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The Green Group
Created as a way of bringing together everyone who wants and hopes for a better tomorrow.
"I booked online tickets for the movie. I got the confirmation on SMS. Guess what, I have taken the print out of it as well."
"I just managed to take a print out of all the e-learning modules"
"There is a cousin of mine who needs all the questions that are asked in Fresher tests. I browsed all through the day and finally have a huge set of print outs that will help him"
"I have so many print outs of the presentation that are of no use as I forgot to change the dark background of the slides. Now all I have is a huge bundle of black paper"
Does any of these statements sound familiar?
Lets start getting more sensitive towards our environment and resolve to be more judicious in using them.
Lets do a new beginning today and start by avoiding printing anything unless absolutely necessary.
Save paper Save trees.
"I just managed to take a print out of all the e-learning modules"
"There is a cousin of mine who needs all the questions that are asked in Fresher tests. I browsed all through the day and finally have a huge set of print outs that will help him"
"I have so many print outs of the presentation that are of no use as I forgot to change the dark background of the slides. Now all I have is a huge bundle of black paper"
Does any of these statements sound familiar?
Lets start getting more sensitive towards our environment and resolve to be more judicious in using them.
Lets do a new beginning today and start by avoiding printing anything unless absolutely necessary.
Save paper Save trees.
Cars were once a luxury …but now they are a necessity. Few years back when Global Warming issue was brought up in a big way…voices were raised to stop the growing number of cars on the roads. Though the throats have all dried up …there isn't any reduction in the number of four wheelers moving on the roads. If we cant curb the number of cars then the least we can do is use them intelligently.
My sincere appeal to everyone across the globe is to utilize your machines with some care towards the nature.
• Don't keep your vehicles on idling. Just to save on the started we waste a lot of precious gas and pollute the old Earth more.
• Places like traffic signals, dropping kids to school and waiting till they are safe inside, saying bye to a friend after a meeting are some instances where the time involved may be a minute or so but the damage is much greater.
• Do keep your vehicle's tires inflated to the recommend pressure.
• Avoid using a four wheeler if you are the only one traveling. Its not advisable to use a car for just one person. Friends staying nearby going to the same destination everyday can pool in and use one vehicle to commute. Take turns to use your cars.
• If you have good public transports available in your countries please make use of them.
Just by becoming a member of WE and joining communities, wearing T-shirts and using stickers, you and me can't make any difference. We need to work, step by step (never mind if they are small) but keep taking them. Never stop.
There is a very famous saying here, 'Keep working don't worry for the fruit'. If the work is done with a good intention, its fruits will always be sweet!
Krithika
My sincere appeal to everyone across the globe is to utilize your machines with some care towards the nature.
• Don't keep your vehicles on idling. Just to save on the started we waste a lot of precious gas and pollute the old Earth more.
• Places like traffic signals, dropping kids to school and waiting till they are safe inside, saying bye to a friend after a meeting are some instances where the time involved may be a minute or so but the damage is much greater.
• Do keep your vehicle's tires inflated to the recommend pressure.
• Avoid using a four wheeler if you are the only one traveling. Its not advisable to use a car for just one person. Friends staying nearby going to the same destination everyday can pool in and use one vehicle to commute. Take turns to use your cars.
• If you have good public transports available in your countries please make use of them.
Just by becoming a member of WE and joining communities, wearing T-shirts and using stickers, you and me can't make any difference. We need to work, step by step (never mind if they are small) but keep taking them. Never stop.
There is a very famous saying here, 'Keep working don't worry for the fruit'. If the work is done with a good intention, its fruits will always be sweet!
Krithika
http://www.recyclebank.com/
everyone check this site out!
Place all your recyclable materials into one cart for curbside pick up.
Carts have an identification tag that is recorded by the recycling truck.
The amount recycled is converted into RecycleBank Points, which you can use to order rewards.
RecycleBank not only helps divert trash from landfills through increased recycling activities, but it also rewards members for recycling with RecycleBank Reward Points.
Currently, our curbside members can earn 2.5 RecycleBank points for each pound of recyclable materials.
everyone check this site out!
Place all your recyclable materials into one cart for curbside pick up.
Carts have an identification tag that is recorded by the recycling truck.
The amount recycled is converted into RecycleBank Points, which you can use to order rewards.
RecycleBank not only helps divert trash from landfills through increased recycling activities, but it also rewards members for recycling with RecycleBank Reward Points.
Currently, our curbside members can earn 2.5 RecycleBank points for each pound of recyclable materials.
