Issue # 8 February 2010
Athens - Thessaloniki Transition Cities
Eco Tip
Many thanks to Clive, who reminded me that we haven’t had an eco-tip for a while. So, here it is: How many of you are aware of the dangers of conventional air-fresheners? Did you know that a teaspoon of salt in 1/2 an orange can mask toilet smells. Find out more here.
Green Champions working again...
The Green champions have been hard at work again at the BC. They have been measuring carbon emissions, planning environmental workshops, drawing up checklists to ensure that everyone is doing their part to help the planet and set up a Green noticeboard. We even made a saving of €5,424 on our electricity bill over six months compared to the same period of the previous year! Let’s keep up the good work.
in a state of transition. Evolving communities with one primary goal on their agendas - to reduce their dependency on oil, eventually becoming sustainable and helping to avert climate chaos. So how can this happen? Is this possible? Well according to the official website, “it all starts off when a small community come together with a shared concerned: how can our community respond to the challenges, and opportunities, of Peak Oil* and Climate Change?” Its practical application in our Greek cities would mean that a group of people in each city would adopt the ‘Transition Model’ which would involve finding out about Peak Oil, taking part in various initiatives at a local, national and global level, looking at other transition towns around the world, establishing criteria for change, educating, setting up local networks of people and businesses and raising awareness - all with the ultimate goal of moving away from our current destructive path and moving on to a more sustainable future. Imagine Greece’s two major cities
The transition initiative is a grassroots movement, looking ‘Peak Oil and Climate Change squarely in the eye and address[ing] this BIG question: “For all those aspects of life that this community needs in order to sustain itself and thrive, how do we significantly increase resilience (to mitigate the effects of Peak Oil) and drastically reduce carbon emissions (to mitigate the effects of Climate Change)?”
The transition community would therefore look at food, energy, transport, economics and livelihoods and launch projects which would allow for a gradual descent to zero dependency on fossil fuels over a 15-20 year period. This mass social experiment known as the transition network is producing fruitful results. One need only look at towns like Totnes to see success. With a collective mindset full of enthusiasm, motivation, creativity and genuine concern the possibilities here in Greece are endless. Click Here to find out more about this movement. Written by: Michael Pazinas Edited by Tracy Forrester
*Peak Oil is the point in time when the maximum rate of global petroleum extraction is reached, after which the rate of production enters terminal decline. (Source: Wikipedia)
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Wild tigers in China are on the Brink of Extinction Xie Yan, the China Country Program Director for the Wildlife Conservation Society, estimates that fewer than 50 South China Tigers are left in the wild, with about “10 still living in the southwestern province of Yunnan, some 15 in Tibet, and 20 or so in northwestern Jilin and Heilongjiang provinces.” Even if we look at 12 Asian countries and Russia, it is estimated that only about 3,500 tigers are left in the wild, compared to around 100,000 at the beginning of the 20th century. Why Have the Tigers Gone? Habitat destruction and fragmentation is the main cause, along with the disappearance of most of the prey that tigers need to survive. But poaching is also causing problems with most of the demand coming from practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine and the illegal trade in pelts and bones. If we look further back, we find that in 1959, “Mao Zedong, in the time of the Great Leap Forward, declared the tiger and other predators such as leopards and wolves to be pests and “enemies of the people”; as a result, several “anti-pest” campaigns started.” Captive Tigers Pretty much the only hope for the survival of tigers in China comes from the animals that are being bred in captivity. The Chinese authorities claim that: “There are close to 6,000 tigers that have been bred and raised in captivity in China. These tigers can breed over 1,000 baby tigers every year.”
However, this is not without problems. Experts warn it will be difficult for captive tigers to re-adapt to the wild, and genetic diversity needs to be maintained if the species is to have a chance at long-term survival. If most individuals are bred from a small number of parents, they could be vulnerable to genetic disease, potentially wiping out almost the whole population at once. But most importantly: It is pointless to release these tigers into the wild if we keep destroying their habitat and poaching them. These problems must be solved first. (source: Treehugger.com) Take Action: Here’s a petition sponsored by Care2 to tell China to better protect its tigers. CLICK HERE
A few things that come from oil... Aspirins, sticky tape, trainers, lycra socks, glue, paints, varnish, foam matresses, carpets, nylon, polyester, CDs, DVDs, plastic bottles, contact lenses, hair gel, brushes, toothbrushes, rubber gloves, washingup bowls, electric sockets, plugs, furniture wax, computers, printers, candles, bags, coats, bubble wrap, bicycle pumps, fruit juice containers, rawplugs, credit cards, loft insulation, PVC windows, shopping bags, lipstick... and that’s just some of the things made directly from oil, not those that needed fossil fuels and the energy they consume in their manufacture (which is pretty much everything). (source: p.19 Hopkins, R. “The Transition Handbook”).
ORGANIC RECIPE OF THE MONTH
Hearty Greek Bean Salad: Ingredients: 250g dried beans (e.g. haricot or cannellini) 3-4 small shallots, peeled and sliced (or onions) 3 tbsp chopped parsley 6-7 tbsp of Olive Oil Fresh Salad leaves 1 clove of garlic (crushed) juice of a lemon black olives 2-3 medium potatoes 2 hard boiled eggs (peeled and quartered)
Soak the beans overnight, rinse and cover with plenty of water. Bring to the boil, skim, cover and cook until soft. Drain the beans and leave them to cool. Boil potatoes until cooked but not too soft. Drain and put a little of the lemon juice on them so they do not discolour and leave to cool. Mix potatoes, beans and garlic. Set out the salad leaves on the plate and spoon mixture over the top. Dot with the Olives and decorate with the egg. Mix olive oil and lemon to form a vinaigrette and pour over. Sprinkle with parsley and serve. Simple, nutritious and delicious. Please do not print