It's mid-month and again time to remind myself and anyone who happens to be scoping this blog out about some of the GOOD things that are happening around the globe when it comes to sustainability initiatives, the natural world, and what humans are doing to NOT fuck things up...
Dogs Helping Nature. So friggin' cool I had to share - The Guardian reported how they've enlisted the 'help' of pups to spread wildflower seeds to naturally rewild areas in the UK, after folks heard about a successful project down in Chile that's already done the same. Good dog!
Scientists Endorsing Kamala & Tim! The always cool Scientific American magazine has only endorsed two presidential candidates ever, and The Independent shares with us how the second endorsement is for our wildly and wonderfully qualified (not to mention the ONLY pro-democracy, pro-planet and pro-science option) Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz, who offer us "better prospects, relying on science, solid evidence and the willingness to learn from experience.” Amen.
Restoration WORKS! Check out Sri Lanka. I was hugely inspired reading on the BBC about how the communities there have organized to clean up and protect their natural wetlands that over 2M people live on, so as to not only provide a healthier place for everyone to live, but to truly mitigate the impacts of climate change by - gasp! - protecting what they already have. (Ya listening, Gulf Coast states??? Or for that matter, here in the Pacific Northwest where idiot developers creepily define 'mitigation' as finding a way to build shit in areas where it shouldn't happen, instead of protecting it and using its natural capabilities to protect US!) After previously referring to it a couple decades ago as a 'bloody mess', now they describe how "these green infrastructure projects have helped people to engage with the city's wetlands again and that people now flock to the urban wetland parks". While there is still more work to do and the state government has temporarily stopped draining and destroying any wetlands for developers, it's a HUGE step in the right direction. (So for all those arseholes screeching 'drain the swamp!' maybe this is a lesson in inclusiveness they need...).
Horses. Horses. Horses. My favorite animal of all time, they have been close to my heart for so many reasons, and this CNN piece showcasing some amazing breeds around the world, some that even with my gazillion horse books in childhood were still new to me, and others which I've always adored, like the Icelandic. Horses are underprotected around the world, but particularly here in North America where racehorses are subject to horrendous abuse then often killed after their short 'careers' end, not to mention Big Pharma like Pfizer who puts out HRT drug Premarin which comes from the urine of pregnant mares, via the repulsive practice in Canada of confining horses in 'farms' for over a decade, repeatedly impregnating them before destroying them (while their foals are killed in the process as well). They deserve our protection.
Solar Panels For Renters? Germany is Doing It! Dang this was so cool to learn about. Grist reports how microverters are selling for just over US $500 and can be hung off balconies to power German apartments in a way that is so easy (they use a regular plug-in) that there are over HALF A MILLION already in use there. See what happens when a country actually INVESTS in sustainability for the working class and not just the upper middle class who make enough to benefit from non-refundable tax credits like here in the US? Oh, and as a bonus? "The devices don't generate enough power to strain the grid." Boom (mic drop).
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