Alternatives Journal articles from July 2005

Alternatives Journal archives from July 2005

Strategies for success.(Editorial)(Environmental activists)(Editorial)
July 1, 2005... WHEN faced with ecological problems, environmentalists often move quickly to identify and realize solutions. We've come to expect that activists, policy makers and scholars will follow their analysis of a particular issue with a set of...

Carbon neutral society.(CANADIAN NEWS)(New Society Publishers in BC become carbon neutral of its emissions in order to use solar energy in South Africa)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... New Society Publishers in BC has become the first North American publisher to become carbon neutral. Organizations and individuals can become carbon neutral by investing in renewable energy projects or by planting trees, which absorb...

Power to the students.(CANADIAN NEWS)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... An Ontario high school has teamed with Power Up Renewable Energy Co-operative (PURE) in the construction of its own wind and solar power system. The Green Power Project was unveiled at Centre Dufferin District High School in Shelburne, Ontario,...

Green church.(CANADIAN NEWS)(St. Gabriel's, North York, certified by Leadership in Eneregy And Environmental Design)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The doors will soon open to what may be Canada's first church certified by Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED). St. Gabriel's in North York, Ontario, will include a solar wall to heat and cool the building, a planted roof for...

New rodent discovered.(GLOBAL NEWS)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... A new species of rodent, variously known as the Kha-nyou, the rock-rat or the spineless porcupine, was discovered being roasted for its meat in a market in Laos. Researchers have found Laonastes aenigmamus so unlike any other rodent that a new...

EU fights to keep GE corn out.(GLOBAL NEWS)(genetically engineered corn imported from United States)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... On April 15, 2005, European Union member states voted to restrict US shipments of corn imports unless the shipments can be shown to be free of Bt10, a genetically engineered corn that is currently unauthorized in Europe. Bt10 has a marker gene...

Trade talks threaten protections.(GLOBAL NEWS)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The World Trade Organization is setting the stage for the removal of hundreds of laws that protect human health and the environment, Friends of the Earth International (FOEI) has revealed. An increased number of governments are using new trade...

Organic appeal.(CAMPAIGNS)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Representing organic farmers in Saskatchewan, the Organic Agriculture Protection Fund (OAPF) has appealed a recent court decision that denies them the opportunity to pursue a class-action lawsuit against Monsanto and Bayer to compensate for...

Green Green Water.(CAMPAIGNS)(funding Cree and Manitoba Hydro hydro discussion documentary )(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Dawn Mikkelson of Aquaries Media has recently launched a funding campaign to help finish the production of her third documentary, Green Green Water. The film explores corruption, money, destruction of land and culture, the debate over...

Suicide gene.(CAMPAIGNS)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Several groups, including the Organic Consumers Association, are campaigning against renewed attempts to commercialize sterile seed technology. A petition to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity urges a continuation of the 1998...

Lead heads the list.(RESEARCH FINDINGS)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... In their annual Taking Stock report, the Commission for Environmental Co-operation (CEC) has reported that lead continues to be the foremost toxin in North American air, despite the fact that atmospheric lead concentrations decreased by 94...

Canadian forest data.(RESEARCH FINDINGS)(Sierra Club of Canada introduces a new database)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... A new resource allows Canadians to view and compare forestry practices throughout Canada. Sierra Club of Canada has compiled detailed studies of forestry in each province into the Forest Management Database. While some criticize the database...

Plastics pose cancer risk.(RESEARCH FINDINGS)
July 1, 2005... An estrogen-mimicking compound found in most hard plastics has been linked to an increased risk of breast cancer. A study in Endocrinology reported that prenatal exposure of mice to minute amounts of bisphenol A caused increased density of the...

Fish oil reduces smog effects.(RESEARCH FINDINGS)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... A recent study performed on the elderly in Mexico City by Dr. Fernando Holguin, assistant professor at Emory University School of Medicine, suggests that the daily intake of omega-3 fatty acid-rich fish oil could reverse the effects of smog on...

