Eco heroes

Check Eco Heroes

Earth Carers Training Course - 25 May, 2010

The course runs for five sessions over three weeks and includes talks, practical demonstrations and interesting tours. Full details of the program are attached and highlights include:
• Presentations by new WMRC CEO and the City of Nedlands Waste Officer (Tuesday 25th May);
• Tour of the Shenton Park DiCOM facility (alternative waste treatment) and Red Hill Landfill (Saturday 29th May);
• A recycling session at Earthwise, including a tour by Peg Davies (Tuesday 1st June); and
• Practical worm farm and composting demonstrations at St Lukes Community Garden in Mosman Park by Environment House (Saturday 5th June.

Registration is essential for catering and insurance purposes so please call 9286 5032 or email for a registration form.

The Most Terrifying Video You'll Ever See

Home Appliance Energy Use

How much power does each appliance use in WATTS?
or
What does 1 KILOWATT hour yield for each appliance?
Check it out here

TEDxPerth - Monday 17 May

When: Monday May 17th,
Time: 6pm - 9pm
Where: The Theatre at SCITECH DISCOVERY CENTRE, City West (go through the main City West entrance and up to the second floor)
Bring: 1. Food to share (preferably wholesome, healthy food). Not too much. Just enough for one person, then we'll all share.
2. A cup to drink out of
3. A pen and notepad
4. Anyone else who you think would be interested in watching and discussing riveting talks from people sharing the world's most incredible ideas

Free entry

TEDxPerth May brings you a night full of inspiration and amazing ideas! We are also pleased to bring you a very special guest speaker: Alicia Curtis on empowering young leaders as change agents for the future.

Food inc.

I just saw the movie Food inc. and I am sure you want to see it too after watching the trailer!

Watch trailer here

In Food, Inc., filmmaker Robert Kenner lifts the veil on our nation's food industry, exposing the highly mechanized underbelly that has been hidden from the American consumer with the consent of our government's regulatory agencies, USDA and FDA. Our nation's food supply is now controlled by a handful of corporations that often put profit ahead of consumer health, the livelihood of the American farmer, the safety of workers and our own environment. We have bigger-breasted chickens, the perfect pork chop, herbicide-resistant soybean seeds, even tomatoes that won't go bad, but we also have new strains of E. coli—the harmful bacteria that causes illness for an estimated 73,000 Americans annually. We are riddled with widespread obesity, particularly among children, and an epidemic level of diabetes among adults.

Meat claimed as invention by Monsanto

Multinational seed corporations are following a consequent strategy to gain control over basic resources for food production. As recent research shows not only genetically engineered plants, but more and more the conventional breeding of plants gets into the focus of patent monopolies: International patent applications in this sector are skyrocking, having doubled since 2007 till end of 2009.

Further on the multinationals expand their claims over the whole chain of food production from feed to animals and food products such as meat.

In a pending patent application from Monsanto even bacon and steaks are claimed: Patent application WO2009097403 is claiming meat stemming from pigs being fed with the patented genetically engineered plants of Monsanto. A similar patent is applied for fish from aquaculture in March 2010 (WO201027788).

Far reaching patents on food are even already granted: Monsanto received a European patent (EP 1356033) in 2009, which the chain of food production from seeds of genetically engineered plants up to food products such as meal and oil are covered.
Read article
STOP ‘MONSANTOSIZING’ FOOD, SEEDS AND ANIMALS!
Sign against! click here

Mutant cows die in GM trial

Genetically modified cows were born with ovaries that grew so large they caused ruptures and killed the animals.

The bungled experiment happened during a study by AgResearch scientists at Ruakura, Hamilton, to find human fertility treatments through GM cows' milk.

AgResearch is studying tissue from one of three dead calves to try to find out what made the ovaries grow up to the size of tennis balls rather than the usual thumbnail-size.

Details of the deaths - in veterinary reports released to the Weekend Herald under the Official Information Act - have reignited debate over the ethics of GM trials on animals.
Read article

Women in Climate Change Breakfast - Perth 1 June

Click on picture to enlarge

Where: Burswood Entertainment Complex, Astral ballroom 2&3, Great Eastern Highway, Burswood, 6100
When: June 1st, Breakfast 7.15-9.30a.m. (Doors open 7am)
Cost: The ticket price for individual seats is $100 (plus GST), or $80 (plus GST) for members of the 1 Million Women campaign (joining via website is free).

More information on event here

Vote of no confidence

Please click on the following link and have your say.

We must demand action on climate change. We can not accept inaction; it will only lead to self-destruction.

Have your say against the government who has just shown itself to be at the top of the list of climate cowards.

