Ecoscraps

Want to argue about the causes of global warming? OK… but as you do so, keep in mind this slideshow by a group of high school students in Kwigillingok, Alaska. The effects of climate change aren’t matters of theory for these kids and their families: they’re seeing them first-hand.

via Twilight Earth

I meant that the added emissions of this notorious gas guzzler may have a negative effect on the health of their citizens. Geez! Get your mind out of the gutter!

Starting this weekend, a five-block stretch along Broadway in NYC will be a pedestrian-only zone. From Newsday:

One of two new no-car zones created along Broadway by Mayor Michael Bloomberg (the other promenade will stretch from 33rd to 35th streets on Broadway at Herald Square, near Macy’s), the usually clogged stretch from 42nd Street north to 47th became a place for tourists and locals alike to meander along the sun-drenched avenue without having to worry about racing cabs and irate drivers trying to navigate congestion.

Making these tourist-heavey areas car-fee will not just make the area safer and friendlier, but it will also hopefully entice some people to walk when they would have normally called a cab or driven themselves.

Image by J Gutierrez.

The LivinginPeace Project combines travel, art and education into a sustainable business model that is self-sufficient, energy efficient, environmentally responsible and socially empowering.

The project includes a backpackers’ hostel (www.rongobackpackers.com), a motel complex (www.karameamotels.com), a gallery (www.globalgypsy.com), a community radio station, permaculture farm and eco-tourism adventures. It is run by a group of dedicated, enthusiastic, positive volunteers from all over the world. Read the rest of this entry »

Architect Howard Liddell has come up with a word to describe misfired green efforts that’s so brilliant I wanted to smack my forehead and say, “Why didn’t I this of that?” The word: “eco-bling.”

As an article in The Irish Times describes it, eco-bling is well-intended and expensive green technology that, once you crunch the numbers, doesn’t stand up to scrutiny. You know, like a costly solar-panel system that will pay for itself in 50 years but is likely to last only 20.

Liddell’s proposed antidote to eco-bling is a simple one: focus on efficiency rather than on bling. Insulate homes better. Seal leaky doors and windows. You know, plain and un-sexy conservation.

He’s got a good word for that, too: he calls it “Nega Watts.”

These earrings, made from recycled bottle caps, are cute and give you a chance to tell others about the cause. Says the artist:

My designs hope to spread positive messages not only in the image design, but with the interaction you will have with others when you wear them. More importantly, they are a small donation to Mother Earth by helping conserve her resources.

You can find tons of designs on her website, and the prices are extremely affordable. On top of being recycled, she donates part of her profits to The Adelante Foundation, which helps women living in poverty.

German designer Lars Behrendt’s treeless “tree house” tower known as the Lotto Turm is a trip down a memory lane of sorts. The tower employs 55 shipping containers stacked in a seemingly whimsical, childhood block-buidling style that creates the fun, treehouse feeling for residential and office spaces. There is a courtyard and a shipping-container swimming pool, too. The work is proposed for construction in the center of Stuttgart, Germany.

Source: Treehouse by Design

The SolarBee Long-Distance Circulator (LDC) is a solar-powered water mixer. One unit is reported to be able to stir 35 acres of fresh water, improving its quality by creating flow. It also can be used in waste water lagoons.

SolarBee’s LDC also is intended for use in storm water ponds for the primary purpose of blue-green algae bloom control, and claims a number of industrial uses for reservoirs and tanks.

Sources: ecofriend & SolarBee

I came across The Weld House today, and love the concept - new furniture made from reclaimed sheet metal. Joel Hester’s studio makes furniture from 20+ year-old cars, and the products are beautiful.

Before:

After:

Cool. He’s located in Texas, and for handmade piece of art, the prices are actually quite resonable. Check out the website for more information.

Stuck in traffic the other day and surrounded by an army of traffic cameras, I was forced to pay closer attention to the street signs at a busy intersection. It was at this intersection where I saw this sign and thought that it really defines our present situation. “Left Turn” referring to the political/social change in direction that our country has taken. And, “Yield on Green” referring to the fact that we are now stopping (or atleast slowing down) to consider the impact our actions have on our planet.

Just thought I’d share my thoughts…

…oh and, if there were a street sign for the last 8 years it might’ve been:

or…