Miya Coffee, Carbon Offset, 100% Fairtrade and 100% Organic!

Something new has appeared in the canteen at work. I thought it might be worth a mention here. Miya Coffee claims to be the first coffee in the world that is 100% Fairtrade, 100% organic and the estimated 7000 miles it has taken to get to the UK from Columbia is all offset.

There is a lot of contention over the success of carbon offsetting programs but I like to take the simple view that they have to be better than doing nothing. Miya Coffee contributes to reforestation projects in Kibale National Park, wind turbines in India and the supply of biomass ovens to people in India and smokeless stoves in Honduras.

Just to make sure though, Miya triple the total estimated delivery distance and offset 21,000 miles rather than 7,000.

It tastes pretty good too. Next time you buy a coffee why not mention it.

Useful links:

http://www.miya-coffee.co.uk/index.html

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Food and Climate Change Connection

What do Food and Climate Change have in common? Well if you look at this Cars=13% of all carbon emissions and Livestock=18% of all carbon emissions eating less meat or even going Vegetarian/Vegan is better than switching to a hybrid car and even better if you go vegan and own a hybrid!

About 5 months ago I went Vegan and have loved every last bit of it and I feel great being a vegan so I decided to create this post since it is “Green”.

What is a Vegetarian/Vegan?

Lacto-Ovo Vegetarian: One whose diet excludes meat and fish but permits milk and eggs.

Lacto Vegetarian: One whose diet excludes meat and fish and eggs but permits milk.

Ovo Vegetarian: One whose diet excludes meat and fish and milk but permits eggs.

Vegan (Strict Vegetarian): One whose diet excludes all animal products.

Why go Vegetarian/Vegan?

• Eating a vegetarian or vegan diet is healthy because you can prevent many diseases and cancers like heart attack, strokes, prostate and colon cancers and can even lower your cholesterol levels, lower your blood pressure, lower type 2 diabetes.
• You are less likely to become obese and you will lose weight and keep it off with exercise.
• You will discover you have more energy to do things, need less sleep and need little to no caffeine to keep you awake during the day.
• Raising livestock for food accounts for about 1/3 of all the US fossil fuels and about 50 of all the water in the US is used by the meat industry.
• Going vegan/vegetarian stops cruelty to the animals you eat because they feel pain too.

(Taken from http://www.sugarrocket.com/vegan/why-i-am-vegan.php)

Daily water usage in the US for…
An omnivore : 4,200 Gallons
A vegetarian: 1,200 Gallons
A vegan: 300 Gallons

Yearly land usage in the US for food…
An omnivore : 3.3 Acres
A vegetarian: 1/2 Acre
A vegan: 1/6 Acre
To make one pound of “food”…
Pound of beef = 2,500 Gallons of water
Pound of apples = 49 Gallons of water
Pound of lettuce = 23 Gallons of water

But don’t take it just from me do plenty of research at your local library, search on the internet on what vegetarians and vegans can eat and what items you can order when you go to a fast food/restaurant.

Also you don’t have to go completely vegetarian/vegan by incorporating a day or meal each week to be vegetarian/vegan friendly.

In conclusion: Going Vegan/Vegetarian reduces animal suffering, consumption of natural resources, makes you healthier and reduces your carbon footprint!

Posts by the Green Girls you may like:

Veganism – Part 1 (The Reasons)

Guest Editor: Vika Lebedeva - 10 myths about vegan

Useful Links:

http://www.goveg.com/environment-globalwarming.asp

http://www.goveg.com/healthConcerns.asp

http://www.tryveg.com/img/vsg0501.pdf

http://www.goveg.com/feat/chewonthis/index.asp

http://www.backwardshamburger.com/

http://www.veginity.com/

http://www.vegbox-recipes.co.uk/index.php

http://www.vegansociety.com/html/

http://myhq.com/public/s/u/susanv/

http://www.viva.org.uk/goingvegan/index.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MD67tltFyAw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05zhL1YUd8Q

Movies/Documentaries to see:

Earthlings

Fast Food Nation

Super Size Me

The Future of Food 

Filed under Marion Iowa - USA, Power & energy, Pollution, Health, Food | Comment (0)

GM crop, global hunger, world food.

Frankenstein foods, biodiversity loss, corporate takeover of the countryside. These have all been given as reasons to hate GM. That’s my experience in the UK.

Some Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) in poorer countries support the use of GM crop. These NGOs see it as another problem: the gap between the rich and the poor, between people that grow in order to survive, and those that grow for profit.

