It's about the carrot, not the stick.

I just found out about Carrotmob - it's so simple, yet powerful. I love it!

 
Carrotmob Makes It Rain from carrotmob on Vimeo.


(... it's in Melbourne, too, people!)

Non-believer

 

(image from this lovely archi-site)

Life on Mars

A huge dust storm is blanketing Sydney today .... it looks eerily like bushfire weather to me.






(Reader pics from The Age and news.com.au)

Real cork or robot poo?

In Australia, composite plastic 'corks' and screw-top lids have replaced natural cork stoppers in the majority of wine bottles. I wonder if many people think about the decline of Spanish and Portuguese cork plantations and the implications of this change for various interrelated systems? Cork-producing regions are some of the last places in Europe where sustainable local economies still dovetail harmoniously with nature ...

For the past few years I've tried to buy bottles with real cork, as a small protest against the overwhelming market dominance of 'robot poo' plastic alternatives. Apparently the BBC has produced a documentary about cork oaks, which I hope to find somewhere soon. Naturewatch sets the scene thus:

"Every time we weigh up which bottle of wine to buy, we hold the fate of nightingales, rare black storks, secretive wild cats and one of the world’s most remarkable trees in our hands. It’s all to do with the stopper. If it’s cork, it probably came from the bark of one of the ancient cork oak trees from the Montados, in the Alentejo region of Portugal. The cork oak is the only tree in the world whose bark can be periodically removed without killing it. But this tree is amazing in other ways.... it survives in poor soil and searing heat and provides not only nesting places for Booted Eagles but also space for some of Europe’s rarest wildflowers.... "

I wonder if we can really know what will be lost if cork stoppers are totally replaced by plastic or screwtops?



(Cork pic from here; oak pic from here)

Dishy!

While some of my good friends are shivering in snowy conditions, here in Australia it's mid-summer. In Melbourne we've had the mildest (coolest) December in almost a decade, and I'm thankful that we've not been surrounded by the ominous, eerie glow of bushfire smoke or struggling through 40-degree days.

It is picnic and BBQ season though, so I was thrilled to find these beautiful bamboo bowls over at Re:modern. I love plain bamboo or cornstarch veneerware as a sensible alternative to plastic disposable products anyway, but these manage to up the anti in the style stakes!

Greening the Uni

Last semester I took a subject on Global Environment and Sustainability, which included regular midnight video-linked classes with colleagues in Europe and South/Central America. The students from Universidad EARTH in Costa Rica asked us how our University demonstrated its commitment to addressing climate change and other environmental issues. We were embarrassed to report that Melbourne Uni does not seem to have a proactive or enthusiastic approach.... all we could think of was that we have some recycling programs, and that the University has committed to having 5% of its energy generated from green power sources (so meagre!).

I do like to imagine a brighter future though:


:-)


~ image from Melbourne Uni's Postgraduate Environment Network

Food for thought

My dad Skyped me today and told me about a recent public meeting held on the little island on which he lives (Rarotonga in the Cook Islands), to discuss alternative energy production options, including the establishment of a wind farm. Apparently there was a large turnout and people were very enthusiastic, which is really encouraging. Dad describes his community as "...the mine canary for the rest of the world because of our huge reliance on carbon fuels and high cost. We could be a model of tackling the problem if we do it right."


For his home my father has a solar energy system that feeds back into the local grid and he actively lobbies to bring in island-wide solar- and wind-based energy sources and electric cars: "With petrol here now over $2.80 /ltr i've compared fuel cost as 16c/km for small car on petrol, cf 3c/km for equivalent (same) car electric model as produced by a chinese manufacturer and powered by solar panel electric such as my setup. I figure savings of $900 pa on fuel cost alone."
And of course there are the environmental benefits ...


Inspiring conversations with my dad tie in well with my studies and general interests. I regularly visit the following sites 'cause I enjoy learning about important issues from grass-roots organisations rather than the maintream media/advertising juggernauts. There are some wonderful, positive things going on out there!

Carectomy

Streetfilms

Ecogeek

Envirovore


Please let me know of any similar sites that inspire you and get you thinking about the possibilities...


(Pics from here, here, and here.)

Are you worried about the petrol crisis?

... it's a little difficult to explain to non-Melbournites the appeal of Leunig cartoons ... his melancholy and insightful observations have simply been a part of this city's culture for decades.

I also love him partly because he still holds a torch for tram conductors (an extinct species in Melbourne, of which I was priveleged to be one of the last!).