The story of stuff

From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns.

Click on the website, put your speakers on and listen to Annie, I promise you, it's worthwhile!

The Story of Stuff exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.

I think they are right...

Greenwashing...

...Ms. Warner admitted to a kind of overall green ennui, an irritation caused by what she called the “relentless greenwashing of products.” “People use the word like it’s the low-carb label of the furniture business, just slapping it on everything,” she said. “A company says it’s ‘green,’ and then you ask about their manufacturing and they have no idea.”
Perhaps that is why Ann Mack, trend-spotter in chief for JWT, one of the world’s largest advertising agencies, has proclaimed blue to be the new green in her list of 10 trends that will shape consumer behavior in 2008. “Blue is a state of mind,” Ms. Mack said. “Environmentalism 2.0 is all about the planet and water. Those are blue images. We’re not saying green is going away — it’s just going to be a subset of blue. And also there are negative connotations to green — all that greenwashing. I think the word has lost a lot of its meaning.”
Another coming trend pinpointed by Ms. Mack is about “commitment and rethinking instant gratification.” “Because everything is so instantly attainable — you can get what you want, when you want, wherever you want — there will be a premium placed on waiting, on thinking twice before you click ‘buy,’” she said. “Custom-made and one-of-kind are rising above the mass-produced din of ‘now.’...

Read the whole article in The New York Times

Perth Green Drinks

You are invited for the Perth Green Drinks on 8 January 2008to celebrate the start of the New Year.

Green Drinks is for anyone involved in the environment and related fields. Green groups / NGOs, Freelancers and consultants, Companies, Students, Academics, Government departments, Local Authorities, Younger as well as older people so please forward this invitation to anyone you think might be interested in meeting other people related to sustainability.

Green Drinks is a self-organizing network of professionals, students and enthusiasts working in sustainability who meet up in cities around the world for drinks once a month, or every second month in Perth. Everyone is invited to come and have fun, make contacts, get ideas, share information, find inspiration, and of course, to drink! And, no, the cocktails aren't green, though if someone wants to come up with a recipe...

Green Drinks is GLOBAL: active in 230 cities worldwide! UK - USA - Canada - Australia -Germany - Sweden - The Netherlands - Argentina - Belgium - Brazil - Chile - China - Czech Republic - Denmark - Finland - France - Hong Kong - India - Ireland - Italy - Japan - Malta - Mexico - New Zealand - Poland - Puerto Rico - Singapore - South Africa - Switzerland

When:
Tuesday 8 January from 5.30 pm

Where:
KINGS PARK at Rotunda 1 (right behind State War Memorial) It’s a nice walk from Perth city or you can take the bus (route no. 37 and 39) to the main car park opposite the rotunda.

How:
It’s BYO and I suggest you wear a name tag, so it’s easier for people to interact with each other.

What:
Network, interact, talk, laugh, debate, drink, have fun!
Two speakers:
- Glenn Clarke – Envious landscapes
- Wilma van Boxtel – o2 WA – System Reload

For more information check the international Green Drinks website (Australia – Perth)

Hope to see you there!

Stop whaling

Whalerevenge is trying to get a million people to sign a petition to stop whaling.

Free whale watching trips for Japanese visitors
A Sydney company is to offer free whale watching trips to all Japanese tourists if the Japanese government bans whaling. Read more.

Sustainable brand

Following the presentation of Scamper, the pioneers in sustainable brand strategy, at the Sustainable Design conference in Nottingham, UK, last week, here is the video version of that presentation on the future of brands in a sustainable world. It gives a brief introduction to brands, sustainability and the relationship between the two.

If you rather like the printed version, click here.

Water Forever

Go to the Water Corporation website and get involved! Fill in your contact details to register your interest in Water Forever. Registrants will receive information updates and be invited to participate in a range of activities ranging from online surveys through to community forums- your level of involvement is up to you.

