Be Wise! Be Healthy!
Be in the know about Sustainable Living and Green Building, Products & Experts
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January 2008 Issue
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by Gary Link, Jon Dougal and the GreenSage e-News Editors
We assume there were a whole lot of New Years' Resolutions made this past season, but perhaps you may have left out a couple. Here are some inspiring additions for daily living - and ways of thinking - to help reach your goals for a happier, healthier and greener 2008. (read on) |
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You say you want a resolution,
well you know. . .
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| If you're wondering about what components make up a carbon footprint, here are some graphic examples of the impact of simply single families around the globe. Notice what they eat and how much of it. The closer to the earths agriculture production the less the impact. (read on) |
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General Features |
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by Alan S. Glassman
Fourth part in this popular series continues to demystify this fascinating topic of Sacred Geometry. Here the author discusses meaning in shapes and forms, Numbers and the Pythagoreans. Here, what is significant for the purpose of dealing with the subject of Sacred Geometry, is that we think of the Pythagorean Theorem in terms of 2-dimensional square surfaces. (read on) |
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| After this just past season of "giving," take a look back at how much you contributed to the waste heap — just in the form of packaging. The definition below is a possible insight into how you can change the way you enable packaging. We include some helpful definitions of Sustainable Packaging. (read on) |
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| Chinese citizens use as many as 3 billion plastic bags a day. The Chinese government has banned the production of thin plastic bags, outlawing their use in supermarkets and shops beginning June 1st. The surprise move from China's cabinet is based on the belief that the country uses too many plastic bags without adequate recycling, causing serious pollution and wasting energy and resources. (read on) |
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"Sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul."
(Edward Abbey)
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Courtesy, The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
As representatives from over 180 countries gathered in Bali to map a post 2012 agreement, new research is showing the challenge of climate change also presents opportunities for new industries and employment. "New research reveals that these jobs are not for just the middle classes, but also for workers in construction, sustainable forestry and agriculture to engineering and transportation," said Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and Executive Director of UNEP. (read on) |
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| Just as the nature and participants of philanthropy are changing, so is the war on Climate Change. Not only are mega corporations joining in the effort, but they are joining with the likes of Dow Chemical, Yale, and the Universities of Arizona, California, North Carolina, Pittsburgh and the Rochester Institute of Technology to address the issues which cross many disciplines and areas of jurisdictions. (read on) |
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Global Warming |
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| Enter Your Pledge! The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) has launched a major worldwide tree planting campaign. Under the Plant for the Planet: Billion Tree Campaign, people, communities, business and industry, civil society organizations and governments are encouraged to enter tree planting pledges online with the objective of planting at least one billion trees worldwide each year. (read on) |
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| Clearing, draining and setting fire to peatlands emits the equivalent of 10% of global emissions from fossil fuels. Peatlands are wetland ecosystems that accumulate plant material under saturated conditions to form thick layers of peat soil - storing on average 10 times more carbon per hectare than other ecosystems. Peatlands occur in 180 countries and cover 400 million hectares or 3% of the world's surface. (read on) |
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Building & Construction |
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| Since 2003 the number of cities with green building programs has risen from 22 to 92 for an increase of 418%. Here are the key findings of the American Institute of Architects' (AIA) commissioned study of communities with populations of greater than 50,000 spotlighting the growth and effectiveness of green building policies. (read on) |
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by Jeff Cole
Read this commentary where Jeff reveals that although he has not been involved in more than a few sub-prime loans, he knows a lot of unscrupulous mortgage lenders who got rich off of them. The mortgage market meltdown, which is popularly considered to be, and described as a strictly sub-prime mortgage debacle, actually, he says, goes much deeper than that. He goes on to explain Green Real Estate Loans. (read on) |
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| Architects and other construction professionals recently welcomed an exciting new tool to support their ambitious efforts to fight climate change through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. At last month's Ecobuild Fall conference, the ATHENA Institute showcased its new Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) tool to help designers make environmentally-informed decisions about the materials they specify for buildings. (read on) |
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| Changi Airport's terminal 3 is designed to run on lower energy costs than the older terminals, mainly via natural lighting from the 919 skylights and positioning air-conditioners nearer to floor-level. It has energy-saving skylights, a butterfly garden, over 200 species of foliage, and a five-storey high Green Wall of plants which helps regulate the internal temperature of the terminal with the occasional misting. (read on) |
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GreenSage Guide to Living Green |
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By Elaine Ireland
