Sylvia Earle and IUCN Invite World Leaders to Celebrate and Extend Ocean Protection

Watch this exclusively on The Underwater Channel.tv

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Monday, 5th October, 2009, Washington DC (IUCN): Today legendary underwater explorer and ocean ambassador Sylvia Earle teamed up with IUCN’s World Commission on Protected Areas to send individual letters to 100 world leaders inviting them to join Sylvia in her wish to better protect the world’s oceans. Watch exclusive coverage of this event online at The Underwater Channel: www.theunderwaterchannel.tv/clipinfo/4003492

Sylvia Earle is one of three recipients of the coveted 2009 TED (Technology, Entertainment and Design) Award which grants awardees a ‘wish to change the world’. Sylvia’s one wish is to establish more ‘hope spots’ – Marine Protected Areas – to support ocean life, on which our day-to-day lives depend.

Marine Protected Areas

Marine protected areas can provide higher and more sustained income through tourism and controlled fisheries than continued exploitation. Effectively managed Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and MPA Networks provide an essential tool that aids the protection of marine biodiversity, builds resilience, achieves sustainable fisheries, maintains a vital role in ecosystem-based management and marine spatial planning.

Each of the individually written and signed letters was sent out today, and by April next year it is hoped that new commitments made by leaders will be highlighted and celebrated as part of a TED Ocean event. The seven-day TED conference will take place on a ship in the Galapagos Islands. Speakers, all focused on the oceans, will range from marine scientists and ocean explorers to musicians and artists to environmental activists. All talks will be streamed live to the world for free. The ultimate goal is to have policy makers and citizens alike understand the necessary action steps needed to create more marine protected areas and to engender the conviction to take them.

“Given the critical range of pressures on the seas there has never been a time like this when we have needed to act in such decisive ways and connect ocean issues to the broader public. By taking new actions as individuals, world leaders can achieve both those goals in one go and also leave a personal legacy from which we will all benefit in future years,” Sylvia Earle said.

Pressures on the Seas

The world's oceans cover 70% of our planet, yet less than 1% of our ocean habitat is protected compared to about 12 percent of the land surface. Climate change is exacerbating the human threats to the oceans and is bringing the marine environment closer to peril. Life too within our oceans is seriously under threat with the large predatory fish including sharks and rays being reduced by about 90%. The reduction of human induced stress factors, including over fishing, pollution and unsustainable coastal development, is imperative if the oceans are to continue to provide marine ecosystem services such as shore protection and important food and income resources on which so many depend.

The impetus for these 100 letters has been the actions of various world leaders who have already shown a commitment to champion ocean protection, making significant announcements resulting in a measurable increase in the area of sea protected.

“I am delighted to be directly connecting to these leaders who really can make a difference. In spring next year we will have a major celebration of my ‘wish’ and I very much hope we can show new progress by highlighting globally those leaders who have made the latest commitments, and show everyone what actions they are taking individually for the oceans,” Sylvia Earle added.

In Britain Prime Minister Gordon Brown has published his long awaited Marine Bill, promising better protection for wildlife including a new network of nature reserves at sea. The bill also pledges better management of inshore fisheries and measures to speed up the approvals process for offshore wind farms by about a year. In England, it will open a new right of public access to coastal lands. Environmental groups however say UK seas are "in crisis", and need more protection than the government is offering.

President Obama has designated three new Marine National Monuments. Together these new protected areas boast enormous biodiversity both in terms of species and habitats. He has continued to offer the marine community hope through the Arctic Fishery Management Plan which will protect the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas from all new commercial fishing and through the establishment of an Ocean Task Force developing recommendations to protect and restore oceans, coasts and the Great Lakes.

President Sarkozy also announced that by 2012 France will increase the protection of maritime space from less than 1% to 10%. He went on to promise that marine protected areas will be doubled by 2020 covering 20% of the 11 million square kilometres of sea under the sovereignty of France.

Other countries supporting ocean protection include the UK, South Africa, Australia, and the Coral Triangle Initiative nations (Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands).

Sylvia Earle has been referred to as “a living legend” by the Library of Congress, “her deepness” by the New Yorker and New York Times and “a hero for the planet” by Time magazine. Dr. Earle is an oceanographer, explorer, author, lecturer and an avid and passionate campaigner for marine protection with a deep commitment to marine research through personal exploration.

Co-signing the letters is well-known British biologist and ocean conservationist, and Marine Vice Chair of the World Commission on Protected Areas, Dan Laffoley. “Most nations of the world have already pledged through the Convention on Biological Diversity and the 2002 Johannesburg Summit on Sustainable Development to use networks of Marine Protected Areas to help safeguard the blue heart of our planet” he said.

