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Sat, 04 Aug 2007 20:16:08 GMT

Trade in Rainforest Credits

Developed countries look forward to poor developing and underdeveloped nations for emission cuts to curb the ever-surging mercury levels. Developing countries rue their poverty coming in their way to stem the tide of their carbon emissions. However, developing countries have now decided to leave the rich nations behind by coming forward in sequestering greenhouse gases.

Brazil, holding richest rainforest resources in the world has volunteered to save its rainforests in exchange of billions of dollars to sustain its economy. The otherwise fragile rainforests severed for building factories and industries to run the economy on rails will now remain intact on the ground. The richer nations who cannot curtail their greenhouse gas emissions will exchange their carbon credits with countries like Brazil sitting pretty on their rainforest reserves.

It will serve two purposes. One, the rainforests also known as carbon sinks will absorb most of the carbon emissions, cool and purify the atmosphere, which in turn will fight global warming to some extent. Second, countries can better exchange their carbon credits with countries rich in rainforests, thus compensating them for the same, thereby, helping them to run their economy.

Global warming if let loose will ravage the world converting earth into a dead planet. The recent pictures of the earth unveiled by NASA cry out to man to save it from becoming another dead planet. And such a proposal of exchanging rainforest reserves for monetary wealth would work wonders if implemented and help in saving the world from the fury of global warming and climate change. Consequently, helping countries like Brazil, Indonesia, blessed with rainforests, keep this invaluable wealth intact and earn monetary wealth in return.

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Via: Image2 Posted by: Amitmishra      Read more     Source

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 10:42:02 GMT

After Foodstuff Now, Labels Go Green

Endeavors to go green are on a high worldwide but often in the event of acts, when just everything is being produced to meet the eco-friendly requirements, labels on foods and other household products are overlooked and do not meet the required standards. Now, Rude Health Organics has taken heed to the issue and have taken upon themselves to embed 100 per cent biodegradable labels on its muesli and porridge products. The labels are attractive and according to tests are about 90 percent degradable in 31 odd days, and the brown paper bags to which they are glued are also made out of renewable sources, if green is your taste then you could bag these from supermarkets, health food stores or online stores.

[Source: Newconsumer] Posted by: Bharat      Read more     Source

Sat, 04 Aug 2007 03:21:49 GMT

Seal Hunt Puts Canada on the Dock

Global opposition to import of seal trade from Canada is increasingly growing and becoming stronger each day. Taking a step further, Belgium has banned any import of seal from Canada for the cruel and savage means by which the mammal is killed. On the other hand, Canada asserts seal hunt is the sustenance of its eastern provinces and must be let to flourish.

What called for such an uproar were the scary images of the brutal slaughter. Canada is home to worlds largest slaughter of the mammal anywhere on the globe. After Belgium imposed a ban on the import of the same for the cruel slaughter of seal, Canada has decided to challenge the decision tooth and nail.

Seals help in keeping the polar marine environment clean by emitting low-level energy that destroys pollution bacteria in snow-clad seas. In Canadian Arctic coasts, seals are found in great numbers. But, their oily flesh and blubber is in great demand especially for the Inuits, Eskimos and Aboriginals. Their flesh costs hefty sum for many Canadian small industries in the international market.

Canada hunts seals in a very cruel and savage manner. The most disheartening fact is that over 95 per cent of the seals slaughtered are only a few days old. If you were to witness such a merciless slaughter in which baby seals are shot at or clubbed with a harpoon and left to bleed, you would certainly experience heart break and become a vociferous activist to oppose Canada seal hunt.

Quite surprisingly, the Canadian government subsidizes the seal hunt and the result is nearly a million baby seals have been clubbed and slaughtered in the last three years, let alone the big seals. It is really shameful that the Canadian trade minister is threatening to request WTO to pressurize Belgium to lift the ban. I think the Canadian political leaders have lost their sense and human feeling by supporting the merciless killing of innocent mammals for a few dollars.

No doubt, seal hunt is important to sustain the living of many in eastern Canada. But, to earn money by seal hunt looks primitive in a modern age where industries are burgeoning and opportunities are growing in Canada. Just for the sake of economy, we cannot destroy the seal population and put them in the endangered list. Trade ban by Belgium should be taken with due concern by the comity of nations. I appeal all the green activists and the animal lovers to give utmost attention to how to force Canada to stop its state-sponsored seal hunt.

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Via: Image2 Posted by: Amitmishra      Read more     Source

Fri, 03 Aug 2007 05:18:18 GMT

Add Songs From the Radio

There's a new music sharing service in town and they have the ability to let you add songs to your playlist right from the radio if you want, no need to know the name of the song either. Just send a text message with the radio station frequency and the song will be added to your playlist.

smsTunes also has a music search, so you can add any song to your playlist if you know the name of the son or the artist. Whenever you add a song to your playlist you'll also get access to the lyrics of the song, the song's video, and even the location of stores where you can buy the song.