Corporate names like Syngenta and Monsanto have become dirty words for opponents of GM crop. Sometimes options are limited, drought, pest resistant GM crop? or famine? Some can not afford the choice. GM producers need vision to survive. If they want to help create the future perhaps they could identify ways to work closer with local communities to tackle food and environmental challenges together. Perhaps they could grow back the rain-forests, or grow plants on the moon? All companies can pursue ethical profit.

World food prices are on the up. Globally this means more people starve to death. But with that comes resource wars, famine, and mass immigration. Oh and the price of bread goes up in your local shop. (Ahhh - That’s why developing countries like GM crop).

GM food could still provide solutions. such as better use of natural fertilizers and local crop varieties. A UN report in April 2008 called for more local food production (1) . Developing countries will need to adapt quickly to survive in a world without the same levels of trade in cash crops with developed countries addicted to unseasonal, flown in food. I only hope that the World Bank accounts for this in their policy making.

Why do we hate those GM crops so much? Well at heart we’ve always been a nation of farmers in the UK (and many other countries). We can still afford the luxury of non-GM varieties. For the moment I prefer vegetables that haven’t been produced so intensively. Those that have used natural fertilizers, as opposed to those generated from oil.

Developed countries don’t have the same concerns as non-developed ones. We do not have wide-scale hunger and nutrition problems. But we do have a legitimate concern for our environment.

I love those local varieties of crop, those that help regional agriculture and resist the development of crop mono-cultures. They make me feel humble. I’m proud of Jersey Potatoes and British Strawberries. I support fair-trade for our farmers. I don’t want to see one type of wheat, I want choice.

The argument against GM is not one against feeding the needy, its one against the alteration of our national natural environment.

(1) UN report demands urgent action on soaring food prices. The Independent, April 2008.

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Guest Editor: Frans Prins - Organic Cotton, a Travel Story

Eco fashion is hot. It is cool that green lifestyle is in the trend but let’s make it more than that. I hear some people say that organic cotton is already a bit over. Now it’s eco silk! Bamboo! Whatever as long as it is eco chic!

Well, there are more reasons to wear organic cotton than because of its coolness or quality. And these reasons last for longer than a fashion season. Conventional cotton kills. Worldwide thousands of people die yearly because of pesticide related illnesses. Not to speak of the children getting blind or the environmental impact of all those chemicals. There is a clear alternative: organic cotton is free of pesticides and pays off better for the farmers. And that cotton carries wonderful, positive stories.

Last year I visited organic cotton farms and production places in Turkey and Uganda. In Northern Uganda, in the region around Lira, there is as much as 27 thousand farmers growing organic cotton.

It was quite a trip from Kampala, it takes about six hours on extremely bad roads. This area has been under control of the cruel guerilla Lord’s Resistance Army until very recently. Now the area is calmer and the farmers, who lived in refugee camps, are living on their lands again. Until one, two years ago they had to go to their lands with fear and go back to the camps before the evening fell.

The farming life now looked all quite romantic to me: traditional huts, some chickens running around, people chatting or working on their fields. But of course there is a lot of extreme poorness and insecurity about life’s basics as well.

The farmers have small fields with different crops. They do not make use of irrigation, so depend on the rain seasons that occur a few times per year. Next to cotton they grow sesame, red peppers and vegetables for local consumption. The income from cotton and sesame, which is exported, gives income which the farmers can use to send their children to school or buy medicines from. From the extra income they gain with growing organic, the farmers can afford building small houses which give more security and protection.

The farmers are united in a cooperative with chosen representatives. What makes a difference here, is that the organic farmers are trained in methods to prevent their crops in a natural way. For example by planting red peppers around the cotton. Animals don’t like peppers and as a side effect you also produce peppers. Another part of growing organic is using crop rotation. The different crops use the ground differently, which keeps the soil fertile, so one does not need artificial fertilizers to pumped into the ground. The crop rotation also results in a more efficient use of the landfill and a higher production. In this way it is also more economic. And of course the non-organic farmers are very interested to see what their neighbors are doing…

In the end, the social effect of this organic cotton project might be even bigger than the ecological impact. The farmers get a guaranteed price and buy for their cotton, they get training and a organic bonus of twenty percent. This can really mean the difference for sending their children to school or having a proper housing.

Frans Prins is managing director of the Grass Routes Foundation, a young international NGO working in the field of sustainability and design. He is also one of the founders of the new, green fashion label Pamoyo. For the first collection, Pamoyo used organic cotton from Turkey and Uganda and recycled vintage elements.
www.grass-routes.org
www.pamoyo.com

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Guest Editor Adam Beazley - Energy Efficiency: Greener than Green

When talking green, people naturally tend to focus on vehicles, but the fact is vehicle emissions have nowhere near the impact that the building industry does.

