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28 januari 2012

Välfärd utan tillväxt

This will be in swedish out of pure laziness....

Jag har läst ungefär halva av Tim Jackson bok om vårt ohållbara ekonomiska system. Hittills känner jag att han har hemskt många bra poänger som bekräftar mycket av det jag redan "visste". Däremot är det ganska ekonomiskt och vissa saker som relativ och absolut frikoppling behöver nog en eller två extra genomgångar för att verkligen förstå vad det innebär. Vissa begrepp och teorier har gått rakt över huvudet på mig. Det är inte direkt någon kvällsläsning utan kräver koncentration från sin läsare.
       Nu har jag kommit in på kapitlet om konsumtion; effektivitet och resursproduktivitet. Jackson påstår att ökad effektivitet och minskad resursförbrukning inte går hand i hand eftersom företag ofta satsar på mer effektiv teknologi för att minska kostnaderna och sälja mer, vilket betyder att resursförbrukning snarare ökar än minskar.
Citat:
Ekonomi:
Den obekväma sanningen är att vi står inför dessa uppgifter med en ekonomi som i grunden har havererat och är i desperat behov av förnyelse.
 (peak-oil, försämring av luft, vatten och jord, konflikter om markanvändning osv...)

Skulder:
Våra ekologiska ekologiska skulder är lika instabila som våra finansiella. Ingenting tar man vederbörlig hänsyn till i den hänsynslösa jakten på växande konsumtion.
Gordon Brown, 2008:
Det här har varit ett tidevarv av globalt välstånd. Det har också varit ett tidevarv av global turbulens. Och där det har det rått oansvarighet, där måste vi nu säga rent ut att oansvarighetens tidevarv måste få ett slut.
Om frihet:
I en värld av gränser är vissa friheter antingen omöjliga eller omoraliska. Friheten att ändlöst konsumera materiella produkter är en av dem. Friheten att uppnå socialt erkännande på bekostnad av barnarbete i leveranskedjan, att finna meningsfullt arbete på bekostnad av ett sammanbrott i den biologiska mångfalden eller att delta i samhällslivet på bekostnad av framtida generationer kan vara andra.
Det finns så himla många citat jag skulle vilja ta men det här får räcka för tillfället. Jag kan rekommendera att läsa boken hittills!

16 januari 2012

Prosperity without growth

by Tim Jackson

Just about to start reading this book by a UK governmental advisor on sustainability. I hope this book lives up to my expectations and finally deals with the big impossibility in our economic system; continual growth in a limited space. We have to change this very outdated system...

09 januari 2012

Change our culture

Nate Garvis - Change our culture, change our world
It's not all about laws, they are important, but what has created real change is a culture.
Good and funny talk!

06 januari 2012

Fishy

I keep ging on about the bluefin tuna, but it is because it is immensely important for our oceans.
Thursday saw the most expensive bluefin yet to be sold at a japanese market. $736 000. Not joking. Why? Demand. There is still a demand for the fish, especially in sushi restaurants. I do not for even a second understand how people can be so selfish and give in for a craving at the potential cost of our entire eco system...? You can read the article and see a short video here. 
The man who bought the tuna owns a big sushi chain and he reasoned that due to last years events i.e the tsunami, the Japanese people need something cheerful. Seriously?


So to cut to the chase, don't eat tuna, for the love of * do not eat bluefin tuna, and do check when you eat sushi, it sets a good example and makes restaurants realise that people care. Not even canned tuna is safe, but if you must, look for ecologically sustainable tuna. Will cost you wallet a little more, but will cost your conscience a lot less...
Watch with a critical eye, but I must sadly admit that the video isn't particularly exaggurated... Mackerel is on the list of "ok" fish in Sweden at the moment though...

01 december 2011

Reminiscing

Read through my Paris blog earlier today...
Paris, je t'aime. Mes amis, je vous aime.

24 november 2011

Klimatkontot

Räkna ut din klimatpåverkan!

