Green Options

Top 10 Ways to Help Save Our Oceans…

Just below the water’s surface lies a magical world teeming with life and value. Coral reefs are home to 4,000 fish species and provide the world with goods and services — such as jobs, foods, medicines and storm protection — worth $375 billion annually.

But scientists estimate that 70% of all corals reefs could be lost by 2050 if current rates of destruction continue — from factors ranging from overfishing to climate change.

Planting biofuel crops on converted forestlands or other ecologically valuable lands has already become a hotly debated practice.

Now, a new report co-authored by Nature Conservancy scientists says that biofuel crops could also become invasive species — and that the risk needs to be evaluated before these crops are planted.

If you just happen to be in Seoul this weekend, you won’t want to miss the 2008 Earth Day celebration.

No, contrary to the hopes of men across Korea, actress Kim Tae Hee will not be there wrestling in fruit salad to save the Earth. And though the celebration is on April 20 (420 to cannabis lovers), smoking a joint will get you swiftly arrested in South Korea. No fun? Don’t dispare.

There’s a great lineup of events planned to generate awareness of environmental issues and bring Koreans more in touch with their green side.

Here’s a schedule of events that will take place this Sunday in Seoul Plaza, outside Seoul City Hall.

Top international environmental news for during the week of April 6 - 13:

Europe — World’s first commercial tidal turbine installed (EcoGeek)

“The world’s first commercial tidal turbine has been installed in its home in Northern Ireland’s Strangford Lough.

Though it has yet to be turned on, it will be the first commercial power-producing tidal generator when it is (sometime later this year). The turbine has two 16 meter-wide rotors and will be able to run for 18-20 hours a day. The turbine was installed off the coast in an area known for fast moving waters, and because the rotors will only spin 10-20 times in a minute, it is unlikely to disturb marine life.”

Source: EcoGeek. Hot in media: Digg EcoGeek, Digg TimesOnline.

Africa — Tree-Nation (Tree-Nation)

“Tree-Nation is an ecological project with a focused objective: To plant 8 million trees in Niger, Africa to fight desertification! Large-scale plantation of trees will increase the land’s productivity and re-generate the soil.

It’s been an intriguing week for British environmental activists, with the discovery of a spy in the camp at UK aviation protest group Plane Stupid.

Ultimately the spy, an employee of C2i International who specialize in ’special risk management’ (otherwise known as industrial espionage) was little match for Plane Stupid, who described him as “more Austin Powers than James Bond”.

Accounts of the episode reveal that Ken Tobias (real name Tobias Kendall), made a number of basic errors, including:

• • Wearing expensive designer clothes (which he attempted to disguise by wearing a Palestinian scarf to give some environmental credibility)
  • Turning up to meetings consistently early
  • Demonstrating an unusual eagerness to reap mayhem on British airport infrastructure by suggesting the grandest and most aggressive schemes
  • Allowing information on planned activities to be published almost immediately in the press

In case you missed them the first time around, here are the top 10 international environmental headlines that made news in the blogosphere for the week of March 31 - April 6.

1. Asia — United Nations Climate Change Talks: “Kyoto II” climate talks open in Bangkok

“The first formal talks in the long process of drawing up a replacement for the Kyoto climate change pact opened in Thailand on Monday with appeals to a common human purpose to defeat global warming.

‘The world is waiting for a solution that is long-term and economically viable,’ U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon said in a video address to the 1,000 delegates from 190 nations gathered in Bangkok.

In my experience as an eco-fashion and textile design instructor I have always been in awe of the trend reports and style forecasting that move this growing field forward. One of the first steps designers take when starting off a new line for a season is clip what inspires them and create a “vision”, “mood”, or “inspiration” board. Here is a simple one I made with a few eco-designs that inspire me this spring:

going clockwise:  
1. Love tube dress by Katherine Hammett. She is a clothing activist by placing her messages in bilboard letters on tees for men and women. Very well known for her activism in the fashion industry. With her profits she worked on and commissioned research to find out the real impact the clothing industry has on the planet and discovered a complete disaster. Tens of thousands of deaths a year from accidental pesticide poisoning from growing cotton, millions with long-term acute poisoning, slavery type conditions across the industry, pollution and long-term contamination to rivers and aquifers. Katherine’s long held vision has powered into this century with new campaigns and these hopeful slogan tees, dresses and gear now sold on her re-invented site.
2. Darling designs like this moon-swing top from William Good  are so cute! Go Good Will with the new initiatives to re-sell by re-vamping the reject piles that mostly go to landfills. William Good is the name for this start-up that will sell styles to the masses.

In a stunning reversal of direction, the Bush administration has officially requested a new addition to the Endangered Species list. What threatened species could elicit this drastic change of course for the Bush Administration? It is, of course, the elusive Climate Change Skeptic (dubium mundus fervesco), whose habitat is being threatened by rational thinking, increased rates of deforestation, low gas-mileage standards, and the abundance of “cheap” coal. The stunning news comes just after a story in the Washington Post reported that the current administration has never requested that an animal be protected by the Endangered Species Act. Of the current administration’s 59 listed species, none of them were requested by the administration themselves.

But the Bush administration is not alone in wanting to protect such skeptics as Fred Singer and Patrick Michaels, in fear that the breed may die out completely in the coming years. Fortunately, the skeptics have received significant funding from coal and oil companies, including ExxonMobil.

George Bush and Hugo Chavez, former political enemies, announced plans this morning to dismantle the North American Free Trade Agreement, or NAFTA, replacing it instead with the North American Fair Trade Agreement, also NAFTA.

“The new agreement marks a turning point in US-Venezuela relations,” said Juan Johnston of the North American Monitor of Bribery in Latin America (NAMBLA). “It also underscores the magnitude of recent growth in demand for ethically produced goods.”

Ever wonder what fashion bloggers are really like? We have! While it would be difficult to try and analyze ourselves, we jump at the chance to chat with other eco-minded online writers to get their perspective on sustainable fashion and its place in the entire green movement.

Launched a month and a half ago as part of the new EcoGeek blogging network, Wearing the Future is all about “straight talk as much as style, so you won’t have to worry about fluffy, PR-soaked, greenwashing nonsense.”

I recently had the pleasure of chatting with the blog’s chief editor and head writer, Kyeann Sayer (pronounced like “cayenne” pepper). As a long-time writer for Treehugger.com, Kyeann has an impressive media resume - she has been featured on CNN, MSN, I.D. Magazine, Domino, Spin, Outside, and Women’s Wear Daily … just to name a few.

In our lively conversation, Kyeann and I talk about the beginning of Wearing the Future, her favorite eco-fashion brands, personal style’s place in the world of green living and more - read on for all the juicy details!

Victoria Everman: How did you get connected with Hank Green of EcoGeek? Did the two of you come up with the idea for Wearing the Future together or was he on the look-out for an editor and writer already?