World’s First Green Bank – 3 Billion Sterling to Lend to Sustainable Projects

May 20, 2013 By Leave a Comment

 

green-investment-bank-logo

 

 

 

A new banking consciousness has begun!

As Britain heads towards it’s goal to drastically cut its carbon emissions by 2020, thw world’s first green bank will
use at least 80 percent of its capital to fund the Government’s Green Deal.

According to their website — and fabulously snubbing Canada:

In order to meet this green challenge there are ambitious and legally binding targets which the UK must meet.  These are set out in the Kyoto Protocol, the 2008 Climate Change Act and the Energy Bill of 2012.  Building green infrastructure and financing the projects to support this will be fundamental in meeting the targets including:

  • a reduction in green-house gas emissions of 34% by 2020 and at least 80% by 2050;
  • 15% of all energy consumed generated from green sources by 2020; and
  • ‘reduction in waste’ to landfill.

 

Visit The Banks Website!

 

 

Filed Under: Climate Change, Conscious Shopping, Energy & Transportation, Featured, Good News, Green Businesses, Organizations Doing Good, Politics & Economics, World News

Avaaz – Monsanto vs. Mother Earth

April 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment

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Monsanto vs. Mother Earth

 

To the governments of Germany, France and the Netherlands and all contracting states of the European Patent Convention:

As concerned citizens, we urge you to take the lead to fix European patent law by calling on the Administrative Council of the European Patent Organisation to close the loopholes that allow corporations to patent plant varieties and conventional breeding methods. Clear and effective safeguards and prohibitions are needed to protect consumers, farmers and breeders from the corporate takeover of our food chain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.avaaz.org/en/monsanto_vs_mother_earth_twa/?rt

Filed Under: Agriculture & Food Sources, Conscious Shopping, Featured, Organizations Doing Good, Sign A Petition, World News

Plastic-Free Doesn’t Mean BPA-Free

March 21, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Courtesy by: Care 2. Kristina Chew

Unknown-1Using a BPA-free water bottle? Going out of your way to avoid soaps, shampoos, cosmetics and other products with phthlates and to eat locally-grown, organic produce? All this may still not be enough to reduce your exposure to these endrocrine-disrupting chemicals, according to a recent study. Scientists from the University of Washington School of Public Health have found that we can still be exposed to these substances via our diet, organic or not, and even if we use non-plastic containers to store food.

BPA or bisphenol A and phthalates are synthetic chemicals that have been found to adversely affect the endocrine systems. In particular, prenatal exposure to phthalates has been linked to abnormalities in the male reproductive system. In girls, fetal exposure to BPA has been connected to hyperactivity, anxiety and depression.

Researchers under Sheela Sathyanarayana studied ten families. Five were given specific instructions on reducing phthalate and BPA exposure. The other five received a specially catered diet for five days, with all the food consisting of local, fresh, organic ingredients that was not prepared, cooked or stored in plastic containers. The researchers predicted that the latter group would, after testing, have lower urinary concentrations of phthalates and BPA.

Instead, the researchers discovered the opposite, that the five families (and the children in partucular) who’d eaten the special diet had 100-fold higher phthalate concentrations than the levels found in the general population (based on data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention).

Further testing of the locally sourced and organic ingredients used in preparing the meals for the five families revealed the possible culprits. High rates of phthalates were detected in the food and especially in butter, milk, cheese and spices such as ground cinnamon and cayenne pepper.

Based on all this, the researchers estimated that an average child of three to six years old has been exposed to 183 milligrams per kilogram of their body weight per day, far in excess of the 20 mg/kg/day limit recommended by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Clearly, as Sathyanarayana comments, the study shows how

“…very little control [we have] over what’s in our food, including contaminants. Families can focus on buying fresh fruits and vegetables, foods that are not canned and are low in fat, but it may take new federal regulations to reduce exposures to these chemicals.”

Even when (as many of us do) we seek to control our exposure to chemicals, we’re far less in control than we’d like — meaning that, it’s even more necessary to push for policies to protect our food supply. As the researchers make very clear, “food contamination can be a major source of DEHP [phthalate] exposure.”

Sathyanarayana’s and her colleagues’s study is another reminder to keep food safety at the top of the agenda, and be wary of salads that could be killing you, genetically engineered foods and foods imported from other countries where regulations are even more lacking.

