Susty.tv» Stephen Colbert Reports Energy Crisis Solved by Ethanol from Susty.tv.
With all the debate about biofuels lately, leave it to Stephen Colbert to swoop in and tell us the secret ingredient in ethanol that has already solved the energy crisis.
Susty.tv» Harrison Ford's Wax Job Susty.tv
We're all for the awareness-raising-thing, but we just don't get the link here: Harrison Ford's man-carpet unceremoniously torn off by a well-meaning esthetician; the logging, mining, cattle-ranching and hydro-electric-damming of the "lungs of the planet." Wait, now we see, Indiana Jones (IV!) star Ford wasn't fearless enough to have a lung ripped out as an analogy, so right, chest hair -- close enough for consciousness-raising. WATCH THE VIDEO>>
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"Umm.... ok. Maybe this will start a trend of other celebrities trying to draw attentio..." [read]
Mothers Day is next Sunday (hint, hint). To get you in the mood, TreeHugger gives you our top picks for viral videos of Moms in the wild. This is nature at its most raw, most violent, most competitive. Inspirational. Awesome. Watch it with your mother, you will need a hug when it is over.
The Battle at Kruger, above, rates first place. If evolution is about the survival of the fittest, what does "The Battle at Kruger" say to us? The pride of lions beats out the giant crocodile, but in the end the baby buffalo wins, thanks to cooperation. Just think what we could accomplish if we humans could pull together against the threats to our survival. Certainly not by coincidence, Caught on Safari: The Battle at Kruger, will premiere on the National Geographic Channel on Mother's Day, May 11, 2008, at 9pm EST.
Appearing on Comedy Central's The Colbert Report to promote his latest book, "World Made by Hand," James H. Kunstler outlined his vision for the future of suburbia and peak oil, criticizing our approach to energy consumption and systems management. He went on to dismiss renewable energy technologies as mere stopgaps, arguing that only a fundamental redress in our way of life could save us now -- a possibility he considers unlikely. A gloomy prognostication by most estimates (as befits most of Kunstler's past work), but, nonetheless, a substantive, worthwhile discussion of our current predicament by an influential writer.
Few speakers are as well-suited to tackling the challenges and potential risks posed by global climate change than IPCC Chairman Rajendra K. Pachauri. The recent talk he gave at MIT is well worth your time if you've never heard him speak before -- or are just curious about his perspective on the impact of climate change on 21st century society. Here's a short snippet about the key themes he addressed:
Here’s Rajendra K. Pachauri’s panic-inducing assertion: We have a window of seven years to stabilize CO2 at today’s levels if we are to limit our global mean temperature increase to around 2.40C. A world this hot would be a very unpleasant place to be. Pachauri lays out unequivocal” evidence of climate change, and describes how extreme precipitation events, heat waves and other natural catastrophes will become more frequent, endangering vast swaths of humanity. We stand to lose 20-30% of species if warming exceeds 1.5 to 2.5 0C. Pachauri also notes this “scary prospect”: the rapid loss of ice sheets on polar land, leading to sea level rises of several meters, and the flight of large populations in response.
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"While it's very useful to have detailed economic studies that shed some light on costs ..." [read]
Our dear colleague Simran Sethi has a new joint over at Sundance Channel: THE GOOD FIGHT, a web series that looks at the places where environmentalism is a necessity, not a luxury. THE GOOD FIGHT will take you from Greensburg, KS–a community that lost nearly everything in a tornado and is now “going green” as a way to revitalize the economy, save money, and create a legacy for their children—to The Dream Reborn conference in Memphis, TN, celebrating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and restorative environmental solutions that promote equity, health, and employment. You’ll meet environmental visionaries like Cameron Sinclair, the founder of Architecture for Humanity, a non-profit that brings professional architects and designers to communities that have suffered humanitarian crises – and Brahm Ahmadi, the executive director of People’s Grocery, an organization based in West Oakland, California with a mission to bring healthy, affordable food to a community that has over 50 liquor stores but not one grocery.
Last year, Radiohead bucked tradition by debuting their new album via web-only download, saving on paper and plastic. Last week, Thom Yorke and his Oxford band mates appeared on Conan's "green" show from home, saving as much CO2 as a car produces in a year, Yorke said. (But it's probably more than that, especially if Radiohead zip around in their own jet.) Yorke, who has been campaigning for bigger, binding carbon cuts in the EU, dedicates the song, "House of Cards," with its "denial, denial" chorus, to that "tw-t who walked away from the Kyoto agreement. What was his name again? He's history anyway." Ouch.
Of course, this isn't the future of live concerts -- and it's about time the band emerged from the basement. But for late night talk shows, where musical acts are shot for a TV audience anyway, Radiohead is on to something.
Billboard just put the band in the no. 8 spot on its "Green Ten" list, behind Dave Matthews (on whose label Radiohead now appears), and Jack Johnson
See also: Pack Less Fly Green, TH Picks: Telecommuting, Survey: Do You Telecommute?
Photo courtesy of: Robert LaRosa
If you happen to be indoors on this beautiful day that celebrates Mother Nature, turn on the tube or go online and check out MTV. In celebration of Earth Day the network will begin rolling out new series’ and features that celebrate eco-friendly living. The programs are designed to inform and inspire young people to become active participants in conservation because, well, they are the upcoming future. You can also catch the specials online at Think.MTV.com and, if you’re walking through Times Square, make sure to look up at the giant 44 ½ foot HD screen.
Special programming includes:
In the first year Earth Day that has gathered attention in Latin America, a couple of the region's biggest musicians, actors and performers have participated in a campaign held by National Geographic to raise awareness in society about our part in the global warming cause.
