From Leslie Kaufman at The New York Times:
At Yellowstone National Park, the clear soda cups and white utensils are not your typical cafe-counter garbage. Made of plant-based plastics, they dissolve magically when heated for more than a few minutes.
At Ecco, a popular restaurant in Atlanta, waiters no longer scrape food scraps into the trash bin. Uneaten morsels are dumped into five-gallon pails and taken to a compost heap out back.
And at eight of its North American plants, Honda is recycling so diligently that the factories have gotten rid of their trash Dumpsters altogether.
Across the nation, an antigarbage strategy known as “zero waste” is moving from the fringes to the mainstream, taking hold in school cafeterias, national parks, restaurants, stadiums and corporations.
The movement is simple in concept if not always in execution: Produce less waste. Shun polystyrene foam containers or any other packaging that is not biodegradable. Recycle or compost whatever you can.
Though born of idealism, the zero-waste philosophy is now propelled by sobering realities, like the growing difficulty of securing permits for new landfills and an awareness that organic decay in landfills releases methane that helps warm the earth’s atmosphere.
More…
Seed magazine interviews William Kamkwamba, the young engineer who built a windmill from scrap in his native Malawi, and eventually brought power to his entire village…
From the blustery plains of Texas to the Danish island of Samsø, wind power—and the giant, bladed towers that generate it—is all the rage in a warming world searching for cleaner sources of energy. Fourteen-year-old William Kamkwamba had never heard of windmills, or climate change, for that matter, when he stumbled across a photograph one day and it changed his life forever.
Now 22, Kamkwamba has become something of an international DIY celebrity: He’s spoken at the World Economic Forum, at the Aspen Ideas Festival, and at TED Global—twice. He’s chatted with Al Gore, Bono, and Larry Page. A documentary about his life is currently in the works. But Kamkwamba’s story isn’t really about stardom: It’s about the grit, resourcefulness, and audacity of a young engineer who built a windmill from scrap in his native Malawi and brought power to his home—and eventually lit up every house in the village. It’s told in brilliant detail in The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (out now from William Morrow), co-authored with journalist Bryan Mealer. Seed editor Maywa Montenegro spoke with Kamkwamba while he was in New York City kicking off a US book tour. More…
www.SustainabilityConference.com
Natarajan Ishwaran, UNESCO/The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
Natarajan Ishwaran has 30 years of experience in teaching, research, wildlife/protected areas planning and management, multi-lateral environmental and biodiversity treaties, and co-ordination and management of international co-operation in environment and development. He published more than 25 publications in refereed journals is co-author of 2 edited volumes on ecology, biodiversity conservation and protected area management themes. More…
From Bridgette Meinhold at Inhabitat.com:
South Korea recently announced plans to construct a sustainable super-city that stands to eclipse the size of Masdar in the UAE. Designed by Foster + Partners together with PHA and Mobility in Chain, the Incheon mixed-use development will be a model of self-sufficent sustainability and will serve as an epicenter for the development of green technologies just north of Seoul.
Upon completion the Incheon eco-city will comprise a community of 320,000 residents centered around a spine of transportation and green industry. The hope for Incheon is that the area will become a high-tech research and development center for sustainable industries that manufacture photovoltaic panels and wind turbines. True to this ideal, the masterplan incorporates cutting-edge green technologies such as biomass energy generation, hydrogen fuel cells, and hydroponic roofs. More…
Katya Gonzalez Ripoll, Director of Heritage and Vice Minister of Culture for Colombia, Colombia
www.SustainabilityConference.com
Katya Gonzalez Ripoll has 25 years of experience of innovation in the field of urban development in the private and social sectors. As an architect and urban planner, she has been responsible for more than 500,000 square meters in projects that range from private housing, commercial and public buildings, restoration, conservation, urbanism, urban renovation and social housing. With this vast experience she has worked in the public sector as Director of Heritage and as Vice Minister of Culture in Colombia developing and implementing the program “Vigias de Patrimonio” a volunteer program for the conservation, protection and recuperation of tangible and intangible heritage. More…
