Is technology producing a decline in critical thinking and analysis?

Studies shed light on multi-tasking, video games and learning

As technology has played a bigger role in our lives, our skills in critical thinking and analysis have declined, while our visual skills have improved, according to research by Patricia Greenfield, UCLA distinguished professor of psychology and director of the Children's Digital Media Center, Los Angeles.

Learners have changed as a result of their exposure to technology, says Greenfield, who analyzed more than 50 studies on learning and technology, including research on multi-tasking and the use of computers, the Internet and video games. Her research was published this month in the journal Science.

Reading for pleasure, which has declined among young people in recent decades, enhances thinking and engages the imagination in a way that visual media such as video games and television do not, Greenfield said.

How much should schools use new media, versus older techniques such as reading and classroom discussion?

"No one medium is good for everything," Greenfield said. "If we want to develop a variety of skills, we need a balanced media diet. Each medium has costs and benefits in terms of what skills each develops."

Schools should make more effort to test students using visual media, she said, by asking them to prepare PowerPoint presentations, for example.

"As students spend more time with visual media and less time with print, evaluation methods that include visual media will give a better picture of what they actually know," said Greenfield, who has been using films in her classes since the 1970s.

"By using more visual media, students will process information better," she said. "However, most visual media are real-time media that do not allow time for reflection, analysis or imagination — those do not get developed by real-time media such as television or video games. Technology is not a panacea in education, because of the skills that are being lost.

"Studies show that reading develops imagination, induction, reflection and critical thinking, as well as vocabulary," Greenfield said. "Reading for pleasure is the key to developing these skills. Students today have more visual literacy and less print literacy. Many students do not read for pleasure and have not for decades."

Parents should encourage their children to read and should read to their young children, she said.

Among the studies Greenfield analyzed was a classroom study showing that students who were given access to the Internet during class and were encouraged to use it during lectures did not process what the speaker said as well as students who did not have Internet access. When students were tested after class lectures, those who did not have Internet access performed better than those who did.

"Wiring classrooms for Internet access does not enhance learning," Greenfield said.

Another study Greenfield analyzed found that college students who watched "CNN Headline News" with just the news anchor on screen and without the "news crawl" across the bottom of the screen remembered significantly more facts from the televised broadcast than those who watched it with the distraction of the crawling text and with additional stock market and weather information on the screen.

These and other studies show that multi-tasking "prevents people from getting a deeper understanding of information," Greenfield said.

Yet, for certain tasks, divided attention is important, she added.

"If you're a pilot, you need to be able to monitor multiple instruments at the same time. If you're a cab driver, you need to pay attention to multiple events at the same time. If you're in the military, you need to multi-task too," she said. "On the other hand, if you're trying to solve a complex problem, you need sustained concentration. If you are doing a task that requires deep and sustained thought, multi-tasking is detrimental."

Do video games strengthen skill in multi-tasking?

New Zealand researcher Paul Kearney measured multi-tasking and found that people who played a realistic video game before engaging in a military computer simulation showed a significant improvement in their ability to multi-task, compared with people in a control group who did not play the video game. In the simulation, the player operates a weapons console, locates targets and reacts quickly to events.

Greenfield wonders, however, whether the tasks in the simulation could have been performed better if done alone.

More than 85 percent of video games contain violence, one study found, and multiple studies of violent media games have shown that they can produce many negative effects, including aggressive behavior and desensitization to real-life violence, Greenfield said in summarizing the findings.

In another study, video game skills were a better predictor of surgeons' success in performing laparoscopic surgery than actual laparoscopic surgery experience. In laparoscopic surgery, a surgeon makes a small incision in a patient and inserts a viewing tube with a small camera. The surgeon examines internal organs on a video monitor connected to the tube and can use the viewing tube to guide the surgery.

"Video game skill predicted laparoscopic surgery skills," Greenfield said. "The best video game players made 47 percent fewer errors and performed 39 percent faster in laparoscopic tasks than the worst video game players."

Visual intelligence has been rising globally for 50 years, Greenfield said. In 1942, people's visual performance, as measured by a visual intelligence test known as Raven's Progressive Matrices, went steadily down with age and declined substantially from age 25 to 65. By 1992, there was a much less significant age-related disparity in visual intelligence, Greenfield said.

"In a 1992 study, visual IQ stayed almost flat from age 25 to 65," she said.

Greenfield believes much of this change is related to our increased use of technology, as well as other factors, including increased levels of formal education, improved nutrition, smaller families and increased societal complexity.

http://www.enn.com/sci-tech/article/39185

What I Think:

I think we may benefit more as a society from research done on whether what is being taught in schools today is even relevant in the technology-based society that we live in, rather than asking whether technology is "producing a decline in critical thinking and analysis." Whether people like it or not, technology is here to stay. We live in a society built on the use of technology. Information and the web are the furture, yet most of the schools in this country's education system are still opporating under the 1950's model of preparing children for a workforce based on factories and labor jobs (even though many of these jobs have been sent overseas to be filled by cheaper labor.)

Ask children whether they like to learn. They will undoubtedly say yes. The quest for knowledge is hard-wired into humans. Ask children whether they like school, and they will likely say no. When are our school systems going to catch up to our rapidly changing economy and society? When are researchers going to understand that children are bored in schools where they are not taught subjects relevant to the world in which they live, where they are much more advanced and skilled than their teachers when it comes to technology and its uses?

Technology provides us with more opportunities for critical thinking and analysis than ever before as the amount of information available at one's fingertips is larger than any other time in recorded history. Maybe it is not that critical thinking and analysis skills have decline, just that they have shifted as society has shifted.

"Wiring classrooms for Internet access does not enhance learning," Greenfield said.

What kind of learning, I ask. Does teaching out of decades old text books enhance learning? Do we even learn the skills we need to survive and function as a productive member of society in school? Why was I never taught any history that occurred after World War II? (Many events relevant to the formation of today's society and political culture were not taught.) Why was I only taught American and European history when India and China have incredibly rich histories full of scientific, mathematical, and medical discoveries? (We now participate in a global economy in which India and China also participate.) Why was I never taught how to manage money or anything about loans, interest rates, or even balancing a checkbook? (All applications of mathematics relevant to everyday life.)

Wireless classrooms provide educators with the wealth of resources available on the internet to enhance and supplement lessons in a way more suited to today's students. Videos on any subject imaginable can be viewed for free on many sites, most notably, YouTube. Wireless classroooms also provide educators with the chance to interact with other educators across the country, to exchange ideas and teaching methods, and even conduct telelectures. Imagine a sixth grade science classroom watching live streaming video shot inside a greenhouse or on a farm, teaching them about organic farming methods and environmental sustainability. Virtual fieldtrips are just one example of how Internet access in classrooms can and DOES enhance learning. What experience is more memorable in the mind of a child - watching an exciting video in which they actually get to see what they are learning about in action, or listening to a teacher talk for 45 minutes about what is in a dusty text book that was written before the child was born? I'm not saying that we should rid our schools of books and replace them with laptops, but we must be prepared to ask what is more relevant to the society in which we live? The point of establishing an education system is to prepare today's youth to be tomorrow's leaders, is it not? How can we expect children to lead us into the future when our country's education system is stuck in the past? Our children are not failing us with poor test scores and declining critical thinking skills. We are failing them by not properly preparing them for the sometimes harsh and cruel world which they will inheriet from us. By applying technology in the classroom, and by utilising the internet we can ensure that children are better prepared for adulthood.

The Greenhouse Hamburger

How Meat Contributes to Global Warming

Most of us are aware that our cars, our coal-generated electric power and even our cement factories adversely affect the environment. Until recently, however, the foods we eat had gotten a pass in the discussion. Yet according to a 2006 report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), our diets and, specifically, the meat in them cause more greenhouse gases carbon dioxide (CO2), methane, nitrous oxide, and the like to spew into the atmosphere than either transportation or industry. (Greenhouse gases trap solar energy, thereby warming the earth's surface. Because gases vary in greenhouse potency, every greenhouse gas is usually expressed as an amount of CO2 with the same global-warming potential.)

The FAO report found that current production levels of meat contribute between 14 and 22 percent of the 36 billion tons of "CO2-equivalent" greenhouse gases the world produces every year. It turns out that producing half a pound of hamburger for someone's lunch a patty of meat the size of two decks of cards releases as much greenhouse gas into the atmosphere as driving a 3,000-pound car nearly 10 miles.