Medelsvenssons utsläpp:
(bostad, resor, mat, övrigt, summa)
The emissions of an ordinary Swede
(house, travels, food, other, sum)
Mina ungefärliga utsläpp var mycket lägre men det är mina jäkla flygresor som driver upp det till en summa på ungefär 4.2 ton koldioxid per år!
(flying is my main contributor... better cut down on my travels! Oh no, wait, I'm flying across the world next year....)

Quick tips on how to cut down your personal emissions:
  1. FOOD = Eat more veggies... Sorry meat lovers...
  2. TRAVEL = public transport, train is good, flying is bad, pretty much....
  3. CONSUME CONSUME CONSUME. No I'm kidding, CUT DOWN on consuming... Yes I know it's hard, I keep looking at these shoes that I want soo badly. But I don't need them. But I want them! Buuuut, I'm not going to buy them. Or! or. I'll plant a tree and buy them anyway.. Hmm... no. 

18 november 2011

Finally!


An article copied straight off... Love to see this! About frickin time things start to happen!


Coastal Countries Step Up for Sharks

Posted: 11/17/11 01:50 PM ET
Sharks have roamed the seas for more than 400 million years, but today many species are being hunted to extinction. Now, some unlikely allies have emerged for the ocean's top predators -- several of the world's smallest countries have generated a wave of conservation measures. In 2008, there was no such thing as a shark sanctuary. These days, it's a different story.

Since the 1990s, growing demand for shark products, specifically fins, has coincided with serious population declines for a number of shark species in regions throughout the world. In addition to directed shark fisheries, sharks are increasingly caught by vessels targeting other fish like tuna and swordfish. A new scientific review released this week highlights the extent of this shark bycatch problem.
While the pace of fishing has increased, precautionary management has not been implemented at the same rate. As many as 73 million sharks are killed in order to supply the fin trade each year. That's 200,000 per day, every day.
Further illuminating the grand scale of the shark-product industry, Pew recently discovered and released to the public photo and video documentation of fishermen bringing sharks and fins into Taiwan to enter the market for sale. A report by Pew and TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, showed that the country ranked fourth in the world in catch volume for sharks, after Indonesia, India, and Spain.

It is estimated that 30 percent of shark species are threatened or near-threatened with extinction. That's a critical concern, as these animals are essential to maintaining the balance of the marine ecosystem. They regulate the diversity and abundance of species below them in the food chain, including commercially important fish. They play a similar role in the ocean to that of land-based predators, like wolves in Yellowstone or lions on the Serengeti. Sharks cull the sick, diseased, and wounded, keeping prey species' populations healthy.

More and more, people are starting to recognize how indispensable these ocean predators truly are, and many countries are taking strong measures to protect them. I've found that when policymakers and leaders see the global picture of the number of sharks taken out of the oceans each year, they recognize the vital role their individual country can play. This effect has spurred the phenomenon of shark sanctuaries and other protections that continues to gain momentum.

In 2009, the small Pacific island country of Palau banned shark fishing in its 600,000 square kilometers of water, creating the world's first shark sanctuary. A mere six months later, theMaldives joined the cause, protecting its more than 920,000 square kilometers in the Indian Ocean. 

In the western hemisphere, Honduras was the first to act. In June, the country declared a shark sanctuary in all of its marine areas, which are the size of Wyoming. The Bahamas followed soon after, protecting its 40-plus species of sharks, followed by Pacific island territory Tokelau in September. 

Recently, the Marshall Islands declared its waters in the central Pacific off-limits to shark fishing as well, creating the largest sanctuary to date. That's nearly 2 million square kilometers, or four times the size of California. All told, in three years the world's oceans went from no shark-specific protected area to more than 4.7 million square kilometers of dedicated zones.

In addition, many countries have taken other measures to guard against overexploitation. After Pew's release of the disturbing images of vulnerable shark species being readied for market, Taiwan's fisheries agency reiterated plans announced in July to enact a finning ban in 2012. This builds on a similar decision by Chile this year, and powerful fin trade bans in the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas Islands and Guam. The message from coastal and island countries across the globe has been one of growing support for an animal integral to the health of their waters and economies.

