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Grand River Clean Up
There's a lot of trash. It's gotta go.
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Heaven On Earth
To long for most minds and short attention spans, but if you have any interest in Permaculture concepts then watch the full 25minutes.
HEAVEN ON EARTH
a film by Bruce Weaver
SYNOPSIS
Heaven One Earth
What images do we hold in mind for the future of humankind, and the planet? At present, we are bombarded with images of global climate change, worldwide food and water shortages and catastrophic wars. Heaven On Earth is a video travelogue documenting the work of permaculturist Rico Zook. Join us as we travel with Rico to the Northern most part of India in the shade of the towering Himalayas, to glimpse the future through Rico's eyes and learn what permaculture is, and what it has to offer both humanity and the planet. Is it possible we might find heaven on earth here, and now? Watch and see.
To long for most minds and short attention spans, but if you have any interest in Permaculture concepts then watch the full 25minutes.... more -
Obsessively Weird about Dirt: Amazing Reverse Graffiti!!
"Obsessively Weird about Dirt: Reverse Graffiti." Critics of the English artist Paul Curtis and his Reverse Graffiti Project have accused him of breaking the law, but for what? Cleaning without a permit?
Remarkable photographs, as well as a cool video of the Reverse Graffiti Project and a spiffy gallery of Reverse Graffiti photographs are included.
Take a little peek and enjoy yourself!! "Obsessively Weird about Dirt: Reverse Graffiti." Critics of the English artist Paul Curtis and his Reverse Graffiti Project have acc... more -
New green technology controls fire ants without harmful chemicals or poisons.
What started out as a heat lamp, a waffle iron, a timer, and one retired Texas rancher, has evolved into a non-toxic fire ant control system with two U.S. Patents to its credit. This is a “green”, long-term solution to the fire ant nightmare and it is perfectly named, The AntAgonizer.
The guiding principles of the invention were discovered by long time Mills County Rancher Sid Brooks. Sid became fascinated by fire ants and their behavior around food and electricity. After some ideas and experimentation, Sid came up with a rudimentary contraption that was both killing and driving away fire ant colonies. Some ants would die on the spot. Others would wander around in circles a bit. According to Sid, “They were dead, they just hadn’t been notified yet.” Without these foragers, food was not getting to the queen and her eggs. Colonies were abandoned.
The AntAgonizer is now top tier technology. Development and design is by Alan Abele, a brilliant engineer with eight U.S. Patents to his credit, several of those in the aerospace industry. Two are for The Antagonizer, one for the innovative timer that controls pulses of infrared energy. The second is for the methodology of the unit, in other words how it kills and controls fire ants. Abele stated, “This product represents the fusion of the biological and engineering sciences and it works.”
The AntAgonizer uses small pulses of infrared energy to disrupt and ultimately destroy fire ant colonies. The system controls fire ants without using toxic chemicals that can poison property, contaminate water resources and endanger children, pets, livestock, fish, waterfowl, and beneficial insects.
The Antagonizer has been in development for almost seven years, says Ginger Spies, AntAgonizer principle. “During that time we have learned a lot about the behavior of fire ants and we have heard stories that are just amazing. We know of a fire ant attack that ended a funeral service and sent people running for their cars; of golfers who couldn’t putt out because of infested greens; of football players who were taken to the hospital during a game because the field had been treated with pesticides earlier that day; and numerous attacks on small children and the elderly. Fire ants are truly capable of spectacular injury and damage.
Sid Brooks, retired rancher, has started a movement and it’s one he hopes will contribute to a major paradigm shift for the way we treat the Earth and ourselves.
What started out as a heat lamp, a waffle iron, a timer, and one retired Texas rancher, has evolved into a non-toxic fire ant control ... more -
Apocalyptic London
Sink City - To mark the London Festival of Architecture, Jonathan Glancey explores whether the capital's waterlogged past holds the key to its future. Sink City - To mark the London Festival of Architecture, Jonathan Glancey explores whether the capital's waterlogged past holds the ke... more
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Urban Agriculture
In the first installment of a monthly series, seed activist Clifton Middleton reveals the significance of the Urban Agriculture Project. In the first installment of a monthly series, seed activist Clifton Middleton reveals the significance of the Urban Agriculture Projec... more
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'Green' casinos conserve energy, profits
- Step inside the newly rebuilt Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel and you'll find the typical blackjack tables, slot machines and loosen-your-belt buffet. But your eyes -- and nose -- may detect unusual features.
The Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel has skylights, a wastewater-treatment system and other green features.
During daytime, half the casino's lighting comes from skylights.
Drinks are served only in glasses: no cans or bottles.
Some gamblers are smoking, but the air isn't thick with smoke.
And, outside, the roof of Bourbons 72 restaurant sports day lilies, ferns and leafy hostas.