This new year started out with a severe Northern California storm, knocking out power for over half a million people — and leaving us at home and at work without. Whenever we dared open the door to our home, allowing the 40 degree weather into the unheated house, we could smell the burning wood wafting in from many of our neighors' stoves and fireplaces. Though I like the smell of a fireplace, I know too much to think its good for me. This unsettling situation and the incentive for this issue's Guide. If you have a wood burning unit, or live near someone who does, here's some important information and tips to spare the air that you breathe. (read on) |
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Lifestyle - What You Can Do |
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By Jon Dougal and Elaine Ireland
Chemicals from some household cleaners can evaporate harmful vapors that can be the root cause of allergies or chemical sensitivities. It is estimated that 33% of cleaning products used by commercial cleaning companies contain chemicals that aren't good for us — and anywhere from 9% to as many as 20% of Americans suffer from some level of chemical sensitivities. We connect some dots for you and review Green Clean, The Environmentally Sound Guide to Cleaning Your Home. (read on) |
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Free Online Service Lets You Just Say No to Unwanted Mail
Courtesy, April Smith and Kirk Lumpkin
If this holiday season didn't do it to you, then there's no hope. Ever more desperate to gain market share, retailers are increasing their number of impressions on the consumer in every way possible. The most visible is the amount of print copy imbedded in your newspaper, your street mail box, in every available insertable medium available. You can take heart: a new free online service gives you the power to choose the catalogs they no longer want to receive in the mail. (read on) |
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| Now that your family has opened the new computers, iphones, DVD players and televisions, what are you going to do with the old stuff? Donating used (but still operating) electronics for reuse extends the lives of valuable products and keeps them out of the waste stream for a longer period of time. Reuse, in addition to being an environmentally preferable alternative, also benefits society. Here's some tips.(read on) |
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Green Products |
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| Alternative Construction Technologies manufactures a patented Structural Insulated Panel system (SIPs) with a conscience. Socially responsible, sustainable, environmentally friendly, "green" and completely recyclable with no off-gassing of harmful CFC's. Energy consumption from heating and cooling devices is reduced by 30% to 50% and often more. The SIPs produced by ACT's plant are a little different — they're made of galvanized steel and polyurethane. (read on) |
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| The first textile finish in the world to receive the pioneering certification by SCS as a Low Fluorocarbon treatment, G3i's GreenShield uses on average 8 times less fluorocarbon to deliver similar or better water and oil repellency performance. GreenShield's proprietary processes leverages the principles of green nanotechnology to eliminate waste, reduce energy use, and use only water-based solvents. The result is a product with significant reductions in the use of harmful chemical compounds while improving their economy of use by "making every atom count." (read on) |
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| Bridges built from bamboo instead of steel could provide a cheaper, more environmentally sustainable engineering solution in China, a recent experiment suggests. A novel type of bridge with horizontal beams made from a bamboo composite proved strong enough to support even heavy trucks in tests. The bamboo beams are cheaper and more environmentally friendly to make than steel or concrete, yet offer comparable structural strength. (read on) |
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| New Leaf Primavera gloss paper, a glassy, double-coated sheet known for high brightness (91), high print fidelity and competitive pricing is a new, environmentally friendly stock suitable for annual reports, book jackets, marketing materials and other projects requiring high-resolution imagery. It has earned FSC certification, has 80% recycled content, is manufactured with Green-e® offset electricity — which helps reduce the nation's output of the greenhouse gases, and is 80% processed chlorine free. (read on) |
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Green Finance |
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By Jon Dougal
When John Elfington (founder of SustainAbility.com) first postulated the triple bottom line corporation, he probably had no idea how popular it might become and how right timing the idea was. Nearly a decade later the concept of a socially, environmentally, economically responsible corporation has become mainstream accepted, and we are beginning to see evidence worldwide. (read on) |
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Pioneering entrepreneurs, nongovernmental organizations, and governments around the globe are inventing the Earth's first sustainable global economy, according to State of the World 2008: Ideas and Opportunities for Sustainable Economies. In response to climate change and other environmental problems, these leaders are field-testing a remarkable array of economic innovations that offer surprising and hopeful new opportunities for long-term prosperity, finds the new report from the Worldwatch Institute. (read on) |
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Eyes on the Lawmakers |
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By Arthur Young
Of the 150,000 US farms, 75% of them are in California, which makes the Senatorial maneuverings of "the farm bill" of tremendous interest and an Australian produce processing company's search for funds to launch its American market entry also of great interest. The giant $288 billion farm bill will help shape the American diet and will affect environmental stewardship of millions of acres across the country for the next five years. (read on) |
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Green Experts Profile |
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Calendar of Events |
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Dozens of Green Events Around the World to Participate in |
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Where Every Issue is a Green Issue
