultados me han parecido muy aceptables.

Animo y mucha suerte !!!

So, this year, Blog Action Day was about the environment. G and I are actively trying to live more sustainably, embracing habits of eating mostly organic, buying products locally grown and made, recycling, trying to walk more and drive less, and using environmentally friendly cleaning products.

Being in the midst of one of my biggest life changes, moving 2,000 miles to another city, I can say that some of these values were set aside, put on hold, if you will, and some might say chucked out the window because it is either inconvenient or expensive.

This move has put me in touch with just how privileged I am. Movers packed our stuff, loaded it onto a big truck, and as I write this, someone is driving our things across the country to our new home, and more movers will come to carry it all up three flights of stairs. Professional house cleaners came to scour our apartment once it was empty. The day before we left, Gillian and I went to have pedicures.

No matter what, moving is stressful. I was able to hire people to do a lot of the physical labor for me, and I still feel tired. I have done a good deal of heavy lifting to get us here, but nothing like Dan who could carry three heavy boxes at a time down our stairs and out to the truck. I am incredibly grateful, and I fully recognize my privilege.

And even so, I was not able to do everything in an environmentally friendly way because G and I could not afford it. We didn't want to keep our hide-a-bed sofa, and when attempts to give it away were unsuccessful, we paid some haulers to take it away. The "environmentally friendly" haulers (as they marketed themselves) charged $50 more than the regular haulers that we hired. And they turned out to be a gay couple that we really liked who recycled all of their hauls in an environmentally sound way, anyway.

It's interesting to me that the "green" hauling company feels that they can charge more for offering the same service that is marketed in a different way. The "green" house cleaners would have cost hundreds of dollars more than the cleaning ladies from our neighborhood, who I'm pretty sure don't use environmentally friendly cleaning products.

I believe in the "green tax," paying more for products that are made sustainably and that do not harm the environment. I will patronize local businesses over big chains to support the local economy instead of large corporations. I will pay more for organically grown produce. I have the ability to pay more, and because I want to do my part and be a good citizen, I will. But it is a privilege to be able to do so.

Living green should not be a luxury. It is a responsibility. If we're going to live in a capitalist economy, and if the captains of industry are really interested in doing good for the environment, then they need to find a way to make green accessible to all. Some say that demand from the middle class will create green trends at all class levels.

While I'm suspicious of WalMart's new "organic" line of food, I have to ask the question, isn't this the way things should be going? Sure, WalMart is capitalizing on the whole green/organic movement, but this is also a company that caters to the working class with its low prices. Believe me, I'm no fan of WalMart, but isn't this kind of marketing the right idea? Shouldn't the green movement want to reach the working class in any way possible? Can't the green movement find a way to capitalize on WalMart's efforts to promote green living?

As we settle into our new home, G and I will clean the coils of our refrigerator with green cleaning products, replace old bulbs with CFL bulbs, educate ourselves about the green movement here in Chicago, support local businesses with sustainable practices, and otherwise continue to pay the green tax here. We will be mindful of the things we accumulate, acquiring things that will contribute to our quality of life, recycling and regifting things that we no longer need or use. We probably won't shop at WalMart, but I won't look down my nose at anyone who does. We probably will shop at Whole Foods, which won't make me feel more virtuous.

I do whatever I can in my daily life to leave a lighter footprint, and I will continue to write and talk about ways that green living should be a responsibility for everyone, not a choice only for those who can afford it. This is the only way that living green will make a real difference.

¿Qué puede hacer una persona? ¿Qué pueden hacer 20 mil? Qué pueden hacer 15 millones? El 15 de octubre de 2007, 20 mil bloggers se unieron, llegando a una audiencia de millones. Uniendo a la comunidad bloggera mundial podemos aumentar la conciencia sobre el medio ambiente, poner a la gente a pensar, y desencadenar un debate global. Imagínense qué podemos hacer el 2008.
(Traducción de la portada de http://blogactionday.org/)

20,603 blogs participaron, con 23,327 entradas según Google, 14,631,038 redactores registrados (vía RSS), y ocuparon 19 de los Top 100 lugares de Technorati, la principal herramienta en línea de búsqueda de blogs.

A continuación unos comentarios sobre el evento (traducidos del inglés):

Se trata de solidaridad, si yo no me unía, ¿quién iba a ocupar mi lugar? Un esfuerzo como este no puede tener éxito si no pongo de mi parte para que sea exitoso. Y si alguien allá afuera lee un artículo hoy que le haga pensar dos veces antes de tirar sus colillas de cigarro al suelo, entonces mi aporte fue importante. (Nora Paul, StarTribune)

¡Guau! El Blog Action Day anual inaugural fue realmente algo. Mostró el poder de uno y el poder de muchos. (Small Business Mentor)

Es un día de fiesta para todos los bloggers. Un día para unir a todos los bloggers sobre un mismo tema. Una celebración para el bien de la humanidad. Es el Blog Action Day. (Can The World Hear Me?)