Filed Under: BUSINESS & ORGANIZATIONS, Conscious Shopping, Eco-Friendly Products, HEALTH & LIFESTYLE, WHAT'S NEW IN THE NEWS, World News Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Ending Animal Testing for Cosmetics: Will India Be Next?

March 16, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Courtesy by: Alicia Graef. Care 2.

UnknownAnimal advocates are celebrating a landmark decision handed down from the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI) to fast-track the removal of two final tests of cosmetic products on animals from India’s safety standard.

“The directive was issued during an emergency meeting of the Bureau of Indian Standards PCD19 Cosmetic Sectional Committee, to which HSI/India was a special invitee, and marks the beginning of the end of acute oral toxicity (lethal poisoning) and oral mucosal irritation animal testing for cosmetic purposes in India,”according to the Humane Society International.

From now on, companies who want to test their products or ingredients will have to submit a non-animal testing proposal to the DCGI for approval.

“It’s unthinkable that in this day and age, animals are still choking on cosmetic chemicals in decades-old poisoning tests while companies choke on their own inertia in switching to a cruelty-free business model,” said HSI India Be Cruelty-Free Campaign Manager Alokparna Sengupta.

In the absence of non-animal alternatives, validation by the regulator will be done on an individual basis. The regulator is currently examining the European Union’s ban, according to the Hindu Business Line.

After decades of campaigning, the EU is set to finalize its ban this month, and animal advocates are counting down the days. This historic victory for animals means that from March 11 onwards, anyone who wants to sell new cosmetics products and their raw ingredients in the EU may not test either on animals anywhere the world.

Israel also recently enacted a law banning animal testing for cosmetics, personal care and household products that went into effect on December 31.

Both of these moves send a strong message in support of cruelty-free products to the rest of the world and have peaked curiosity and support from a number of countries, including Korea, who will hopefully follow suit.

“Following the European marketing ban we are seeing doors open in all the major exporting countries as industry tackles the job of converting all their safety testing to modern non-animal methods. We are particularly pleased to see the active interest of Korean industry and we will do all we can to encourage progress,” said Cruelty Free International Director of Policy, Dr Nick Palmer.

To find cruelty-free products already available on the international market, visit gocrueltyfree.org.

via Ending Animal Testing for Cosmetics: Will India Be Next? | Care2 Causes.

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Israel Bans Animal-Tested Cosmetics. Why Can’t We Do the Same? | Care2 Causes

March 12, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Courtesy by: Alicia Graef.Care 2

UnknownAnimal advocates, and animals in labs, were given yet another reason to celebrate the new year with the enactment of a law in Israel banning animal testing for cosmetics, personal care and household products that went into effect at midnight on December 31.

“Animal testing in the Cosmetics Industry inflicts horrific suffering on these animals. Each product requires between 2,000-3,000 tests, and animals die in agony,” said MK Eitan Cabel, who called the move a “true revolution in animal welfare.”

Animal testing for cosmetics and other products was banned in Israel in 2007, but this new ban is focused on products that are imported from other countries and will also mean an end to marketing products that have been tested on animals, even if the testing was done elsewhere in the world.

“The end of animal testing for cosmetics has come a step closer today,” said Troy Seidle, director of research & toxicology for Humane Society International (HSI). “Whilst we commend Israel for taking this truly historic action, strict enforcement of the law alongside active assistance from cosmetic companies, will now be vital. HSI’s Be Cruelty-Free campaign is working in India, Brazil, South Korea, the United States and beyond to achieve a world where no animal has to suffer and die for the sake of cosmetics. Once the EU enforces its own sales ban in March, the creation of these two cruelty-free markets will be a significant milestone towards achieving our goal.”

The EU adopted legislation to ban animal testing for cosmetics in 1993, which was supposed to go into effect in 1998, but was repeatedly delayed. In 2009, all animal testing for cosmetics was banned in the EU and supported by campaigns from organizations including HSI, the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection and the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments.

The 2009 ban was also accompanied by a marketing ban for products that were tested outside of the EU. However, the deadline was delayed for three types of tests in an effort to buy time to develop alternatives. As of the March deadline, if it’s not delayed again, no cosmetic products with ingredients that have been tested on animals will be sold in the EU, whether or not there is an alternative test available.

For more information on the EU ban, visit No Cruel Cosmetics. To find truly cruelty-free products, visit gocrueltyfree.org.

