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Click here to see the Public Service Spot about Earth Day. |  |
Click here to see the Public Service Spot about local food. |
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Click here to view the Public Service Spot for Discover Transportation Freedom. |  |
Click here to see the Public Service Spot about CFLs |
Resources
You may be interested in...http://betterworldbetty.org/ - Great one-stop directory resource for all that is green in and around Charlottesville
http://www.ecovolunteer.org/
http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/ - you can calculate your carbon footprint with this website and get tips on reducing it
http://www.thinkgreenliveclean.com
http://greenopolis.com/goblog/green-groove/6-surprising-things-you-didn-t-know-you-could-recycle
http://www.poconorecord.com/_flash/soundslides/20080505plasticbags/soundslider.swf
http://klasherbert.com/files/gimgs/43_englishw_v2.jpg
http://carconsumption.com/ - you can determine the gas mileage for most cars
http://www.recyclethis.co.uk/ - every day they feature a new item and how it can be recycled
http://awesome.good.is/transparency/web/0911/globalemissions/flash.html
http://media.learningfundamentals.com.au/combating-global-warming-map.jpg
http://www.planethazard.com/
http://stopglobalwarming.org/
http://www.wearewhatwedo.org/
http://www.earthfriendlygoods.com/
http://learnoutside.org/
http://www.selfsufficientish.com/
Area buildings make great strides in solar power usage
Kate Colwell
Locals are using solar power in business and residential buildings to save money on water heating bills through environmentally-friendly energy practices . According to an Albemarle county press release, in the year since installing roof-mounted solar panels at the 5th street county office building in 2009, the county has saved $19,000 in natural gas costs. The building used solar thermal content to supplement natural gas in heating water for showers for police officers and fire fighters at the office.
Paul Risberg, founder of the company
AltEnergy from which this solar panel system came, said in a press release,
"We've found that these
solar thermal systems are usually the most effective way for people
to use solar energy because hot water is so commonly-used and in such
demand in both businesses and homes."
One Charlottesville household exemplifies the residential potential of eco-friendly thermal heating. Fred Damon, Professor at the University of Virginia and his wife have installed several solar roof panels to partially heat the hot water tank in their Fry Spring home.
Damon said the panels are a long term investment which should start becoming profitable in about 12 years if the cost of electricity doesn't go up, though he said the cost will probably rise. "We're not paying the cost for the production of energy," Damon said. The system, which he said is likely to last 25 years, reduces the household's carbon footprint and energy bill.
Damon said he believes that with federal tax write-offs and the $15 million in stimulus money set aside by Virginia for individuals or businesses to invest in alternative energy, installing the panels "made sense that this would be a responsible thing to do."
To learn more about the Damons' solar
fixtures, visit http://www2.dailyprogress.com/
UVa Bay Game heralds new modes of environmental education
Kate Colwell
On April 8 students at the University of Virginia will have the chance to test the UVa Bay Game in Clark library from 12-2pm. This large scale simulation program, which represents the latest tool in environmental stewardship education, is drawing interest from all over the world.
Associate Vice President for Research Jeff Planck said the game, which places University students in stakeholder roles in the health of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, is unique. Professor Jim Bean, who played a key role in designing and creating the game, said players see the game through the appropriate interface and make a series of decisions in their roles such as farmer, policymaker and crabber which affect the other players and the watershed as the rounds proceed in simulated two-year increments.
Planck said that through playing the game, he hopes students will obtain a better understanding of the coupled relationship between human behavior and the ecological processes in the watershed. "Everything we do is connected and therefore the conservation [and] stewardship will involve a collaboration of activity among us all. How we collaborate-- that's where the innovation and creativity is," Planck said.
The interdisciplinary group which developed the program has begun discussions about its potential in K-12 schools systems, in other colleges with other watersheds and even within the policy community. Learmonth said the game will give policymakers a platform to test the ideas that they have for implementing various policies towards sustaining the bay.
For more information on the Bay Game
and the public celebratory event, please visit http://www.virginia.edu/vpr/
Industrial agriculture
http://www.democracynow.org/
This video clip provides information
about Islam Siddiqui, the current Chief Agricultural Negotiator in the
office of the US Trade Representative. Siddiqui served as Vice President
for CropLife America, a group including many disreputable corporations
such as Dow Chemical and Monsanto.
http://www.organicconsumers.
The Millions Against Monsanto website
provides information on this corporate farming terror, as well as current
news information and opportunities to take action.
http://www.organicconsumers.
"Seeds of Life: Hybrids and the Emergence of Seed Monopolies"
This article provides information hybrid
seeds and the reason they are a destructive environmental practice.
http://www.
Though some of its information is misguided,
this website is a good example of the politicians whose efforts in the
past have supported Monsanto.
http://www.orionmagazine.org/
"The Curse of Bigness"
This article criticizes our "bigger is better attitude" with reference
to genetic modification, cloning, overpopulation, cancer, and more.
Its points are particularly relevant to the corporatism of the food
industry.
The official site for the documentary
Food, Inc. -- one of many informative films about the effects of
industrial farming on the environment
http://twilightearth.com/
Watch online this full version of the
documentary The World According to Monsanto, which provides all
the dirty facts on this infamous chemical-turned-agricultural corporation.
http://www.blackgoldmovie.com/
Though not entirely about the environment,
this documentary demonstrates the ways that the coffee industry is becoming
a more and more industrialized business, and some of the detrimental
effects of this development on both humans and their...