In truth, every food we consume, vegetables and fruits included, incurs hidden environmental costs: transportation, refrigeration and fuel for farming, as well as methane emissions from plants and animals, all lead to a buildup of atmospheric greenhouse gases. Take asparagus: in a report prepared for the city of Seattle, Daniel J. Morgan of the University of Washington and his co-workers found that growing just half a pound of the vegetable in Peru emits greenhouse gases equivalent to 1.2 ounces of CO2 as a result of applying insecticide and fertilizer, pumping water and running heavy, gas-guzzling farm equipment. To refrigerate and transport the vegetable to an American dinner table generates another two ounces of CO2-equivalent greenhouse gases, for a total CO2 equivalent of 3.2 ounces.

But that is nothing compared to beef. In 1999 Susan Subak, an ecological economist then at the University of East Anglia in England, found that, depending on the production method, cows emit between 2.5 and 4.7 ounces of methane for each pound of beef they produce. Because methane has roughly 23 times the global-warming potential of CO2, those emissions are the equivalent of releasing between 3.6 and 6.8 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere for each pound of beef produced.

Raising animals also requires a large amount of feed per unit of body weight. In 2003 Lucas Reijnders of the University of Amsterdam and Sam Soret of Loma Linda University estimated that producing a pound of beef protein for the table requires more than 10 pounds of plant protein with all the emissions of greenhouse gases that grain farming entails. Finally, farms for raising animals produce numerous wastes that give rise to greenhouse gases.

Taking such factors into account, Subak calculated that producing a pound of beef in a feedlot, or concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) system, generates the equivalent of 14.8 pounds of CO2 pound for pound, more than 36 times the CO2-equivalent greenhouse gas emitted by producing asparagus. Even other common meats cannot match the impact of beef; I estimate that producing a pound of pork generates the equivalent of 3.8 pounds of CO2; a pound of chicken generates 1.1 pounds of CO2-equivalent greenhouse gases. And the economically efficient CAFO system, though certainly not the cleanest production method in terms of CO2-equivalent greenhouse emissions, is far better than most: the FAO data I noted earlier imply that the world average emissions from producing a pound of beef are several times the CAFO amount.

Solutions?
What can be done? Improving waste management and farming practices would certainly reduce the "carbon footprint" of beef production. Methane-capturing systems, for instance, can put cows' waste to use in generating electricity. But those systems remain too costly to be commercially viable.

Individuals, too, can reduce the effects of food production on planetary climate. To some degree, after all, our diets are a choice. By choosing more wisely, we can make a difference. Eating locally produced food, for instance, can reduce the need for transport though food inefficiently shipped in small batches on trucks from nearby farms can turn out to save surprisingly little in greenhouse emissions. And in the U.S. and the rest of the developed world, people could eat less meat, particularly beef.

The graphics on the following pages quantify the links between beef production and greenhouse gases in sobering detail. The take-home lesson is clear: we ought to give careful thought to diet and its consequences for the planet if we are serious about limiting the emissions of greenhouse gases.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR(S)
Nathan Fiala is a doctoral candidate in economics at the University of California, Irvine, focusing on the environmental impact of dietary habits. He also runs evaluations of development projects for the World Bank in Washington, D.C. In his spare time he enjoys independent movies and sailing. His study of the environmental impact of meat production on which this article is based was recently published in the journal Ecological Economics.

http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=the-greenhouse-hamburger&page=2

Seed bank for the world threatened by financial crisis

By Georgina Cooper

ARDINGLY, England (Reuters) - A seed bank that is trying to collect every type of plant in the world is now under threat from the global financial crisis, its director says.

The Millennium Seed Bank Project aims to house all the 300,000 different plant species known to exist to ensure future biodiversity and protect a vital source of food and medicines, director Paul Smith said.

The project is on track to collect 10 percent of the total by 2010 but the financial crisis is drying up funding, casting serious doubts on future collections, he said.

About half the funding comes from the National Lottery and the rest from corporate donations.

But with businesses tightening their belts in the economic downturn and preparation for the 2012 London Olympics sapping lottery money, the pot is about to run dry.

Smith hopes government money and international groups will come through with the nearly 10 million pounds per year needed to keep the bank going. But if that does not happen, new collections and research will stop, he said.

"We would say that this is an exceptional bank and that the assets within it, the capital that we have built up, is unique and we can't squander this," Smith told Reuters Television during a tour of the facility south of London.

Each seed costs about 2,000 pounds to collect and store.

The Millennium Seed Bank Project is the only project of its kind in the world which aims to collect and conserve all the planet's wild plant diversity, Smith said.

Human activities, such as clearing forests, have put flora and fauna at risk. Because most of the world's food and medicines come from nature, protecting plant species is critical, scientists say.

For example, it was only 30 years ago that Catharanthus roseus, a small pink plant also known as the Madagascan periwinkle, was found to contain compounds used in cancer drugs.

"Thirteen million hectares of forest are cleared every year -- that's an area the size of England -- and of course the plant species which occur there are going the same way," Smith said.

There are 1,400 other seed banks in the world that store about 0.6 percent of the world's plant diversity. The Millennium Project run by Kew Gardens -- one of the world's oldest botanical gardens -- aims to collect the rest, he said.

Managing the deposits involves far more than simply filing them away for safekeeping. Seeds from across the globe arrive at the bank in packets of all sizes, where they are catalogued, tested and experimented on.

They are separated from husks, cleaned and dried again before final storage in an underground vault at minus 20 degrees Celsius, where they can last for up to thousands of years. The vaults are designed to withstand a nuclear accident.

A third of the planet's plants are categorized as threatened with extinction, which could have dramatic effects on human life, trade and the environment, Smith said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/environmentNews/idUSTRE50S4FB20090129?pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0

Sustainable Urban and Vertical Farming

Urban Agriculture Blooms


Urban Farming Grows Up

DIY Home Gardening Projects

Build a Rain Barrel
Build a Homemade

Hydroponics System

100 Foot Diet - Freedom Gardens

Grow what you eat, eat what you grow

With a nod to the 100 mile diet (spearheaded by Alisa Smith and James MacKinnon) and other eat local challenges, Freedom Gardens is presenting a challenge to bring food even closer to home. The 100 Foot Diet Challenge reduces the traveling distance from field to table from miles to a few steps—right outside your back or, even, front door.

You don’t even need acreage to be a “farmer.” Use your yard (or balcony or porch steps) not only to grow your diet but also to cultivate a healthier and more fulfilling life.

In the spirit of courage and “we-can-do-it” attitudes of previous generations who planted gardens in their front and back yards to support their countries’ war efforts, today we undertake the challenge to declare independence from corporate food systems and start a living protest right in our own back/front/side yards by planting for freedom!

■The challenge is simple. Begin as soon as you can; prepare a meal at least once a week with only homegrown vegetables, fruit, herbs, eggs, dairy products or meat, using as few store bought ingredients as possible.

■The purpose is plain. The undertaking of an all-out struggle for freedom from the forces that keep you dependent on the system of petroleum fueled food. The degree to which you rely on today’s artificial corporate structure determines the extent of your vulnerability. Resolve to lessen your dependence on outside food sources.

■The result is revolutionary. As you take back responsibility for your food supply, you’ll experience the empowerment and fulfillment that comes from learning the basic skills of providing for yourself and your family.

By planting a Freedom Garden and taking on this challenge, you, your family, and the planet will benefit.

■Eat more nutritious food, which leads to better health
■Reduce your exposure to unwanted, toxic pesticides
■Reduce the number of miles your food travels, lessening your dependence on fossil fuels and reducing carbon emissions
■Increased food security
■Improved quality of life through living in harmony with nature and eating with the seasons
■Save money; make money (see DerVaes Gardens)
■Reduce excessive packaging
■Combat global warming
■Get involved in your local food community
■Become independent of corporate food systems

Together, let us declare our independence and sow the seeds of freedom. This is a true revolution!

Visit this site to learn more about Freedom Gardens and to join this revolution!

http://freedomgardens.org/project/100-foot-diet/

I already attempt to eat as much locally produced food as possible, but even for me, this really is a challenge. Especially in the winter in Kentucky. As I mentioned in my last post, I recently bought a grow light to assist with growing sprouts and wheatgrass indoors, and to have my seedlings ready to plant come spring. I also always have at least one jar of sprouts growing at a time, whether alfalfa, lentil, clover, or some kind of bean or pea or grain. I have some potted herbs, but the lack of sunlight in the winter has been hard on them.