Así que hoy decidí donar todo el efectivo que sale directamente de este blog este año (2007) a una causa ambiental que valga la pena (en mi caso, The Sierra Club). Para eso tuve que calcular cuánto dinero hice. Para mi sorpresa, fueron $605.23 (provenientes principalmente de Amazon y FeedBurner). Esto sin siquiera intentar. Mis ojos están ahora abiertos a la oportunidad. (OnStartups)

Una razón por la que me gusta el Blog Action Day es que demuestra el poder viral de una idea. Muestra qué tan lejos y rápido puede extenderse una idea de boca en boca utilizando la tecnología de hoy. También me gusta porque muestra la vitalidad e importancia de los nuevos medios (de los que el blogging es un factor mayor). (American Chronicle)

Fuente http://blogactionday.org

This NYtimes article describes a man, Van Jones, who started an organization that helps both poor people and the environment. He teaches black underserved youth construction skills so that they can jump in on what he calls the Green Collar jobs, which are mainly retrofitting buildings to make them much more environmentally friendly. This is a key issue that I feel many of us middle-class greens fail to appreciate....how can we get the lower socioeconomic classes in on addressing environmental issues. This is likely the only way..to promise them a better standard of living and regular work. You can get more details of the organization the organization's website.

SO, on to the challenge.... One of my favorite eco-bloggers Crunchy Chicken actually came up with this but I don't think she would be opposed to me spreading the word to my (small) blogging community. For this upcoming winter I pledge to not use the heat at all unless it becomes unbelievably cold (below 30 at night) or we have guests who can't take it. Now I know you guys are saying you live in AZ, why do you need heat anyway? Well the desert is surprisingly cold at night since we have no humidity to hold it in all the warmth provided by the sun evaporates as soon as it gets dark. We do have a lot of sunshine during the day though which heats up the house nicely for the evening so for us it is mainly the morning that is cold. Another caveat is that I may use our space heater to lightly heat up our bathroom in the morning if it is one of those frigid mornings.

OK, join the challenge by posting a comment with the goal. For example, "I agree to keep my heat at 60 degrees during the day, 55 at night"....or not that severe...remember baby steps and if it severely cramps your style then you won't be able to keep it up.

And as a final action for Blog Action Day , I want to point out my two other favorite eco-blogs, No Impact Man , my eco-hero and Green As Thistle , whom I love for her easy green lifestyle suggestions. Both are on my blogroll.

Have a wonderful Friday.

I wasn't.  Thus, I'll fill in the gaps now, but don't get your hopes up for something deep or anything.  I'll try.

I've lived in Vancouver, BC, for most of my life.  We're pretty crazy there, really, we have a fantastic environment and only manage to mangle it a little, at least compared to what other places have done to equally naturally rich locales.  We protest shit, pretty much all the time.  Everything from fish farms to politics to ill concidered news-comments brings people out onto the streets in cheap plastic ponchos and wielding signs coated in sensationalist slogans, witty digs and atrocious spelling.  Oh, and sometimes it's not even that evident what they're protesting.  But they show up and chant and wave signs anyway.

It's pretty awesome.  I've just moved to Waterloo/Kitchener, and I'm seeing the difference.  I'm not seeing posters for this or that or the other policital protest or action rally up everywhere.  I've only heard of one, so far, the entire month I've been here.  Home in Vancouver, there's a new protest organized every day.   Now, I dunno if this is linked, but it also seems to me that we have the most haywire smog ever here.  For the entire sunny September, I'd get up and grab a sweater, thinking "Oh, looks overcast today." and go outside and die of heat, 'cause it wasn't overcast.  It was fucking smog.  Yeah.  Pretty gross.

...Back home, we whine when air quality is bad enough that the mountains are undefined and a little blue-er than usual.  Here, if I were to go up a tower somewhere, the other end of town would be blued out with smog.

Where I'm going with this is a bipartite point.  The first being that living in a province/city of rabid protesters seems like it may have a benefit; at least, it could easily be said that enough action from the ground level has had a certain degree of effect - we have beautiful air back home.  From there, though; I segue into the fact that we don't appreciate it enough.  The amount that we complain about what is really quite a beautiful excellent thing is almost saddening.

From there, though, I'll pull those back together:  Keep bitching and whining and protesting the shit that's wrong, but don't let all that rage at the horrors we're unleashing on our planet detract from your enjoyment of what you do have around you - I certainly didn't appreciate it enough back home, and that realization has made me enjoy the lesser nature here even more.

