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Making Sustainability Happen …. Faster
What do leaders need to do to accelerate sustainability?
Global Understanding in Troubled Times: The New World of Ecotourism
Ecotourism offers strong economic incentives for developing countries to conserve biological diversity. It has been hit hard along with the rest of the travel industry since 9/11.
Let Mind, Body, Spirit Stocks Revitalize Your Portfolio
According to Wall Street analysts, the 10 best-known Healthy Living companies will grow by an average of 20% a year. Investing with your conscience can be profitable!
How Green Is This Year's Winter Olympics?
Salt Lake City is no Sydney when it comes to the environment.
Best Practice in Canadian Sustainability Reporting
Stratos Inc., an Ottawa-based consultancy, has released the first report that evaluates the status of sustainability reporting in Canada, “Stepping Forward: Corporate Sustainability Reporting in Canada.”Only 57 companies – 26% of the largest 100 companies – in nine industry sectors prepare reports. This places Canada in between the U.S. and Europe. The issues covered and quality of information provided in Canadian company corporate reports varies substantially across companies. They report well on environmental discharges, community philanthropy and health and safety. They are weaker in reporting on social performance. Many reports side-step tough issues and focus only on good news, reducing their credibility.Contact: Julie Pezzack Download the reportP.S. Interface, Inc., has published its first online sustainability report.
Eco-Industrial Park Handbook for Asian Developing Countries
The Asian region is taking a leadership position in industrial ecology, with at least 100 projects planned for China, Thailand, the Philippines, India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Japan. Funded by the Asian Development Bank, this handbook provides an overview of every facet of eco-industrial park development: policy; financing; urban planning and education; specific architectural, technical, recruitment, and management considerations in industrial park design. It includes examples from around the world. While this new edition is regionally-based, most of the content is fully applicable for projects in other regions, developed and developing alike. Contact the author: Ernest LoweDownload the handbook: http://www.indigodev.com/Handbook.html
Eco-Economy: Building an Economy for the Earth
In 1543, Polish astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus challenged the view that the Sun revolved around the earth, arguing instead that the earth revolved around the Sun. His paper led to a revolution in thinking -to a new worldview. A new book, Eco-Economy, discusses the need today for a similar shift in our worldview. Since 1974, Lester Brown, through the Worldwatch Institute’s annual State of the World reports, has served as a witness to our planet’s deteriorating ecology. Now he’s started a new non-profit, Earth Policy Institute, to help people develop a shared vision of what an environmentally sustainable economy, an eco-economy would look like. This book outlines his vision. “We can see glimpses of the eco-economy emerging in the wind farms of northern Germany, the solar rooftops of Japan, the reforested mountains of South Korea, and the steel recycling mills of the U.S.” The question is, do we join together to build an economy that is sustainable or do we keep at the status quo until its inevitable decline? One way or another the choice will be made by our generation, but it will affect life on earth for countless generations to come. Download the book or order it: www.earth-policy.org
EcoFilmFest & Expo
If you are in San Diego the first week of February, check out the first EcoFilmFest & Expo at the San Diego Natural History Museum (February 1-3). You will be treated to award-winning films (with speakers and discussions), live performances, and innovative product displays that demonstrate effective individual responses to sustainability issues. The group is looking for volunteers to help them develop future directions such as an ecofilm competition and gaia awards to raise the visibility of sustainability to the American public.http://www.ecofilmfest.org
Sustainable Design in the Forefront
Green Building Conference Alongside OlympicsMany of the world’s greatest green buildings will be on display alongside this year’s Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. The conference and exhibition, “The Physical Fitness of Cities: Vision and Ethics in City Building” will coincide with the games, February 1-3. Countries from around the world will display their approaches and leading examples of green design. Guess who is the keynote? [sorry this link is no longer available]Royal Institute of British Architects CompetitionThe theme of this year’s competition is urban sustainability. Using the Lochend Butterfly site in Edinburgh, Scotland, students and architects may submit entries that explore issues of environmental, social and economic sustainability. Previous themes have been Ideas for a Holistic Hotel, Ideas for a Sustainable School and Zero CO2 housing. First prize for this international competition is L10,000 (US $14,500). Deadline: February 28, 2002. [sorry this link is no longer available]Green Design SchoolsThe Ecosa Institute in Prescott, Arizona is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to incorporating sustainability into the design professions. Architecture, planning, and landscape design students participate in an intensive semester program that immerses them in ecological design and whole-systems thinking. The first Total Immersion Program In Sustainable Design graduated its first […]