Craigslist recently launched their official blog.
One of their first posts offered some transparency into their energy consciousness:
“Serving 10 billion page views on a few hundred servers, craigslist leads the internet industry by orders of magnitude when it comes to efficient use of electricity. The last time I checked we were clocking something like 175,000 page views per kilowatt-hour.
Compare this to single digit thousands of pages-per-kwhr for most large sites, which typically run tens to hundreds of thousands of servers.”
We think it’s great to see them not only doing a great job in conserving their energy use but also in making it common knowledge and hopefully resulting in some friendly, competition to raise the bar on this issue all around in the Internet industry.
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is really, truly unconscionable.
It blows my mind that nearly every single article I’ve come across in my research states that “There’s nothing we can do about it now…” (Eriksen, October 19, 2007). What kind of asinine, uncaring and lazy response is this?
In case you haven’t yet heard of this man-made atrocity, there is a collection of human waste (mostly plastic trash), that has piled up into a floating island (some say two islands), twice the size of Texas, about 1,000 miles west of San Francisco. What’s even more astounding to me anyway, is that this has been known to exist for the better part of half a century now (though it was until the last few decades that it’s neared its current size).
An article from the San Francisco Chronicle states:
“Ocean current patterns may keep the flotsam stashed in a part of the world few will ever see, but the majority of its content is generated onshore, according to a report from Greenpeace last year titled “Plastic Debris in the World’s Oceans.”
This is just totally unacceptable.
Having just learned of this recently and then really took a hard look at it today, I can no longer, in good conscience, continue to write off this horrendous creation and let it continue unabated. To that end, I have just registered a domain which I hope to evolve into the official, leading source of information, activism and action against this atrocity. In the coming months, I hope to raise funds to start dismantling this floating island of trash, generate significant publicity, donate hundreds if not thousands of hours and dollars, both of my own and others, to turn the tides on this.
The GreatPacificGarbagePatch.com will serve as my central focus on what I hope grows into a massive wide effort to eradicate this abysmal by-product of our global industries. I hope that you will join me in my efforts, in whatever way you can.
Stay tuned for more info on this including a website, blog, donation system, and much more.
“A new study suggests that baby lotion, baby powder, and baby shampoo may be exposing babies to potentially harmful chemicals called phthalates.”
“Phthalates are used to make plastics flexible and stabilize fragrances, and are found in a plethora of consumer products including toys, personal care products and medical equipment.”
All the more reason to go green, organic and as sustainable as possible within your grocery and other supply shopping trips…some great alternatives you could use in place would be Jason’s, for instance. Otherwise, be sure to really do your homework online and if necessary, go so far as to contact the manufacturers directly before purchasing any products you’re uncertain of (or us if you’re not sure how to go about this).
Whole Foods just made a bold step in further establishing itself as the leader in health conscious and sustainable grocery retailer with its decision to stop using plastic bags, in its press release today:
“…it will end the use of disposable plastic grocery bags at the checkouts in all of its 270 stores in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. with the goal to be plastic bag-free by Earth Day, April 22, 2008.”
Check out their newly created section for more info on their reusable bag program and more:
http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/byobag/
Thanks to Whole Foods for raising the bar in grocery retail!
Yes. But do you want to be and more importantly, should you be?
I think the answer to both these questions is a very loud yes. Why? How about a question as answer: Why not?
The time is now, more than ever, to immerse yourself in the sustainability movement and expand your working knowledge as wide and deeply as you can. We here at Green Gurus are doing so every day and just can’t get enough. But maybe that’s a bit much for some right off the bat or you just like to take your time when learning new things and embracing new, emerging trends. That’s fine too.
But the bottom line is such that you might just have to at some point.
New and existing companies are embracing the triple bottom line (economic, environmental and social values) more and more. And in today’s marketplace, the old-school mindset (or paradigm) of having to “beat the competitors to market” still prevails for many - though we definitely see a future of greater love and support through even more ancient systems such as bartering of time, energy, resources, etc. rather than continuing to isolate and compartmentalize things from each other, all in the name of progress.
Supported by each other, we can do so much more than just progress; we can continue to evolve harmoniously with the world around us.
Anyway, in the meantime, why not start or continue expanding your knowledge of some area that interests you, be it organic and local grown food, fair trade products, sustainable building design, energy reduction, or whatever else it is that tickles your fancy? The skills you begin building or adding on now will not only serve to enhance your life, but that of your family’s, friend’s, co-workers, and neighbors.
If you’re not sure what interests you, feel free to let us know and we’ll work together to figure out.
A friend of mine pointed out recently that she thought that 2008 would be a year of uncertainty in within the ecological movement.
This was right on track with where we as a team here, think we can be of service: figuring out those next or even first steps on your path to becoming more green and sustainable.
Some of the simplest steps you can take to reduce and reuse throughout your day include:
- reusing store-bought drink containers such as the POM Tea* glasses: great for on-the-go drink containers (just be careful as they are glass and will break easily when dropped)
- reusing plastic grocery bags as trash bags, particularly in the bathroom, as well as a perfect use for changing your cats litter
- saving the twist-ties from produce for future use for tying up electrical cables (especially all those USB, TV and video game cables)
*Check out this great example of POM Tea glass containers being reused as household glass, from Doug’s cooking blog:
Anyway, these are just a sprinkling of easy and immediate steps you can take to start reducing your level of consumption and waste production. Of course, buying less and less newly made products are another great step, but that’s more of a sacrifice that still many aren’t ready to make.
Either way, 2008 is a great year to start spending less and when you’ve got to, try to shop for items produced as close to home as possible and, be sure to keep your eye out for free and fair trade merchandise. If you don’t see a label touting this, do some digging before you so readily hand over your money. The cost of whatever it is you think you need is more than likely many times more than what you’re actually dishing out, be sure to consider (or research if need be):
- where the materials were sourced from
- where the item was manufactured
- how they were transported (if any such logistics were involved)
- whether or not it’s recyclable and made from recycled materials
- whether or not the manufacturer / brand name is donating any of its profits back to the planet
Just remember that every little step does in fact make a difference and that it’s all actually quite a bit of fun, once you start peering under the hood of all your favorite brands, you can really learn a lot. Not only about your preferred book seller or MP3 player, but also the processes with which these companies utilize in producing their goods and then finally getting them to you.
No matter where you start, how extensive or narrow your first steps, it’s well worth the effort. And as Adam Wiggins states in his Heroku blog:
“Getting your head around it may hurt a bit, but the effort will pay off very nicely in the long run.”
So true.
In case you’ve missed the latest news on Google, CNET’s reports:
“Search giant Google on Tuesday pledged to spend hundreds of millions of dollars to make renewable energy cheaper than coal.
The effort, dubbed RE<C (shorthand for “renewable energy less than coal”), calls for Google to invest in companies developing clean-energy technologies and for Google itself to next year invest tens of millions in research and development in renewable energy.”
To hear it straight from the horse’s mouth, see Google’s blog.