If you like karaoke then you'll love one of smsTunes other features. Do your own karaoke using their karaoke feature. You can also take a video of you doing your karaoke and post it right on to YouTube. Posted by: Linda Roeder      Read more     Source

Fri, 03 Aug 2007 05:08:16 GMT

Olympus: Worlds Smallest Ad

Olympus launched this marketing offensive in order to revive its losing market share in high-end microscopes orders to cheaper equivalents. The strategy was to set up an interactive platform with the high-end buyers of microscopes and gather their opinions and thought on what they wanted from a microscopes, so the firm could create stronger relationship with their market. The advertisers decided to create the world’s smallest questionnaire on a specimen slide and sent it to Olympus’s database of most esteemed microscope customers on a slide. Interestingly, the mail could only be viewed under a microscope and compelled the clientele to visit Olympus’s website to know about the products and services as well as gathering information from the client.

The campaign was a nice idea to set up a two-way communication through invoking active participation of potential customers. Advertisers claimed that the campaign had helped to increase the traffic at Olympus’s microscope website by 24 percent. The campaign was awarded Bronze at Cannes Lions this year in direct category. The campaign was created by HooperNagel, Sydney.

This direct mail piece is currently under a review process to be accepted into the Guinness Book of World Records as the world’s smallest questionnaire.

Via Cannes Lions Live Posted by: Balendu      Read more     Source

Sat, 28 Jul 2007 22:43:41 GMT

Harry Potter and the Ethics Demons

The amount of spoiling around the last book in J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter series, released last week, has raised a number of important questions about ethics. I write this as someone who isn't particularly interested in the Potter books. I read one and that was enough.

Tim Rutten in the Los Angeles Times says the embargo is really all about making lots of money for Rowling and the publishers. He has a point. It might be one reason why the seventh and final Harry Potter book is now the fastest selling book in British publishing history. But was the embargo just about money?

Across the world last week, bookshops were swamped with witches, wizards and a host of magical creatures vying for the first glimpse of the final Potter book. OK, it's not my thing but with that in mind, it's worth asking whether broader ethical issues are involved.

Ethicist Bruce Weinstein puts it well in BusinessWeek:"It's not inconsiderate to reveal secrets. It's unethical. That's right. Spoiling the ending of the Harry Potter book (and other creative works) isn't rude. It's wrong. And by wrong, I mean immoral.

"Here's why. First, the fans of Harry Potter have invested a lot of time, money, and passion in the first six volumes in the series. They have read and reread hundreds of pages over ten years, and they are entitled to discover Harry's fate on their own.

"Second, author J.K. Rowling has a right to have her intellectual property respected. This right is fundamentally an ethical one, whether or not it is codified by law. That is, even if you aren't breaking the law by spilling the beans, you still shouldn't do so. Rowling has worked diligently over the years to tell the tale the way she wants to tell it, according to the schedule she has set, and it is unfair to disrespect her wishes. The fact that she is one of the most commercially successful authors of all time doesn't mean that she gives up her right to be treated with respect; our duty to honor the integrity of her creation would apply even if her publisher hadn't sold a quarter of a billion books (so far).

"Third, society has a compact with artists. They entertain us, and we support and protect their right to do so. If either party reneges, the deal is off. For example, if we hire a magician to come to our child's birthday party and he makes inappropriate comments to the kids, we'll fire him with good reason. On the other hand, if the magician does his best to make the occasion a joyful and spirited one, but the kids act up and make it difficult or impossible for him to perform, the performer may reasonably tell us, ....Sorry, but I can't do this,.... and end the act early."

Weinstein is absolutely spot on. Posted by: leon      Read more     Source

Thu, 26 Jul 2007 20:33:23 GMT

Is a Big Earthquake Approaching Africa?

Is a big quake approaching? This question, these days, is surely sending a chill down the spine of each Kenyan and Tanzanian. It was on July 12, tremors had their jerks felt mildly across the cities, with very few being able to realize it.

But, what followed a week later, are a couple of good jolts, forcing people flee their offices in downtown Nairobi. The tremors then were gone altogether! But, it is not that the chapter closed but left scientists confused and unsure of what led to this earthquake swarm!

Though no much damage is caused by the earthquakes, the fear of the future lingers. To the inhabitants, what is fearful is the query

Is it just a cautionary of a forthcoming devastation?

But, the scientists seem to be left pondering on something more

Was it fault activity along the Rift Valley, where the African tectonic plate is stretching? Or was it Ol Doinyo Lengai, a Tanzanian volcano that sits near the swarm’s epicenter?

Though the government officials have concluded the blames on the theory that rumbling in Ol Doinyo Lengai meaning Mountain of God, the fears of an imminent massive eruption does not seem to fade away.