Buildings and homes use more energy and are responsible for over 35% of all man made greenhouse gases and energy used worldwide. By “greening” every structure with existing technologies and techniques, the world would see a reduction in CO2 by over 1,800 megatons per year. That is equal to the amount of CO2 released by all planes and vehicles in North America last year.

With energy cost rising at a steady pace, energy efficiency renovations are the most cost effective ways to green a home or building, even more so than investing in alternative energies. Increasing efficiency does not have to be a daunting task, there are plenty of quick and easy things you can do which are not very involved. Below is a list of 10 things you can do to increase your efficiency and they are listed from cheapest and easiest to more expensive and involved.

10 steps to Energy Efficiency:

1. Reduce Phantom Loads - phantom loads are those unforeseen “standby” electrical loads that rob about 11% of annual energy consumption. Most electrical products have standby electrical loads which use electricity even when the product is turned off. DVD players, TV’s, Computers, phone chargers, and many other products all use electricity on a constant basis. The solution is to plug these things into surge protector strips and turn the strip off when they are not in use.

2. Seal Up Leaks - Air infiltration is a major cause of increased energy usage. When a structure is not properly sealed, heat will be lost during the winter and gained during the summer, driving up heating and cooling cost. The solution is to perform a pressurization test to locate air leaks and use some sort of caulk or silicon sealant to seal the air leaks in your walls and ceilings.

3. Weatherize - Weatherizing is very similar to sealing air leaks, however, it is different in that it is applied to moving parts such as doors and windows where a caulk type sealant will not work. Weatherizing doors and windows require special products such as v-channel, foam strips and sweeps. For a more detailed tutorial about sealing and weatherizing your home or business, check out “Air Leaks & Energy Exchange” over at NeutralExistence.com.

4. Change Lights - Inefficient lighting is responsible for not only wasted electricity, but added heat gain. The incandescent light bulbs of yesterday are slowly being phased out to more energy efficient Compact Florescent bulbs and LED lightbulbs. A new energy efficient CFL bulb can save about 150 kWh of electricity annually and save you approximately $37 over the life of the bulb. LED lightbulbs, although more expensive up front, will last much longer than CFLs and use less energy as well.

5. Control Radiant Heat - Radiant heat is the most efficient form of heat transfer and in order to increase a structures heating and cooling efficiency, radiant heat transfer must be stopped. Radiant heat is responsible for excess heat gain in the summer and heat loss in the winter. The only way to stop radiant heat transfer is by using a radiant barrier which is a sheet of low emisivity, high reflectivity foil. Although radiant barriers come in many shapes and sizes, but be sure to find a well made, durable, two sided (for winter and summer protection), perforated radiant barrier. I highly recommend Ra-flect radiant barrier as a cost effective quality product (www.raflect.com).

6. Increase Water Efficiency - Massive amounts of energy are used to treat and move potable (drinkable) municipal water, so reducing water usage very energy efficient. There are a variety of things you can do to reduce your potable water usage such as using low flow faucet and shower fixtures, taking shorter showers, only running dishwashers and washer machines when they are full, not leaving the water running needlessly and using water banks in toilet tanks to reduce water used to flush toilets.

7. New Insulation - Insulation retards the passage of convective and conductive heat and is rated in R-values, which is the measure of the rate that heat energy is transferred through a material. If your insulation has been pressed down over the years or the R-value is not the proper value for your location, re-insulating your home is well worth the expense. In order to choose the most efficient insulation for your home or building check out the Energy Star website to find out: www.energystar.gov

8. Window Renovation - Windows are generally the most significant energy sink in almost every structures due to lack of insulation. Windows come in a variety of configurations such as single pane (not efficient), double pane, gas filled, mirrored, etc.. In cooler climates gas filled double pane windows with high R-values are excellent and well worth the cost of replacing old single pane windows. In hotter climates, these same windows are not as effective as they only reduce convective and conductive heat gain but fall short in stopping radiant heat gain. Stopping radiant heat gain in hotter climates requires exterior shading elements or the use of an energy film which helps to block the suns UV rays. Window energy films are applied directly to the glass with soap and water and will essentially make an existing window perform like that of an energy star rated double pane gas filled window.

9. Energy Star Products - Energy star is a governmental rating system which gives its seal to products, buildings, homes and devices which meet minimum requirements of energy efficiency as compared to the norm. When buying new devices such as refrigerators, washer machines, dishwashers and home electronics be sure to purchase products with the Energy Star seal as they will use less electricity than their competition. For more information about energy star and there rating system please see their website (www.energystar.gov).

10. Build Green - In order to increase your energy efficiency build green instead of buying an already made home or business. The benefits of having an architect design a green home or business for you are too many to count. Some benefits of building green include increased energy efficiency, better interior air quality, higher resale value, higher rental rates and occupancy rates for businesses and not to mention, you get the house or building that meets YOUR needs, not some generic home or building which may not be sized appropriately.