Just 'cause it's there to be enjoyed at all.

Tapi gw take conclusion, kalo media internet, en khususnya blogs... definetly can make a difference. This is real voices !!! Individual voices yang kalau suara itu bersama-sama menyuarakan satu suara pastiny akan membuat perubahan. Coooolll.....

Tentang Blog Action Day tahun 2007, setelah bersama-sama koar-koar tentang lingkungan hidup. Kita bisa melihat follow up tentang tanggal 15 Oktober kemarin di official website Blog Action Day. Hal yang keren banget kalo event ini banyak diekspose oleh media mainstream yang punya nama besar seperti BBC, Reuters, FOX, Star Tribune, dan lain-lain. Famous bloggers juga sudah pasti ambil bagian. En gak ketinggalan organisasi besar yang memiliki konsern dengan tema tahun ini yaitu environment, United Nations Environmental Programme. Sampai-sampai Commisioner-nya, Stavros Dimas, ngeblog en ngucapin terima kasih buat event ini.

Well, this is one of from many cool events on the net. Can wait for next year :D

The first site I stumbled upon is YnetNews, an Israeli site, with a post titled An Urban Apartment and a Rural Farm in One Building.  It discuss Agro-Housing, the winner of the International Architecture Competition for Sustainable Housing hosted by Living Steel, and how it provides each unit a dedicated greenhouse space where the inhabitants can grow their own vegetables and plants within a sealed environment free of pests or bugs, fed by an automated drip irrigation system. In addition to the greenhouse space, the units are fully sustainable, pulling water from the ground using a geothermic system, are heated and cool with solar energy, and uses a gray water collection system for the greenhouses.  Agro-Housing is made from metal columns and beams reinforced with concrete, just like many of today's high-rises.  (PDF Brochure here)

The second site hit a little closer to home. Ecogeek gives us insight into An Off-Grid Vertical Farm For Downtown Seattle, designed by Mithun.  This is a much more dramatic design and fits the eccentric Seattle culture.  On less than 3/4 an acre, this 381-unit building not only includes commercial space, but also can exist "off the grid."  Solar cells convert sunlight to power, a rain water collection system provides water, and grey water is used for the green space.  In addition, the building is made from recycled shipping containers, saving the need to cut down more trees.  (PDF brochure here)

Of the two designs, Mithun's vertical farm addresses more of the future problems.  While being a much larger unit, the fact that it can produce it's own energy and have enough left over to share with the neighbors is significant. Agro-housing is on the right track, but doesn't go far enough to provide sufficient commercial and housing space.

If you are interested in more designs, please visit Living Steel's winners' page or Cascadia's Living Future 07 competition.

And also many thanks to all those who helped The Blog Action Day. I know I'm not into the top tier of those who contributed with a thousand readers, but I also feel that I must thank all those who came to read.

This is proof that we can change the world if we want to. I bring you today the final wrap up, and a part of the whole story behind the Blog Action day. I want to thank Leo Babauta, since I saw the Blog Action Day in his blog, and of course Collis, Cyan and Fuad Ta'eed for organizing this huge day. I will be in touch for the 2008 Blog Action Day.

To all those who didn't join I would like to invite you to join the next year, and to those who joined this year let's see you the next one to keep going. Finally here is the wrap up.

Congratulations to all!.

Follow up on Blog Action Day post from Oct. 15. To make more sense of this post please click Blog Action Day -- Environment and Organic Foods.

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Organic meat tastes better. The verdict is in. Our family votes thumbs up for the taste of organic meat. The woman we met at the store who recommended organic meat was absolutely right. Though we vote thumbs down for the inflated price tag. Yet, I must say that just as with organic fruits and vegetables, I noticed that my family felt satisfied far quicker than with non-organic foods.

While I was concerned that we wouldn't have enough to eat with this special birthday meal, as portions were smaller than we are used to, we ended up with left overs. I have noticed this before with fruits and vegetables. While the organics taste far better and some might think we would eat more, we in fact eat less. I am guessing because the nutrition value is higher.

So this interesting finding makes me wonder if it would follow that as we eat less yet have better and more nutrition, we would also lose weight?

We have seen our country as a whole gain more and more weight since the '70s. At the same time our quality of food has degraded more and more with each passing decade.

Not only have our foods been pumped full with more and more chemicals, pesticides, antibiotics, but also many additives like artificial and engineered flavorings and corn syrup. Actually, corn syrup is known to make us gain weight, eat more and crave additional corn syrup, but I will leave the side effects and evils of corn syrup for another post (stay tuned).

In the meantime, eat healthy and be well!

