To find out more read Greenpeace Canada’s report: Turning Up the Heat.

Join in with the rest of the world and “switch off” at 8pm tonight. For one hour switch off all your lights and enjoy an evening by candlelight. This could your first step to contributing to the fight against global warming. To find out more please visit the Earth Hour website.

Image from Amnesty International

Please help Kenya regain the peace their people so desperately deserve. Visit the following three links to find out how you can help:
- Reach out for Kenya
- Reach out for Kenya on Flickr
- Reach out for Kenya Facebook group

Image from Reach out for Kenya Facebook group

Read all about the violence following the Kenyan elections on the BBC’s special report: Kenya in Crisis.

We live in a capitalist society that thrives on convenience. Unfortunately, convenience means the use of plastic and other non-biodegradable materials to package out convenience foods and drinks.

SIGG, a Swiss company, has successfully created an eco-friendly bottle:

Extruded from a single piece of aluminum, our innovative SIGG Lifestyle Water Bottles is surprisingly rugged, crack-resistant and completely reusable and recyclable.

Visit the SIGG Switzerland site to find out more about these bottles. They provide many styles and sizes and even have a thermos bottle. For those in North America visit SIGG USA or Northern Spirit in Canada. I personally will purchase my first SIGG bottle at Coast Mountain Sports when I next go shopping, I will then carry my water in this bottle and whole heartedly try not to forget it so that I won’t have the need to purchase a plastic bottle of water.

I find packaging materials extremely annoying and frustrating. There really isn’t much need for all the plastic that surrounds our life of convenience. Whilst food shopping a couple years back in the UK I came across some organic foods that were packaged in a curious opaque plastic. On reading the information of the package I discovered that the plastic was made entirely from biodegradable corn starch. This is one example of how companies can solve their environmental duty. As for us normal everyday folks we can start our journey helping the environment by recycling all the paper, card, glass and plastic we can. My recycling bin seems to be so much fuller than the normal rubbish bin! We can also replace all our lights in the house with energy efficient light bulbs. Ryan and I did our duty when we moved into our apartment a year ago.

Once I have purchased my SIGG bottle I will post again regarding it’s performance.

Grassroots Environmental Products - Green products for a sustainable planet

The above mentioned site offers a wide range of environmentally friendly products, what I like in particular are the solar power panels and the wind-up bicycle light. Of course if I was to buy something from this online store I would need to carbon balance the shipping, ideally this should be done for every item bought over the internet. Or alternatively plant a tree for every shipment.

I can’t wait until I can afford one of these, or even better one that will charge my laptop, camera and many other electronics that surround my working day. My ultimate goal is to one day install solar panels and wind power generators in my home. Of course this probably won’t work while I am renting a second floor apartment, the neighbours might be a little put out by the crowded balcony and the potential noise from the wind turbine.

The research begins, I will find a way to power my life with solar and wind power. Two links from Wikipedia to start the journey: solar power and wind power. As my research develops I will post to the Sustainable Thinking category, feel free to leave any suggestions or comments.