Seen here is the Dalian harbour, an important international shipping centre and logistics hub in Northeast Asia. Photo by Graeme Nicol
Seen here is the Dalian harbour, an important international shipping centre and logistics hub in Northeast Asia. Photo by Graeme Nicol

China’s green growth could create millions of businesses and jobs

December 5, 2011

China is a controversial country. They have long been criticized for their dangerous levels of pollution, but they have also recently received praise for investing a great deal in renewable energy. However, the negative tides that blacken China’s reputation may yet lighten in color this week.

A report released by the China Council of International Cooperation on Environment and Development included the influential opinions of over 200 experts (both international and domestic), and it ultimately concluded that China has the potential to create more than 9.5 million jobs over the next five years. The catch is that this would be contingent upon China replacing the current industry jobs that are less eco-friendly with jobs that focus on renewable technologies and green energy.

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2012-olympics

Will the 2012 Olympics Be Green, as Promised?

November 29, 2011

The 2012 Olympics have been hyped for some time with officials promising some major green changes for the event. However, these promises may not be realized unless corporate sponsors are willing to step up to the plate and go green, as well.

Locog, the organizing committee for the Olympics, originally claimed that the 2012 event would be the “greenest games ever.” Promises were made that were contingent on the support and participation of Locog’s 55 sponsors, but not everyone was willing to comply.

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Photograph: BBC

US media censor out BBC TV “Frozen Planet” series climate change episode

November 25, 2011

It has been reported by the UK New Statesman that the US will not air the “On Thin Ice” seventh episode of David Attenborough’s “Frozen Planet” BBC TV series about wildlife in the Arctic and Antarctica. The censored out final “On Thin Ice” seventh episode deals with the impact of man-made climate change, a matter controversial to a substantial body of anti-science, climate change denialist Americans. Samira Shackle in the New Statesman:

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The greatest Astroturf of all time – Ethical oil

Is tar sands really ethical oil?
Is tar sands really ethical oil?
November 21st, 2011
3 Responses

If there’s one thing that makes any environmentalists blood boil, its got to be the practice of “greenwashing” where companies try to sell themselves as “green” when they are anything but. Then there’s “astroturfing” where a PR firm in the pay of a conglomerate creates a fake grass roots movement to further their own agenda (Countryside guardian an anti-wind farm group with links to the UK Nuclear industry is a classic example). But the promoters of the Canadian Tar Sands project have seriously pushed the boat out by attempting to label Tar sands oil as “ethical oil”. I realise that this is a bit of an old story, but I bring it up because it has got to count as the most cynical example of “greenwashing” I’ve every seen. I mean seriously their website  should come with a health warning, as it has to be seen to be believed. They make “newspeak” in 1984 look like an episode of spin city!

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The Buzz on Urban Beehives

philips-beehive
November 21st, 2011
No Response

Dutch company Philips is probably best known for its signature electronics; the company has been quite successful when it comes to producing TVs, stereos, and Blu-Ray players. But now the electronics giant has shifted gears, recently announcing a number of green projects, among them is the Urban Beehive.

Home beekeeping isn’t something that gets a lot of commercial attention, but Philips has taken the leap by introducing a uniquely styled system that, through its cool design and very green purpose, may find appeal among more consumers. The Urban Beehive is precisely what its title suggests. Philips has created an innovative product that is both cool and practical. The device installs through a window, and outside, there’s a flower pot to attract the insects’ attention. There’s also an entrance through which bees can enter, and the other side leads to a honeycomb utopia bees should find very inviting.

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IEA warns world headed for irreversible climate change in five years, greenhouse emissions soaring

One of the largest producers of carbon dioxide in Europe. The RWE coal-powerplant Weisweiler. Photo credit: Oliver Wald
November 11th, 2011
8 Responses

This week the International Energy Agency (IEA) released their yearly World Energy Outlook report. The energy report contained a very urgent call for action on climate. The IEA report warned that if our energy infrastructure is not rapidly changed the world will head towards irreversible climate change in five years. At the same time the US department of energy released new figures showing a “monster increase” in greenhouse gas emissions.

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French energy giant EDF fined for spying on Greenpeace

Greenpeace-EDF-protest
November 10th, 2011
1 Response

Today a French court fined the largely state-owned energy giant EDF for €1,5 million for spying on Greenpeace campaigners. The French court found that EDF, which is hoping to build four nuclear reactors in the UK, had hired the security firm Kargus to spy on Greenpeace when they campaigned against new reactors in France in 2006. Besides the 1.5 million fine the court also sent two Kargus employees to jail and ordered EDF to pay €500,000 in damages to Greenpeace.

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Occupy Earth: Nature is the 99%, too

Mr. Burns
November 10th, 2011
2 Responses

In this opinion piece, published on Al Jazeera English, Chip Ward connects the Occupy movement which protests against social and economic inequality with today’s ecological crisis. Ward argues that the assault on the middle class and the assault on the environment are two sides of the same coin. “Mother Nature is among the disenfranchised, exploited and struggling”, Ward writes.

The whole text is definitely worth a read, so be sure to read it. Here are some key quotes:

“The 99 per cent pay for wealth disparity with lost jobs, foreclosed homes, weakening pensions and slashed services, but Nature pays, too. In the world the one-percenters have created, the needs of whole ecosystems are as easy to disregard as, say, the need the young have for debt-free educations and meaningful jobs.

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Controversial Pipeline Could Hurt Obama’s Hopes for Reelection

Barack Obama
November 9th, 2011
1 Response

President Obama may face a considerable amount of opposition from supporters if he moves forward in green lighting a pipeline that would run from Alberta, Canada, to Texas. Obama’s approval ratings have recently been on the decline, and with his 2012 reelection campaign coming up, it seems strange that the president would even consider doing something so environmentally controversial.

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Kid-Friendly Green Films

Image from the film "The Lorax".
Image from the film "The Lorax".
November 8th, 2011
1 Response

In the past, films like “WALL-E” and “Avatar” have been released with a strong environmental message throughout the movies. These films are great because a large part of their target audience are kids, and these kids will be the ones passing legislation and making changes several decades from now.

A recently released environmental film, perhaps, is “The Lorax.” Originally by Dr. Seuss, The Lorax was first released as a book in 1971. Interestingly, the book met some controversy in 1988. A town heavily dependent on logging lashed out against the book when the book was put on the second-graders reading list.

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“Tearing apart wildlife habitat to make a profit and doing the same at a workplace are just considered the price of doing business. Clearcutting a forest and clearcutting a labor force are two sides of the same coin.”

Occupy Earth: Nature is the 99%, too

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