Turtle Creek, near Traverse City, bills itself a "green" casino, designed to make the lightest possible footprint on the landscape without sacrificing profitability.
Its owners, the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, are among a growing number of casino builders and operators interested in environmental stewardship.
Even in an industry closely identified with devil-may-care gluttony, going green makes business sense as consumers increasingly demand sustainable products and services, said Stephen Knowles, principal designer for Turtle Creek. His Minneapolis-based firm has worked with a number of tribes on casino projects with eco-friendly aspects.
The trend is reaching even casinos in Las Vegas, long criticized by environmentalists for its extravagant use of natural resources.
In April, the Palazzo Las Vegas resort became the world's largest building project to receive a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, certificate from the U.S. Green Building Council. CityCenter, a resort complex under construction in Las Vegas, is among at least 10 casino-related projects nationwide seeking certification.
The council has an extensive rating system for building design, construction and operation. No casinos have been certified thus far; the Palazzo's LEED certificate was just for its hotel.
Tax incentives and the prospect of lower electric bills were big motives, said Gordon Absher, spokesman for MGM Mirage, which is developing and co-owns CityCenter. "And from a social perspective, it's the right thing to do."
The 360,000-square-foot, $116 million Turtle Creek opened Tuesday and replaces a smaller casino that will be torn down and mostly recycled.
"As native people, we feel an obligation to protect Mother Earth in everything that we do," said Robert Kewaygoshkum, chairman of the nearly 4,000-member Grand Traverse Band.
Going green boosted the price of developing Turtle Creek about 10 percent, but tribal leaders expect to save money in the long run.
"The sustainability mind-set is affecting all kinds of choices, including what places you want to visit for entertainment," said designer Knowles.
For instance, in nearby Petoskey, when the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians opened a casino resort a year ago in previously open farmland, it planted prairie grass and native tree species and preserved wildlife habitat on the property, tribal chairman Frank Ettawageshik said. The long-range plan is to power the resort at least partly with wind or solar energy.
Casinos typically face a big obstacle to LEED certification: the need to satisfy customers who smoke. LEED requires separate smoking areas and systems to contain and remove smoke and monitor air quality, said Ashley Katz, spokeswoman for the green building council.
Absher said those requirements make the casino the only section of the 76-acre, mixed-use CityCenter project that MGM doesn't expect will qualify for LEED certification, despite the casino's other sustainable features.
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- Step inside the newly rebuilt Turtle Creek Casino & Hotel and you'll find th... more -
A World in Motion
Worlds in Motion seeks to represent the efforts of eight award winning social entrepreneurs from the UK. We examine the projects they are involved in, their inspiration &aims, hopes for the future.
A film about social entrepreneurs and the worlds they move in the work they do! This is the pilot to a bigger project go see and tell it as it is: http://www.channel4.com/fourdocs/film/film-detail.jsp?i... Worlds in Motion seeks to represent the efforts of eight award winning social entrepreneurs from the UK. We examine the projects they ... more -
Raw Milk
Then there’s New York organic dairyman Jerry Snyder, who has chosen the path of most resistance. His quest is to carve out a super-high-quality niche that few producers will be able to achieve—but that consumers will flock to support, and detractors of raw milk will have to recognize as producing a dairy product of superlative quality.
Strong, sometimes militant, consumer interest in high-quality raw milk is a beacon of hope for the future of well-run family-scale, grass-based organic farms in his region of New York.
The proposals continue the current raw-milk testing protocol, which exceed the bulk milk testing standards. The raw milk bacterial limit is less than one third of Grade A pasteurized milk while honoring the same 10 colony per ml. coliform count. Raw milk is tested for specific pathogens on a monthly basis, while Grade A milk is not, on the assumption that the pasteurization process neutralizes disease-causing microorganisms.
Snyder and other adherents believe that it is an important part of a healthy lifestyle that maximizes vitality while it minimizes antibiotics and immuno-suppressant treatments. “Pure milk” has natural components (lactoferrins, for instance, Snyder says) that serve to fight infection, and that are compromised somewhat by standard pasteurization and crippled by UHT treatment used to greatly extend shelf-life.
Then there’s New York organic dairyman Jerry Snyder, who has chosen the path of most resistance. His quest is to carve out a super-hig... more -
"Control food and you control the people."
Kissinger is on record for stating, "Control oil, you control nations; control food and you control the people."