Donors give hair off heads to save Gulf

People are giving the hair off their heads, the fur off their pets' backs and the tights off their legs.

The unlikely cause? The massive oil slick spreading across the Gulf of Mexico.

The donations are being used to make booms and mats to mop up the oily mess spewing out of the sunken BP-leased Deepwater Horizon oil platform, which is lying on the seabed.
Read article
Hair sausages to the rescue

50 Surprising Fashion and Beauty Products Made From Oil That You Probably Use Everyday (Even if You're Green)

Treehugger has a list of products which contains oil and lots of people use every day. I use 28 of the 50 items... quite a lot still...

How many do you use?

Walk on water

Liquid Mountaineering is a new sport which is attempting to achieve what man has tried to do for centuries: walk on water. Or to be more precise: running on water. We are developing the sport from scratch. By accident we found out that with the right water repellent equipment you can run across bodies of water, just like a stone skimming the surface.
Check fellow blogger

Green Drinks Live Webcast

If you want to be part of it (online, as it's in the US) sign up for a reminder and more info.

New drought relief package to be trialled in WA

The Federal Government is taking a cautious approach to its new drought support policy and will trial the idea of grants in the good times in Western Australia, where no farmers are drought affected.

The Government promised that farmers in drought-affected areas who are receiving assistance will continue to receive income relief and interest rate subsidies until the drought is over.

About 6,000 farmers from Karratha to Esperance will be able to apply for relief measures under the program which will be trialled for one year.
Read article

We're in the top 10 of worst polluters

Australia has earned the dubious honour of being in the top 10 countries with the worst environmental impact on the planet, according to a major international study of more than 200 nations.

The report challenges the idea that high levels of wealth, education and access to non-polluting technology lead to better environmental results. The more money citizens have, the more they damage they do, the study suggests.
Read article

BIG IMPACT
Countries ranked by the scale of their total negative impact on the environment.

1 Brazil

2 United States

3 China

4 Indonesia

5 Japan

6 Mexico

7 India

8 Russia

9 Australia

10 Peru

Cultivating Sustainability Workshop - Behaviour Change Training for Sustainability Advocates

Cultivating Sustainability is a 1-day workshop which provides environmental sustainability advocates with insights, models and tools to trigger the psychological drivers of environmentally sustainable behaviour. This workshop will assist you to

· Understand the psychological drivers of environmentally sustainable behaviour
· Identify the specific needs of your target audience in order to embrace sustainability
· Target your efforts and resources to the points of most leverage
· Incorporate psychological principles to your sustainability programs
· Communicate about sustainability more effectively

Anybody who has taken on the challenge of influencing others to live and work more sustainably will find this workshop a valuable addition to their skills.

Date: Wednesday June 2nd, 9.30am-4.30pm
Venue: To be confirmed (somewhere central in Perth)
Cost: For-profits $250, Not-for-profit/Government $200, Individuals/Community Groups $120

Presented by Tim Cotter, a psychologist specialising in behaviour change in an organisational and environmental context. Tim provides consulting and training to groups and organisations seeking to develop sustainable behaviours.

For more info and registration click here and to discuss this workshop further, email timc@awake.com.au

What We Need to Know about Ourselves to Deal with Climate Change

Date: Tuesday, 25 May 2010
Time: 6:00pm
Location: Social Sciences Lecture Theatre, UWA
The nearest car park is P3 off Hackett Entrance 1
Cost: Free. No RSVP required.
Enquiries: ias@uwa.edu.au or (+61 8) 6488 1340
More info here

The Great Reskilling, 16 May 2010

The Permaculture Association of WA invite you to come along for a family friendly day of creativity, community-building and practical know-how. From eco-woodwork to theories of change! From beer brewing to deep ecology! From soul food to folk music!
Also get behind Transition Towns Perth, join a local Permaculture group near you and sign up for the launch of Permablitz Perth to win the first blitz at your place.

When: Sunday 16th May,
Time: 10am – 6pm,
Where: City Farm, 1 City Farm Place, East Perth
Fees: $15 adults, $10 concession and U16s, free.

More info here

On the Political Economy of Sustainability - 6 May

You are invited to come along and hear Dr Peter McMahon, School of Sustainability speak:

'On the Political Economy of Sustainability'

One way of understanding the relationship between political economy and sustainability is to consider the role the main institutions - states, corporations and markets - have in society and how they impact on sustainability.

When: Thursday 6 May 2010
Where: Education and Humanities 2.021
Time: 11am for morning tea
11.30am - 12.30 for seminar.

Everyone is welcome.

Sally Paulin
Lecturer
School of Sustainability
Murdoch University
9360 2889/0434 350 183