This section features promising ideas and approaches that have delivered positive results in various scenarios. If you know of any documents that would be appropriate for this section, please send us an email with the link. Thanks.
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Toronto Stood Up to Bottled Water Industry |
by Tony Clarke -- Dec. 11, 2008 -- Toronto's decision last week to ban the sale and distribution of bottled water on city premises was a watershed moment for water justice advocates the world over. What was truly significant about Toronto's action was not that it banned an environmentally destructive product, but that it included a commitment to ensuring access to tap water in all city facilities. (Full Article)
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Power in the Desert: Solar Towers will Harness Sunshine of Southern Spain |
by Alok Jha -- Nov. 24, 2008 -- The world's biggest solar tower plant is nearing completion in southern Spain. It will generate 20MW of electricity, enough to power 11,000 Spanish homes. Concentrated solar power (CSP) technology, is a cheaper and more efficient way to harness the sun's energy than other methods such as photovoltaic (PV) panels. But CSP only works in places with clear skies and strong sunshine. (Full Article)
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State of the World 2008: Innovations |
Worldwatch Institute -- Jan. 2008 -- Statistics on innovations in energy, industrial production, agriculture, species conservation, property regimes and commons management, and measuring wealth and well-being. (Full Article)
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Programs Let Homes Produce Green Power |
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by Michael Hill -- Jan. 22, 2007 -- When the sun shines bright on their home in New York's Hudson Valley, John and Anna Bagnall live out a homeowner's fantasy. Their electricity meter runs backward. Solar panels on their barn roof can often provide enough for all their electricity needs. Sometimes — and this is the best part — their solar setup actually pushes power back into the system. (Full Article) |
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New German Community Models Car-free Living |
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by Isabelle de Pommereau -- Dec.21, 2006 -- Welcome to Germany's best-known environmentally friendly neighborhood and a successful experiment in green urban living. The Vauban development - 2,000 new homes on a former military base 10 minutes by bike from the heart of Freiburg - has put into practice many ideas that were once dismissed as eco-fantasy but which are now moving to the center of public policy. (Full Article) |
Worldwatch Institute -- 2006 -- How can we live lightly on the Earth and save money at the same time? In honor of Earth Day 2006, the Worldwatch Institute teams up with the Washington, D.C. members of SustainUS, the U.S. youth network for sustainable development, to share some ideas on how to go green and save green at home and at work. (Full Article)
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by Josh Ellis -- Sept. 10, 2006 -- Gaviotas features revolutionary designs for power-collecting windmills, solar heating systems, and even their hospital, which the Japanese Architectural Journal has designated one of the 40 most important buildings in the world. There is no mayor here, and no crime; no guns, and also (for some reason) no dogs. (Full Article)
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LETS - Local Exchange Trading Systems |
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Transaction Net -- LETS money is created as mutual credit: Each transaction is recorded as a corresponding credit and debit in the two participants' accounts. The quantity of currency issued is thus automatically sufficient and (unlike fiat money) does not depend on the judgment and effort of a central authority. (Full Article) |
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Sustainable Lifestyles 