Wednesday, February 2, 2005

  • 5,000 people went out into the street in Morocco to support (yes you read that correctly, support) an article saying the Tsunami was 'divine retribution'...because remember guys, God must think that poor villagers and children are evil; just because we can't accept natural disasters and the human error of not warning people.
  • In the UAE, a worker who had not been paid for 5 months killed himself. He had borrowed thousands to be able to get to work in the Emirites. 350 co-workers protested their wages not being paid by the same company (why dont the press name the company?? it should be shamed) Story must sound very familiar to many people here.
  • A Swedish police officer robbed a bank, only to come back and lead the investigation of it...the investigation included raiding a home and arresting two people for the crime...then he went and suspiciously bought a new car with the money he stole...at which point do you think he should have stopped and said "wait this is going too far"...?

And Head for the Hills:

"Scientists from the British Antarctic Survey believe that the rise in sea levels around the world caused by the melting may have been under-estimated."(BBC)

"Temperatures around the world could rise by as much as 11C, according to one of the largest climate prediction projects ever run"(BBC)

"a massive Antarctic ice sheet previously assumed to be stable may be starting to disintegrate, a conference on climate change heard yesterday. Its collapse would raise sea levels around the earth by more than 16 feet."(Independent)

"LOWLAND areas of Britain, including London, will need to build new sea defences or they will be swamped in the not-too-distant future by sea levels 15ft higher than they are today, according to new research." (Times)

So what can we do?

Earthaction has some suggestions, so does the WWF..it's not that hard really.

CO2 is the main gas responsible for climate change.: so we need to help save the Rainforest and forests in general. We can do that here, here and here (Sting fans alert) and if you're really lazy here too with just a click---We need to decide to drive more efficient cars, or find an alternative---be energy efficient, now that's super easy---minimise or eliminate consumption of polluting things that we throw away..

The BBC has a few tips:

1. Don't waste electricity

2. Turn the lights off when you leave a room
3. Buy products with less packagingLess packaging means less waste.
4. Don't run the tap when you brush your teeth

5. Have a shower instead of a bath Showering can use two to three times less water than having a bath.
6. Don't leave TVs and hi-fis on stand-by Leaving things on stand-by uses large amounts of energy unnecessarily.
7. Stop getting junk mail...tell the bank that u do online banking only.
8. Wherever possible walk, cycle or use public transport
9. Don't drive a 4X4 Driving a small petrol car instead of a 4X4 could make the same environmental saving as a whole family recycling bottles for 400 years!
10. Recycle. Recycling just one plastic bottle would save enough energy to light a 100 watt bulb for up to six hours. (BBC)

1 comment:

kwtia said...

Hi VC, i guess whether or not big business gets the message, consumers should do their part..the less we consume the less they will have to produce..and maybe they will finally get the hint that making products that damage the planet is no longer a money making option.. as consumers, we should do what we can, i think..
I'm not sure why solar energy isn't a bigger contender...certainly the people and businesses and countries that make their money from fossil fuels and oil will not want anything to compete..but who knows, there are many people around the world who do live off the grid..but as for cars..i don't know.