I always buy local first (local honey and apples are available pretty much year round, as are local raw cheeses and butter.) If I cannot find local, then I buy organic. I try not to buy things out of season, but I just love avocados and have a hard time going without. I have been buying winter greens, such as kale, which is actually cheaper than other greens this time of year.

This is my challenge for myself:

1. Grow and eat as many sprouts as possible until I can plant my garden.

2. Buy local/organic first, then organic, and seasonal produce as much as possible.

3. Make my own rather than buying (sauerkraut, kim chee, kombucha, mead, yogurt, etc.)

4. Grow the largest garden I can this spring and summer using heirloom and organic seeds.

5. Plant a fall and winter garden and maintain a passive solar greenhouse over the winter.

6. Set up rain barrels, use ocean water, and minerals on all garden plants.

7. Plant wild flowers because they are pretty and they attract bees to pollenate my garden.

HOMEGROWN REVOLUTION - Radical Change Taking Root

http://www.pathtofreedom.com/

As I watched this video, I suddenly became aware that I had tears running down my face - tears of joy, tears of inspiration. This is my goal - to live self-sufficiently and sustainably. To grow as much of my own food as possible. Since I was very young, I have always felt a calling back to the land, although I was not quite sure until more recent years just what that calling was.

It is radical to grow your own food. To be independent. To put your love and intention into the food you grow and eat. Growing your own food puts you back in control of your life, your health. You control what foods you grow and how they are grown. No pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or genetically modified crops. Organic and heirloom variety seeds; seeds which you can save and replant year after year.

I have recently purchased a grow light and will be starting the seedlings for my first large-scale garden as soon as I can. I also grow sprouts indoors year round, and with the light, I will be able to grow pea shoots, sunflower shoots, and wheatgrass in my kitchen. I have plans for building a greenhouse utilising passive solar heating during the cooler months. I have some garden experience (we always had one growing up) and I plan on visiting my grandparents often to learn from them. They have always had a nice sized garden as far back as I can remember. Every year they grow tomatoes, peppers, beans, lettuce, green onions, corn, squashes, cucumbers, and more. And they always have way more than they can eat themselves. I plan on learning the valuable art of canning and jarring from them this year. This is very exciting, but also somewhat overwhelming. I have to build raised beds, till up the soil in my back yard, mix in compost, learn about adding ocean water and minerals, and more. I feel like I am taking on such a challange, but one that will be well worth it in the end.

6 Ways Mushrooms Can Save the World - Paul Stamets

100 Benefits of Meditation

Physiological benefits:
1- It lowers oxygen consumption.
2- It decreases respiratory rate.
3- It increases blood flow and slows the heart rate.
4- Increases exercise tolerance.
5- Leads to a deeper level of physical relaxation.
6- Good for people with high blood pressure.
7- Reduces anxiety attacks by lowering the levels of blood lactate.
8- Decreases muscle tension
9- Helps in chronic diseases like allergies, arthritis etc.
10- Reduces Pre-menstrual Syndrome symptoms.
11- Helps in post-operative healing.
12- Enhances the immune system.
13- Reduces activity of viruses and emotional distress
14- Enhances energy, strength and vigour.
15- Helps with weight loss
16- Reduction of free radicals, less tissue damage
17- Higher skin resistance
18- Drop in cholesterol levels, lowers risk of cardiovascular disease.
19- Improved flow of air to the lungs resulting in easier breathing.
20- Decreases the aging process.
21- Higher levels of DHEAS (Dehydroepiandrosterone)
22- prevented, slowed or controlled pain of chronic diseases
23- Makes you sweat less
24- Cure headaches & migraines
25- Greater Orderliness of Brain Functioning
26- Reduced Need for Medical Care
27- Less energy wasted
28- More inclined to sports, activities
29- Significant relief from asthma
30- improved performance in athletic events
31- Normalizes to your ideal weight
32- harmonizes our endocrine system
33- relaxes our nervous system
34- produce lasting beneficial changes in brain electrical activity
35- Cure infertility (the stresses of infertility can interfere with the release of hormones that regulate ovulation).

Psychological benefits:
36- Builds self-confidence.
37- Increases serotonin level, influences mood and behaviour.
38- Resolve phobias & fears
39- Helps control own thoughts
40- Helps with focus & concentration
41- Increase creativity
42- Increased brain wave coherence.
43- Improved learning ability and memory.
44- Increased feelings of vitality and rejuvenation.
45- Increased emotional stability.
46- improved relationships
47- Mind ages at slower rate
48- Easier to remove bad habits
49- Develops intuition
50- Increased Productivity
51- Improved relations at home & at work
52- Able to see the larger picture in a given situation
53- Helps ignore petty issues
54- Increased ability to solve complex problems
55- Purifies your character
56- Develop will power
57- greater communication between the two brain hemispheres
58- react more quickly and more effectively to a stressful event.
59- increases one’s perceptual ability and motor performance
60- higher intelligence growth rate
61- Increased job satisfaction
62- increase in the capacity for intimate contact with loved ones
63- decrease in potential mental illness
64- Better, more sociable behaviour
65- Less aggressiveness
66- Helps in quitting smoking, alcohol addiction
67- Reduces need and dependency on drugs, pills & pharmaceuticals
68- Need less sleep to recover from sleep deprivation
69- Require less time to fall asleep, helps cure insomnia
70- Increases sense of responsibility
71- Reduces road rage
72- Decrease in restless thinking
73- Decreased tendency to worry
74- Increases listening skills and empathy
75- Helps make more accurate judgements
76- Greater tolerance
77- Gives composure to act in considered & constructive ways
78- Grows a stable, more balanced personality
79- Develops emotional maturity

Spiritual benefits:
80- Helps keep things in perspective
81- Provides peace of mind, happiness
82- Helps you discover your purpose
83- Increased self-actualization.
84- Increased compassion
85- Growing wisdom
86- Deeper understanding of yourself and others
87- Brings body, mind, spirit in harmony
88- Deeper Level of spiritual relaxation
89- Increased acceptance of oneself
90- helps learn forgiveness
91- Changes attitude toward life
92- Creates a deeper relationship with your God
93- Attain enlightenment
94- greater inner-directedness
95- Helps living in the present moment
96- Creates a widening, deepening capacity for love
97- Discovery of the power and consciousness beyond the ego
98- Experience an inner sense of “Assurance or Knowingness”
99- Experience a sense of “Oneness”
100- Increases the synchronicity in your life

Meditation is also completely FREE! It requires no special equipment, and is not complicated to learn. It can be practiced anywhere, at any given moment, and it is not time consuming (15-20 min. per day is good). Best of all, meditation has NO negative side effects. Bottom line, there is nothing but positive to be gained from it! With such a huge list of benefits, the question you should ask yourself is, “why am I not meditating yet?”

Make sure you meditate, there are quite simply too many positives to just ignore it.

http://www.brandongilbert.info/2009/01/26/100-benefits-of-meditation/

10 Things the Processed Food Industry Doesn't Want You to Know

by BodyEcology.com

Processed food is fast and easy, but before you stop at the next vending machine or fast food window, find out what they DON’T want you to know about processed foods.

Okay, they taste good...and they’re easy. In fact, they’re everywhere you look.

Processed foods seem like the answer to today’s busy lives. New fads and fancy advertisements make promises that keep us coming back for more.

But before you hit the vending machine or the fast food window, find out what the processed food industry doesn’t want you to know:

1. Processed foods are addictive and can cause you to overeat. Whole foods are made up of carbohydrates, proteins, fats, fiber and water. When foods are processed the components of these foods are modified (for example, fiber, water and nutrients are removed) and in other cases, components are concentrated. In each case, processing changes the way they are digested and assimilated in your body.

Eating highly processed or highly concentrated foods can artificially stimulate dopamine (the pleasure neurotransmitter), which plays a role in addiction. In this way, you are eating foods that lack nutrients and fiber, but create a pleasurable feeling. A food addiction starts because you feel good when you are eating these foods and they make you think they taste better. You crave that pleasurable feeling again and again and viola…this is what starts a food addiction.

2. Processed foods are linked to obesity. Additives in processed foods, like high fructose corn syrup, sugar and MSG have been linked to weight gain and obesity. Dr. Mercola recently reported about a new study that showed childhood obesity could be reduced by 18 percent, simply by cutting out fast food advertisements during children’s programming.3 The Australian government is clearly more concerned about their children’s health as television advertisements to children were banned several years ago.