A few hollows down the road from me there is a guy who has built his house in a novel way. For three years he spent his summers tearing down old out buildings on local farms. By saving all the lumber and some very creative use of a saw he built a house. Now there is nothing unusual in this you might say but this place is different. IT'S BEAUTIFUL! When I went to see it I was expecting this tumble down eco-cabin and was floored. As you drive up a short gravel drive-way you round a corner and see a natural wood structure that has the darkened appearance of old furniture achieved by an oil based stain (I know its not eco but it was used for a very valid reason... It preserves and waterproofs the wood beautifully and the idea is never to have to do it again) which was applied liberally over several years. The overall effect makes it look as though it grew from the landscape. He has used fruit trees and herbs along with such flowers as lavender and rose to achieve a garden as nice as any I have seen on HGTV.
Inside he didn't skimp on his flooring. Natural bamboo makes for one of the most beautiful floors I have ever seen (I am not sure what color stain he used but it looks deep red like cherry or rosewood). For his kitchen and bathroom tile he used, GETS THIS, old slate roofing tiles. They, due to age and damage, had to be cut in irregular shapes that make for a beautiful random patterns and look as nice as the $3.00/sq foot stuff at Home Depot. His kitchen counters are old bowling alley lanes cut to fit and make a fantastic overall look by lightening an otherwise dark space. Cabinets were taken fro a remodel of his neighbor and refaced to match the flooring. His fireplace is built of an assortment of foundation stones and river rock that, while cacophonous, is not unpleasing. He didn't skimp on windows... Pella double hung... or insulation. Keeping the house as energy efficient as possible was a priority. Now here's the rub... he didn't build the house as an eco project. He built it to save cost. This amazing structure (I only covered half of it) cost him less than $20,000 to build and looks nothing like an eco home is generalized to appear like.
I wanted to bring that up because it occurs to me that he did a fantastic thing that deserves mention (He asked that I omit any reference of his name or actual location.). I wonder if I could do that as well. It could be carried farther I suppose but it would, I think, compromise the overall look of the place.
Without meaning to he created a house that is over 70% recycled material and while other eco options exist that could be used in place of paints and stains I believe that the recycled material more than offsets the footprint. Further he did this project on the cheep and it was so successful he is doing his garage in the same manner.
Now that's solving a problem!
world without end,
sean
Inside he didn't skimp on his flooring. Natural bamboo makes for one of the most beautiful floors I have ever seen (I am not sure what color stain he used but it looks deep red like cherry or rosewood). For his kitchen and bathroom tile he used, GETS THIS, old slate roofing tiles. They, due to age and damage, had to be cut in irregular shapes that make for a beautiful random patterns and look as nice as the $3.00/sq foot stuff at Home Depot. His kitchen counters are old bowling alley lanes cut to fit and make a fantastic overall look by lightening an otherwise dark space. Cabinets were taken fro a remodel of his neighbor and refaced to match the flooring. His fireplace is built of an assortment of foundation stones and river rock that, while cacophonous, is not unpleasing. He didn't skimp on windows... Pella double hung... or insulation. Keeping the house as energy efficient as possible was a priority. Now here's the rub... he didn't build the house as an eco project. He built it to save cost. This amazing structure (I only covered half of it) cost him less than $20,000 to build and looks nothing like an eco home is generalized to appear like.
I wanted to bring that up because it occurs to me that he did a fantastic thing that deserves mention (He asked that I omit any reference of his name or actual location.). I wonder if I could do that as well. It could be carried farther I suppose but it would, I think, compromise the overall look of the place.
Without meaning to he created a house that is over 70% recycled material and while other eco options exist that could be used in place of paints and stains I believe that the recycled material more than offsets the footprint. Further he did this project on the cheep and it was so successful he is doing his garage in the same manner.
Now that's solving a problem!
world without end,
sean
As if the recent spill on the Mississippi was not indication enough... As if, it was not acknowledged as the most fragile habitat on the planet... As if they could ever be satisfied ... The great bloated tic called OIL is at it again. Their most recent target... The Arctic Circle. That's right all you penguin lovers big oil's next move will be to destroy all life in the Arctic.
Supporters of the push for arctic drilling use the Alaskan pipeline as an example of how safe and efficient it will be. As usual big oil has ignored all scientific and ecological evidence of contrary opinion by using carefully selected statistics quoted out of context to support their claims. "There is enough oil there to support the world demand for three years..." one oil exec was quoted as saying.
Despite the fact that the same oil executive says that the technology to build these huge platforms is currently in the realm of science fiction it appears that plans to develop these areas are plowing ahead like a juggernaut.
So just to recap... Big Oil now wants to destroy our beaches, tear up the tundra, waste billions of tons of water extracting oil from shale (as much water per ton as Denver uses a day), and have no accountability for any ecological damage as demonstrated by the recent ruling on the Exxon Valdez debacle. At what point do we start to tell these colossus' NO! They have gotten their way for so long they no longer seem to recognize government regulations. For that matter government has forgotten that they can regulate big oil. Remember that big oil is counting on the majority remaining silent during this push to suck the last drops of oil from the earth's crust. We must act!