Efficiency IS greener than green

Anyway way you look at it, there is no getting around energy efficiency if you really want to green your lifestyle. Efficiency does not have to stop at your home or business, the idea of efficiency can be used in every aspect of your life, from shopping for products to driving around town, efficiency is the key to being green,

Adam Beazley is a LEED accredited professional and green architectural designer, who focuses on green, energy saving design techniques. He is also the founder of Neutral Existence, which is an environmental website dedicated to helping individuals green their life and save money in the process. The website has a plethora of tutorials, articles and products to help individuals reduce their energy consumption, entire environmental footprint and reliance on non renewable resources.
www.NeutralExistence.com

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Guest Editor: James Russell - How to Turn our Children Green

It’s hard to remember what the world was like before we found out about climate change. For children it’s probably impossible. Yet ten or fifteen years ago Greens were still perceived as slightly crazy, unrealistic misfits – people who refused to engage in the eternal political battle between right and left, but instead wanted to send humanity back to the Dark Ages.

With Green politics rapidly becoming mainstream and the Environment high on everyone’s list of important subjects, we’re moving into new territory. The old campaigners from the 1970s are suddenly discovering that politicians and pundits are listening to them, and you can hardly pick up a newspaper or open a web page without somebody telling you how to Green up some aspect of your life. Rarely a day goes by without an alarming news story about melting ice or vanishing species. In fact the news story that doesn’t have climate change as an important component is now as rare as the Panamanian Golden Frog.

News and opinions inevitably filter from the adult world into the playground, and children are worried. A government-sponsored UK survey of primary (4-11) education last year found that kids were pessimistic about the future and concerned about everything from climate change to trade injustice. Many equated these huge issues (which they felt powerless to address) to their immediate environmental problems – traffic, bullying and so on – creating a general climate of anxiety.

This has worsened a tendency that should alarm environmentalists across the spectrum: children’s abandonment of the real world in favour of TV, the internet and fantasy fiction. A recent editorial in the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust magazine suggested that children’s lack of enthusiasm for nature (in reality, rather than on TV) did not bode well for wildlife organisations that rely both on the work of enthusiastic volunteers and donations from supporters. The people currently filling the ranks and the coffers of the RSPB and other organisations developed their passions when they were children, but if our children spend their free time at home (or in manmade playgrounds), how can they do the same?

Other factors are at work here, for instance the misguided health and safety rules that make it so hard for schools to arrange trips. My son went to a wonderful pre-school set beside a city farm, yet the kids never went to the farm during school time because to take them fifty metres required supervision at a ratio of one adult for every three children.

If children are raised in these surroundings, driven everywhere in cars and offered the easy solace of the bedroom computer, it’s no wonder they find the real world alarming. Add to this fears of climate change and you have a generation ill-equipped to face any sort of challenge, never mind the ones our kids are likely to encounter.

Yet many children want to be active and informed citizens, and thankfully they are now getting more and more opportunities to do so. The international organisation Eco-schools (www.eco-schools.org) is one that doesn’t yet have the cachet of Greenpeace, but it could prove a vital force for change. Some 40,000 schools around the world (8,000 plus in the UK) have signed up to this programme designed to help schools teach kids about a whole range of Green issues and carry out practical work.

A glance at the nine topic areas listed on the UK website (www.eco-schools.org.uk) shows that this programme goes way beyond light bulbs and composting. It is, in fact, a revolutionary exercise in consciousness-raising, covering everything from Fair Trade to Biodiversity. It insists on the importance of children leaving the classroom and experiencing the world as much as possible, emphasizes that the Environment is all around us and ours to look after, and empowers students by putting the school council rather than teaching staff at the centre of the decision-making process.

Of course schools can ignore the whole thing if they choose, but this is part of a wider movement to encourage and facilitate children’s involvement with their environment. A few years ago play workers in the city of Bath launched a Play Rangers scheme, which offered children adult supervision in local parks, encouraged adventurous play and gave lessons in outdoorsy skills. Now local authorities all over the country are launching similar schemes, and children are coming out to play.

Personally, I am less excited about the much more loudly-trumpeted Greening of children’s TV and websites. While it might be inspiring for children to see their favourite characters saving the planet, the children themselves are still staring at a screen. If we want a new generation of eco-warriors to stand up to governments and corporations in the future, they need the opportunity to fall in love with the world around them and to develop the strength and imagination to become its protectors.

James Russell is the author of How to Turn Your Parents Green
howtoturnyourparentsgreen.blogspot.com

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