3. Processed foods often contain ingredients that do not follow the principle of food combining, which can lead to low energy, poor digestion, illness, acidic blood and weight gain. An example would be a frozen meat and cheese pizza. Cheese (a dairy product), meat (an animal protein) and pizza crust (a grain product) make a terrible food combination that can wreak havoc on your digestive health.

4. Processed foods contribute to an imbalanced inner ecosystem, which can lead to digestive problems, cravings, illness and disease. Beneficial microflora cannot survive in your digestive tract when you are poisoning them. Like us they thrive on foods that are made by nature not by man.

5. A diet high in processed foods can lead to depression, memory issues and mood swings. Ingredients in processed foods are often the lowest cost and sub-par, nutritionally. For example, the fats and oils used in processed foods are refined, which means they are stripped of the essential fatty acids necessary for healthy blood sugar levels, moods and memory. Your heart, hormones and brain suffer when you choose to eat these fats and oils. Instead choose the organic, unrefined or “virgin” fats and oils that are recommended on The Body Ecology Diet.

6. Processed foods often go hand in hand with “eating on the run” or multitasking. Most people will choose convenience if they are on the run and in today’s busy lives, who of us isn’t? Unfortunately, multitasking while eating causes people to lose touch with their natural appetite, often leading to weight gain. Additionally, multitasking sends the wrong signals to your digestive system, which needs to be in a restful mode to digest properly.

7. Nutrition labels on processed foods are often misleading and have harmful health effects. Many labels say “sugar free,” but contain other sweeteners like agave, which is like high fructose corn syrup. Additionally, product labeling may hide ingredients like GM (genetically modified) foods and harmful additives like MSG. (These are hidden behind words on the label like “natural flavorings” or “approved spices”).

8. Diets high in processed meats (like hot dogs and deli meats) have been linked to various forms of cancer, such as pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer and stomach cancer.

9. Eating too many processed foods can lead to infertility and malnutrition. Processed foods, like cereal, are stripped of important vitamins and nutrients that your body truly needs. You could be eating a large amount of calories and still be malnourished if your diet is high in processed foods.

Animal studies have shown that over three generations, a deficient diet causes reproduction to cease.6 Today, infertility is on the rise, affecting 7.3 million people in America.

10. Processed foods are made for long shelf-life, not long human life! Chemicals, additives and preservatives are added to processed foods so that they will last for a long time without going rancid or affecting the taste of the food. Food manufacturers spend time, money and research on beautiful packaging and strategies to lengthen shelf-life, with little attention on how the foods will lengthen your life or create lasting health.

http://www.bodyecology.com/archive/10-things-processed-food-industry.php

Biodynamic Agriculture

Biodynamic agriculture, a method of organic farming that has its basis in a spiritual world-view (anthroposophy, first propounded by Rudolf Steiner), treats farms as unified and individual organisms,[1] emphasizing balancing the holistic development and interrelationship of the soil, plants, animals as a closed, self-nourishing system.[2] Regarded by some proponents as the first modern ecological farming system,[3] biodynamic farming includes organic agriculture's emphasis on manures and composts and exclusion of the use of artificial chemicals on soil and plants. Methods unique to the biodynamic approach include the use of fermented herbal and mineral preparations as compost additives and field sprays and the use of an astronomical sowing and planting calendar.[4]

The development of biodynamic agriculture began in 1924 with a series of eight lectures on agriculture given by Rudolf Steiner at Schloss Koberwitz in what was then Silesia, Germany, (now in Poland east of Wrocław). The course was held in response to a request by farmers who noticed degraded soil conditions and a deterioration in the health and quality of crops and livestock resulting from the use of chemical fertilizers.[5] An agricultural research group was subsequently formed to test the effects of biodynamic methods on the life and health of soil, plants and animals. In the United States, the Biodynamic Farming & Gardening Association was founded in 1938 as a New York state corporation.

In Australia the first biodynamic preparations were made by Ernesto Genoni in Melbourne in 1927 and by Bob Williams in Sydney in 1939. Since the 1950s research work has continued at the Biodynamic Research Institute (BDRI) in Powelltown, near Melbourne Australia under the direction of Alexei Podolinsky. In 1989 Biodynamic Agriculture Australia was established, as a not for profit association. It has well over 1100 members and has local and regional groups throughout Australia. It publishes the biodynamic journal News Leaf quarterly and is the largest organic growers association in Australia.

Today biodynamics is practiced in more than 50 countries worldwide. The University of Kassel has a dedicated Department of Biodynamic Agriculture.[6]

Biodynamic method of farming

Biodynamic agriculture conceives of the farm as an organism, a self-contained entity with its own individuality. "Emphasis is placed on the integration of crops and livestock, recycling of nutrients, maintenance of soil, and the health and well being of crops and animals; the farmer too is part of the whole."[7] Cover crops, green manures and crop rotations are used extensively. The approach also attempts to consider celestial (i.e., astrological) influences on soil and plant development and to revitalize the farm, its products, and its inhabitants.[8] Seeds are planted at certain lunar phases.[9]

Treatment of pests and weeds

Biodynamic agriculture sees the basis of pest and disease control arising from a strong healthy balanced farm organism. Where this is not yet achieved it uses techniques analogous to fertilization for pest control and weed control. Most of these techniques include using the ashes of a pest or weed that has been trapped or picked from the fields and burnt. A biodynamic farmer perceives weeds and plant vulnerability to pests as a result of imbalances in the soil.
Pests such as insects or field mice (Apodemus) have more complex processes associated with them, depending on what pest is to be targeted. For example field mice are to be countered by deploying ashes prepared from field mice skin when Venus is in

Seed production

Biodynamic agriculture has focused on open pollination of seeds (permitting farmers to grow their own seed) and the development of locally adapted varieties. The seed stock is not controlled by large, multinational seed companies.[11]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biodynamic_agriculture

YET ANOTHER REASON TO EAT RAW AND LOCAL - Counterfeit foods enter the U.S. market

By Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY

Some of your favorite foods may be fakes.

Foods masquerading as something else — a more nutritious something else — have been big news in the past two years. Chinese food companies in particular have been blamed for making deadly alterations to dairy, baby and pet foods by adding melamine. The chemical makes it appear that the food or beverage has the required level of protein.

But what about food producers in this country? What fraudulent foods do U.S. consumers have to fear from American companies?

Experts say dangerous U.S.-produced foods are comparatively few, but producers have been known to practice "economic adulteration" — adding a little to their bottom line by padding, thinning or substituting something cheap for something expensive.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration regulate the food industry, but with safety issues to deal with, economic adulteration has "really been back-burnered," says Bruce Silverglade of the non-profit Center for Science in the Public Interest. So in a caveat emptor world, what should consumers look out for?

Fish is the most frequently faked food Americans buy. In the business, it's called "species adulteration" — selling a cheaper fish such as pen-raised Atlantic salmon as wild Alaska salmon.

When Consumer Reports tested 23 supposedly wild-caught salmon fillets bought nationwide in 2005-2006, only 10 were wild salmon. The rest were farmed. In 2004, University of North Carolina scientists found 77% of fish labeled red snapper was actually something else. Last year, the Chicago Sun-Times tested fish at 17 sushi restaurants and found that fish being sold as red snapper actually was mostly tilapia.

"It's really just fraud, plain and simple," says Gavin Gibbons of the National Fisheries Institute, an industry group.

One thing consumers don't need to worry about is scallops. Tales of skate wings cut into circles and sold as scallops are common. But Spring Randolph, a consumer safety officer at the FDA and an expert on species adulteration, says the FDA has never found an actual case of it.

Salmon is tricky. Randolph does have one tip, though. Farmed salmon gets its coloring from dyes added to food pellets the fish are fed, while wild salmon gets it from the plankton they eat.

"When you cook it, the wild salmon retains its color, and in the aquaculture salmon, the color tends to leak out," she says. Suspicious consumers can call the FDA's Center for Food Safety and Nutrition hotline at 1-888-SAFEFOOD.

Olive oil

This luxury oil, touted for its heart-health properties and taste, has become a gourmet must-have. Americans consumed about 575 million pounds of the silky stuff last year, according to the North American Olive Oil Association. Sixty-three percent was the higher-grade extra virgin, which comes from the first pressing of the olives.