Under the theme "What you do matters," these celebrities have recorded small television segments giving pieces of advice on energy and water saving, reusable bags, working at home, not-printing, planting trees, and unplugging. The segments are being broadcast during special programming this week.
Artists involved include Argentine musicians Fito Paez (pictured), Charly Alberti and Diego Torres, Argentine actors Cecilia Roth and Ricardo Darin, Mexican singer Julieta Venegas, Mexican actors Bruno Bichir and Plutarco Haza, Brazilian singer Daniela Mercury, Argentine dancer Julio Bocca, and Colombian musician Andrea Etcheverry, among others.
Keep reading for videos and more....
It all started with a piece in the Independent in February about a trash vortex in the ocean, now known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. It has been getting lots of coverage on the internet lately, including on TreeHugger: The Great Pacific Garbage Patch: "Out of Sight, Out of Mind"
VBS.tv had to see it with their own eyes, so they sailed for two days in the Pacific before reaching their destination. But it wasn't like they expected: "What people don’t get is that it’s not really a patch and it’s not really an island, both of which you might be able to contain and control. No, what we found is much worse. It’s like a gigantic toxic stew and it’s a big big problem that we need to pay attention to now."...
The Mitsubishi i MiEV is gaining fans outside of Japan; it was well received at the New York Auto Show and many are hoping that the company will keep to its word and launch the small electric car globally. There's even a petition asking Mitsubishi to bring the EV to the US.
The nice folks at Autobloggreen have found Japanese commercials that are, as far as we know, running in Japan. The first two can be found here and the third one here. They're cheesy, but show the car in action and confirm what we already knew (14 hours full charge with 110V, 7 hours with 220, 30 minutes to 80% at charging stations, 160 km range). More captures from the videos after the jump....
David Richardson, a 49-year old man from Illinois, was arrested by the police in Morgan Hill, California. He was trying to steal used cooking grease from a Burger King restaurant and pump it into his tanker truck when he was caught greasy-handed.
Ok, can someone tell that guy that if you ask, many restaurants will be more than happy to have you take away their cooking grease since otherwise they have to pay someone to do it? We hope that none of our biodiesel/SVO-using readers are stealing grease. Please, always ask permission!
The good side of this story is that it's probably evidence of the rising popularity of biodiesel. But not all biodiesel is made equal, it depends on the feedstock: Waste cooking grease is green, virgin soybeans probably not, and algae is the future. If you want to learn more about it, check out: ::Green Basics: Biodiesel, ::Ethanol vs. Biodiesel: Just the Facts, ::Find Biodiesel With Your Cell Phone....
The Global Language Monitor tracks how words are used in the English media.
In 2006, the top word of the year was "sustainable", and one of the top politically incorrect phrases was "Global Warming Denier". Now, for 2007, the top word appeared to be "surge" for most of the year, but at the last minute "hybrid" surged past it and was crowned Word of the Year (GM must be kicking itself). Also for 2007, "Climate change" is the top phrase and "Al Gore" is the top name, beating "George W. Bush" and "Bono".
The smiley for "pirate", ?-) , is the emoticon of the year thanks to a certain Hollywood series, but the most understood word on the planet is still "O.k.", so not everything is changing...
::Global Language Monitor, See also: :: 'Sustainable' Tops 2006 GLM Buzz-Word List...
Another film version of the classic sci-fi novel Dune by Frank Hebert is planned, this time with Peter Berg as director. There's an interesting quote in the announcement: "The filmmakers consider [Dune's] theme of finite ecological resources particularly timely." Indeed. Hard not to see the link between Arrakis' spice Melange and the Earth's oil, or even to consider the implications of a world where water is so scarce that drastic measures have to be taken.
Of course, it is just fiction, but like the (attrocious) The Day After Tomorrow, it might indirectly raise ecological awareness with the general public. ::Berg to direct 'Dune' for Paramount, via ::Sentient Developments...
Images courtesy of Daily Mail
Seemingly ripped straight out of the pages of Alan Weisman's fascinating book, The World Without Us, Life After People, a recently aired two-hour documentary on the History Channel, presents a future scenario under which the planet - unburdened by the presence of humans - would slowly begin to recover. Most signs of human life would disappear within the next century; in their place, a new era would begin - dominated by the surviving animals and plants.
Lest you think the documentary is all unsubstantiated guesswork, its director and producers relied on the advice of several notable scientists, including Gordon Masterton, a former president of the United Kingdom's Royal Institution of Civil Engineers....
While Australian music sensation Missy Higgins tours the US, she's been taking a few green detours along the way, a number of which are documented in five Webisodes found in the widget after the jump. For those of you who have been living under an (Ayers) rock for the last couple of years, Missy is a richly gifted vocalist and songwriter that is the best thing to come along since sliced thin-film solar modules. A certified bike-riding vegetarian, she performed from Sydney for Live Earth and is expanding her environmental horizons via Prius visiting an alternative school that's going green, speaking with scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research as well as visiting draught-threatened redwood forests and flopping at various green hotels such as San Francisco's LEED certified Orchard Garden Hotel. Have a look-see along with her below the fold. BTW, we're going to bring you an exclusive interview with Missy soon so be sure to write in to george at treehugger dot com with any questions you'd like us to ask her....
Famous blogger Robert Scoble was hanging out with Jason Calacanis (of Weblogs Inc. fame, among other things) when they met up with Tesla Motors chairman and investor Elon Musk. They had their video-capable cellphones, he had his production Tesla (we wrote about it here), so Scoble ended up in the passenger seat of the electric Roadster and interviewed Elon.
The video is embedded in the post below along with a few photos take by Scoble (warning: geeky dialogue, dark video, and you might get motion sickness. Also contains many instances of Scoble's trademark laugh). ...
