Green Options

A few weeks ago, we talked about the future of food and what you can do about it. With the rise of genetic modification and its threat to biodiversity, saving seeds is more important now than it has ever been. Not only do we need plants for food, we rely on them for everything from clothing to medicines to the air we breathe. We couldn’t live without plants, and the Kew Milennium Seed Bank is working to archive 10% of the world’s most threatened flora by 2010.

Ten percent may not sound like much, but it’s actually a huge undertaking. The project costs around £10 million per year to stay up and running, and they’ve saved over three billion seeds since they launched. The seed bank is currently having a hard time getting sufficient funds because of tough economic times and the London Olympics. They’ve received a £2 million bailout from the British government, but the Millennium Seed Bank needs more support. If you’re able, you can help out the Seed Bank by making a donation.

To learn a little more about the seed bank, what they do, and why it’s so important, check out this amazing TED Talk from Jonathon Drori:

Jaime Lerner is obsessed with cities. Specifically, he is obsessed with improving their sustainability through urban planning.

[Curitiba, where Jaime Lerner served three terms as mayor. Creative Commons photo by Felipe Freeze]

He transformed the city of Curitiba, Brazil while he was mayor there and now helps urban planners across the world build and improve cities.