It's also one of the most frequently counterfeited food products, says Martin Stutsman, the FDA's consumer safety officer for edible oils.

There are no national figures on olive-oil fakery. But after complaints, Connecticut began testing two years ago. "We were coming across a lot of products labeled as extra-virgin olive oil that contained up to 90% soybean oil," says Jerry Farrell Jr., Connecticut's commissioner of consumer protection.

Most name brands were fine, Farrell says. It was often off-brands sold in discount stores that were the problem.

Connecticut was so concerned that in November, it became the first state in the nation to set standards for olive oil, enabling officials there to levy fines and pull adulterated products off store shelves. California is set to create its own standards this year. Reports from panels of testers have found as much as 60% to 70% of the olive oil sold as extra virgin in the state is a lower-quality olive oil, says Dan Flynn of the Olive Center at the University of California-Davis.

The easiest thing is for fakers to add 10% vegetable oil in extra virgin, says Stutsman. "It will still smell as it should, but you've saved 10% of the cost."

Bob Bauer, president of the North American Olive Oil Association, says it's more of a problem in restaurants than in supermarkets.

Honey

An expensive natural product that's mostly sugar, honey is easily faked. "If you can substitute a less expensive source of sugar for the expensive one, you can save some money and gain market share," says the FDA's Stutsman.

It used to be that cane sugar or high-fructose corn syrup was mostly used to thin out honey. But chemically, that was easy to spot. FDA used an isotope test that would easily identify the adulteration.

So counterfeiters got wily and started using beet sugar. Its profile is similar to honey, so the FDA had to switch to a much more complicated, multistep test comparing the sugar profiles to see if the proportions and trace materials match.

"But once we started catching people, they create a moving target. They'll switch to something more difficult (to detect)," says Stutsman.

Maple syrup

Maple syrup is another high-value item that can be adulterated. In these tough economic times, Vermont, the USA's largest supplier to flapjacks everywhere, may up its testing programs.

The boiled-down sap of the sugar maple tree can be diluted with water or sugar by sellers "trying to get more bang for the buck," says Kristin Haas, food safety director in the state's Agency for Agriculture, Food and Markets.

Vermont's testing program has found fraud only three times in the past 17 years, says Haas, but it's not taken lightly. "A couple of years back, there was a gentleman who actually went to prison because of this issue."

When times get tight, the incentive to cheat can rise like sap in the spring, so the state may have to work harder to keep its premier product pure.

Vanilla

A product of the tropics, vanilla pods can be soaked in milk or stored in sugar to impart a delicate vanilla scent to foods. More commonly, they're soaked in alcohol that is then used as a flavoring.

But vanillin (pronounced VAN-ah-lynn), a chemical copy of the richly organic vanilla flavor, was created in the laboratory in the 19th century. When used in foods, it's supposed to be labeled as an artificial flavor and usually is.

One "too good to be true" product to watch out for is really inexpensive vanilla extract sometimes sold in Mexico and Latin America, says the FDA. It's often made with coumarin, a toxic substance that has been banned in U.S. foods since 1954.

Coumarin is chemically related to warfarin, a blood thinner, and can be dangerous. It's "no bargain," the FDA says.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/2009-01-19-fake-foods_N.htm

U.S. Green Building Council Helps Builders and Companies Go Green

More companies are beginning to see the benefits of having energy-efficient buildings and physical plants. Cleaner, more efficient office buildings and work spaces not only help the environment but can save a company money, improving that company's -- as well as all of society's -- bottom line.

One organization helps companies to realize the benefits of greener building.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a nonprofit coalition for "advancing buildings that are environmentally responsible, profitable, and healthy places to live and work," according to the organization's website. The USGBC operates the "Green Building Rating System" for new buildings and the "Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System" to grade the sustainable operation of existing buildings.

More than 5,500 companies and organizations are members of the council, which had certified more than 200 million sq. ft. of commercial space as LEED certified.

Companies that are certified by USGBC are then able to tout their environmental stewardship, and also will save money in the long run for having built cleaner operating, more energy-efficient buildings.

For example, recently USGBC certified the new technology and operations campus of KeyCorp (NYSE: KEY), outside of Cleveland, with a green certification. The company will realize an energy savings over the years, and the environment will benefit immediately: According to KeyCorp, the new buildings emit 2.7 million pounds less greenhouse gases, such as carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide and mercury. This is equal to removing 130 cars from the road or planting 378 acres of trees. The new campus was built on a former "brownfield" site.

KeyCorp is a bank with more than 900 branches in 12 mostly midwestern states, and has nearly 20,000 employees. The company says it plans to use green practices in its branches as well. KeyCorp's sales were more than $5.5 billion in 2004.

Governments are getting in on the act too -- recently the mayor of Scottsdale, Arizona, announced that all public buildings in that city were to be certified "LEED Gold," the USGBC's second-most stringent certification for existing buildings. Certification levels are Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum.

http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/1500

Green Cleaning Required in LEED for Existing Buildings

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) first released LEED for Existing Buildings: Operations and Maintenance (LEED-EB) in November 2007. The reference guide for the system is due out in June 2008, and, as of July 1, all projects seeking certification must register under the new version.

Among the many changes are the addition of a green cleaning prerequisite and two points in a green cleaning credit requiring verification of custodial effectiveness. According to David Holly of the Ashkin Group, a green cleaning consulting firm, the prerequisite is a sign that the importance of cleaning is gaining recognition.

The new points, which are awarded for achieving a certain level of cleanliness, also represent a shift away from thinking about green cleaning as a set of products towards thinking about it as a set of best practices that include making a cleaning plan, using less-toxic chemicals, and using energy-efficient equipment.

To achieve the performance-based points, a building must meet standards set by APPA, which provides guidelines for educational facilities. The Ashkin Group is working with APPA and USGBC to adapt the guidelines to other types of facilities; the resulting guidance will appear in the LEED-EB reference guide.

http://www.enn.com/top_stories/article/37513

Ten Best Green Jobs for the Next Decade

By: Anya Kamenetz

Massive investments in clean energy promise to keep farmers, urban planners, and green-tech entrepreneurs in business for the next decade. This guide to sustainability focused career paths will help solar-charge your work life.

"It's time to bail out the people and the planet," says Van Jones, author of The Green Collar Economy: How One Solution Can Fix Our Two Biggest Problems. We agree, and this guide to to sustainability-focused career paths will help retrofit and solar-charge your work life.

Farmer

America has only two million farmers, and their average age is 55. Since sustainable agriculture requires small-scale, local, organic methods rather than petroleum-based machines and fertilizers, there is a huge need for more farmers -- up to tens of millions of them, according to food guru Michael Pollan. Modern farmers are small businesspeople who must be as skilled in heirloom genetics as marketing.

Schools: University of Vermont: Center for Sustainable Agriculture; Stone Barns Center For Food & Agriculture in New York State; University of Oklahoma: Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture; Evergreen State College: degree in Sustainable Agriculture.

Related careers: urban gardener; farmers market and CSA coordinator; artisanal cheesemakers; and other food producers.

Forester

Modern forestry a complex combination of international project finance, conservation and development. According to the World Bank, a staggering 1.6 billion people depend on the forest for their livelihoods. Foresters help local people transition from slash-and-burn to silviculture--teaching cultivation of higher-value, faster-growing species for fruit, medicine or timber, for examples while carefully documenting the impact on the environment. Deforestation, which causes around a quarter of all global warming, is also likely to be a leading source of carbon credits worth tens of billions of dollars.

Schools: Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies; Duke University: Nicholas School of the Environment; University of Michigan: School of Natural Resources & Environment.

Companies/organizations: The Nature Conservancy; New Forests Inc.

Solar Power Installer

Making and installing solar power systems already accounts for some 770,000 jobs globally. Installing solar-thermal water heaters and rooftop photovoltaic cells is a relatively high-paying job--$15 to $35 an hour--for those with construction skills. And opportunities are available all over the United States, wherever the sun shines. Currently over 3,400 companies in the solar energy sector employ 25,000 to 35,000 workers. The Solar Energy Industries Association predicts an increase to over 110,000 jobs by 2016â even more if anticipated tax credits are accelerated.

Companies: Akeena Solar; Sungevity; Sunpower; Full list at SEIA.org.