Carl Gustaf Lundin, Head of IUCN’s Global Marine Programme added that “The ocean is our life support system and we are seeing more and more evidence of the deteriation of habitats and species as a direct result of our daily activities. But there is cause for hope.”

The UnderwaterChannel.tv (www.theunderwaterchannel.tv) is a free, global web TV channel dedicated to bringing the mysteries of the deep to the surface and becoming a maverick for change for ocean issues. The Underwater Channel <http://www.theunderwaterchannel.tv> has a rostrum of its own

Presenters or Faces of Splash, eight expert divers located at different dive destinations around the world who provide regular, original video dive reports for our viewers and this combines with a wide range of documentaries on underwater subjects. By bringing the experience of diving into people's homes through a dedicated web TV channel, The UnderwaterChannel.tv fulfills a 24/7 need for divers to pursue their passion and tempt "armchair" divers out of their seats and into the water.

IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature, helps the world find pragmatic solutions to our most pressing environment and development challenges.

IUCN works on biodiversity, climate change, energy, human livelihoods and greening the world economy by supporting scientific research, managing field projects all over the world, and bringing governments, NGOs, the UN and companies together to develop policy, laws and best practice.

IUCN is the world’s oldest and largest global environmental organization, with more than 1,000 government and NGO members and almost 11,000 volunteer experts in some 160 countries. IUCN’s work is supported by over 1,000 staff in 60 offices and hundreds of partners in public, NGO and private sectors around the world. www.iucn.org

The World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA) is the world's premier network of protected area expertise. It is administered by IUCN's Programme on Protected Areas and has over 1,400 members, spanning 140 countries.

WCPA works by helping governments and others plan protected areas and integrate them into all sectors; by providing strategic advice to policy makers; by strengthening capacity and investment in protected areas; and by convening the diverse constituency of protected area stakeholders to address challenging issues. For more than 50 years, IUCN and WCPA have been at the forefront of global action on protected areas.

What too many people, whether or not, I would say, connected to the oceans, do not understand is how important the world's oceans are for us as humans. However, with our exploitation, in overfishing and such, and our pollution, with the great garbage vortex being just one of the cases, we are destroying this lifeline of our Planet.

While the oceans are, and I am well aware of that, salty water and not potable water suitable for irrigation and drinking, our very survival, however, depends on the health of the oceans in the same way as it depends on the health of forests and soil.

We need to protect our world's oceans now and stop the exploitation and wholesale destruction of fish stocks and everything else and we must do this now.

Climate Change is but one of the problems and it has put the other problems, many of which may be much more important, in the shade in recent times. We have gotten the perspectives screwed and must rethink our approaches and we must do that pronto.

So, let's do it. Prime Minister, sign the act, and do it now.

© 2009

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PLANNING OUR FUTURE

The Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management (CIWEM) supports the UN’s World Habitat Day 2009, which is raising awareness of the need to improve urban planning to deal with the major challenges of the twenty first century.

In both developed and developing countries, cities and towns are increasingly feeling the effects of climate change, resource depletion, food insecurity, unsustainable population growth and economic instability. Half of humanity is now living in towns and cities, resulting in over crowding, increased crime rates and rising pollution levels. Unfortunately, many current urban planning systems are ill equipped to deal with these major urban challenges or have contributed to the problems of marginalisation and exclusion in rapidly growing, poor and informal cities.

The CIWEM believes that we should examine the way we live and address the growth in our population levels. More people living high-consumption lifestyles means faster climate change and an uncertain future for all.

Many nations aspire to higher living standards, more economic growth and more consumption. But real wealth is expressed in close communities, human relationships, landscapes of small settlements and healthy lifestyles. Consumer-led societies can result in alienation, greed and dispossession, and consequences of large populations are high unemployment, poverty and crimes. CIWEM believes that a better managed population could empower working people, raise the status of the socially excluded, reduce inequalities, eradicate poverty and increase access to clean water and sanitation.

Nick Reeves, Executive Director of CIWEM, says: “How bad does it have to get before we properly plan for a future in a world bent out of shape by climate change? It is self-evident that population x consumption = impact. Unless something is done, our quality of life, except for a minority of the rich and powerful, will decline. We know the problems, but we need to share the best solutions as efficiently and widely as possible by planning better and more sensitively for ourselves and our environment. With over half of the world’s population currently living in urban areas, and this number set to rise to two-thirds in another generation, there is no doubt that the urban agenda need to become a priority for governments everywhere.”

The Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management, CIWEM, is an independent professional body and a registered charity, advancing the science and practice of water and environmental management for a clean, green and sustainable world. www.ciwem.org

See CIWEM’s Policy Position Statement on Living Within Environmental Limits on www.ciwem.org/policy/policies/environmental_limits.asp

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10:10 now available outside UK

Everyone everywhere can now sign up to 10:10

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Everyone now can sign up to the 10:10 pledge regardless of wherever they are in the world. In the UK this can be done via http://1010uk.org and elsewhere the web address for this is http://1010global.org.

In the month or so since its launch the 10:10 campaign has been going from strength to strength and during that time over 1,000 businesses, large and small, have signed up to the 10:10 pledge.

10:10 is about uniting the whole of society around climate change and so far, aside from businesses, already more than 20,000 individual, 200 schools and dozens of councils and hospitals have signed up and have committed to reducing their carbon footprint.

The 10th of the 10th will be seeing lots of 10:10 promotions going on during this eponymous date so keep your eyes peeled for all kinds of exciting things on the 10:10 website(s) and in the press.
10:10 is growing

After such a remarkable first month, they are quickly outgrowing our diminutive office space and urgently need a new home.

If there is a London-based company out there with spare chunk of office that they could fill for free or at a low rate, they would love to hear from them.

The requirements are enough space for around ten desks. Donations towards moving costs would also be enormously appreciated.

Maybe someone can help here in this venture and help this organization to become even more efficient with new office accommodation.

© 2009

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10:10 joining be2camp at Working Buildings

The climate change campaign 10:10 will use its presentation on 7 October at the be2camp social media event in London to call on the design, construction and facilities management sector to pledge a ten percent reduction in carbons emissions through their own activities by 2010.

Held over two days during the Working Buildings trade shows at London Olympia, 7-8 October, Be2camp focuses on how social media or Web 2.0 can help the industry create a better, more sustainable built environment. 10:10 will be describing how its use of social media has made its campaign an outstanding success to date.

It is estimated that the built environment contributes 40% to the UK total carbon emissions. Those in the built environment who take up the 'vow' to cut carbons will be in good company with leading UK organisations including major corporates, institutions, politicians and individuals.

Martin Brown, a co-founder of be2camp, said: "be2camp was created in part to address the issue of sustainability through the use of Web 2.0 (social media), and this is a great opportunity for the industry to stand up with others in the UK and make the pledge to reduce their own carbons."

Malachi Chadwick, Campaign Coordinator from 10:10, said: "This event helps 10:10 reach out to organisations, institutions and indviduals within construction and facilities management, and to have more buildings and estates people joining our campaign. There is also a good fit with be2camp's focus on social media as this too is a key element of our campaign."

10:10 is a national drive to unite people, businesses and organisations across society around a 10% cut in emissions during 2010. More at http://www.1010uk.org/

Be2camp is an international network for people interested in how the latest web applications and web design techniques (Web 2.0 eg: RSS, blogs, Twitter, Wikis, etc) could help build a better, more sustainable built environment - from planning and design through construction to occupation and management of buildings, infrastructure and landscape. It was founded in 2009 by Martin Brown, Paul Wilkinson (both from the UK), Pam Broviak (USA) and Jodie Miners (Australia), and holds regular 'unconference events' focused on social media and how it can be applied in the architecture, engineering, construction and facilities management fields. More at http://www.be2camp.com

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Make Do & Mend Book 2009 top seller

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

The “Make Do and Mend 2009” was the top-selling book at John Lewis in the week of launch. Congratulations to all 28,000 John Lewis Partners.

As readers will remember we reviewed this book and it is a great common sense publication that is somewhat an updated version of the old World War Two classic by the same name minus the 2009.

One can definitely say a “well done” to John Lewis Partnership, the John Lewis Foundations and especially all the 28,000 John Lewis Partners who contributed to the book and its making.

“Make Do and Mend 2009” definitely is a publication that is needed in our current times and will still be a very good guides even if and when we get out of this recession/depression as, some day, we must.

This day, however, could be still some way off though for we must not get sent back into a “back to business as usual” mentality just because there is a little upturn for many an analyst is issuing warnings that the worst is still to come.

Therefore the “Make Do and Mend 2009” book is one that people should definitely consider investing in and also, I have to say, it would not be a bad idea if, indeed, we would look at the advice that was given in the book of WWII vintage the new one was based on, to a degree; and not just the title.

Much of this was and is, obviously, common sense advice but it would appear, again and again, that common sense is indeed a misnomer as it does not seem to be at all that common.

I can never understand why someone has to have the tap running, for instance, when brushing the teeth. Or why people have the lights on all over the house when they are all in one or two rooms only at most of the time.

