Intel Becomes Largest Purchaser of Green Power in the U.S.

U.S. (TGW) – Intel will purchase 1.3 billion kilowatt hours a year of renewable energy certificates, making Intel the single largest corporate purchaser of green power in the United States. More here, http://thoughtsonglobalwarming.blogspot.com/2008/01/intel-becomes-largest-purchaser-of.html

Ann Arbor to be First City in U.S. Using 100% LEDs

Michigan (TGW) – Lumecon and Relume Technologies has won the contract for converting the city of Ann Arbor, Michigan over to 100% light emitting diodes (LEDs) for its 1000 streetlights. Read here,
http://thoughtsonglobalwarming.blogspot.com/2008/01/ann-arbor-to-be-first-city-in-us-using.html

Sustainable farming is not an easy sell

Eat local food for dirt's sake.
That might be the simplest way to describe a guiding principle of Shepherd's Grain, a small, commercial cooperative launched by Pacific Northwest farmers hoping to market their wheat flour grown using "no-till" agricultural methods. Read more here, http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/348201_dirtsider22.html

Abu Dhabi unveils zero-waste city

Abu Dhabi, the oil-rich emirate, has unveiled a plan to build a zero-waste, zero-carbon, car-less city in the desert. More here, http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=253829

New Housing Development Features Shared Renewable Energy

In a small town in southwestern New Hampshire a big idea is emerging. It's a concept called cohousing and it's beginning to break ground across America. Here, twenty-nine families live in a neighborhood of single-, double-, and quadruple-family homes that are clustered on a small portion of 113 acres of pasture, ponds and open land. Read the article here, http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=51181

Extreme Eating: Time Gets Silly with Anti-Local Food

Perhaps it was bound to happen: though Time magazine trumpeted "Forget Organic. Eat Local" last year, columnist Joel Stein throws pie in the face of Michael Pollan's Omnivore's Dilemma of figuring out what to eat and how to get it locally. It's here, http://www.treehugger.com/files/2008/01/extreme_eating.php

Norway Plans to go Carbon Neutral by 2030

Norway (TGW) – Norway wants to go carbon neutral by 2030, it said today.
2030 is 20 years earlier than its previous target, 2050. Read the short article here, http://thoughtsonglobalwarming.blogspot.com/2008/01/norway-plans-to-go-carbon-neutral-by.html

New Solar Panels Work Both in the Day and at Night

Idaho (TGW) – Researchers at Idaho National Laboratory are developing a novel way to collect energy from the sun with a technology that could potentially cost pennies a yard, be imprinted on flexible materials and still draw energy after the sun has set. Read the article here, http://thoughtsonglobalwarming.blogspot.com/2008/01/new-solar-panels-work-both-in-day-and.html

First Mercury Free Computer Unveiled at Macworld 2008

Apple is making a stronger commitment to the environment, as evident in the unveiling of it's latest laptop, which is the first computer to be mercury free. It also boasts arsenic-free glass and lead-free circuit boards, among other features. Here's more, http://www.apple.com/environment/

"Natural" Means Nothing – FDA Declines to Define "Natural"

The FDA dealt a disappointing blow recently to consumers hunting for natural choices for their families. Despite petitions from The Sugar Association and major manufacturer, Sara Lee, Food Navigator reports that the FDA declined to issue a regulation that would define use of the word "natural" .... Read the rest here, http://ecochildsplay.com/2008/01/14/“natural”-means-nothing-–-fda-declines-to-define-“natural”/

Study: Winters in the Northeast Warming

Northeast (TGW) - A study of weather station data from across the Northeast from 1965 through 2005 found December-March temperatures increased by 2.5 degrees and average snowfall totals dropped 8.8 inches over the period. Read here, http://thoughtsonglobalwarming.blogspot.com/2008/01/study-winters-in-northeast-warming.html

Hybrid Gets 150 MPG

On the highway (TGW) – AFS Trinity Power Corporation revealed its XH-150 hybrid SUV today, which gets 150 miles per gallon, and goes 40 miles on electricity alone, at the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. Read the rest here, http://thoughtsonglobalwarming.blogspot.com/2008/01/hybrid-gets-150-mpg-using.html

Upgrade to an LCD Monitor

If you're in the market for a shiny, new monitor for your desktop, chances are you'll wind up with a sleek flat-panel display, … Read more from planet green here, http://planetgreen.discovery.com/transport-tech/upgrade-to-an-lcd-monitor.php

In Defense of Real Food
"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."
Michael Pollan, author of The Omnivore's Dilemma.

Read the story here,

http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2008/01/in-defense-of-f.html#more

Are There Really 'Continents' of Floating Garbage?

Since stories have started surfacing more recently, many have wondered if the rumors are true. Are there really ‘continents’, or massive floating garbage patches residing in the pacific ocean? Apparently, the rumors are true, … Read here, http://www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2007/12/are-there-reall.html

Techcrunch awards

Hi all,
Our friends at Zerofootprint have been nominated for a Techcrunch award in the 'Most likely to make the world a better place' catagory.
Please follow this link and help make them the winner in their catagory,
http://vote.crunchies.techcrunch.com/category/view/worldimprovement
You can see all the nominees at http://vote.crunchies.techcrunch.com/
About Zerofootprint,
We bring together the power of social networks on the web — the best environmental science, risk management and software engineering — to create an environment for change that focuses on an individual's impact as part of the human collective effort.
About the Crunchies,
The 2007 Crunchies is our first annual competition and award ceremony to recognize and celebrate the most compelling startups, internet and technology innovations of the year. The Crunchies is a collaboration project between GigaOm, Read/WriteWeb, VentureBeat and TechCrunch. Best of all, the internet community is invited to choose who wins.
Thanks all,
Barry.

Local Food: The New Competitive Edge

It sure doesn't look like much from the outside, and although we have lived in the neighbourhood for over 20 years we had never set foot in Fiesta Farms, usually going to the local Loblaws instead.
Also from Treehugger, http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/10/local_food_the.php

Best of 2007: Local Food

2007 was a big year for local food -- big enough that we'll have another "Best of 2007" dedicated to a specific local food practice, the "100 Mile Diet" -- and on the tip of enough tongues that it was named the 2007 word of the year. Here are some of the stories eating local surfaced in in the past year.
Read the rest from Treehugger here, http://www.treehugger.com/files/2007/12/best-of-2007-local-food.php