This is triggering the several hundred people living on its slopes to evacuate, with the Tanzanian government already warned tourists to stay away. After all, the African plate, covering the entire continent is in the middle of tectonic change.

Image Posted by: Irani      Read more     Source

Thu, 26 Jul 2007 11:19:31 GMT

Rising Temperatures, Drought May Wipe out Ugandan Coffee

It seems that global warming is causing or about to cause widespread damage throughout the world. Besides endangering certain species of fish in the river, global warming along with global temperature change can also cause Uganda’s coffee plantations to wipe out completely. At least this is what the experts predict.

Rising temperatures and drought are two major aspects of global warming. These two characteristics of global warming are going to cause trouble for the coffee growers of the world , specially in Uganda.

Lately, the rainfall has been very erratic in Uganda. Also, it has been observed that the rainfall hits Uganda at the wrong time.Due to this factor, the crop has less time to mature and grow. If this trend continues, Robusta (a coffee variety) will be completely destroyed.

According to an Ugandan coffee maker, Ronald Buule:

If the coffee beans face a lot of sunshine and less rain, the beans will be smaller and in lower yields.We are worried about the temperature, but we have limited resources

In order to provide the necessary resources, the United Nations conducted a research recently in Uganda. The UN research concluded that even a slight increase of temperature by couple of degrees will wipe out the coffee plantations.

This disturbing trend in the coffee industry is not only applicable to Uganda, but also to India’s coffee growing regions. Coorg coffee region has been seeing a similar trend. With the slightest increase in temperature and drop in rainfall, there will be adverse effects on the Coorg coffee plantations as well.

No one can exactly predict when things will get better. UN panel on climate change is looking at an average increase of 2.5 degrees of global temperature by January. This will probably be due to burning of fossil fuels by us- the humans.

I guess there’s no way around it either. The fact that I am writing about this without being able to do anything about it, is sort of making me sick to the stomach. The message is clear to all the coffee drinkers: global warming must be stopped somehow.


Image Credits: National Geographic [All images from same link] Posted by: Apabritabasu      Read more     Source

Thu, 19 Jul 2007 00:37:15 GMT

Pushing all the right buttons

"The Easy Button" just keeps getting better. Staples just recently released their 2006 Soul Report, detailing their social responsibility efforts.

Measures include ethics streamlining efforts, with new associate education programs, case management systems, and manufacturing audits. In addition, they improved customer privacy programs, and internal communication.

Environmentally speaking, Staples has doubled its renewable energy use to 20% of total U.S. consumption, and increased its stock of recycled products alongside its ink cartridge recycling efforts. They also re-structured its delivery fleet to save about 500,000 gallons of diesel fuel annually.

In community development, Staples donated just shy of $13 million to education while also initiating and promoting other educational efforts worldwide. They also raised $7 million for charities.

Additionally, they increased employee racial and gender diversity company-wide. All in all, Staples appears to be very effective in forwarding their social bottom line. Customers have noticed too. Around here, everywhere that used to be an Office Depot, is now an empty building. Posted by: Miche      Read more     Source

Sun, 15 Jul 2007 00:04:26 GMT

Finding Me.... in the Midst of Transition

The most difficult phase of this transition has not been the geographical change, not the adjustment of the girls, not settling into my home, not even“finding” work. The most difficult part, for me anyway, has been "finding me" in the the change. Craig & I have always functioned together, as a team. I preached and taught at least once a week- sometimes more. I built a strong and vibrant women’s ministry, I oversaw the fine arts ministries. He and I counseled together, we ran staff meetings together.

So, basically, right now, my biggest transition factor is “finding me.”Craig and I have been married for a little over fifteen years, all of which has been engaged in ministry together.

The best part of it though is the fact that I AM FULLY aware of the fact that I am called to ministry and no one will ever convince me otherwise. I've determined to do what I can with what I have. In my heart I feel God is preparing me for something, and the best thing I can do is pray, beleive, and hold fast.

I read a great illustration the other day. A little boy and his dad were out working in the yard. Well, dad realized they were in need of new hedge trimmers, so he went out and purchased heavy duty electric trimmers that could cut through tree trunks! His son begged and pleaded to use the new tool, however dad knew it was just too much for the boy to handle and it wans dangerous.

After awhile, the boy was no where to be found. Dad turned around and finally saw him crouced down by the drive trimming every blade of green grass with his blunt edge safety scissors. Dad's heart was so blessed that eventually he brought the boy over and helped him use the new trimmers until he could learn to handle them himself.

Although I may not functioning in my full capacity at this moment, I am not discouraged. I am encouraged because He knows right where I am!

God has been given some direction to me and in the next week or so, I hope to share some of that with you. In the mean time, please continue to pray for me as I "find me." Posted by: Tara Sloa      Read more     Source