But more will have to be done if these ancient kings of the ocean are to fully recover from decades of overfishing. More countries need to join this cause, and we're optimistic that sharks will have many new guardians in the coming months and years. These predators serve a vital purpose in our oceans, and the imbalance that their extinction would bring is a preventable tragedy.

10 november 2011

Malmö Ekocentrum

As I have dropped out of Human Rights Studies, for now, I study French full-time and I also do another course called Sustainable Eating. Very interesting, but mainly I've just got all my opinions confirmed by scientific facts.
Feels rather good, I'm not going to lie... I now have a stronger base to argue for a reduction in the consumption of meat etc etc. So anyway, we did a field trip to Malmö Eco centre. Started a year and a half ago it is sort of an eco village doing research into solar energy and lots of other things. We got a guided tour where we among other things found out that in 1950 the average Swede threw away 25 kg of waste every year. In 2008 every individual throws away around 510 kg/year. That is an insane increase! One reason is probably because we throw away every fourth shopping bag of food we buy. Stop throwing away edible food! I've really started to think about this and realised how much I throw away. It takes some time to plan the food of the week to be honest, but it is necessary and so much cheaper! I spend about 200-250 SEK (20-25 euros) on food every week. That's not very much at all... Another interesting fact is that 1/3 of our food has been pollunated by pollunaters such as bees. Unfortunately, in an increasing number of countries they are dying out...
Sweden's second-biggest solar panel

A bio sphere. The water is recycled and
micro organisms breathe the air. If
you would pour a chemical in it, the
bio sphere would die. That is what we
are doing to our oceans....
About the food projects in Malmö
There are solutions though, that's what I loved about this place! They are focusing on solutions instead of problems! There is one in Gothenburg as well. Well worth a visit!

23 mars 2011

Keep the sharks in the ocean and out of the soups

I know this is a sensitive time to be saying bad things about Japan but seriously, would you stop killing our oceans?! That also goes for all other countries allowing shark finning and genereal over fishing of the oceans as well!
Big minus today to the IOTC (Indian Ocean Tuna Commission) for failing to provide the much needed attention and protection of sharks! article




Another big minus is the amount of disposable plastic being used so widely even though most people have a great knowledge about the consequences. If you've forgotten here are some:
- plastic is nondegradable which means that it doesn't disappear.
- oceanic life consumes plastic which means that when we consume seafood we also get a fair share of plastic.
- many plastics contains toxic chemicals such as Bpa (Bisphenol A)
- if you need more reasons go to plasticpollutioncoalition.org 
There are some very very simple things you can do to lessen your use of disposable plastics:

  • Stop buying bottled water. I have a steel bottle, but any non-disposable is fine...
  • Bring bags to the supermarket. Don't buy plastic bags every time...
  • Think about the packaging. Buy in bulk, buy the product with least plastic or simple don't buy it at all.
the easiest steps really! It'll probably be good for your wallet as well...

10 mars 2011

Rachel Carson

Rachel Carson, Silent Spring, 1962
"we should no longer accept the counsel of those who tell us that we must fill our world with
poisonous chemicals: we should look about and see what other course is open to us"

23 februari 2011

Time to get serious people!

Ok guys, this isn't working anymore, it is time to take out the big guns; our voices. This is a very short video that explains all you need to know.
What you can do then...

  • most importantly: refuse to eat bluefin tuna. If you love sushi like I do, ask them to replace the tuna, and if you have the guts, tell them why you don't want to eat bluefin tuna and encourage them to stop serving it
  • inform everyone you know about the issue; knowledge is power and can do more than you think. Individually we can do a little, together we can do a lot (cheesy I know!)
  • write to the ICCAT (Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas) and CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species) and ask them firmly to take their responsibility in the protection of the oceans. It doesn't even take two minutes out of your time...
  • You can also write your embassies to push this harder
  • You can join movements such as Greenpeace, Howtosavetheblufin.com etc
If you have anymore ideas how to help please share it!

