Sustainable Design Competition

The competition relates to the sustainable laundry process. More details on the competition can be found at 

http://www.designwithculture.co.uk/
Due end of May!

March against Monsanto

Saturday 25 May 2pm - A worldwide event!
The Fight For Our Food - Organised by FOOD Watch and We Say No To GMOs

More info and Sign up for the Perth march on Facebook.

Not in Perth? Check out here for other cities.

Click on picture to enlarge
We March Against Monsanto because:
·  Monsanto owns 90% of all patented GM seeds and it is illegal for farmers to save them
· controls 27% of all commercial seeds including organic and heirloom varieties
· owns almost 20% of WA’s wheat and barley breeding programme (InterGrain) and intends to commercialise GM wheat
· has fought hard to prevent GM labelling laws in the US
· most foods and ingredients made using GM techniques are unlabelled
· some types of Monsanto's GM soy, corn and canola harm experimental animals, and maybe us
· GM crops reduce biodiversity & harm the environment, e.g. by harming the Monarch butterfly
· the US "Monsanto Protection" Act bans their courts from hearing disputes over GM seed.

On the day
· It would be great if you could wear a GM printed t-shirt, or a red top
· Bring your own signs and have your say on the day or carry one of ours
· Meet at Parliament by 2:00 pm
· There will be information stalls at Russell Square . If your group is interested in supporting us and would like to hold a stall contact me asap
· We will have guest speakers from 3:15 at Russell Square

Grand POO design

Poo Power found a way to unleash the power in the 1,350 tonnes of dog poo produced each day in Australia.

Students from Swinburne are involved in a design project with Poo Power to create a new dog waste management system that is:

•Innovative
•Functional and user-friendly
•Acceptable to dog owners, local Council and all users of public parks
•Friendly to the environment including Melbourne’s rivers, creeks and bays,
•Economically feasible.

Updates will be made throughout the year working closer towards Australia’s first Poo Power! station becoming a reality in 2013.

Interested in how they progress like the Swinburne Design Factory FB page and follow.

Some interesting background on dog poo bags here 

Changes to Australia’s Intellectual Property

Intellectual property is the currency of today's knowledge economy

Changes to Australia’s Intellectual Property (IP) laws came into effect on Monday 15 April, and include reforms to patents, trademarks, copyright and designs.

To find out what these changes mean for your business, visit IP Australia at http://www.ipaustralia.gov.au/about-us/ip-reforms/

FREE workshops

(Click to enlarge)

As things begin to speed up before the Federal Election, you are invited to a series of free workshops to learn more about the Greens WA, how we do things and why it is so important to re-elect Scott Ludlam to the Senate.

Everyone is welcome at these workshops including members, non-members, vague supporters and curious cynics… so bring your friends!

You do NOT need to be a Greens voter or supporter … just someone who is curious to fund out more about the third party in Aussie politics.

Greens 101
A myth-busting introduction to the party, policies and people, with all questions answered.
5.30pm Tues 30 April - UWA OR 6pm Wed 8 May - Fremantle

Consensus Decisions
Explore collaborative decision making.
Choose from 3 modular workshops from beginners to experts.
Sun 9 June – Fremantle

How Politics Works
Do you really understand our democratic system? _
We dare you to discover what you don’t know, you don’t know!
1pm-3pm Sun 19 May - Perth City

Green Voice in Parliament
Be amazed by what the Greens have actually achieved as a minor party.
3.30-5.30pm Sun 19 May - Perth City

For bookings and further details, please see www.greenswatraining.org

The Hidden Costs of Hamburgers

Americans love hamburgers - they eat about three burgers a week. But what are the hidden environmental costs?

More info here
Directed and produced by Carrie Ching, Reported by Sarah Terry-Cobo and Carrie Ching, Illustrated and animated by Arthur Jones.

The poison of the pampas

Argentina's Bad Seeds, watch documentary by Aljazeera from last month here before watching older documentary below.


Argentinian TV Programme from April 18, 2010, hosted by journalist Rolando Graña: The poison of the pampas - El veneno de las pampas Englisch Subtitles. Part 1 - Monsanto, Roundup and Glyphosate.

And part 2

RTRS will allow genetically modified Roundup REady soy sprayed with Glyphosate to be labeled responsible...

The RTRS has been condemned as a greenwash exercise by over 230 civil society organisations from South America and the rest of the world.

And Australia is not only importing GM food but also growing it... our federal regulator FSANZ has/is approving the import of GM “food” grown in South America, the latest approval pending a rubberstamp from the state Ministers?

How many jobs could you create by investing $1million?

And then reading this: Opposition leader Tony Abbott casts doubt on rail funding for WA

"Mr Abbott has, well before the September federal election, confirmed that any federal government he leads will not contribute to urban rail,'' Mr Wyatt said.

I guess he'd rather puts more money into the mining industry to keep the wealthy happy, they never take the train anyway... sorry for being cynical.

Wildlife poaching...

A total of 203 rhino have been poached in South Africa this year. Of these, 146 have been killed in the Kruger National Park.

Rhino horn sales have been banned for more than 30 years under Cites, but increasing demand from Far Eastern countries has sparked an increase in poaching. Rhino horn sells for an estimated $60,000/kg. (read here)

All good and well that China and other Asian countries have a growing economy but they should stop believing that rhino horns are having healing properties. (read here)

Tens of thousands of elephants were killed in 2012 - the worst we've seen since the 1980s. History is repeating itself, and the demand for ivory is even greater now. We have to step up for elephants FAST or face losing them forever. Run for the wild, check here

Thailand gave a good example last month! (read here)

More disturbing stuff, breeding lions for hunting...
How sick must you be to pay a lot of money to hunt on captivated lions released into the wild just days before you are arriving for your "hunting holiday"???

Read article

This fracking well is just outside Mandurah. There have been over 1000 Fracking leases for the Perth basin already given the go ahead _ THAT'S ON OUR MAIN WATER SUPPLY from Bunbury to Geraldton.

The situation here is no different than in QLD except that it has only just started here see Four Corners on ABC iview, a must see if you've missed it on 1 April.

We should stop those activities before it's too late!