Lush Cake of Soap

Looking for a great Christmas present with a low ecological footprint? Have a look, or do I say better, have a smell, at the Lush products. My whole office is smelling of fresh soaps because my friend from New Zealand send me a whole stack of little soaps yesterday, I've tried the Karma one today, yummy!
Lush started producing hand made bath products from fresh ingredients in 1995 and is trading in 42 countries now, also in Australia. They belief in making effective products out of fresh fruit and vegetables,the finest essential oils and safe synthetics, without animal ingredients.
They only buy from companies that test for safety without the involvement of animals but test their products on humans. They believe in making fresh products by hand, printing their own labels and making their own fragrances. All Lush products are still handmade; when they expand they employ more people not machines.
And best of all; you buy a slice which is wrapped in paper and closed with a sticker with the ingredients on it and how to use it, like if you buy a slice of cheese. No waste on packaging! I use their solid shampoo bar for a year now and I am very satisfied, one bar of 100 grams lasts me for half a year while I normally needed a bottle a month; shampoo and conditioner. So I save a lot of plastic bottles. And the solid deodorant lasts for a year! You are getting used to wash your hair with a solid piece of soap in no time, after a few weeks you don't even want to go back to the slimy stuff out of bottles! Unfortunately Lush has only one shop in Perth; Garden City Shopping Centre in Booragoon, but you can order by mail.
There is also the company Cake of Soap in South Fremantle and on the Fremantle markets. I haven't tried any myself yet but they look great on the pictures. Cute cakes and even some soap candy! They are organic and natural, and handcrafted. All soaps are gift wrapped and do not contain SLSs, EDTAs or detergents. There is a Christmas special on the moment: Buy 2 soaps and get the 3rd for half the price to the value of the lowest price soap.

Change your Google into Blackle

"…If Google had a black screen, taking in account the huge number of page views, according to calculations, 750 mega watts/hour per year would be saved."

In response Google created a black version of its search engine, called Blackle, with the exact same functions as the white version, but obviously with lower energy consumption:

www.blackle.com

Christmas spirits

There is a lot of info coming from all kind of news rooms, news papers, magazines and blogs about keeping your Christmas carbon footprint small. It is good to see so many people are aware of the extra impact on the environment during these festive days and they come with heaps of interesting tips.
Like for example if you are one of the people who really enjoy having all these Christmas figures lightning up your house, do it only for a few hours and don't leave them on all night. Give eco presents and wrap them in reusable gift bags or be creative with other materials such as leaves and textiles. Don't buy all these plastic gadgets which you throw away the same day. Buy local produce for your Christmas lunch/dinner, take your own bags instead of adding more plastic to your kitchen drawers... and serve it on real plates, not on the plastic disposable ones. Or if you really don't like doing the dishes afterwards, serve in the biodegradable ones. And have a look at this feature from Channel 31 on a green Christmas. It takes a bit of time to download, about 5 minutes, so be patient because about halfway is a nice feature on the design Christmas tree from Buro North.
There are heaps of more tips, click on the links above.
Amazing Perth Christmas Lights...

Lights out please
(click on the article to get a readable version)

Climate change to curb exports: ABARE

Thursday Dec 6 18:24 AEDT
The impact of climate change will chisel five per cent off Australia's economic output by 2050, says the nation's commodity forecaster.
The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE), releasing its Australian Commodities quarterly report, urged the development of policies encouraging climate change adjustment in vulnerable agriculture sectors.
It also called for more research and development in both climate change adaption and mitigation technologies. Read further

Two-thirds of Australian agriculture production is exported.

Agriculture accounts for about 17 per cent of Australia's total greenhouse gas emissions.

ABARE said the impact of climate change could be lessened by better farm management practices, diversification of crop varieties, changing livestock breeds and improved farming technologies.

Vegie Cars

I am not sure if there are enough fish and chips shops for this system, but you can give it a go, especially when you are close to one. According to this website about Vegie Cars you can convert your diesel consuming car to use vegetable oil from about 450 $. ABC TV series Carbon cops had a program on it in July, I missed it, but here you can read about it. "This is not Biodiesel, it is converting your fuel system instead of the fuel, allowing you to pour waste vegetable oil directly into your fuel tank at the takeaway shop and drive away! No mess - no fuss - no chemicals - no lengthy processing!" Is what they advertise but I know from friends who are doing this that they have to sift the oil before they use it. They might be fussy or their fish and chips shop isn't that clean... Anyway, it's a good way to get rid of the waste, it's cheaper and it's cleaner!

Trajectory 2008

Trajectory 2008 is scheduled for June next year and again is aimed at Students and those graduating in 2007. If this is something you’re interested in, or know someone who might be, please note that the closing date for entries is January 31, 2008.

This year we’re hoping for more prototypes in the product field. These exhibits get to show an A2 presentation board to help them stand out in the company of furniture. A full run-down and entry forms are available at this link

Kind Regards,

Team Trajectory

Steve and Mark

Australia ratifies Kyoto Protocol- YAY!!!

About time!

Hopefully we will see drastic and sweeping changes occuring throughout Oz and the industrial world in the next 90 days (since "Under United Nations guidelines, ratification comes into force 90 days after the instrument of ratification is received by the UN, making Australia a full member of the Kyoto Protocol by the end of March 2008" [http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=224899])

Woohoo!







Cheers to the Kyoto Protocol!