A round-up of this week’s environmental, green and ecofriendly news and updates.
We know that advertising works. But sometimes it can just get too much. Billboards in particular can be very invasive. But the Swedish branch of major engineering company Ramboll has made theirs useful!
A huge advert is displayed on their office tower in Uppsala, Sweden’s fourth-largest city. It shows hands against a blue sky. But then you notice that the hands are cradling real-life birds that keep swooping into the billboard.
Why? Because the billboard is also a bird feeder! Winters are tough in Sweden, and it’s difficult for birds to find food in the snow. So Ramboll combined promotion with usefulness.
It’s not the first time – the company has engineered an emissions-reducing road project that also helps to protect local frog and salamander habitats, a dam with specially-designed fish and wildlife passages; and a harbour designed to generate new habitats for seagulls and other wildlife displaced by urban growth.
Ramboll call it Engineering For Life, and I love it when companies show that we CAN develop and not wreck everything around us. You can see the billboard in action in this short video – it’s worth a look.
This week I’ve showcased a collection of photographs that will haunt you – long after you’ve read the post.
Did you know that avocado trees are an “alternate bearing crop”? That means they have good years and bad years. Last year was a bad year, so prices were high in the US. But this year is a good year, and that’s great news for the many Americans who love avos.
They’re nutritionally dense so my Recommendation of the Week is to buy avos while they’re plentiful and in season. Get recipes online and enjoy Nature’s bounty!
If you don’t like avocados and/or don’t live in the US, find out what’s in season in your area and buy it. Prices are good, the produce is at its best, and it’s very green and eco-friendly to buy food in season.
Want to know more about vitamins?
Find out if you have any deficiency (many people do) – it’s easy to check. And what NOT to do if you have.
And you’ll find some interesting facts about vitamins too. It’s all here.
Global Green News:
Loss of sea ice in the Antarctic is worse than was thought. It looked as though the ice wasn’t melting as much down there as in Greenland and in the Arctic, but that’s because it’s melting underwater, unseen. This discovery may even prompt global projections of sea-level rise to be revised upward.
The UK government proposed a new ban on ivory sales – and it was overwhelmingly backed in a public consultation. The government will implement the ban and say that it will be one of the strictest in the world. A shocking 55 African elephants are killed for their ivory every day – hopefully by reducing the market for ivory, the price will drop, making it less attractive for poachers.
U.S. Green News:
US environmental regulators announced on Monday that they would reduce emissions and efficiency standards for cars and trucks. This means they can pollute more, and will use more gas per mile. The reason? The standards backed by Barack Obama were “too high” and were “difficult” for auto manufacturers to achieve. (The rest of the world seems to manage just fine). Naturally, automakers applauded the decision. Ugh. If they were implemented, the standards would have saved over 2 million barrels of oil a day by 2030. Now that won’t happen.
What do you think? Let me know in the comments below.
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