 

Filed Under: BUSINESS & ORGANIZATIONS, Conscious Shopping, Eco-Friendly Products, Good News, HEALTH & LIFESTYLE, Natural World, Politics & Economics, WHAT'S NEW IN THE NEWS, World News Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Wildlife Trade Infographic : From Humane Society International

March 9, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Get the Facts

Every year billions of animals are inhumanely captured and killed to provide for your entertainment, and to make products for you to buy here and around the world. It’s called the international wildlife trade, and you can help stop it by avoiding products and experiences that come from these abused animals. Use the map to learn more and sign the pledge below!

Sign the Don’t Buy Wild Pledge

Countless numbers of animals suffer every year as victims of the international wildlife trade. I pledge to avoid contributing to the illegal wildlife trade and animal suffering by not purchasing items made with or from wild animal parts, not purchasing live wild animals, and not patronizing facilities that keep wildlife captive under inhumane conditions.

After you take action, you’ll receive updates by email on how you can help animals. You can easily opt out at any time.

HSI works year-round to encourage policy-makers to improve and enforce laws and regulations in order to reduce the trade in wildlife.We send our team of experts to the triennial CITES meeting to fight for greater protection for wildlife around the world. And we conduct regular outreach to the public about how their consumption and travel choices impact wildlife. Learn more, and join us, athumanesocietyinternational.org.

Filed Under: Agriculture & Food Sources, Conscious Shopping, Eco-Friendly Products, Featured, Natural World, Sign A Petition, World News

Finally! EU Set to Ban Cosmetics Testing on Animals This Spring

March 8, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Courtesy by: Alicia Graef. Care 2

UnknownAfter decades of delays, disappointment and campaigning by animal advocacy groups, the European Union is finally set to enact its ban on animal testing for cosmetics this spring.

Beginning on March 11, anyone selling cosmetic products in the EU will not be allowed to test finished products or their ingredients on animals anywhere in the world, whether or not an alternative to animal testing is available.

The EU adopted legislation to ban animal testing for cosmetics in 1993, which was supposed to go into effect in 1998, but was repeatedly delayed. In 2009, all animal testing for cosmetics was banned in the EU and supported by campaigns from organizations including HSI, the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection and the European Coalition to End Animal Experiments (ECEAE).

However, thanks to industry lobbying, the deadline was delayed for a few types of tests in an effort to buy time to develop alternatives and the former European Commissioner in charge of the EU’s cosmetics regulations was considering recommendations to delay or weaken the ban yet again, while animal advocates continued to work to ensure the 2013 deadline would be met.

“I believe that the ban should enter into force in March 2013 as Parliament and Council have already decided. I am therefore not planning to propose a postponement or derogation to the ban. This decision also means that we need to step up our efforts in the development, validation and acceptance of alternative methods as well as in the international recognition of these methods,” wrote Tonio Borg, Commissioner for Health and Consumer Policy, in a letter to the ECEAE.

Despite the fact that reliable alternatives to animal testing are available, and the fact that hundreds of companies are successfully developing and selling vegan and truly cruelty-free products, millions of animals continue to to suffer and die an agonizing death behind closed doors at the hands of companies who refuse to give up the practice for nothing more than human vanity.

“This is truly an historic event and the culmination of over 20 years of campaigning. Now we will apply our determination and vision on a global stage to ensure that the rest of the world follows this lead,” said Michelle Thew, Chief Executive of Cruelty Free International.

Hopefully, the rest of the world will follow suit. Israel recently announced a ban on animal testing for cosmetics and household products and India announced that is considering a similar move.

To find animal-friendly products already on the market, visit gocrueltyfree.org.

via Finally! EU Set to Ban Cosmetics Testing on Animals This Spring | Care2 Causes.

Filed Under: Conscious Shopping, Eco-Friendly Products, Good News, HEALTH & LIFESTYLE, Natural World, Politics & Economics, WHAT'S NEW IN THE NEWS, World News Tagged With: , , , , , ,

HSI Commends Taiwan for Historic Ban on Trade in Marine Mammal Products

February 15, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Courtes: Humane Society International/Canada

Canadian seal products are among those prohibited

  • It is time for the Canadian government to face facts and end its support of the fading sealing industry. Katie Carrus/The HSUS

MONTREAL—Humane Society International/Canada commends Taiwan for passing a landmark ban on trade in marine mammal products, including seal skins, but exempting products of traditional indigenous hunts. The Taiwanese Legislative Yuan passed the legislation with unanimous support following a multi-year campaign by Taiwanese animal protection group EAST in collaboration with HSI.