Energy Efficiency Builder Buildings account for up to 48 percent of US energy use and greenhouse gas emissions. LEED, the major green building certification, has over 43,000 accredited professionals. But the cutting edge in efficient buildings goes far beyond LEED. Buildings constructed according to Passivhaus and MINERGIE-P standards in Germany and Switzerland, respectively, use between 75% and 95% less heat energy than a similar building constructed to the latest codes in the US. Greening the US building stock will take not only skilled architects and engineers, but a workforce of retrofitters who can use spray foam insulation and storm windows to massively improve the R-value (thermal resistance) of the draftiest old houses. A study by the Apollo Alliance recommended an $89.9 billion investment in financing to create 827,260 jobs in green buildings -- an initiative supported by the Obama stimulus package, which specifically mentions energy retrofits.

Schools: Arizona State University School of Architecture: Energy Performance Climate-Responsive Architecture; University of Michigan: Alfred A. Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning; The Earth Institute at Columbia University.

Wind Turbine Fabricator

Wind is the leading and fastest-growing source of alternative energy with over 300,000 jobs worldwide. Turbines are 90% metal by weight, creating an opportunity for autoworkers and other manufacturers to repurpose their skills. According to the American Wind Energy Association, the industry currently employs some 50,000 Americans and added 10,000 new jobs in 2007. Their job board is an excellent place to start looking for opportunities.

Companies: Vestas; Siemens; GE Energy.

Conservation Biologist

The granddaddy of diversity, E.O. Wilson, famously called conservation biology -- discipline with a deadline. The urgent quest to preserve the integrity of ecosystems around the world -- and to quantify the value of -- ecosystems services -- leads to opportunities in teaching, research and fieldwork for government, nonprofits, and private companies. The forthcoming economic stimulus package from the Obama administration offers the prospect of increased federal support for science and research.

Schools: Center for Conservation Biology at the University of Washington and the Center for Conservation Biology at Stanford University. At the small College of the Atlantic every student gets his or her degree in human ecology; it's been called the most sustainable college or university in the world.

Green MBA and Entrepreneur

The concept of the triple bottom line has migrated from the margins to the mainstream of the business world. A recent report by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Mayors Climate Protection Center found that business services like legal, research and consulting account for the majority of all green jobs -- over 400,000. This includes everything from marketing to the LOHAS (Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability) segment, to serving as a VP of sustainability within a large company, to piloting a green startup like Method or Recyclebank.

Schools: Stanford School of Business; San Francisco's Presidio School of Management; Leeds School of Business; University of Colorado at Boulder -- Deming Center for Entrepreneurship; the Bainbridge Graduate Institute in Wash.

Recycler

The total number of recycling jobs in the United States is at more than 1 million, according to recent reports (PDF, right click to save). Although the market for paper and plastic has slowed down recently due to the economic downturn, demand for steel is still strong -- 42 percent of output came from scrap in 2006 -- and recycling remains the economical alternative to high disposal fees. Worldwide more than 200,000 people work in secondary steel production, and the US is a major center of production. New laws and regulations are also creating a need for specialized companies that can close the loop by recycling and repurposing e-waste, clothing, plastic bags, construction waste, and other materials.

Companies: Rumpke; Greenstar North America.

Sustainability Systems Developer

The green economy needs a cadre of specialized software developers and engineers who design, build, and maintain the networks of sensors and stochastic modeling that underpin wind farms, smart energy grids, congestion pricing and other systems substituting intelligence for natural resources. Coders with experience using large scale enterprise resource planning have an edge here, as well as developers familiar with open source and web 2.0 applications.

Companies: IBM, V2Green, WindLogics

Urban Planner

Urban and regional planning is a linchpin of the quest to lower America's carbon footprint. Strengthening mass transit systems, limiting sprawl, encouraging use of bicycles and deemphasizing cars is only part of the job. Equally important is contingency planning, as floods, heat waves and garbage creep become increasingly common problems for metropolises. Employment in this sector is projected to grow 15 percent by 2016, and the jobs are mainly in local governments, which make them a slightly safer bet for the downturn.

Schools: Penn Institute for Urban Research; Harvard: Department of Urban Planning and Design; Portland State University: Nohad A Toulan School of Urban Studies and Planning.

http://www.fastcompany.com/articles/2009/01/best-green-jobs.html?page=0%2C0

Eat Local - Community Supported Agriculture

Intro to Community Supported Agriculture


CSA - Farmer Shares Info About Her CSA Program

Organic and Biodynamic Farming

THE REAL DIRT ON FARMER JOHN Official Trailer


Biodynamic Farm Montage

Study Says Wild-Harvested Plants and Animals are Now About 20 Percent Smaller

Honey, we shrunk the food -- really, really fast
by Katherine Harmon

Policymakers may not intend to keep us trim when they're pondering how to manage fisheries and other wild food resources. But a new study indicates that our current food-harvesting practices are making the stuff we eat smaller—very quickly.

The study, published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, found that plants and animals being harvested aggressively around the world from the wild (rather than from farms) are changing more than two and a half times faster than would be expected under natural conditions.

"Two and a half times is pretty big," says Stephan Munch, an assistant professor of fisheries ecology at Stony Brook University in Long Island, N.Y.

Scientists have long assumed that humans can—and do—affect the plants and animals that live around us (with pollution and by introducing invasive species). But this new work, which analyzed data from dozens of other studies, found that our intense food-gathering practices have substantially changed the size and breeding schedule of at least 29 species in as few as 20 years.

Unlike, say, wolves or lions, which target the smallest, weakest members of a group, humans tend to select the biggest and juiciest ones—be it caribou or cod—for our meals or trophies. As a result, the study says, plants and animals harvested from the wild are now about 20 percent smaller than they were just generations ago—and, in the case of the bighorn sheep than they were just three decades ago.

These animals are also reproducing at younger and younger ages, because mature individuals are more likely to be caught. When animals reproduce earlier, they often have fewer offspring, which means there will be an even smaller population in the future, according to the study.

Researchers aren't sure whether a change in the genetic pool or plasticity (individual adaptation to the environment) is responsible for these changes. But lead study author, Chris Darimont, an evolutionary ecologist at the University of California at Santa Cruz (who started the research at Canada's University of Victoria), is more concerned about the outcome.

"We’re changing the face of biodiversity at very rapid rates," he says. And any shift in animal size can alter predatory-prey relationships, impacting entire ecosystems.

The next big question, says Munch, is how long it will take for these altered populations to change back.

It's "kind of like this great experiment that hasn't been tried yet," Darimont says, because these species are still being harvested intensively. He hopes that will change soon, though, because as Munch points out, "No one wants to have very, very tiny cod that mature in two years."

http://www.sciam.com/blog/60-second-science/post.cfm?id=honey-we-shrunk-the-foodreally-real-2009-01-15

Appeal of 'green products' growing despite recession -- survey

Greenwire, 21 January 2009 - "Green products" became more popular last year, according to a new survey by researchers who see the trend continuing despite the sharp global economic downturn.

The Boston Consulting Group survey of some 9,000 consumers in East Asia, Europe and North America found that more shoppers deliberately sought and bought green products in 2008 than in the year before. Their research also suggests consumers are becoming more willing to pay higher prices for green products than they were in the past.

Overall, 34 percent of those surveyed said they "systematically look for and purchase green products," up from 32 percent in 2007. And 24 percent said the higher price premium for buying green is acceptable, up from just 20 percent the year before.

The findings, published yesterday in the group's new report, "Capturing the Green Advantage for Consumer Companies," is good news for companies selling eco-friendly products. Seventy-five percent of consumers surveyed said that it is important or very important for companies to provide information on the environmental impacts of their products, and 66 percent said companies should routinely offer green products.

Health and safety concerns still trump the environment with shoppers. Eighty-one percent said companies should spell out their goods' risks and safety issues. But that does not necessarily bode ill for green products, say report co-authors Felix Muennich and Catherine Roche, researchers with BCG offices in Germany.

"Green is also a proxy for health and safety in many products (e.g. foods, skin creams, children's toys) and that will continue to be something that consumers are concerned about when shopping," they said in an e-mail.

The group questioned 9,000 adults between the ages of 18 and 65 in the United States, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan and China in face-to-face interviews in major cities. In national comparisons, Europeans ranked among the most environmentally conscious consumers, while East Asians ranked among the least.

About 34 percent of Europeans said last year that they routinely sought green products. Italians topped the chart, with 20 percent saying they actively seek green products, compared to only 15 percent in the United Kingdom, the lowest proportion for the region.

Sixteen percent of U.S. consumers last year reported being "systematic shoppers of green products," compared to just 11 percent of Japanese.

