Dirty Oil - Any Other?

Dirty Oil, Babelgum's first original feature film production, focuses on the controversy surrounding the development of Alberta's oil sands.The first film to tackle this subject, Dirty Oil dramatically explores the battle between industry, government, local communities and environmentalists. It is the heart-wrenching story of industry and government putting money before the health and security of its people and the environment.

The same tar sands that Rush Limbaugh and Hannity feel will save us. Do they look at all the costs?

Glenn's Crazy Train

He's on the train again...

The "Manly" Fire

From The Art of Manliness: Three Essential Campfires: Snack Fire, Cooking Fire, and Comfort Fire

You can tell a lot about a camper’s experience by the type of fires they build. Inexperienced campers usually build the same, heaped together bonfire for all their campfire needs. Sure, building huge ass fires is fun, but it’s extremely inefficient. The typical bonfire campfire burns a lot of wood, wastes heat, and isn’t very good for cooking food.

Experienced campers, on the other hand, build different campfires depending on their needs. These campers understand that when you build the right fire for the right time, you get the most efficiency out of it, the most comfort, and the most pleasure.

Below we’ve outlined how to build three different campfires for three different purposes. First, we’ll show you how to build the small snack fire. Next, we’ll discuss how to create the perfect fire lay for cooking. And finally, we’ll take a look at how to build a campfire for warmth and comfort after a long day spent hiking.

Read on for more.

A skill we all need.

Will Allen= Someone to model

Will Allen and the Urban Farming Revolution:

Will Allen is redefining farming. His farm is a set of greenhouses in a corner of Northwest Milwaukee, walking distance from the city’s largest housing project. His farm doesn’t just feed 10,000 local residents – it’s a source of jobs, of training in polyculture and transformation of waste into food, and a model for the future of urban farming.

Will’s a soft-spoken guy, a former Proctol and Gamble executive, who’s been transformed into a farming innovator. He thanks Michael Pollan for being “the world’s greatest framer” in explaining the global food crisis, and especially in our inner cities. The global migration into cities means we’ve got to figure out how to feed these folks in the future, without totally destroying our environment.

Allen’s talk is focused on solutions – how do we bring good food into “food deserts”, places that have been redlined by grocery stores. It’s a social justice issue, not just an health and environmental issue. There are now ten farms in Allen’s project, over 100 acres in the city of Milwaulkee. The farm is located in a food desert – the nearest grocery store is four miles away, and his neighbors, living in housing projects, often don’t have access to transportation.

His solution is to produce food in cities, year-round. In the process, these farms grow communities. The project began in 1993, when Allen bought the last working farm in Milwaulkee. He shows us a photo of local kids in those days – we can tell the photo’s dated, he tells us, because the kids have their pants pulled up.

The farm was built around greenhouses and composting. This moved to aquaponics, growing fish and plants in the same system. The farm produced tilapia, vegetables and also bedding plants that could be used to landscape the community. The youth that got involved with the project ended up bringing in the parents.

By working so closely with the kids, Allen realized that they weren’t learning to read and write. So he began teaching those skills in a farming context, along with dying arts like canning. Some of the students involved came from the juvenile justice community – by planting flowers, they found a way to pay society back. By providing summer jobs, the project helped fight drug dealing… filling vacant lots with flowers had a similar effect.

Can solar charges be sexy?

The Sexiest Solar iPhone Charger by Regen:

Image via: Earthtechling

The sleek design of the Regen ReNu offers customers a solar panel charger, that looks like well a solar panel, but also looks like it would blend into the background of a modern, chic, loft apartment. Styled similar to many iProduct docking stations, the Regen ReNu can recharge a variety of electronic gadgets and get several charges off of one battery. But will it be available in time for the holiday rush?

This smart solar charger, not only can charge a variety of different devices (iPhone, iPod or USB device) but it also alerts users to how much electricity they have generated, how much is currently stored in the battery and when a user needs to move the device to a window or sunny area to power up. The ReNu panels are designed to be placed to hung in sunlight and then dropped into a variety of different portals to charge rechargeable batteries, which then charge your gadgets. Aside from gadgets, you can also use the ReNu to charge phones and task lighting. The battery itself is holds enough charge to charge an iPhone twice, meaning that consumers will get more life out of a charge, rather than having to carefully orchestrate charging each item.

Cost? $199 plus accessories. Sexy? Not sure but I "lust" for this item. Gee, guess it is sexy.

I would love this

Giant Hammock Makes the Garden a Hang-Out Hotspot:

Photo via Pruned

One way to commune with your garden is to lounge above it. Designers Jane Hutton and Adrian Blackwell created this structure, called Dymaxion Sleep as part of the International Garden Festival at Jardins de Métis/Reford Gardens as part of a hat tip to Buckminster Fuller's Dymaxion World Map. Not only does it simply look cool, it's a great idea for making a garden space more of a hang-out spot. ...Read the full story on TreeHugger

The holiday gift giving season is near - hint, hint!