The same is for leaving TVs on and on standby. Much of this is laziness as so many love the idea of simply not having to worry about switching the lights on and off when going from one room to the next and as to the TV not having to turn it on, physically, at the set.

Most of the problem as to the way we have damaged our Planet has all to do with out laziness and our overconsumption.

We have to look at new ways and into the past where people still had the right attitude, to some degree, of making do and mend, and change.

© 2009

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Are you buying environmentally sound business cards?

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

You business card and/or your calling card, next to your personal appearance and demeanour, are what will make the first and lasting impression at any meeting, whether business or private.

Being environmentally conscientious I am sure you are looking for a way to be green with those cards too and there are many printers that claim to be using recycled paper – how much post-consumer waste please, for often recycled means pre-consumer waste, that is to say mill and print room waste – and green inks but the claims are not really all that there.

The greenest way to do your business- and calling cards is to do them yourself via your PC and printer. Avery has software for templates and the ready paper for it and there are compatible blanks available too.

But you do not even have to do that. You can design your own on the templates and then use waste paper – I do all the time – such as from press releases and such like to make your own cards and cut them using a guillotine (paper trimmer) or just a metal ruler and and craft knife.

I reuse every piece of paper that comes my way, so to speak, and if people insist to use 100gsm or even 110gsm paper for press releases printed on one side only I will use the other side to make business- and calling cards from, for my business and personal use.

When making my cards I make one not so environmentally friendly concession which, however, makes the cards to last that much longer, and that is that I use laminating pouches for the full page and then cut them cards out from that.

I, obviously, could just cut the cards out and leave it at that but most of that paper would not be strong enough on its own and I would, probably, have no other real reuse purpose for those pages, and also the fact that most ink jet printer ink is not water fast and does smudge and run.

The fact that the back of the card happens to have text on it makes often a great conversation piece as to green living and working.

Sure something to think about, methinks.

© 2009

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GEOENGINEERING INSTITUTE LAUNCHED AT CARBON SHOW

Oxford-based institute to encourage research, debate and communication about geoengineering

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

An institute focused on furthering our understanding of the possibilities of geoengineering for dealing with Climate Change has been launched at The Carbon Show, held from September 29th – 30th, 2009, in London’s ExCeL.

Scientists have already proposed a number of ‘techno-fixes’ to counteract climate change and the institute aims to look at these and other approaches in their widest context, including the technical and social issues (ethics, politics, economics, governance and legal).

“If we fail to reduce emissions, we may need to consider resorting to geoengineering to try to provide an ‘airbag’ equivalent to avoid the worst impacts of climate change” says the Institute’s Director, Tim Kruger. “There are huge issues surrounding the kind of deliberate, large-scale, intervention in the Earth’s natural systems which geoengineering approaches require. Scientists have a responsibility to assess the potential and possible pitfalls of suggested geoengineering schemes.

The Institute will be encouraging research and acting as a forum for debating the issues. It is far better to have thoroughly considered the potential techniques in advance in case we have to use them – the time to design an airbag is before you are skidding on ice.”

A recent report by the Royal Society examined the potential and the side-effects of these ideas and has recommended that a sustained programme of research should be undertaken to assess them further.

If, in the near future, the international community has failed to reduce emissions and urgent action is needed to prevent catastrophic climate change then we may have to resort to geoengineering techniques to cool the planet. It is the ambition of the Institute to have thoroughly investigated all potential geoengineering options so as to be able to advise policy makers and society which, if any, techniques are the most appropriate to apply.

The Institute is not advocating geoengineering, but rather seeking to carefully research all the implications of geoengineering approaches so as to assess their potential and the risks they carry.

The Institute has gained the backing of major academics, environmentalists and industry figures from around the world, including Professor Sir David King (former Chief Scientific Adviser to the UK Government and Director of the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, University of Oxford), Professor Tim Flannery (Environmentalist, Macquarie University, Sydney and Australian of the Year 2007) and Sir Mark Moody-Stuart (former Chairman of Shell and former Chairman of Anglo-American), who have agreed to act on the advisory board of the Institute.

This board is international in character and covers a wide range of disciplines including ethics, economics and international law as well as natural sciences and engineering.

Commenting on the launch of the institute Professor Flannery said: “Geoengineering

is an option many would rather ignore. But the climate crisis is now so advanced

that we would be well served by carefully evaluating options”.

© 2009

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Sustrans calls for safer routes to play

Local authorities need more cohesion to offer children safer and healthier lifestyles through better access to play, according to Sustrans.

The UK’s leading sustainable transport charity today published Routes to play, which calls for more joint working across council departments - especially children’s services, planning and transport – to ensure young people can get to play spaces actively and independently.