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Tomato Outbreak
From Rodale Institute comes this very interesting article describing new methods for potential salmonella contamination in the industrial 'food' web. From Rodale Institute comes this very interesting article describing new methods for potential salmonella contamination in the industr... more
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Killing farmers with killer seed
Latin America is a prime marketing target for Big Biotech's little darlings, often tagged "semillas asasinas" or "killer seeds" for their devastating impacts on local food stocks. Now the killer GMOs are suspected of literally provoking murder most foul. Latin America is a prime marketing target for Big Biotech's little darlings, often tagged "semillas asasinas" or "killer seeds" for th... more
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Save the Planet...Save Yourself
This PSA is a reminder that the earth will survive after humans have made it unlivable. We're the ones in danger. We must save the planet to save ourselves. This PSA is a reminder that the earth will survive after humans have made it unlivable. We're the ones in danger. We must save the pla... more
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Solar Breakthrough
I believe we have no desire to change the way we as people harvest and consume energy sources. The reason we no desire to change our current energy consumption habits is because there is too much money connected to fossil fuels. The social elite detest the idea of anything free, especially a completely free source of energy like the sun. We need to research solar energy and 100% change our way of life and embrace the future which is solar energy. There is more than one video so go check the rest of them out after you listen to this one. I believe we have no desire to change the way we as people harvest and consume energy sources. The reason we no desire to change our c... more
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Future Man
Jacque Fresco is a genius, architect, engineer, designer of cities and transportation modes, inventor, economist, philosopher and futurist. Did I mention that he has comprehensive plans to redesign the world? Jacque Fresco is a genius, architect, engineer, designer of cities and transportation modes, inventor, economist, philosopher and futu... more
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A Sustainable Connection
A short documentary that explores the connections between generations while learning from one another to live more sustainably.
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Is the sun "dead"?
Dark spots, some as large as 50,000 miles in diameter, typically move across the surface of the sun, contracting and expanding as they go. These strange and powerful phenomena are known as sunspots, but now they are all gone. Not even solar physicists know why it’s happening and what this odd solar silence might be indicating for our future. Dark spots, some as large as 50,000 miles in diameter, typically move across the surface of the sun, contracting and expanding as they... more
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Carbon capture must start soon
Burying gas could achieve one-third of UK emissions targets but without it, experts say disaster is unavoidable.
Why hasn't this already happened? Burying gas could achieve one-third of UK emissions targets but without it, experts say disaster is unavoidable. ... more -
CO2 emissions may rise 130%, oil demand 70%: International Energy Agency
"A leading energy body is calling for a $45 trillion (£23 trillion) green revolution to tackle global warming.
The International Energy Agency (IEA) said nations must spend 1% of annual economic output on new technology to halve carbon dioxide emissions by 2050.
It warned that without action, CO2 emissions would rise by 130% and oil demand would jump by 70% by the middle of the century.
But the IEA added that meeting the new target would be a formidable challenge." "A leading energy body is calling for a $45 trillion (£23 trillion) green revolution to tackle global warming. ... more -
U.S. Senate block global warming bill
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Senate Republicans on Friday blocked a global warming bill that would have required major reductions in greenhouse gases, pushing debate over the world's biggest environmental concern to next year for a new Congress and president.
A bill to reduce the amount of greenhouse gases released into the atmosphere was blocked Friday.
1 of 2 Democratic leaders fell a dozen votes short of getting the 60 needed to end a Republican filibuster on the measure and bring the bill up for a vote, prompting Majority Leader Harry Reid to pull the legislation from consideration.
The Senate debate focused on bitter disagreement over the expected economic costs of putting a price on carbon dioxide, the leading greenhouse gas that comes from burning fossil fuels.
Opponents said it would lead to higher energy costs.
The 48-36 vote fell short of a majority, but Democrats produced letters from six senators -- including both presidential candidates Barack Obama and John McCain -- saying they would have voted for the measure had they been there.
"It's just the beginning for us," proclaimed Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, a chief sponsor of the bill in the Senate, noting that 54 senators had expressed support of the legislation, although that's still short of what would be needed to overcome concerted GOP opposition. Watch more on the global warming debate »
"It's clear a majority of Congress wants to act," Boxer said at a news conference.
She and other Democrats said this now lays the groundwork for action on climate change next year with a new Congress and a new president that will be more hospitable to mandatory greenhouse gas reductions.
Both Obama and McCain have called for capping carbon dioxide and other emissions linked to climate change. President Bush has opposed such measures and said he would have vetoed the Senate bill if he had received it.
The bill would have capped carbon dioxide coming from power plants, refineries and factories, with a target of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 71 percent by mid-century.
"It's a huge tax increase," argued Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, a prominent coal-producing state. He maintained that the proposed system of allowing widespread trading of carbon emissions allowances would produce "the largest restructuring of the American economy since the New Deal."
Supporters of the bill accused Republicans of muddying the water with misinformation.
"There is no tax increase," Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-California, one of the bill's chief sponsors said. She said the emissions trading system would provide tax relief to help people pay energy prices. And supporters disputed that it would substantially increase gasoline prices.
Four Democrats joined most Republicans in essentially killing the bill.
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