Eco Gadget Series (1st Issue)

These days it seems that virtually every manufacturer on the market is making a very deliberate push to fabricate environmentally-friendly products in keeping with our more acute sense of “greenness”. During the last few days a couple of products have caught my eye, here they are:

1. The Freeplay Indigo Lantern is one of those genius ideas that makes you sit back and think “I wish I had thought of that”. Building on the brand’s experience and know-how in clean energy production, Freeplay engineers have made a very dependable and modern lantern able to provide (fully charged) up to 2 ½ hours of continuous ultra bright light, and 70 hours of night-light. With a quick 60 second wind you get an hour of brilliant white light. It has no bulbs to burn out, nor disposable batteries to replace, and you can power it yourself when needed. It retails at around 20 GBP.

2. The Standby Buster. We often talk about how much power our appliances consume on stand-by and we know that there are people out there who find it hard work to turn theirs off, this gadget is for you. Standby Buster is a remote controlled electrical socket that lets you switch appliances off completely so that they use no electricity. Leaving them on standby unnecessarily uses electricity costing you money and contributing to Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions. The unit requires no installation, you plug it into an existing socket to convert it to remote control. Standby Buster is the only consumer electronics mains switch to be recommended by the Energy Saving Trust. It retails at around 10 GBP and will save you on average 40 GBP a year.

Saving Whales is Possible!

A conservation success on a literally “massive scale” has been highlighted today by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It seems that in the 40th year of the international hunting ban, the humpback whale is making a comeback.
Marine biologists estimate that the number of humpbacks worldwide may have grown to more than 40,000 adults and about 15,000 juveniles, prompting the revision of their classification from "vulnerable" to "of least concern" on the latest annual list of endangered animals.
This is a great conservation story and it serves to highlight the fact that we can do something about these problems. If we extend the same attention to other cetaceans (of which 10% are classified as endangered or critically endangered) then we can break the trend and bring some of these species back from the brink of extinction.
Smaller coastal and fresh water species, including the vaquita porpoise, finless porpoise, South American river dolphin and Irrawaddy dolphin, are increasingly at risk of disappearing and it is really up to us to ensure our oceans remain filled with these unique and important species.

Are the Beijing Olympics Green?

It should come as no surprise that the effort to safeguard our environment has made it to the Olympics too! Here, the Organizational Committee, aided by various international associations and green project specialists, has been able to stage what they call “Zero Net Emissions Games” also dubbed the “Green Olympics”.

The emphasis has gone into reducing emissions and including all sorts of neat features like community sustainability planning and green buildings. In a city plagued by terrible pollution this is an important step towards a healthier environment.

One of the key features of this whole project has been the efficient transport “design”, for instance, care has been taken in planning journeys to and from the events and with the use of some very modern telecommunication systems the number of journalists on site has been greatly reduced. Even the commentaries can be done remotely from anywhere in the world. This project is something of a first and we hope that from now on it will be an important part of all future Olympic events.

Is Eco-Chic the Future?

For once the general consumer trend seems to be encouraging. Although the economy is going through a rough patch, the buying of all things “green” has not stopped and the general consensus seems to be that people want to do the right thing.

Of course a great number of production houses, designers and fashion businesses have jumped onto the bandwagon and are offering their very own take on environmentally sound products. Interestingly, the fashion industry seems to be at the forefront of new eco-styles with the help of some heavy-duty names: from architect Zaha Hadid to actresses such as Angelina Jolie, who has been buying eco-chic babywear for her new twins.

I suspect that as time passes we will all be influenced more and more by the importance of eco products and there may indeed be a time when there is no such thing as a non-eco product! In the meantime there are great things to be found out there and as the new catwalk inspired fashion products make it into our shops we will surely be on the cusp of a fashion revolution.

The Site of World War Three

Ok, so the title might be a little dramatic but what’s happening a few miles North of our shores is so ridiculous that it might just end up spelling the biggest socio-political disaster of our time. For those that are unaware, the Arctic has recently been the site of some pretty serious border disputes involving major fuel-hungry countries.

Following a massive international failure to secure the same kind of protection that Antartica has enjoyed, we now play witness to the steady march of the oil machine. Russia, Canada, the United States and Denmark (controlling Greenland) are all reviewing their position and exploring their options. In the meantime controversy has already hit the headlines when a Russian submarine planted a flag on the Arctic seabed as an act of provocation designed to show they mean business. What they have really shown is that they are impotently greedy and incapable of seeing the bigger picture.

By drilling in this incredibly delicate and already environmentally trampled environment we are doing nothing but selling ourselves out for a quick profit. The natural repercussions are massive and the only benefit is to boost the economy (for a short while) of countries that thus far, rather like drug addicts, seem to look for more places to score their filth rather than work on kicking the habit. One day there won’t be anywhere left to dig and we will probably regret wasting all this valuable research time and money in silly disputes and flag planting exercises.

Does Recycling Really Have To Be That Difficult?

I live in a place where recycling is the norm, people have been doing it for years and it is so habitual that it has become practically effortless. After successfully applying the simple mantra of “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” we have considerably cut the amount of non-recyclable waste we create in our household and I am very proud of that fact.

