Month: July 2006

Solar Powered Trash

- Adam Clare

trash binBoston has got some new trash receptacles on their sidewalks that are solar powered trash compactors. It means that more trash can fit in a box without costing the city, the city might even be able to save money because the bins don’t need to be collected as much. This is a yet one more neat use of solar power.

“Developed by a Jamaica Plain inventor, they are powered by photoelectric panels, which supply power to motor-driven compactors inside. Workers extract neat, 40-pound trash bricks instead of trying to manhandle the messy contents of an overflowing can.”

Boston is not the first city to use this technology though. There are bins located in Vancouver; Cincinnati; Queens, N.Y.; Needham; Newton; and Worcester. What city is next?

A novel use of the sun, however, they still need some work as “some people downtown mistook them for mail drops or traffic-light switch boxes.”

Greenpeace’s McVictory

- Adam Clare

mcvictory Greenpeace is reporting great success in their campaign to get McDonald’s to better respect the environment. This is really great for the rainforest!

“In recent years, the seemingly unstoppable expansion of soya farming in the Amazon had become one of the main threats to the world’s largest rainforest. The soya wasn’t being used to feed the world; instead it was used to feed farm animals destined for fast food and supermarket chains across Europe.”

The campaign to get McDonald’s to change their destructive was launched only in April of this year. The name of the campaign is rather witty – Eating up the Amazaon.

“The result is that McDonald’s and other big food retailers have worked with us to develop a zero deforestation plan. The plan will also help bring an end to the land-grabbing and social injustice that is rife in the Amazon.”

The One-Click Protest

- Adam Clare

app pictureHow-to use Apple’s Automator program as a protest tool:

Using Automator I’ve created an email that will be sent almost automatically to the Canadian Prime Minister about Canada’s involvement in Afghanistan. Using iCal, this email will automatically present itself for sending in front of the user when scheduled. All the user has to do is click ‘Send.’

One thing I hear a lot of is people telling me that they want to do something to make the world better, but they don’t have the time or they don’t know what they should do. This is an easy solution to that problem since all it takes is writing one email then having it resent as often as you’d like until your concern is addressed.

This is an easy and quick way to protest things that you don’t like when you like!

How to create your own Automator Protester:

Step 1

Open Automator and select the mail icon. Then drag the ‘Create new message’ option into the workflow space.

automator app picture
Click for larger image.

Now fill out whom you want to send the email to and then write your message. A simple Google search provides a lot of results for sample protest letters. The sad thing about this world is that there is a lot we should change, the good news is that using this we can hopefully make good change!

I’ve chosen to write mine on Canada’s involvement in the invasion of Afghanistan:

my example email

Step 2

Save it as a workflow and as an application.

Why both? Well, save the workflow so you can come back and easily edit the message for whatever future protesting you desire. Save it as an application because it is necessary for the next step.

Step 3

scheduling in ical

Open iCal (or some calendar application) and schedule in a time when you think you’ll be in front of your computer. I set mine for mid-afternoon on Tuesdays because most Tuesday afternoons I’m using my computer.
In iCal select the option to have an alarm and have it open a file. Select the application you just saved.

Viola!
Done!
Your message is ready to be sent! Just click send.

It’s that easy.

You can download this example workflow here. I hope you use this new found automated power for good and not evil.

Slumming it

- Adam Clare

In India a fantastic social experiment is literally paying off. Sick of being ignored by their government, some slum residents in India have taken matters in their own hands. They used cunning and unrelenting determination to improve their slum with some good self-directed improvements. Change Makers has the story.

“Three citizen organizations in India have joined forces to turn this scenario upside down. They are helping slum residents organize themselves to gain the skills they need to be powerful advocates for their own interests.

As empowered citizens, these slum residents are learning to recruit local government agencies and banks to help them win control of real estate. They are becoming the architects of their slum’s destruction, replacing it with a new community that they help locate, design, build, and eventually own themselves.”

Soaring Solar

- Adam Clare 2 Comments

Solar boat It seems that every year solar power efficiency improves and that this increased energy production allows for more and more uses. People also figure out other ways to use the sun’s heat. And what’s technological innovation without a competition? Well, we all know there are solar-powered competitions around the world like the classic World Solar Challenge that travels across Australia.

Did you know that there are solar powered boat competitions? I didn’t. The Frisian Nuon Solar Challenge is all about raising boats that gather power from the sun’s rays. Recently, Technical University of Delft won the competition.

Tempted to get your own solar boat, check out all of these crazy looking solar boats.

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