Sea Shepherds

Whether you like the methods of Sea Shepherds or not you can't deny their results...
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/02/5-ways-sea-shepherds-controversial-methods-are-changing-the-world-for-whales.php

22 februari 2011

A steak for everyone?

On the swedish, svtplay.se, you can watch a documentary, similar to food inc but focused on the more parts of the world. Brasil is quickly becoming on the the largest exporter of meat. As the meat production increases the rainforest is decreasing to beome pasture. When the land is ruined it is cheaper to chop down more rainforest than to regrow the grounds...

Scientists are researching ways of cutting the impact on environment caused by cow's breathing of methane and pigs pooping fosfor. Methane is one the biggest contributors to global warming and fosfor is essential for all life and plants but in excess it causes too much plant growth, especially of algae which then makes the water cloudy and blocks the sunlight from entering into the water. The dead algae also takes a lot of oxygen to break down forcing animals to move from the area and lots of other biological bad processes go down. The UN resently published a research showing that meat production stands for 18% of the greenhouse gases.

A Belgian environmentalist introduced the campaign of one meat free day a week and the concept is constantly growing! Visit the UK website sponsored by Goodlife and start experimenting with vegetarian food. You'll be surprised by the opportunities!

21 februari 2011

Michael Pawlyn: Using nature's genius in architecture

The most inspiring talk about biology, architecture and engineering! How to go from a linear resource usage to a closed loop, taking advantage of all nature has to offer. Pawlyn sees opportunities with every process and substance rather than obstacles, it's a very refreshing point of view!

Michael Pawlyn: Using nature's genius in architecture | Video on TED.com

There are so many options and opportunities out there for us to discover, I feel we live in a world of change, nothing is impossible and an increasing amount of people are starting to see the vast possibilities. We need to have faith in ourselves and the nature, it's important that we do not give up in finding solutions to our growing problems... Everything is an opportunity!

Julia and I decided to meet 7.30 this morning for yoga before heading back to my place to eat a very pleasant breakfast, so nice with company! Lone came over for lunch as our lecture was cancelled and now we're about to hed out for a walk in the half-wonderful, very cold weather, and then it is back to the books on the schedule...

20 februari 2011

Acumen Fund

I love TED, so many great talks! Here you can watch Jacqueline Novogratz, founder of Acumen Fund, an organisation that invests, with patience, in poverty-struck areas and societies to help them improve their life situation. They "combine business and philanthropy to break the cycle of poverty." It is a very inspiring talk, don't miss it!

http://www.ted.com/talks/jacqueline_novogratz_inspiring_a_life_of_immersion.html

I just made the best soup, so good and so simple and cheap. I needed to do something with my carrots and potatoes so I thought I'd just make a soup, last time I tried carrot soup it didn't go so well... But this time, yummy! Just carrots, potatoes (about 1/3 potato), stock, cream, salt, white peppar and blend it really smooth. I was looking through my spices to see what else I could put in it cause it felt really boring but when I tried it I just didn't want to ruin it... mmmmm

On the subject of food, yesterday we went to Julia's house and everyone just brought some ingredients, we put it all on the table and started brainstorming. The result was a culinary sensation! Lots of different dishes finished by a berry pie with lemon and vanilla whipped cream... Success!
Thank you for a great night and for all of you who think vegetarian food is boring, you don't know what you are talking about...

14 januari 2011

Done, finished, it's over.