Flying high.(New propulsion system for ships)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... BENJAMIN FRANKLIN knew what a kite could do. And so do the engineers at SkySails who are working on a new propulsion system for ships. Their design would use a specially constructed inflatable aerofoil--a kite that can fly at heights of 100 to...

Dial-a-bike.(bicycle rental system in England)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... IF IT CAN BE UNLOCKED with a cell phone, then perhaps an OYBike bicycle is gadget enough for wide popularity. OYBike rental pick-ups are located at subway stations, public buildings, key transport interchanges and car park. Set up as a...

Grey hair holds hope in skin cancer.(Science Desk)(melanocyte stem cells)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... PARENTS MAY NO LONGER be able to blame their teenagers for those silver strands: A new study in Science has gotten to the root of greying hair. Emi Nishimura, Scott Granter and David Fisher, from the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Children's...

United Nations World Food Programme.(Hot Green Websites)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The United Nations World Food Programme has a new video game designed to teach kids about world hunger. In the humanitarian computer game called Food Force, 8 to 13-year olds can complete missions like distributing food aid and protecting...

GreenSingles.(Hot Green Websites)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Find green romance! GreenSingles celebrates its 20th anniversary connecting people who share green values and a global consciousness. Originally conceived as a newsletter, the online dating service caters to environmentally minded people ages...

Calgary Materials Exchange Program.(Hot Green Websites)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... Calgary's industrial sector is coming clean with the Calgary Materials Exchange Program, which allows companies within the industrial and commercial sectors to exchange waste products such as paper, wood, plastics, metals and chemicals. Nearly...

Eat Well Guide.(Hot Green Websites)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... The Eat Well Guide has a free directory for consumers looking for meat, poultry, dairy and eggs from farms that use sustainable and humane practices. By entering a postal code, users can find area farms, stores, and online outlets in the US and...

Honey, I sprayed the kids.(Spraying pesticides in low income familiy homes in order to research pesticide effects on infant health)(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... AMIDST CONTINENT-WIDE, regional battles to ban the cosmetic use of pesticides on residential lawns, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) decided to study the effect of pesticides on babies and infants. It seems like a wise idea--it...

At a taxi stand near you.(Velotaxi (environmentallly sensible transport))(Brief Article)
July 1, 2005... A NEW MODE of environmentally sensible transport is picking up speed around the world. The Velotaxi is essentially a covered tricycle with passenger seating, but don't let that description fool you. With its sleek modern design, the vehicle is...

Help the green farmer.(Letter from The Family Farm)
July 1, 2005... IN MARCH 2005, folks from across Canada assembled in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, for a national workshop. Farmers, farm leaders, rural landowners, municipal councillors, civil servants, economists, conservationists and environmentalists gathered...

The ragged edge of success: environmental progress must be measured vigilantly and handled with care.
July 1, 2005... OUR PLANET IS WARMING, as the neoconservatives tighten their grip. A tsunami injects terror into our relations with nature. The melting Arctic suggests a disrupted climate is no longer just theory. American environmentalists remain wrapped in...

Wired for action: cyberactivists are furiously typing their message and showing that the mouse can be a mighty weapon.(Methods in environmental management (Internet))(Cover Story)
July 1, 2005... IN 1971, early Greenpeacers set out with long-haired, steely determination in a worn-out boat towards Amchitka, Alaska, to oppose nuclear testing. The famous voyage brought international attention to environmental issues. Told and re-told over...

Saying it right: by choosing your words and setting the tone, you increase your chances of turning the wheels of government.(Environmental protection)
July 1, 2005... "Empathize with your enemy." --Eleven Lessons from the Life of Robert S. McNamara AS AN ENVIRONMENTALIST working as an economist, I feel like someone who can speak two languages. As a result, I perceive certain "language barriers"...

The big picture: all roads to success require a sense of humour and a sense of perspective.(Starhawk (pseud. of Miriam Simos))
July 1, 2005... WHEN I first met Starhawk in the fall of 2004 at a free talk she was giving in Toronto, she was clearly battered but unbowed in the wake of the American presidential election. In a career that spans the Vietnam War, global justice work,...

