Countdown to Copenhagen

The Copenhagen Climate Change Conference is quickly approaching in December. Here is a beginner's guide to COP15, what is happening and what it all really means.

We all need a little inspiration every now and then, check out this amazing video.

Doing Well by Doing Good

Chris Laszlo was the keynote speaker at a Green Economy Conference in Madison that I recently volunteered for. He is a partner and co-founder of Sustainable Value Partners, a firm helping companies create value for shareholders and stakeholders.

His presentation was very engaging, and his book even more so. The business world is changing and now more than ever before organizations are learning that stakeholders are driving the marketplace. It is no longer just about making money for the shareholders, Laszlo explains that organizations that have integrated sustainable strategies into their core business objectives have a competitive advantage.

It is quite simple....

Sustainable Value = Stakeholder Value + Shareholder Value

I highly recommend this book. It not only provides a toolkit for helping organizations move toward a sustainable future but it also offers in depth case studies of organziations that have successfully gone through this journey. There are many valuable lessons to be learned from this text.

Presentation Graphics

Are you putting together a presentation on sustainability and looking for visual cues to help illustrate your points? There are literally thousands of graphics on the web to chose from but this site displays some of the best.

Take your pic!

http://computingforsustainability.wordpress.com/2009/03/15/visualising-sustainability/

The Age of Stupid

The generations that came before us could not predict the climate change crisis we are currently facing and for all future generations it will be too late to do anything.....it comes down to our generation to make this shift in society toward a more sustainable future. This is the most tremendous opportunity of our time, the question is, are we up for the challenge?


Franny Armstrong discusses this concept along with others in her interview with Grist as her independant documentary The Age of Stupid is sweeping the globe. The film takes the persepctive of what the world would be like if we do not act fast enough, if we cross the tipping point and civilization finds itself in a downward spiral.


Go see this film, the global premiere is 21 September.

Keep it Parked...

...for World Car Free Day on 22 September.

We live in a car-dominated society, that is the current reality but not the perfect reality. Imagine, just for one day, your city without cars....and participate in this event.

Cycle, walk, bus or carpool - every car off the road counts!

POLLANating Madison, WI

Michael Pollan

Thursday, 24 September, 7:00 pm, UW-Madison Kohl Center.


Sponsored by the UW Center for the Humanities. Free and Open to the Public!


Michael Pollan is the author, most recently, of In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto. His previous book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, had a huge impact on the way I thought about food - what I was eating, where it came from and how it was affecting my health. Needless to say, I have become a much more concientious consumer.


"Real food--the kind of food your great-grandmother would recognize as food—is being undermined by science on one side and the food industry on the other, both of whom want us focus on nutrients, good and bad, rather than actual plants, animals and fungi. The rise of “nutritionism” has vastly complicated the lives of American eaters without doing anything for our health, except possibly to make it worse. Nutritionism arose to deal with a genuine problem--the fact that the modern American diet is responsible for an epidemic of chronic diseases, from obesity and type II diabetes to heart disease and many cancers--but it has obscured the real roots of that problem and stood in the way of a solution. That solution involves putting the focus back on foods and food chains, for it turns out our personal health cannot be divorced from the health of the soil, plants, and animals that make up the food chains in which we take part. In this talk, Pollan explores what the industrialization of food and agriculture has meant for our health and happiness as eaters, and looks at the growing national movement to renovate the food system."

"It's All About the Soil..."

...as agriculturalist Will Allen continually repeated throughout his urban agriculture lecture in Madison on 17 September. He convinced the overcrowded room of people that you simply do not need a green thumb, or a rural farm for that matter, to grow local, fresh, organic, delicious food. Rather, all you need is good soil, community engagement and a little direction.

He has been building sustainable food systems in urban environments for over 20 years and has initiated projects all over the world through his non-profit Growing Power Inc based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

For the first time in history, more than half of the world's population resides in cities, yet very little food is actually produced in cities to support this population. Will Allen educates people on the importance of urban agriculture and local food supplies.

The Story of Stuff

One of my all time favorite videos...EVERYONE should watch The Story of Stuff...share this...teach this!

"From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever."

Innovative Architecture

This is the most innovative architecture I have seen in some time...leave it to the Danish! Architects Bjarke Ingels have designed the masterplan for a carbon-neutral resort and residential development on Zira Island in the Caspian Sea. The island, the first of its kind, is designed to be completely self-sufficient, relying entirely on renewable sources for energy. This is truly cutting edge design, innovation at its best!

More on Ted: Ideas Worth Spreading , do NOT skip the last few minutes of this video!

Ever wonder what to do with used light bulbs?

Just a friendly reminder...

Do not throw away used CFL's (compact flourescent lamps) in the trash because they contain trace amounts of mercury which is harmful to the environment. Bring your CFL's to Whole Foods, Ikea or Home Depot for proper recycling.

Flow

Stop drinking bottled water!

Why do we assume that bottled water is healthier, cleaner and better than tap water? Do you have any idea where bottled water actually comes from?

We are in the midst of a huge water crisis - whether you are actually feeling the affects yet or not - the problem exists. The City of Dublin will run out of its fresh water supply in 2016, the state of California faces the same fate in 2020. It IS happening, and it will continue to happen - our fresh water supply is dwindling and we all know that humans cannot survive without this.

In America, we are so fortunate to have fresh water that we often take it for granted. While we are carelessly consuming this natural resource there are millions of people that do not have access to clean water - people that struggle everday to find fresh water for drinking, cooking, washing - people who have no choice but to drink from a dirty stream. Though we will never truly understand the difficulties these people face, we can and should be aware of how our actions affect people globally.

Please watch the movie FLOW, it will open your eyes as it opened mine!