Water
News story: "Activists slam world
water forum as a corporate-driven fraud"
Nearly 1 billion people in the world
do not have access to clean water. World Water Day, designated as March
22, was meant to raise awareness about the world water crisis. This
website has helpful informational material and methods for getting involved.
http://environment.
"By 2050, a third of the people on
Earth may lack a clean, secure source of water. Join National Geographic
in exploring the local stories and global trends that define the world's
water crisis. Learn about freshwater resources and how they are used
to feed, power, and sustain all life. See how the forces of technology,
climate, human nature, and policy create challenges and drive solutions
for a sustainable planet."
http://environment.
"Lessons from the Field Boston
Conservation"
We can learn from cities that have developed successful ways to manage
their water resources. This article provides Boston, MA as an example.
http://waterwars.
Here you'll find information about
the water crises that strike different parts of the globe.
http://www.worldwaterwars.com/
This website provides information particularly
about bottled water. Its posted video "The Story of Bottled
Water" is very informative, and it provides news snippets from
water stories worldwide.
http://water.org/learn-about-
This is an informative site about the
world water crisis, full of shocking statistics.
http://www.worldwatercouncil.
This page has a brief overview of the
water crisis, particularly stressed regions of the world, and strategies
to deal with the crisis. Explore the rest of the website for even more
information
http://www.alternet.org/story/
News article: "High Crime on the
High Line: Why is NYC's Highest-Profile Park Using Amazon Wood?"
http://www.alternet.org/
News article: "World Bank Pledges
to Save Trees, Then Helps Cut Down Amazon"
News article: "Fast-track oil exploitation
in Western Amazon"
Vegetarianism and Animal Rights
http://www.marksdailyapple.
Book Review: Lierre Keith's The Vegetarian Myth
"Academy Award Winner for Best
Documentary of 2009, THE COVE follows an elite team of activists,
filmmakers and freedivers as they embark on a covert mission to penetrate
a remote and hidden cove in Taiji, Japan, shining a light on a dark
and deadly secret. Utilizing state-of-the-art techniques, including
hidden microphones and cameras in fake rocks, the team uncovers how
this small seaside village serves as a horrifying microcosm of massive
ecological crimes happening worldwide."
Environmental
law, policy, and ethics
http://www.projectcensored.
News article: "Ecuador's constitutional
rights of nature"
"The only environmental magazine
that deals with ethics and values." It features a limitless selection
of articles on everything from politics to technology to sustainable
communities.
"CSRwire is the leading source of
corporate social responsibility and sustainability news, reports, events
and information."
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/
News article: "Uneasy Breathing:
Air Pollution in Oakland"
http://www.projectcensored.
News aricle: "The World Bank's
Carbon Trade Fiasco"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
"The Story of Cap and Trade": an
animated (and very informative) clip
Oil, Coal and Energy
This publisher's alliance provides stories about the clean energy movement with a focus on its relevance to our economy and lifestyle.
News article: "Fast-track oil exploitation
in the Western Amazon"
http://www.
News article: "The Oil Companies'
Say in Free Energy"
News article: "Maria Gunnoe stands
up against mountain top removal"
Highly acclaimed at the Sundance Film
Festival, the documentary CRUDE: The Real Price of Oil tells
of the devastating impact on humanity and the globe of the oil industry.
http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_
The Union of Concerned Scientists'
website is a forum for clean energy solutions.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/
News story: "The Energy Challenge
�€“ Pollution from Chinese Coal Casts a Global Shadow"
This website has an
animated world map that demonstrates the frequency with which people
die of starvation.
http://www.projectcensored.
News article: "Global starvation
ignored by American policy elites"
http://starvation.net/
This article from 2003 about starvation
of the poor is still very relevant.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
News clip: "Starvation fears in Bangladesh
11 April 2007" efforts to combat "the growing
global crisis of hunger and soaring food prices" are still not
enough to end suffering due to starvation.
Local foods movements and
local eating in Charlottesville
http://www.orionmagazine.org/
"The Transition Initiative"
This European movement, which has spread
rapidly across the UK in the past few years, addresses the issues of
oil exploitation and climate change. It demonstrates how making a grassroots
change within your own community can serve as a springboard for global
change.
The website of Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma
http://www.slowmovement.com/
The Slow Food Movement's webpage
http://www.
The Charlottesville City Market, which
operates April through December: a great place to buy local meat, crafts,
and produce.
http://guide.buylocalca.org/
The Buy Fresh Buy Local website, which
operates in alliance with family farmers
The website of Polyface, Inc. -- a
local and beyond-organic farm in the Shenandoah Valley
A venue for recycling, reusing, and
charitably donating those items that you no longer need: an interactive
and personal way to reduce your impact on the environment
This organization promotes environmental
awareness through film, particularly through an annual film festival,
and also sponsors educational programs.
http://www.inhabitat.com/2010/
If you Twitter, here's a list of
ten Green Twitterers to follow.
If you love to bike ride, check this
out: "Brita Climate Ride 2009 is the first multi-day bicycle ride
where your pedal strokes help raise money and awareness for meaningful
climate change and renewable energy legislation! This transformative
event is ideal for anyone who believes that change is possible and that
America can take the lead in a green economy. ENN is a Media Sponsor
of the Brita Climate Ride."
http://uk.oneworld.net/guides/
The OneWorld Environmental Activism
Guide reviews different strategies from many different countries for
working towards policy change.
The Sierra Club "is America's oldest, largest, and most influential grassroots environmental organization" and a great source of information and action tips. Through the Club you can donate to environmental causes and become a part of the movement toward a healthy planet.