Saving maize: complex problems require creative solutions at the international, national and local levels.
July 1, 2005... CELEBRITY CHEFS and food writers often say that food and its preparation is a way of life. But to really understand that concept, you have to go to Mexico. Mexican culture is tightly bound to maize, a crop that has been cultivated there for...

Fair transit: the Vancouver Bus Riders Union works to make transit accessible to minorities who need it most.
July 1, 2005... In late 2004, the people of Vancouver were outraged when the public transit authorities at TransLink instituted its third fare increase in five years. The Vancouver Bus Riders Union (BRU) encouraged the transit-riding public to demonstrate this...

Ban stands: Canadian municipalities have the power to restrict pesticide use thanks to the Supreme Court and Hudson, Quebec.
July 1, 2005... WHEN the Supreme Court of Canada unanimously decided in June of 2001 that the small community of Hudson, Quebec, had the legal power to ban pesticide use, community activists from coast to coast celebrated a sweet victory. [ILLUSTRATION...

Practically green: Peterborough's Green-Up program walks the talk, helping people translate information into action.(Environmental organization Green-Up (sevices))
July 1, 2005... OCTOPUS. Slime mould. Ecosystem. Images like these aren't normally used to describe organizational structures. But they provide fitting metaphors for a promising form of environmental organization that takes practical action to address many...

Toxics treaty: the Stockholm Convention will help protect the most vulnerable from the world's most dangerous family of chemicals--persistent organic pollutants.
July 1, 2005... WHEN RESEARCHERS at Laval University in Montreal, Quebec, began testing in the 1980s for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in breast milk, getting control samples from women living in a pristine environment seemed like a good idea. (1)...

Without a trace: controversy buzzes around the mysterious disappearance of bees on Prince Edward Island.(Beekeping, pesticides or something else?)
July 1, 2005... THE FUTURE of commercial beekeeping on Prince Edward Island is in doubt. That's about the only thing Dr. Robert Coffin and his wife Joyce--biologists and beekeepers--and Stan Sandler--a commercial beekeeper for 30 years--would agree on. It...

Launching a movement.(The Greenpeace to Amchitka: An Environmental Odyssey)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... The Greenpeace to Amchitka: An Environmental Odyssey, Robert Hunter, Vancouver: Arsenal Press, 2004. The year is 1971. Anyone who lived on the west coast of North America remembers the autumn of that year, because of the spectre of...

Life and hope.(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... The Future of Life, Edward O. Wilson, New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2002; and Hope's Horizon: Three Visions for Healing the American Land, Chip Ward, Washington, DC: Island Press, 2004. Wilson and Ward provide us with a pair of books that...

Urban smog.(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... Nature and the City: Making Environmental Policy in Toronto and Los Angeles, Gene Desfor and Roger Keil, Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 2004. Urban environmental politics matter. This is the starting point for Nature and the City, a...

Better burbs.(Suburbs)(Superbia! 31 Ways to Create Sustainable Neighborhoods)(Book Review)
July 1, 2005... Superbia! 31 Ways to Create Sustainable Neighborhoods, Dan Chiras and Dave Wann, Gabriola Island, BC: New Society Publishers, 2003. Suburbs are viewed by many as low-density, large-lot housing subdivisions, conceived for cars more than for...

The vision was green.(Robert Hunter (obituary))(Obituary)
July 1, 2005... One of Canada's best known environmentalists passed away on Monday, May 2, 2005. Bob Hunter died from prostate cancer at the age of 63. Besides being an award-winning journalist and broadcaster, he was a founding member of the global...

Sore losers.(Brain Mulch)
July 1, 2005... SO WHAT IS George Bush's real reason for rejecting the Kyoto Protocol? Officially, Bush has claimed that the evidence of climate change is too weak to merit action. (Too weak? Didn't he invade Iraq at the slightest whiff of imaginary weapons of...