Europe is seeing a quickly growing market in fair trade goods, which is obviously a good thing. Last year saw a very impressive increase in fair trade purchases.
“In Austria alone, between 2004 and 2005 there was an increase of 63 percent in the sales of “Fair Trade” items, so labelled because they are supposed to come from a production chain that respects the environment, workers’ salaries and labour rights, as part of a process that promotes social development.”
A Canadian blogger was taking some pictures of a Starbucks and an employee ran out and told her that she can’t take pictures of Starbucks! An argument ensued.
A large group of tourists overheard this exchange and decided to rebel against Starbucks by taking a whole lot of photos!
Kate writes:
“However, the large tour group standing outside had heard all this and started collectively grumbling “you can’t take a picture of a starbucks? it’s public property!” and they all whipped out their cameras and started snapping shots, while the manager looked at us from inside the store, quite clearly in a huff.”
A fun story!
The World Bank is promoting a program in Nepal that endorses the use of biogas in villages. It’s all about improving the lives of the poor by providing cheaper fuel while helping the environment through lowered emissions.
“The project promotes the use of biogas as a commercially viable industry in Nepal by expanding its use for cooking and lighting in rural households. The biogas units will be sold at a non-commercial price to poor households and displace fuel sources traditionally used for cooking—fuel wood, kerosene and agricultural waste—with gas from the treatment of animal and human waste. Each household biogas unit can reduce almost five tons of carbon dioxide equivalent annually.”
Cambridge University researchers have made a new kind of dipstick – one you stick in your eye. The dipstick is actually a test for eye infections, which is actually a better way to test for the infection than previous methods.
Some Kiwis have found a way to turn sewage into bio-diesel. I wonder how it smells.
“Marlborough-based Aquaflow Bionomic yesterday announced it had produced its first sample of bio-diesel fuel from algae in sewage ponds.
It is believed to be the world’s first commercial production of bio-diesel from “wild” algae outside the laboratory – and the company expects to be producing at the rate of at least one million litres of the fuel each year from Blenheim by April.”