However, it seems that recycling is not as simple as this for everyone and, as I struggle to understand why some people continue to see it as a government conspiracy, I find an article that helps to explain a little more.

Only today a woman in Essex told of her ordeal as an Environmental Officer tried to barge into her home over the alleged offence of fly-tipping, when in fact they found part of her address label with some rubbish at a recycling point. She claimed her innocence only to have a police officer show up at her door shortly afterwards.

In my experience, local councils have the tendency to approach the subject in an aggressive and often intimidating manner. This kind of behaviour serves only one purpose; it reinforces the sceptic’s view that the government is strong-arming them into something they don’t want to do and it alienates people from the good work recycling can do. When will local councils learn that this is not the way to approach this? Sure, it is important that repeat offenders are pursued and that fly-tipping is dealt with, but it has to be done in a measured and considered way that takes into account the sensibilities of the population.

It is as always a question of education, if people are told how good recycling is for the general community and how easy it is to do I imagine that scenes like the one in Essex will not be necessary and that fearsome Environmental Officer can then try and work with the community rather than against it.

How Much is Nature Worth?

It really is true that sometimes the only value people understand is the value of money. In a bid to get the most out of on this, specialist economists from all over the world work to place a monetary “value” to some of the natural beauty that surrounds us.

Let me give you an example. It seems that in the past the warnings given by desperate conservationists were enough to instigate a proper look at the damage we are making to the Great Barrier Reef. That is until the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) explained that the Reef’s value in tourism alone is in the region of $3.5 billion and the reef components are worth something like $1.4 billion. This, in essence, puts all conservation projects in perspective and helps state and private investors understand that conservation costs are only a fraction of what the item being conserved is worth.

Of course we also know that it isn’t just about money, an ecosystem as varied and complex as the Reef is essential to all life in the area. 500 million people live within 100 kilometres of coral reefs, many of whom rely on them (and the services they provide) for daily subsistence.

This trend of categorising natural treasures in monetary value does of course carry the inherent danger that one day we might be faced with making difficult choices over what gets conserved and what doesn’t. This kind of capitalistic approach might direct us to save something over something else purely because of the costs involved. On the other hand, it is working wonders in helping to explain the value of the environment to the world, and as a result it makes a welcomed addition to the conservationist’s arsenal.

Be Active and Eco at the Same Time

With global bicycle sales at an all time high (they actually sold more bikes than cars in the US this year) you would be excused for thinking that a transport revolution is taking place. Whilst this may be true at home, it is also expanding into our holidays as active tours are experiencing something of a boom.

It makes total sense. You go to some nice part of the world, you forget the noise and chaos of driving on congested roads and instead move from town to town in a more relaxed pace that allows you to enjoy all the sights and smells of the region you have come to visit. Not only is this a carbon-free way to move around it is also incredibly healthy and rewarding. Biking and hiking are what I like to call "effortless exercising", not because it's undemanding, but because as you are taking in the views, enjoying the breeze it is actually easy to forget you are working out!

If you think that in England alone people booked around £120m (450,000) worth of cycling holidays in 2006 you can see that the sector is in fact a very prosperous one. If you add to this hiking, kayaking, climbing and even swimming holidays you start to get a picture of a consumer wanting to do more for themselves whilst at the same time (maybe inadvertently) helping the environment.

How to Rent a Car on Holiday

A piece of news I read yesterday inspired me to talk about cars, particularly cars you hire on holiday. I know that for some people a long break involves hiring a car and I realize that the official green line is “don’t do it!” However, I am the first to realize that some times there are no alternatives. When you travel to remote destinations or when you need the flexibility of your own transport it really can be the only option open to you. Try not to despair though as there are ways to feel less guilty about hiring a car whilst keeping an eye on the environment, here is how:

Firsly, it seems that every major car rental company is working hard to greenify their operations. Avis for instance has formed a collaboration with CarbonFund.org to minimize their carbon footprint and along with Hertz they have made a big effort to boost their hybrid fleets.

There are of course things you can do as a consumer too. First of all try and rent from a company that has a responsibility statement. Do your research and read their “green” statements, if necessary ask them what they are doing for the environment, nothing like consumer pressure to get things started.

Choose the smallest and newest car possible. Smaller cars with smaller, modern engines produce fewer emissions and ultimately consume less fuel (Bonus!). Of course if you have the option, then why not try a hybrid?

If you find that you are just renting for the sake of it and you know your destination has a great bus system or that once at your destination you can hire a bike then really “don’t do it”. You will actually have a better holiday not having to worry about where to park or where to fill up or if someone damages it and the insurance won’t cover it… think of the stress! On site you might find that a bicycle is the way to go after all, on some of my travels I have found it a great way to get out there and enjoy the scenery, the people and the sights at a leisurely and very civilized pace which is what holidays are all about.

Stupid comment of the week
David Price, of Lamborghini Club UK, when being asked his opinion on the recent story about a car being flown from Qatar to London just for a service he said: "If someone owns something and wants to do something with it, what does it matter?"
What a completely cretinous and blinkered philosophy, should we all do whatever we want with everything? Should people drive their car into people just because they own one and they want to? In the same spirit I suppose Mr Price agrees with terrorism and London stabbings and whale hunting? Grow up!