So the last exam of the term is done! The stupid thing with the swedish system is that on Monday the new term starts, leaving us with a christmas break meant for studying... Anyway, it's nice to be done, heavens I thought I'd never get here... Being ill, still not well, so annoying but that's not why. My small cute pink laptop is in for reparation so Im on my big laptop, about six years old now, works perfectly fine considering its golden age. However, it's been a little tricky lately and yesterday word decided to break down, losing me half a days worth of work, that is almost half of the essay... I was in a rather panicked state, and this happened right before lunch so I was hungry... Well, you can imagine what that did to my mood, not to mention pms... Lets just say i was not happy. I probably spent two hours together with Sven trying to recover my work. The future didn't look bright, I was considering leaving uni (drama queen) and just as I was going to start all over again I found almost all of it in some weird file... Whatever, I'm done, I'm satisfied, I'm happy.
 I met up with Annika to look for some boxes as my wardrobe is only covered by a small mirror, so I need a system that makes it presentable. This jacket is probably as old as my laptop but I love it!
 Make a run for it down to Hemtex, amazing sales on, better get there before they go bankrupt... Too bad, I really like Hemtex...
 My handsome boyfriend, whom I miss very much is standing next to my bed in my newly painted fram, I quite like how it turned out, amateur-like and retro, just like I want it...
I've been looking at this dress every time I go in to the shop, well all two times, and now it was on sale so I went for it... I actually like it more from the side and back than the front but it's growing on me. I decided it was my woo-I-finished-my-exam-present! I could also justify it with a present for being ill over a week now. My normal approach of completely ignoring it hasn't worked...

Well, dinner and sober exam party! It's going to be wild...!

11 januari 2011

Madeleine the Builder

I've got a wardrobe! And not just any wardrobe but the best kind... Free!!
And I had amazing luck and help to move it, what would girls do without boys to carry out their dirty work?

Anyway, Marcus and I collaborated nicely and managed to get this giant wardrobe back in its complete state, couple of a screws missing here and there, nothing I worry too much about... The colossal is, however, placed close to my bed so maybe I should worry...? Naah. I trust my building skills...

Got our home exam today. I'm screwed. I'm so stupendously screwed that I don't really care. Tomorrow I am planning on starting to care and begin unscrewing myself by actually reading the book that I have sofar ignored very succcessfully. Let's just hope I manage to acknowledge its existence and befriend it enough to pull off the question based on the bloody book. My own fault really...

Oh I'm selling my Jimmy Choo's by H&M, interested or know someone interested please let me know. They're eu size 39:

08 december 2010

Thinking about christmas presents?

Advice and suggestions for christmas presents that withstand the green och fairtrade critic eye and supports a more sustainable future:
1.   Make your own!
  • knit something warm for the cold winter days
  • make some traditional food, like fudge or the swedish "knäck"
  • a book filled with memories and photos (questionable from a green point a view)
  • remake something old eg. clothes, pillow cases, lampshades
  • make personalised bottles, jars, pots, cups 
  • spice your own snaps, easy and good recipes are widespread on the net
2.   Buy your present!
  • second-hand
  • fairtrade products
  • christmas markets are perfect for individually, locally made products
  • volunteer organisation shops
  • give a present that helps someone else. At unicef's website you can buy presents like vaccin, mosquito nets, school equipment etc http://www.unicef.se/stod-oss/gavoshop (svenska), http://www.musthavegifts.org/Worldvision/Default.aspx (for everyone!). Many volunteer organisations have similar campaigns, go and check it out!
  • Don't buy anything made in Japan, as they are still continually murdering dolphins in Taiji...
  • Soda streamer, if you are a fan of sparkling water
  • Organic wine, sparkling wine
  • stainless steel bottle (found at Onya)
3.   Give away activities!
  • theatre
  • musical
  • cinema
  • concert
  • invite friends for a nice dinner
  • vouchers for massage, acupuncture etc
  • dance lessons, cooking course etc
  • weekend away (by train...)
That's how far my imagination stretches at the moment, would appreciate any other suggestion and ideas you have!

Reducing the christmas consumption craze is not about completely abandoning the tradition of giving away presents but reforming these traditions to include more sustainable ways to enjoy our holidays. Please think twice about the christmas food as well! It doesn't only help the environment but it also saves you countless hours at the gym getting it off ;)