Rush and Foot in Mouth Disease

Rush Limbaugh Wishes NYT Climate Reporter Would "Go Kill Himself"

We all know that environmental journalists are a dying breed but this is just ridiculous. On his nationally syndicated radio show today, climate expert Rush Limbaugh invited noted New York Times reporter Andrew Revkin to "go kill youself." Revkin's offense was posting a blog that talked about a new report that shows that access to reproductive health care could be an important tool to help stop climate change.

How far does Uncle Rush go? Does he ride the crazy train to the end? You be the judge:

I think these militant environmentalists, these wackos, have so much in common with the jihad guys....

The environmentalist wackos are the same way. This guy from The New York Times, if he really thinks that humanity is destroying the planet, humanity is destroying the climate, that human beings in their natural existence are going to cause the extinction of life on Earth -- Andrew Revkin. Mr. Revkin, why don't you just go kill yourself and help the planet by dying?

Not only rode the train - drove it too.

Should have saved some large beets

Beet Burgers: Hearty, Healthy, Happiness on a Bun:

Fall ushers in burger season on our Wisconsin farm.  Beet burger season, that it.  These veggie burgers are house favorites here at Inn Serendipity farm and B&B.  Something about the red color and texture of the beets that cause even the committed meat burger eater to savor the veggie side of the bun.

This is a very adaptable, forgiving recipe—feel free to modify and experiment with ingredients.   Carrots can easily substitute for some of the beets.  The burgers freeze well (and taste surprisingly good cold), so we usually make a triple batch in a jumbo bowl.

Here’s the recipe:

Read more of this story »

Wish I had more beets in the garden! Had the last big ones a few days ago - just sauteed - just delicious. I hope I can scrounge some of the smaller ones left to make this recipe work.

Are you kidding?

US Gives Shell Green Light for Offshore Oil Drilling in the Arctic:

Conservationists say the decision by the Obama administration to allow drilling in the Beaufort Sea repeats Bush-era mistakes.

    Anchorage, Alaska - Conservation groups based in Alaska have accused the Obama administration of repeating the mistakes of George Bush after it gave the conditional go-ahead for Shell to begin drilling offshore for oil and natural gas in the environmentally sensitive Beaufort Sea.

read more

Still beholden to God Oil.

Fighting for the Earth

Govt Threatens Tar Sands Activists with Anti-Terror Laws:

by Chris Arsenault

VANCOUVER - The provincial government in Alberta, Canada is threatening to unleash its counterterrorism plan if activists continue using civil disobedience to protest the tar sands, Canada's fastest source of greenhouse gas emissions.

In recent weeks, Greenpeace has staged three daring protests inside tar sands mines, temporarily shutting down parts of the world's largest energy project.
On Oct. 3 and 4, activists blocked construction of an upgrader needed to refine heavy tar sands oil, belonging to Shell in Ft. Saskatchewan, Alberta.

read more

Fighting for the environment = terrorism?

No Compromises

Obama Plans Climate Bill Push, Supports Nuclear and Drilling Compromises:

Photo via the Washington Post

In New Orleans yesterday, Obama said that after health care reform debate wraps up, his administration is getting ready to give climate legislation a major push. Sensing the bipartisan consensus that's starting to form around the bill, the president appears ready to throw his weight behind the climate bill--and behind the compromises that would allow for more nuclear power and domestic drilling for gas and oil.

Obama also said he'd be open to allowing for more provisions for drilling for oil and natural gas: "I'm in favor of finding environmentally sound ways to tap our oil and our natural gas."

No Compromise.

Sean knows Climate

There is no Global Warming

Have you heard the good news? There is no global warming. Sean Hannity said so. On his Fox News show last night, Hannity covered a confrontation between a journalist and Al Gore at the Society of Environmental Journalist conference in Madison, WI. The journalist went after Gore over inconsistencies in his film "An Inconvenient Truth." Never shy, Hannity, let loose with, "The debate's over. There's no global warming."

Hannity's pronouncement goes against the findings of almost every prominent climate scientist. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change says that global warning is a major threat the planet and that only strong policies that move us away from carbon based economy will keep global temperature rise below dangerous levels. They recommend that advanced economies cut their emission by 40 percent by 2020 relative to 1990 levels.

How dare Treehugger besmirch Sean. He has been right about the war, our nation, our economy, human rights, civil rights, presidential power... Heck he has been right all his life. If Sean says the climate crisis is over it must be. He's on Fox News - they don't stretch the truth - do they? So it must be true.

Oops, I think I forgot to take my medicine this afternoon.

Hot farmers?

Pick The Cutest Organic Farmer

Here at HuffPost Green, we think organic farmers are heroes and rock stars. And nothing is sexier than someone who likes to get dirty AND supports the good food revolution. We thought we'd celebrate some of the cuties who are farming across the country and are easy on the eyes as well. Check out this slideshow, and vote for who you think is the cutest. We'll invite the winner to blog about about his or her farm.

Wait, my photo isn't here!

Breathing Earth

BreathingEarth

Watch as the population grows, as countries and people emit CO2... Click on a country and their stats will be displayed in the lower left. Amazing differences between the countries. Check out the 1,000 tonnes of CO2 per time element (US - every 5.3 seconds while Brazil is 1.6 minutes).