“The compassionate actions of the Taiwanese Legislative Yuan will save countless seals and other marine mammals from a horrible fate,” said Rebecca Aldworth, executive director of HSI Canada. “The momentum to end trade in marine mammal products is growing and the sealing industry’s days are numbered. Instead of providing more pointless subsidies to artificially prop up this shameful practice, Canada should prohibit the slaughter and invest in a transition program for sealers.”

“Citizens of Taiwan care deeply about animal welfare, and we do not want to trade in products of cruelty that the rest of the world has rejected,” said Wu Hung, executive director of EAST. “I am very proud of the leadership Taiwan has shown in banning trade in marine mammal products. I hope that many other nations will follow suit, and that the Canadian government will finally do as the majority of Canadians and people around the world want and end the seal hunt for good.”

“Between 2003 and 2009, Taiwan imported 430,000 kilograms of seal oil, which made us the 4th largest importer of seal oil in the world. Through our trade in seal products, consumers in Taiwan were unintentionally involved in the killing of thousands of innocent seals in Canada,” said Legislator Lin of the Legislative Yuan in Taiwan. “Taiwan’s decision is an important step forward for animal protection and conservation in Asia.” Canada’s commercial seal hunt is the largest slaughter of marine mammals on Earth. Because most Canadians oppose commercial sealing, the products of the seal slaughter are almost entirely exported. With the United States, European Union and Russia prohibiting trade in seal products, the Canadian sealing industry has sought to develop alternate markets in Asia, sparking protests in mainland China, Hong Kong, South Korea and Taiwan.

EAST launched their campaign to secure a Taiwanese ban on seal product trade in 2010, achieving massive public support for the move and convincing many retailers in Taiwan to voluntarily discontinue sales of seal products. The prohibition on trade in marine mammal products cements Taiwan’s position and ensures that its trade in marine mammal products will never resume.

Facts:

  • The United States, European Union, Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Mexico—and now Taiwan–have prohibited trade in some or all seal products.
  • In January 2012, sealing industry representatives admitted that there are 400,000 seal skins in inventory on the global market.
  • In April 2012, when it appeared the annual seal slaughter would not go ahead due to lack of markets, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador announced that it would provide $3.6 million in loans to Carino Processing Limited to stockpile skins to meet “future demand.”
  • At the industry’s height, sealing revenues amounted to about 3 percent of the landed value of Newfoundland’s fishing industry. In recent years, the landed value of the seal hunt has been in the region of $1 million annually, with only a few hundred fishermen participating in the slaughter.
  • 2010 polling revealed half of Newfoundland sealers with an opinion support a sealing industry buyout—a plan in which sealers would receive immediate compensation as the hunt is ended and funds would be invested in economic alternatives in the communities involved.

Media Contact: Dean Pogas, 514.395.2914, dpogas@humanesociety.org

Humane Society International/Canada is a leading force for animal protection, representing tens of thousands of members and constituents across the country. HSI/Canada has active programs in companion animals, wildlife and habitat protection, marine mammal preservation and farm animal welfare. HSI/Canada is proud to be a part of Humane Society International—one of the largest animal protection organizations in the world, with more than eleven million members and constituents globally—on the Web at hsicanada.ca.

EAST works to create a better quality of life by improving animal welfare and environmental protection through research, legislation and education campaigns along with social justice – on the Web at www.east.org.tw

Filed Under: Conscious Shopping, Eco-Friendly Products, Good News, Natural World, Organizations Doing Good, Politics & Economics, World News

Wind Beats Out Natural Gas To Become Top Source Of New Electricity Capacity For 2012 | ThinkProgress

February 1, 2013 By Leave a Comment

By Jeff Spross on Jan 22, 2013 at 4:30 pm Thinkprogress.org

Through June of 2012, renewable energywas right behind natural gas in terms of the most new energy generating capacity being installed in the United States, with wind making up most of the renewables push. And now Business Insider has flagged the numbers for the remainder of the year.

Last week, they reported that wind ultimately pulled ahead of natural gas to become the leading installer of new capacity in 2012, at 10,689 total megawatts.