Wow, gee, Hey Mr. President, could I be on the Mars Mission since you plan to make the Earth uninhabitable.
world without end,
sean
Supporters of the push for arctic drilling use the Alaskan pipeline as an example of how safe and efficient it will be. As usual big oil has ignored all scientific and ecological evidence of contrary opinion by using carefully selected statistics quoted out of context to support their claims. "There is enough oil there to support the world demand for three years..." one oil exec was quoted as saying.
Despite the fact that the same oil executive says that the technology to build these huge platforms is currently in the realm of science fiction it appears that plans to develop these areas are plowing ahead like a juggernaut.
So just to recap... Big Oil now wants to destroy our beaches, tear up the tundra, waste billions of tons of water extracting oil from shale (as much water per ton as Denver uses a day), and have no accountability for any ecological damage as demonstrated by the recent ruling on the Exxon Valdez debacle. At what point do we start to tell these colossus' NO! They have gotten their way for so long they no longer seem to recognize government regulations. For that matter government has forgotten that they can regulate big oil. Remember that big oil is counting on the majority remaining silent during this push to suck the last drops of oil from the earth's crust. We must act!
Wow, gee, Hey Mr. President, could I be on the Mars Mission since you plan to make the Earth uninhabitable.
world without end,
sean
While I must applaud GM's new concept car the "Volt" I await its release with some degree of trepidation. Ford now has a Hybrid SUV that uses soy based foam in its seat cushions.... Hey fabulous!
Now for the bad news...GM's the Volt is huge, way bigger than it needs to be. In fact it's the same size of some luxury sedans. While this will appeal to those of the mind set that bigger is better, it fails to recognize that bigger also means it requires more resource to build. Further, A GM executive was quoted, on N.P.R., as saying that it will cost $10,000 more than a normal car. Hmmmmm. Lets do some math. If the AVERAGE GM car runs around $30,000 and this car is going to cost $10,000 more... it quickly becomes apparent that the average Joe and his family will not be able to afford it. If most people cannot buy the car it solves nothing.
I mention this to notate that there is a car, called the "G-Wiz" available in England that runs around $18000 US, however, to the best of my knowledge; it cannot be purchased in the states. WHY! It occurs to me that this little love, by virtue of being more affordable, would go much further towards solving our energy crisis that the megalithic Volt.
Now we get to the new Ford Hybrid SUV (sorry I forget the name.) Great news! It gets a whopping 26 MPG highway. GRRRR! You know, back in the 1990's gas was relatively cheap. In this market of cheap gas there came unto the land a small car by an unheard of company called Geo. The car was the Metro 3cyl. It got 52 MPG and in its stripped down no option form ran about $6000-$7000. I know this because I bought another model that came out later called the Storm. I mention this because My 1991 Geo storm (that has had indifferent maintenance, random infrequent oil changes, and I don't remember the last time I checked the tires) get better Gas mileage than this new Hybrid. How does this solve anything?
Now the question becomes apparent why aren't the US car manufacturers applying their brain-pans to creating a car that could compete with the second hand market? If India can create a fuel efficient car for around $5000 I refuse to believe that our car manufacturers are unable to do the same with an electric or mega fuel efficient hybrid (perhaps go back to the 90's and revamp the metro 3cyl with a hybrid system).
Now it will seem to some of you that I am running down these efforts by US auto manufacturers and I am sure I will be vilified by some members for stating these facts while, in fact, I applaud GM's new concept car... they are currently in negotiation with the large electric conglomerates as to how to power them and new smart grid technologies that will assist in using the entire power production grid more efficiently. AWESOME! I applaud Ford whose Executive, at the recent celebration of the model T's 100th anniversary, stated that the electrification of the car is the next big step in automobile technology. FANTASTIC! But we must remember that all the technology in the world will not help if the people can't afford it. Again, I applaud the big three's efforts in this area but while they're working in this direction they need to think about small cheep options for people who mainly shop the secondary market, an ideology that Henry Ford himself would embrace as he demonstrated with the model T's being "cheap enough for a person making an average wage".
We won't be through this crisis until everyone is driving more efficient electric or hybrid cars. Hell, just bringing back the 3cyl metro would make a huge difference. There are currently foreign designs out there that could work that we cannot buy here. If they can do it so can we.
world without end,
sean
Now for the bad news...GM's the Volt is huge, way bigger than it needs to be. In fact it's the same size of some luxury sedans. While this will appeal to those of the mind set that bigger is better, it fails to recognize that bigger also means it requires more resource to build. Further, A GM executive was quoted, on N.P.R., as saying that it will cost $10,000 more than a normal car. Hmmmmm. Lets do some math. If the AVERAGE GM car runs around $30,000 and this car is going to cost $10,000 more... it quickly becomes apparent that the average Joe and his family will not be able to afford it. If most people cannot buy the car it solves nothing.