The Bike Hearse: Your Green Trip To The Afterlife

The Bike Hearse: Your Green Trip To The Afterlife: "

How’s this for a unique and eco-friendly way to get from the funeral home to your final resting place? Wade Lind, owner of Sunset Hills Cemetery in Eugene, Oregon came up with the “bike hearst” as an option for those really looking to limit their impact once they’ve passed on. Let’s hope there aren’t many hills along the way.

To find out more about Sunset Hills, jump here.

This is the way I want to go out - in perfect style.

My calendar

Forget the Gregorian calendar. Sure you have to watch the calendar for work, for the IRS, for those dates that if you forget someone will kill you (anniversaries, birthdays, etc.). But my calendar is a little different:

• Holidays - My holidays are the winter and summer solstices marked by a trip to NYC to listen to Paul Winter and the Consort at St. John The Divine.  Can't forget St. Francis Day - blessing of the animals.
• Weeks and days are marked by my kombucha schedule  - one set bottled on what was once called Monday and the other set bottled on what was called Thursday.  
• Seasons - it is now lettuce/radish season, tomato/cuke/squash season, turnip/kale/squash/parsnip season and then bean/sprout season.  Okay so it centers around the foods out of my garden.  That is how I look at seasons now.  In the midst of tomato/cuke season there is the Jersey Shore week of every daylight hour in the water.

Interesting that I really have looked at time in a different way in recent years.  But it really makes sense - my calendar is more in tune with my local environment.  Knowing when to plant based on bird/insect sightings is  a perfect example.

Now if work and social demands would work with my calendar - everything would be perfect. 

Must have skills

5 Essential Green Living Skills Our Grandparents Knew

Our grandparent's generation didn't use the word green to describe their lifestyle, but many of the things they knew how to do are now considered to be green living skills. Using those old-time green skills can not only save you money, but can also help to preserve our planet's precious resources.

Could also help you prepare for the future, for that "Waterless Flood." Skills mentioned include:organic gardening, food preservation, seed saving, sewing and cooking from scratch. Add to the list we better lean: simple machine repair and building.

Do your part...

Organic Farming Could Stop Global Climate Change:

"
Organic soils such as those seen here could sequester 40% of global carbon emissions. Image source: Rodale Institute stock.

Global Climate Change Chaos
We've overshot sustainability. Three hundred fifty parts per million (350 ppm) is the recommended safe threshold for carbon dioxide in our atmosphere. Today, at 386 ppm, we're over the limit. There is evidence that we will see ice-free summer Arctic a hundred years before IPCC estimates and we have already seen flooding in Read the full story on TreeHugger

Garden and landscape with nature in mind.

Recycle old cell phones

EcoATM Arrives in Stores - Accepts Used Cell Phones, Spits Out Store Credit:

"
Images courtesy of ecoATM and AMagill

Could gadget recycling get easier than this? In a similar vein as ATM-like change machines, where you bring your bucket-o-coins, dump them in and out pops a far more convenient currency, EcoATM wants to buy back your old cell phones with this cool kiosk. Insert cell phone, withdraw currency. ...Read the full story on TreeHugger

Great idea. Hope they come to Connecticut soon.

Three Cheers Apple

Apple Resigns From Chamber Over Climate:

Apple became the latest company to resign from the United States Chamber of Commerce, citing climate issues.

“We strongly object to the chamber’s recent comments opposing the E.P.A.’s effort to limit greenhouse gases,” wrote Catherine A. Novelli, the vice president of worldwide government affairs at Apple, in a letter dated today and addressed to Thomas J. Donohue, president and chief executive of the chamber.

“Apple supports regulating greenhouse gas emissions, and it is frustrating to find the chamber at odds with us in this effort,” Ms. Novelli continued.

Dry your harvest

Solar Food Dehydrator (Dryer):

Dry your fruit, vegetables, and other goods with your own sun powered dehydrator. Electric Food Dehydrators can be expensive and consume unnecessary energy.



This solar dehydrator was made entirely of recovered materials. It was constructed with scrap ply wood, 2x4s from an old ladder, a house wind...


By: Permaculture

Why buy a plug in model or pop a tray of tomatoes in the oven?

Polluters next door

Find Water Polluters Near You

Across the nation, the system that Congress created to protect the nation’s waters under the Clean Water Act of 1972 today often fails to prevent pollution. The New York Times has compiled data on more than 200,000 facilities that have permits to discharge pollutants and collected responses from states regarding compliance. Information about facilities contained in this database comes from two sources: the Environmental Protection Agency and the California State Water Resources Control Board. The database does not contain information submitted by the states.

Search by state or zip.

13 Great Vegetarians From History (Slideshow)

13 Great Vegetarians From History (Slideshow):

People have practiced vegetarianism for centuries. In that time, some truly great people have joined the cause. Here, in no particular order, are 13 of the greatest vegetarians from history.

...Read the full story on TreeHugger

John Coltrane and Einstein too. Historical figures - thinkers - motivators - great minds. A correlation?