Most popular goods

Worldwide, the most popular green or perceived green products seem to be organic food and environmentally friendly household cleaners. Health concerns may explain why these goods are bought at a greater frequency than other green items.

The report says companies may stand a better chance of marketing green goods, especially food and cosmetics, if they can convince shoppers that their products are of higher quality and better for their health. The survey shows most consumers already believe that green products are generally of better quality than mainstream products.

The report also suggests that households worldwide are taking care to be more environmentally friendly, at least in inexpensive ways. About 75 percent said they shut off appliances that are not in use to save electricity, recycle waste or reuse products as often as possible. A little more than 50 percent reported that they strive to use their cars as little as possible now, but about 80 percent say they will work to do so in the future.

Among the least common consumer green practices today include eco-friendly investing and owning hybrid vehicles. Only about 7 percent report owning a hybrid car, while a little more than 10 percent say they invest in environmentally friendly funds.

Many industry watchers question whether buying for the environment will continue to grow in popularity as the United States, Europe and Japan enter deep recessions. Most past studies of consumer green sentiment found shoppers willing to purchase green products only if it did not cost them much more.

Indeed, this latest study shows that, even though shoppers say they are willing to pay more for green goods, companies can charge only about 5 percent to 10 percent more for such products before their popularity begins to slip fast.

Still, researchers say their overall findings leave them confident that the green product industry should weather the current financial storm nicely.

"We expect appeal to remain strong," they said. "But one caveat -- consumer willingness to pay large price premiums for green products is constrained even in good times and will likely be more so in a downturn climate."

http://www.wbcsd.org/plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?type=DocDet&ObjectId=MzMxMDM

Valuing the Priceless

Geneva, 12 December 2008 - Is it true that the service of pollination, provided mainly by bees for free, is estimated to be at least worth US$ 4 billion a year to the agricultural sector in the US alone? Or that coral reefs provide ecosystem services vital to off-shore fisheries and shoreline protection worth as much as US$ 600,000 per square kilometer? Or that the world’s protected areas (accounting for only 12% of total land surface) sustain a rapidly growing eco-tourism sector, support local livelihoods, and overall produce benefits for society in excess of US$ 4,000 billion a year?

The answer is yes, but here is the paradox: 20% of the world’s coral reefs and 35% of all mangroves have been destroyed, and two-thirds of all ecosystem services degraded, some perhaps beyond repair. Surely the economic incentives to sustainably manage and invest in conserving ecosystems and the services they provide, like water, food and fiber, should be well recognized. Unfortunately, the answer to this question is no.

One of the main underlying causes fuelling this paradox is the undervaluation of ecosystems and ecosystem services. For many ecosystems and their services, markets simply do not exist and thus lack convenient price tags. As a consequence, their over-use and degradation appear to carry very low to zero costs.

Such a clear flaw in the current accounting system seriously challenges business and its license to operate, as business can only function if ecosystems and the services they provide are healthy and balanced. Businesses not only impact ecosystems and ecosystem services, but also depend on them, and the implications of their degradation and loss are becoming clearer.

Not only does the loss of ecosystem services pose business risks, for example, through higher input costs, new government regulations, reputational damage, changing consumer preferences, and more rigorous lending policies, it also presents new business opportunities, including demand for new products, services and technology, and new revenue streams from managing and selling natural assets.

Recognizing and accounting for the full value of ecosystems, as well as the potential costs associated with the loss of ecosystem services, is required in order to reach the goals of efficient resource allocation and optimal decision-making.

Economic valuation is one approach that lends its support to this challenge by quantifying ecosystem relationships and expressing them in a monetary unit that is directly linked to a company’s bottom line. There are many ecosystem valuation toolkits and guidelines, but they have been developed for policy-makers and natural resource planners and managers. Geared towards project implementation by the public sector or as part of development assistance, they have limited applicability to business.

The WBCSD is looking to fill this gap through the development of a corporate guide to ecosystem and ecosystem service valuation with the aim of supporting the business license to operate in a changing ecosystems world.

http://www.wbcsd.org/plugins/DocSearch/details.asp?type=DocDet&ObjectId=MzI5MDM

Spice It Up! Stay Warm This Winter Using Warming Spices

Cayenne – Improves circulation and can help heal ulcers. Capsicum significantly lowers serum cholesterol and serum triglycerides. Stimulant and digestive aid. Sooths inflammation and helps speed detoxification. Capsicum is a catalyst herb. Its stimulating properties speed the absorption and effectiveness of any herbs taken in combination with it.

Cinnamon – May help to prevent diabetes by balancing blood sugar levels. Reduces blood sugar in people with diabetes. Reduces triglycerides and cholesterol levels in those with type 2 diabetes. In experimental studies, cinnamon was found to prevent cancer in animals. Enhances detoxification of the liver. Stimulates circulation. Used to relieve aching muscles and other symptoms of the common cold. Cinnamon’s volatile oils possess both antiviral and stimulating properties. Classic remedy for digestive problems.

Cloves – Contains eugenol, a potent anti-inflammatory phenolic. Toothache is still effectively treated with cloves, as eugenol has both analgesic and antiseptic qualities. Chinese medicine has used cloves to treat indigestion, diarrhea, hernia, ringworm, and athlete’s foot and other fungal infections. In traditional Indian ayurvedic medicine, the spice is used to treat respiratory and digestive problems.

Nutmeg – In Chinese herbal medicine, used for treating intestinal problems, especially for diarrhea. In India, nutmeg is believed to increase sexual stamina and is known as an aphrodisiac.
Cardamom – Stimulates the digestive system, reduces gas, and counteracts stomach acidity. Considered beneficial to the urinary-tract system and is considered a kidney cleanser. Used to improve the circulation of the lungs and to treat asthma in Ayurvedic medicine. Antiseptic and antimicrobial.

Ginger – Contains some of the most potent anti-inflammatory substances known. Used to treat arthritis, vertigo, migraine headaches, and various digestive problems, especially nausea. Safe treatment for morning sickness during pregnancy.

Curry – A blend of spices that generally includes turmeric, cardamom, coriander, cumin, fenugreek, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper. Has a stimulating effect. Coriander is used as an herbal digestive aid; it's a natural diuretic, helps the body detoxify, and it eases nausea. Cumin stimulates circulation and can help relieve abdominal cramping. Fenugreek is used to treat indigestion, intestinal inflammation, and allergies.

Turmeric – Protective effects against inflammation and cancer. Health benefits come from the deep yellow pigment caused by a group of flavonoids called curcuminoids. Medicinal uses of turmeric include healing stomach ulcers and the relief of free-radical stress in patients with inflammation-related diseases. In traditional Indian ayurvedic medicine, the herb is considered a natural antibiotic that strengthens digestion and improves intestinal flora.

Cumin – One of the oldest cultivated spices. A popular spice and medicinal herb in ancient Egypt. Aids digestion. Used to treat coughs and chest colds and to relieve pain, particularly for toothache. Pain-relieving compounds have been found in cumin, along with anti-inflammatory and anti-swelling compounds.

Black Pepper – Improves digestion by stimulating hydrochloric acid production. Rich in antioxidants. Antibacterial. Has diaphoretic (promotes sweating), and diuretic properties.

www.livingblissfoods.com 2009

Living Bliss, LLC

Spice It Up!

January 2009 Raw Recipe Demonstration
with
Raw Chef Erin Brennan

Butternut Squash Soup
4 cups butternut squash, peeled and cubed
2-2½ cups water
Juice of ½ orange
½ avocado
2 TBSP cold pressed olive oil
1-2 tsp raw local honey
1-2 cloves garlic
1 tsp ginger powder OR 1 TBSP fresh diced ginger
1 tsp cumin
½ tsp sea salt OR to taste
¼ tsp mustard powder
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cayenne powder
Fresh cracked black pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in blender. Blend on high until creamy. Serve immediately or warm in dehydrator if desired. Makes 4 servings.


Hemp Chai Latte
2-4 bags of tea of choice (Black, Green, Gynostemma, Darjeeling)
2-3 TBSP raw local honey
½-1 droppers liquid stevia (vanilla)
4 TBSP hempseeds
1-2 TBSP coconut oil
½ tsp ginger powder
¼ tsp cardamom powder
Scant 1/8 tsp cloves powder
½ tsp cinnamon
Dusting fresh grated nutmeg
OPTIONAL:
Vanilla
¼ tsp allspice

Boil water and steep tea. Once tea has steeped, add tea, honey, hempseeds, coconut oil and spices to blender. Blend until creamy. Strain through coffee filter if desired. Enjoy. Makes 4 servings.

www.livingblissfoods.com 2009

Living Bliss, LLC

Could genetically modified crops be killing bees?

