Icebergs have been sighted off the eastern coast of New Zealand yet again. This time they have drifted close to Auckland. At these northern latitudes the Ice is melting rapidly but is still the size of a small ship. Tugs have been sent out to tow the berg away from maritime navigation routes. Instead of dragging her away from our coast the tugs bring her right into Auckland and it is… Continue
Added by Greg Stevenson on March 25, 2010 at 12:30am —
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I note from the video by "Water for People" that their cause is funded by the Case Foundation. I have been following Steve Case for a while now on twitter and registering interest on the Case Foundation Website.
I guess he and his wife are doing a great job supporting worthy causes all around the world. I do have a sense of frustration dealing with Philanthropic organisations when attempting to offer help. I have done so via the web forms so many of them offer as their point of… Continue
Added by Greg Stevenson on March 25, 2010 at 12:17am —
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I don't know about your countries but in my country we seem to have regulation after regulation stopping us from acting in a way that would conserve water.
Our water utilities only measure water use but charge for treatment of waste water. This sound sensible but it forces the local bodies to regulate against collecting rainwater for household use. They do this under the guise of protecting us from contaminated tanks.
If we also separated our plumbing in households into… Continue
Ten years ago I wrote to local government when they were calling for submissions to their budget.
Subsidise Telecommuting Technology has come of Age enabling a work style change. Microsoft Windows 2000 and cheap Unix clones such as Linux and FreeBSD are now stable and predictable operating systems offering…Continue
Having thought about this for a while I realise that I have been sort of doing this for a few years now.
I use computer servers everyday as part of what I do. A few years back I decided to learn about, and implement virtual servers. Traditionally servers have been hardware using power to provide a particular service or group of services to computer users. More often than not the percentage of power just to have these devices turned on have been a large proportion of the power… Continue
The event is the commission of Auckland's first full scale tidal power plant. With this event, New Zealand becomes the second nation in the world to get to 100% sustainable electricity production. Our four geothermal plants are now at full capacity along with increased efficiency in our Hydro schemes we have exceeded our ability to handle peak load from non-fossil fuel sources. We still have a few gas fired plants idle held in reserve in case of low rainfall years.
Centralised Large Scale Power Generation was always the way to go in the past. I assume this was due to the cost of control systems. Now the control systems have come down so much in price, distributed power generation is technically feasible and affordable. I know in my country, New Zealand, it isn't so much that you can't technically do it, you are not allowed to do it for archaic regulatory reasons. The politicians can't get their head around it, and the big energy generators won't let the… Continue
I'm eating at home in Auckland, New Zealand. Possibly a few veges from my garden, some locally produced protein. Rack of Lamb I think. mmmmm, tastes good. Mashed K**era from the local markets. Coffee with sugar from Africa with no sense of guilt that the growers have been under paid. That has long been fixed through market forces and universal compliance with the… Continue
We will strive to ensure that food, agricultural trade and overall trade policies are conducive to fostering food security for all through a fair and market-oriented world trade system.
The Basis for Action
37. Trade is a key element in achieving world food security. Trade generates effective utilization of resources and stimulates economic growth which is critical to improving…
There is me - I can't get any more local than that.
If I want change, first I must change.
Update for those intent on a more traditional approach.
I come from the biggest city in the small under populated country called New Zealand. We are so small and out of the way that even the spell checker thinks I've spelt it wrong. That is ok 'cos it doesn't like "spelt"… Continue
Who has the time to analyse all the raw data? Which social cause is the most important right now? How can I have the biggest effect? When it comes time for me to actually save Tokyo who am I to believe?
The food council of Rome back in 1974 predicted imminent global mass shortage of food which subsequently technological advances in agriculture produced productivity gains…
You can imagine with a goal or mission to "Save the World", especially when you are not certain that it even needs saving, that the journey along the way becomes pretty important.
You've got to like the process. You have to enjoy pondering things. You have to find it interesting connecting disparate things together and deriving solutions from… Continue
I have spent my life thinking. In my teenage years my thoughts caused me great angst. The cold war raging and the ramp up of nuclear arsenals meant we, as a global nation, had the power to destroy our planet and the wh*** of humanity several times over. I thought my ability to influence such an event was out of my control, my faith in our leaders to do the right thing was low. I was perpetually… Continue
The following is a TED talk by Dan Pink. Sixty years ago Edward Deming understood the strange counter-intuitive results of experiment Dan explains and railed against the motivational techniques being used in business. Are we finally coming of Age?
Twelve and a half minutes minutes in he speaks of Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose.
The business tools to help proceed down this new path are being invented now.
Ten years from now I have saved the world but no one knows it yet. Only history, fifty years on, will recognize this as the turning point.
I have completed my plan, designed the solution, sold the idea, and built a new system of tools.
The early adopters can no longer live with out it. The technology is starting to be accepted by the mainstream, not wanting to be left behind. Some of the initial participants are now engaged in the 2nd and 3rd tier of the design functionality.… Continue
I don't like making a choice on hero to shadow. The moment you choose, they let you down. Thought I might as well choose a naughty boy with a good heart. At least his antics won't be a surprise.
Seems to be a family man and a man of vision. He knows the most powerful tool in the box is business and he is using it.
I admire his intent with the Carbon War Room and believe he is on the right track.
"I love that you've brought this to attention. An extensive database of uncommon but resistant and hardy plants/foods could be developed and organized by climate. Ease of growth and processing should also be taken in to account. I will try to…"
This past weekend was the annual celebration at the lake house in Connecticut. It is amazing that the lake is still so clear and beautiful after all these years. The watershed association has done a wonderful job protecting these waters from the damaging effects of development.The wood grill was finally ready to cook on, so we didn't miss the propane tank fueled grill anymore. The food actually tasted fresher than in the past and was easy to keep fueled.Dad was very proud of the solar hybrid…See More
In this blog post I will focus on a plant that is abundant in our nature, and which is immensely nutritious. It's of course the Stinging Nettle. Let's start with the chemical constituents of this plant:37 % Non-Nitrogen-Extracts19 - 29 % Ash9 - 21 % Fiber4 % Fat22 % ProteinOnce the leaves are drid, their protein content can reach an astounding 40 %, which is much higher than beef, which even under the best of circ**stances can never exceed 31 % protein. In addition the Stinging Nettle consists…See More
It is 7'oclock, I was late home from work due to an assignment that i wanted to get ahead on. By the time I get home I am feeling extremley tired and I cannot be bothered to make a proper meal. I walk to the fridge and open it to see what there is for me to eat. All of the out of date foodstuffs have been automaticaly thrown away by the fridge, they will be recycled tomorrow as animal feed or something. I see i have organic local eggs and some local cheese. Foods are vacc** sealded for easy…See More
FutureToday is 2020/1/1. It is just like yesterday. The war is still continuing. It has started since 2010. In 2010, that year was a horrible year. Almost every energy ran out. Every country’s governments were crushed down at the same time. There were riots everywhere. All of the big company’s bosses were killed xdeadx in the riots. Troops fought each other everywhere. Food was bought up xawayx at once. There were no more food supplies in any shops. The economy was all crushed down. All the…See More
The exchange works directly for state and public workers and servants. It gives them credit in exchange for the amount of public work they contribute to the community. The more constructive they are based off a base rate the more credit they recieve.