Best of sustainability on the web

July 18, 2012 by
Farming in rural China

It has been all very busy here lately with a couple of contracts happening. I have however found time to read some interesting articles online and I want to share some of them with you. I hope you enjoy them. The west isn't ready for the rise of China This is a really interesting article on the rise of China written by Kevin Rudd (Australia's former PM). I guess with some extra time on his hands he is able to put pen to paper and write intelligent papers like these! How fair trade supports children's rights to a safer environment This article looks at how fair trade can improve a farmer's (and his family's) standard of living, with better access to healthy land and water. Climate reality bites: Gen-Xers don't care much about global warming Sadly, it seems Gen-Xers don't think climate change is worth worrying about, even less-so than was the case in 2009. And, even worse, those with children seem to care less than those without.... weird. And … [Read more...]

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Pinterest – a visual treasure trove

February 10, 2012 by
My Pinterest

If you're on Facebook I'm guessing you have probably heard of Pinterest this year via one of your female friends commenting on how fun and addictive it is, or maybe you've noticed it pop up on your Facebook newsfeed as more and more people are using it. It seems to be gaining momentum and popularity, and therefore there is more and more to find on Pinterest and more potential for organisations or brands to use it to highlights their products or causes. Just in case you haven't heard of it, or you've heard of it but you're not quite sure what it is, Pinterest is like a virtual pinboard where you can pin images onto your boards you find on the internet to refer back to later. Sort of like a bookmarking system, but a very pretty one. To give you an idea of some of the things that people bookmark on Pinterest, examples of the main categories are Food & Drink, DIY & Crafts, Photography, Travel & Places, Kids, Film Music & Books, and People. There are a lot of pretty … [Read more...]

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Chocolate. Not so fair.

January 30, 2012 by
fair_trade_logo2

I have to admit, I love chocolate. I was brought up in a family of chocolate-lovers. The richer the better. It was a popular dessert when we ate at home (though we were limited to a mere two squares while growing up). If we were eating out and a dessert menu didn't have a chocolate item on the menu then it had the potential to lead to a major 'disaster', much sighing and under the breath complaining. Along with a vow never to return to the restaurant. For my family, any kind of chocolate was acceptable - it didn't matter - white, milk or dairy, though each person certainly had their preferences (and voiced them!). From memory, we bought Cadbury most often as it was yummy and affordable for a family of 6 on a budget. We usually waited for it to be on sale and stocked up. I am sure that at least one member of my family still buys chocolate this way. For me, my naturopath allows me to have chocolate, but only of the 85% cocoa variety. The sugar and the dairy in regular chocolate … [Read more...]

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