I mention this to notate that there is a car, called the "G-Wiz" available in England that runs around $18000 US, however, to the best of my knowledge; it cannot be purchased in the states. WHY! It occurs to me that this little love, by virtue of being more affordable, would go much further towards solving our energy crisis that the megalithic Volt.
Now we get to the new Ford Hybrid SUV (sorry I forget the name.) Great news! It gets a whopping 26 MPG highway. GRRRR! You know, back in the 1990's gas was relatively cheap. In this market of cheap gas there came unto the land a small car by an unheard of company called Geo. The car was the Metro 3cyl. It got 52 MPG and in its stripped down no option form ran about $6000-$7000. I know this because I bought another model that came out later called the Storm. I mention this because My 1991 Geo storm (that has had indifferent maintenance, random infrequent oil changes, and I don't remember the last time I checked the tires) get better Gas mileage than this new Hybrid. How does this solve anything?
Now the question becomes apparent why aren't the US car manufacturers applying their brain-pans to creating a car that could compete with the second hand market? If India can create a fuel efficient car for around $5000 I refuse to believe that our car manufacturers are unable to do the same with an electric or mega fuel efficient hybrid (perhaps go back to the 90's and revamp the metro 3cyl with a hybrid system).
Now it will seem to some of you that I am running down these efforts by US auto manufacturers and I am sure I will be vilified by some members for stating these facts while, in fact, I applaud GM's new concept car... they are currently in negotiation with the large electric conglomerates as to how to power them and new smart grid technologies that will assist in using the entire power production grid more efficiently. AWESOME! I applaud Ford whose Executive, at the recent celebration of the model T's 100th anniversary, stated that the electrification of the car is the next big step in automobile technology. FANTASTIC! But we must remember that all the technology in the world will not help if the people can't afford it. Again, I applaud the big three's efforts in this area but while they're working in this direction they need to think about small cheep options for people who mainly shop the secondary market, an ideology that Henry Ford himself would embrace as he demonstrated with the model T's being "cheap enough for a person making an average wage".
We won't be through this crisis until everyone is driving more efficient electric or hybrid cars. Hell, just bringing back the 3cyl metro would make a huge difference. There are currently foreign designs out there that could work that we cannot buy here. If they can do it so can we.
world without end,
sean
Hi all for those of you who don't know I'm in the middle of a fight for my right to speak. It's all very hush hush. However, has anyone heard of this plan the European Union has for using African deserts to generate solar power for Europe? If so could you please enlighten me?
world without end,
sean
ps... I'm all for it if Africa finally would get some of the relief they desperatly need, ie: some sheckles in the coffer....
world without end,
sean
ps... I'm all for it if Africa finally would get some of the relief they desperatly need, ie: some sheckles in the coffer....
splendidtable.publicradio.org/locavore_nation
better for the enviroment and healthier....I've been doing it for years....
going quiet for a while.waddle along without me.
sean
better for the enviroment and healthier....I've been doing it for years....
going quiet for a while.waddle along without me.
sean
More news of Poo peeps. There was a great interview on N.P.R (National Public Radio for our friends to the north and south) from BBC about the new trend in fertilizer. That's right Guys...... Human waste as fertilizer. Now just to clarify I DON'T mean the kinda stuff that the Granola heads are doing with dry composting toilets but rather a great new addition of the huge problem of sewage treatment. It appears that after it has been treated what is left over, from the huge amount of poo and pee we generate each day, makes excellent fertilizer that is 99% sterile (that's the same as the organic fertilizer the granola heads tout.)
Now there does appear to be one small drawback..... It stinks. A problem that is easily rectified by immediately turning it into the soil according to one British farmer that uses it. It's so popular with brit farmers that apparently the waste treatment plants have sold all they have on hand this season....But the real problem appears to be us. The stigma attached to human waste is huge. Well for me pile it on them tomatos I got no issue with it....
world without end,
sean
Now there does appear to be one small drawback..... It stinks. A problem that is easily rectified by immediately turning it into the soil according to one British farmer that uses it. It's so popular with brit farmers that apparently the waste treatment plants have sold all they have on hand this season....But the real problem appears to be us. The stigma attached to human waste is huge. Well for me pile it on them tomatos I got no issue with it....
world without end,
sean
I just watched this great video in which activists helped a business improve its revenue while becoming more energy efficient. You can watch the video here, and I highly recommend you do. The group is called Carrotmob ("carrot," as in using carrots and not sticks). They're also hiring and looking for volutneers. Read More »
I've just created three new groups, and I hope members of this group will join them. Read More »
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