Those numbers came from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s report on the trends and highlights in U.S. energy for the past year. According to FERC’s update, natural gas installed 8,746 megawatts of new capacity, coal installed 4,510 new megawatts, and solar came in fourth with 1,476 new megawatts. Here’s the relevant table from the report, conveniently highlighted by Business Insider:

One thing to note here is the issue of capacity factor: That’s how much power an installation actually produces as a percentage of its theoretical capacity. (Which is what’s listed in the table.) Natural gas plants do quite well in this regard: Their median performance tends to come out to at least 80 percent, and they max out at 93 percent, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory’s cost database.

Unfortunately, wind power doesn’t perform as well, due to the intermittency of, well, wind. Its median tends to be around 40 percent offshore. Onshore it’s been at 30 percent, though arguably onshore performance is pulling alongside offshore. And both max out at 50 to 54 percent. So even though wind beat out natural gas for new capacity in 2012, the new natural gas installation will almost certainly wind up generating more total electricity.

The good news for wind is that it’s still a relatively young technology, with lots of room to improve. The energy it does deliver is produced much more efficiently in comparison to natural gas — the former loses less than one percent of its energy as waste heat, while the latter can lose as much as 54 percent. Natural gas production in the U.S. may be on track to plateau, leading to predictions of rising prices, which will give wind power a further economic opening.

And, of course, there’s the fact that, while cleaner than coal, natural gas remains a contributor to greenhouse gas emissions both through leaks and combustion.

UPDATE

As it turns out, this post’s math was unjustly critical of wind energy. The numbers for capacity are theoretical, but as as an email commenter pointed out, the numbers for capacity utilization are theoretical as well.

So how have wind and natural gas actually performed? Well, in 2010, nameplate capacity for natural gas was 467.2 gigawatts, and 39.5 gigawatts for wind. That same year, natural gas generated 987,700 gigawatthours and wind generated 94,700 gigawatthours. Multiply the capacities by the 8760 hours in a year, and what you get is natural gas produced 24.1 percent of its nameplate capacity in 2010, and wind produced 27.4 percent.

Now, a lot of “peaker” power plants — ones intended to only operate during hours of peak electricity demand — are gas-fired. Around half the natural gas plants in the country probably fall into this camp, which will dramatically skew natural gas’ capacity utilization to the low end. So factor in peakers and natural gas still probably beats out wind, but by less than our piece implied.

Filed Under: Climate Change, Conscious Shopping, Eco-Friendly Products, Energy & Transportation, Featured, Good News, Green Businesses

What is the lifespan of a laptop?

January 21, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Courtesy by: Lucy Siegle The Guardian

Commiserations on your laptop, although I’m afraid to say five years could be considered a good innings. It’s at the outer edge of what is considered the lifespan of a desktop computer (three to five years). Meanwhile it’s difficult to specify the lifespan of laptops, as they are so often junked before they are broken. This is in part due to planned obsolescence – a devious ploy by manufacturers bolstered by marketing strategies to make us fall out of love with a product hastily. In IT planned obsolescence has been turbocharged by must-have software which is only upwardly compatible. Want better software? You’ll need a better machine.

Planned obsolescence’s running mate is Moore’s law, which decrees that every two years the computing world doubles the amount of transistors on a computer chip and therefore the power of the computer. So you might say the average lifespan of a laptop is two years. Gulp. I have previously described the resources needed to make a computer,but here’s a recap: one metric tonne of electronic scrap from personal computers contains more gold than that recovered from 17 tonnes of gold ore.

Where will it all end? Moore’s law should see transistors miniaturising every two years until we reach technological singularity – the point at which computers gain human-level intelligence and can build better versions of themselves. Others think time will soon be up on Moore’s law, as computers will run out of matter and energy – by 2007 computers were reckoned to be drawing 4-5% of the world’s power. Heat is the enemy of Moore’s law. Those transistors packed on chips must be kept cool, so must the vast data storage centres, whose energy consumption, in 2010, was growing by 12% a year.

We need to keep our cool, too. There’s a huge amount of skill and knowledge online about how to make old computers worth their weight in gold. People who have dealt with IT for not-for-profits where there has never been much money for shiny new IT are particularly expert. TryItforcharities.co.uk for a list of organisations waiting to take on your “obsolete” model and Jayne Cravens’ postings on “old tech” atcoyotecommunications.com.

An untold truth is that we use a tiny fraction of each computer’s capacity: you could say we’re already outwitted by them. Unless we wise up we’ll soon be overtaken by the machines.

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