Reading all the posts about Blog Action Day has reminded me of Earth Abides. We seem to be at something of a crossroads right now about the environment ourselves. 20,000 blogs were involved in Blog Action Day and people are angry, worried about what world we're leaving to our children. I'm concerned as well but I don't think we're at the final tipping point just yet; we have to accept our role in the problem, change our policies and the impact we have on the environment, but I still think if given the chance nature will reclaim what its lost. That's evolution, the way of life; earth abides.

But having said that, responsibility is key. We need to understand that we all have an impact on the world we live in and accept the responsibility to make changes in our lives. If we all put off the changes, say someone else will do it, then the effect is negated. Likewise we need governments to be responsible for making changes, for making industries to adopt more environmentally friendly policies. And the only way politicians are motivated to make changes is if they know it's a community issue, something they can't ignore. That's why Blog Action Day was a great initiative; it got us talking about the environment in ways that matter to us, and hopefully we'll keep talking about it.

Blog Action Day also got me thinking about something else: Beauty. It was MusEdition's great post which started it; she described her surroundings and it sounded so beautiful, to turn and look out the window at mountains and birds. Then I read Sulz's entry and I knew just what she meant about walking through the woods or a park as the sun rises; one of my favourite pastimes is to walk along the beach, see the tide and the sun reflecting off the ocean. It's something I take for granted sometimes and I shouldn't; I'm going to try not to from now on.

But then I looked out my window. I don't really know how to describe it; I live in one of the nicer residential parts of Sydney but I'm surrounded by cakeboxes. The street is filled with blocks of flats and the occasional house; I live near one of the largest parks in Sydney but I can't see it from here and I'm high up in the flats. In fact, I can't see trees at all; it's just a concrete and brick jungle. Well, there is this one scrawny thing opposite that looks like it should be put out of its misery, but I don't know whether that counts or not.

I live in one of the world's most beautiful cities (and I do mean that) but today it just struck me how manufactured a lot of it is. And how manufactured our society is. We seem to have this idea of beauty that nothing can really live up to; a person has to look a certain way to be beautiful, our clothes are in fashion one minute and ugly the next, our homes have to have the latest trends, our gadgets have to be new and shiny. If something doesn't match our standards, we don't just get it fixed, we remake it in our image; cosmetic surgery, makeup, renovations, there's always something which can make us or our possessions more "beautiful".

I've never been someone who buys into the whole idea of image; I'm not going to say I don't care how a person looks, but that's not everything. I care more about personality and if the person is interesting than their looks or if they've got the latest iPod. I think at heart most people would say the same thing. But we still cling to this modern ideal of beauty just the same. And I'm wondering if this is spreading to how we think about the environment as well. When was the last time you saw a natural feature that made you stop and appreciate it? Not something you planned for, but just saw by accident? I know the last time for me: it was a sunset that caught my imagination just the right way. I took a picture of it. But before that I'd gone weeks, maybe months without even thinking about it, without even noticing what was around me. I think that's true for a lot of people living in large cities.

It's so much easier to turn a blind eye to the environment when you feel like it's just your surroundings; when you're so busy with your daily routine that you barely notice anything outside of it. That's apathy and that's the biggest danger of all, that we just exist and don't care. We don't see it so we don't care that cities are taking over more and more land to cover growing populations; we don't see that animals are being displaced from their homes by bulldozers for a new shopping mall to go up.

That's why Blog Action Day was a good initiative and hopefully will continue to be; it's got people thinking about it, noticing again. And as I said, I believe that if we play our role, nature will recover, and that's why having a message of hope is a good balance. But something which concerns me is the thought that we might save the environment but replace the beauty that surrounds us in the process, and we might not even know what we've lost.

One of the biggest problems we're facing now is overpopulation and crowding. How do you deal with it? With an ageing population and a steady birthrate, how do you extend a city and manage resources without impacting the environment? You can't spread out further; you can't take over new sites. The only viable option is to build up and make better use of the space we have; for more apartment blocks to be built, taller and with more vacancies, and for more people to live together, sharing costs. I think that's the only way we can do it... but it means knocking down more houses, replacing them with flats. It means in 30 years that cities would become much more uniform, dominated by cakeboxes and dull towers, and what beauty we do have around us would be even less noticeable. I find that a very sad thought.

Perhaps it won't be like that; perhaps I've simply used my imagination too much and envisioned something more like Blade Runner than a realistic future. But with the way we value our own ideal of beauty and the trends that come with it, it seems like something that might happen; that we'd place even less value on real beauty, artistry and design. That's probably a worthy trade, but I find it sad just the same.

Still, life goes on. And earth abides; that's the whole point, isn't it? That's what Blog Action Day was all about, spreading the message and making people think. It's certainly made me think and I was proud to have played a small part in the day. Congrats to everyone. :)