Routes to play responds to research which has highlighted traffic as one of the main barriers to play.

In addition to setting out how to develop a coordinated approach to active play across strategic planning, the guide sets out how to improve:

routes to play spaces through infrastructure, such as installing crossings, lighting and signage

cycle access to play spaces through cycle parking, and reviewing cycling restrictions

safe access through limiting traffic speeds to 20mph and below in built-up areas

local knowledge of walking and cycling routes to play spaces through maps and information

It also calls for the need to involve children and young people themselves in creating safer routes, and to create play spaces along traffic-free paths.

Sustrans Chief Executive Malcolm Shepherd said: “Children and young people’s freedom to play and be active outdoors has been restricted in recent decades, and the rising levels of childhood obesity now highlight the crucial role of physically active play.

“Children themselves identify traffic as the main barrier to outdoor play and there is a clear need to ensure they can walk and cycle – where they live – and that they have access to traffic-free spaces for play.

“This won’t happen without rethinking the way our public spaces are planned and managed, to prioritise walking and cycling access over motorised transport. Children should be able to travel actively and independently, when visiting friends or going to the park - play and active travel are interwoven and sometimes indistinguishable.”

Routes to play features successful case studies including traffic-calming of residential streets in Swindon and the creation of nearly two miles of new walking and cycle routes in a large public park in Edinburgh.

Routes to play is available for download at www.sustrans.org.uk/play

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Lakeland Grain Mill – Product Review

Review by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

Lakeland Grain Mill
Produced for and imported by Lakeland
Lakeland Ref 13303
Dimensions: 6 x 10 x 28cm H. (2¼" x 4" x 11")
Please see website for current price

The Lakeland Grain Mill is a manual grain mill which attaches easily to tables or kitchen- and other counter tops.

With fine and coarse grinding settings which are adjusted with the screw that also attached the grinding handle changing from one grade to the next is very simple but effective. You can basically set any grade of grinding, from fine to coarse, effortlessly.

This grain mill came about as a big request from Lakeland customers, and it’s no wonder – our new version of the traditional Grain Mill is the easy way to grind wheat, corn, rice, oats, barley, and non-oily seeds, not to mention spices, so you can make your own flour for baking completely-natural, wholegrain breads, and at a fraction of shop-bought prices.

Until recently good hand-operated grain mills for home use were only available in the and from the United States.

People in Britain who wanted to have a small grain mill for home use to make bread, etc. entirely from scratch had to find a supplier in the USA willing to sell and ship abroad – cost of mill and shipping plus customs clearance might be rather costly – or have a friend procure it for them in the US or they had to buy one on a trip to the States. Now, however, such a mill can be had for less than 50 GBP from Lakeland in the beautiful Lake District of England.

The main body of the mill appears to be cast from aluminium and, from the appearance it could probably be recycled aluminium to boot – and the cutting gears are stainless steel.

While the price around 50 GBP is not cheap it is a lot cheaper by far to many others that I have seen and especially compared with the likes of the US's favorite, the Country Grain Mill, which weighs in at around 300 GBP. And while the latter is bigger than the Lakeland Grain Mill the Lakeland one is much easier to store and that is an asset in smaller kitchens.

As said, the Lakeland Grain Mill clamps easily onto a table or counter and fits into a drawer for storage. It is an absolute must for anyone who bakes bread, either by hand or machine, and especially for those that wish to make their bread entirely from scratch.

I have used the mill in the test for the grinding of rice into rice powder and was amazed how well it did that.

Another great product, and one that many people will have waited for, from Lakeland.

© 2009
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In news reports Climate Change blamed for Samoan tsunami

by Michael Smith (Veshengro)

The tsunami that struck Samoa and Tonga in the South Pacific in the last days of September 2009 has been blamed by some on Climate Change.

I have to say that now I have about heard it all.

Tsunamis are not triggered by Climate Change or Global Warming but by undersea earthquakes. But some forces are trying to make this out to be a result of Climate Change as well.

Yet another time that Climate Change is being made to be responsible for something that it cannot and would not be.

Is this yet another attempt to fool the public and force them to believe such stories?

Why are certain powers trying to convince the public that every natural phenomenon is the result of Climate Change, be that tsunamis or what-have-you, when they are not?

Not everything that happens on the Planet, same as the high water recently at the US coast, is due to the changing of the world's climate, as they had to admit in the case of the rising waters.

While the climate appears indeed to be changing and the melting glaciers, whether in the Arctic or the Himalayas and such will, in the end, contribute to a rising sea level, a tsunami is not caused by Climate Change and will never be triggered by Global Warming either.

Help!!!

© 2009

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