With reports coming in about a scourge affecting honeybees, researchers are launching a drive to find the cause of the destruction. The reasons for rapid colony collapse are not clear. Old diseases, parasites and new diseases are being looked at.

Over the past 100 or so years, beekeepers have experienced colony losses from bacterial agents (foulbrood), mites (varroa and tracheal) and other parasites and pathogens. Beekeepers have dealt with these problems by using antibiotics, miticides or integrated pest management.

While losses, particularly in over-wintering, are a chronic condition, most beekeepers have learned to limit their losses by staying on top of new advice from entomologists. Unlike the more common problems, this new die-off has been virtually instantaneous throughout the country, not spreading at the slower pace of conventional classical disease.

As an interested beekeeper with some background in biology, I think it might be fruitful to investigate the role of genetically modified or transgenic farm crops. Although we are assured by nearly every bit of research that these manipulations of the crop genome are safe for both human consumption and the environment, looking more closely at what is involved here might raise questions about those assumptions.

The most commonly transplanted segment of transgenic DNA involves genes from a well-known bacterium, bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), which has been used for decades by farmers and gardeners to control butterflies that damage cole crops such as cabbage and broccoli. Instead of the bacterial solution being sprayed on the plant, where it is eaten by the target insect, the genes that contain the insecticidal traits are incorporated into the genome of the farm crop. As the transformed plant grows, these Bt genes are replicated along with the plant genes so that each cell contains its own poison pill that kills the target insect.

In the case of field corn, these insects are stem- and root-borers, lepidopterans (butterflies) that, in their larval stage, dine on some region of the corn plant, ingesting the bacterial gene, which eventually causes a crystallization effect in the guts of the borer larvae, thus killing them.

What is not generally known to the public is that Bt variants are available that also target coleopterans (beetles) and dipterids (flies and mosquitoes). We are assured that the bee family, hymenopterans, is not affected.

That there is Bt in beehives is not a question. Beekeepers spray Bt under hive lids sometimes to control the wax moth, an insect whose larval forms produce messy webs on honey. Canadian beekeepers have detected the disappearance of the wax moth in untreated hives, apparently a result of worker bees foraging in fields of transgenic canola plants.

Bees forage heavily on corn flowers to obtain pollen for the rearing of young broods, and these pollen grains also contain the Bt gene of the parent plant, because they are present in the cells from which pollen forms.

Is it not possible that while there is no lethal effect directly to the new bees, there might be some sublethal effect, such as immune suppression, acting as a slow killer?

The planting of transgenic corn and soybean has increased exponentially, according to statistics from farm states. Tens of millions of acres of transgenic crops are allowing Bt genes to move off crop fields.

A quick and easy way to get an approximate answer would be to make a comparison of colony losses of bees from regions where no genetically modified crops are grown, and to put test hives in areas where modern farming practices are so distant from the hives that the foraging worker bees would have no exposure to them.

Given that nearly every bite of food that we eat has a pollinator, the seriousness of this emerging problem could dwarf all previous food disruptions.

About the writer:

John McDonald is a beekeeper in Pennsylvania. He welcomes comments or questions about the bee problem at mactheknife70@hotmail.com.

Author’s Postscript:

The e-mail responses to my original article whether genetically modified crops be killing honeybees that had been published in the San Francisco Chronicle, was universally positive from laypeople and beekeepers. Most researchers, however, rejected the idea out of hand.

I concluded the article with the suggestion that matching colonies should be sited in farm and non-farm regions in order to determine whether, indeed, agricultural practices were the basis for the die-off. (The new die-off has been virtually instantaneous throughout the country, not spreading at the slower pace of conventional classic diseases.)

When it appeared that others weren’t interested in this experiment, I undertook to do my own investigation at my own expense. Because my own bees had died the previous winter, it was necessary to establish new colonies. I established eight colonies in new wooden hives in order to prevent disease transfer from the old hives in case there was a pathogen remaining.

The new colonies arrived late in May because of cold weather at the nursery where they are grown and required the feeding of sugar syrup continually until the hives were in their experimental locations on July 6. Two locations were chosen to fill the need for farm and non-farm sites: one here in Centre County, Pa., in a valley with rolling farmland; the other in Forest County, Pa., adjoining the Allegheny National Forest, an area with no agriculture within foraging range of honeybees. I chose the date of placement to avoid any possible exposure of the bees to Centre County corn pollen. Corn flower tasseling started on July 19.

At both sites the flowers of goldenrod provided ample pasturage, with the honey flow commencing in the middle of August and tapering off by the second week in October. Medium-depth empty honey storage supers (a super is the part of the beehive used to collect honey) were put on the hives at this time in addition to the three brood chambers already there. By the simple expedient of lifting the hives from behind, progress could be roughly monitored.

This monitoring showed that the hives of the farmland bees, while numerous, were not gaining weight. Meanwhile, the non-farm colonies steadily gained weight. This part of the experiment was terminated Oct. 14 with the removal of the honey storage supers, with these results: The farmland bees had not even started to work in the honey supers and will require extensive feeding before winter sets in. The non-farm bee colonies produced, in total, nearly 200 pounds of extra honey in addition to about 150 pounds per hive stored in the over-wintering brood supers. These colonies will be left in place to see whether the die-off of last season is repeated. These results should encourage new research to determine what factor or factors are present in farm country to cause such a discrepancy in honey production.

Editor’s note:

John McDonald’s well researched article is an attempt to show that there is enough evidence to warrant investigating the role that genetically modified crops might have played in the large bee die-off observed the previous fall and winter. He also suggests that the role of genetically modified crops be investigated as a possible cause of the collapse.

source: www.agoracosmopolitan.com

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18206234
http://persianoad.wordpress.com/2008/01/10/nvironmental-destruction-and-biotechnology-could-genetically-modified-crops-be-killing-bees/

Three Must-Have Superfoods

by: Matt Monarch

(NaturalNews) Much research has been done lately on superfoods. There is a lot of buzz about certain foods, and the truth is that it's very hard to decipher the truth behind the buzz; what foods are actually super? Well, the fact is that there are certain foods out there which have very powerful qualities. Some of them are things which you can find in just about any kitchen, like garlic and lemon. Others are things you'd have to order on the internet from a reputable source. The thing that each individual needs to do is to decide whether your body needs a particular superfood. Obviously different foods have different qualities. Here are three superfoods which may really deserve the title.

Chia seeds definitely seem to be what you'd have to deem a 'superfood'. They were once a staple of the Aztecs and were known, and are known, for their ability to increase endurance. For those that exercise a lot, chia is something worth trying out in the future. They have all the essential amino acids (protein), except for taurine, and are also a great source of omega-3 oils, which is not found in so many foods. It's important to get a good balance of omega-3 to omega-6 oils in your diet, and adding these seeds to salads and smoothies is a good way to provide that balance. They also have more antioxidants than blueberries!

Pure, raw chocolate is something which most people are content to read about. We've all heard before that dark chocolate had high levels of antioxidants, which it does. But this is due to the high quantity of pure cacao in it. Cacao beans, when eaten raw, are extra good for the body. It is said that cacao, like chia seeds, has higher levels of antioxidants than blueberries. It also has lots of minerals, like zinc, chromium and magnesium, and plenty of vitamins and beta-carotene too. It also has quite a kick and wakes you up in the same way tea does, but gives a steadier stream of energy. Plus, you can buy it raw in many different forms, like cacao nibs, cacao butter, cacao paste and in powder form, so you can make all kinds of raw deserts.

The last thing on today's list is...Goji berries. As we all know, berries in general are super good for our health, and are very easily added to a smoothie to make it extra healthy. Goji berries, also known as wolfberries, are extra good though; they have 18 kinds of amino acids (the building blocks of protein); a high quantity of calcium, selenium, zinc, vitamin B2 and C, beta-carotene and potassium; and they are also thought to boost your immune system and help you lose weight. So, they seem to do just about everything.

Including all of the above foods in your diet may go a long way to increase your health and stamina, but make sure to try each individually first, so you can figure out which food is giving you the benefits.

http://www.NaturalNews.com/025313.html