Begging for Climate Change

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We need climate change. Not the terrorist war on clean air that’s currently happening; what we need is a climate regression – a divergent spectrum from the life-sucking Earth-killing thing that we’ve got going on. We’re talking about bringing back the days where the possibility of breathing clean air still existed alongside a guaranteed future for humanity, rather than continuing our saunter up the apocalyptic death trail into the woods of despair.

Public opinion of climate change is skyrocketing in the right direction. Now the only problem is swaying the Suits to take action on the matter. One of the main issues surrounding this is that of our global economic dependency on a system that cyclically destroys the planet – big oil. In an important talk by Kevin Anderson, Professor of Energy and Climate Change at the Tyndall Center, University of Manchester, Anderson stated that when looking at the emissions impact the fossil-fuel industry is having on the planet, we cannot afford to pursue the growth-at-all-costs model of economic development any longer.

Yes, people are getting rich from stripping and beating Earth down to the last shred of fight it’s got left in it, while the rest of us sit here broke and complaining about it. But, never fear, it seems that hope is on the horizon…sort of.

Though no major shifts have taken place yet, concerns have reached as far up as the UN, who yesterday declared it the responsibility of the world’s richest nations to come to a conclusion about a global climate pact by the year 2015 – a deadline that “must be met” as said by the head of the United Nations. Even countries like Qatar, which happens to be very rich in oil, are starting to wake up. The first protest this country has ever had was regarding action on climate change. Judging by this literally being the country’s first public protest, there is obviously a growing concern worldwide on the matter of climate change. And not only that, but the people are talking about it.

Public opinion is the only wave that can counter the monolithic tsunami of economically-driven destruction headed Earth’s way. By educating those around us, and those around you, we can band together and shift policy regarding climate change in a very strong way… It’s just a matter of persistence now.

For more environmental and real estate news, be sure to follow us on Twitter @enviromint.

 

image courtesy of Timm Suess

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Ford May Navigate Us Out of a Jam

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Ford may have a way for us to navigate our cars through rush hour without lifting either arm from our cushy armrests. With many consumers raving about its Active Park Assist feature that can steer a car into a perfect parallel park, Ford is stepping up its game by toying with the idea of branching out into perpendicular parking and driving through heavy traffic jams.

“Active Park Assist can parallel park a car by using ultrasonic sensors to measure the length and width of a space. It then steers the car into the space with the car’s electric power steering, which is already controlled by a computer.” The company claims it already has the technology to extend this feature to other types of parking and driving. And who knows what else it might be able to do in the future?

Our interest in this technology goes a little deeper. If Ford is able to effectively steer through traffic, will it reduce idling and thus the tonnes and tonnes of wasted fuel Canadians burn through each year? It’s been well established that sitting in traffic is a big culprit of wasting gas, especially with constant breaking and accelerating. So if Ford can help to mitigate this, we’re all for it.

Via Digital Trends

Photo courtesy of Richard Masoner / Cyclelicious

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The Greenest Building in the World?

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The new Center for Sustainable Landscapes is set for unveiling on May 23rd in Pittsburgh, Philadelphia. As one of the earth’s first certified living buildings, it is designed to be self sustainable and has earned nods from the three highest green standards: The Living Building Challenge, LEED® Platinum, and SITES Certification for landscapes.

Photo courtesy of pixietart

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Agriculture Without Soil?

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Yes indeed. Recent technological advances have answered the many calls of the agricultural world, develloping a form of agriculture that requires 90% less water, 80% less fertilizer, and increases plant productivity by 50%. This is allowing agricultural producers to function at a way lower production cost, with a higher yield, and is doing so in a very “green” manner. The roots of this concept lay in hydroponics, a method that uses only nutrient infused water and no soil to grow plants. These new methods do not stray too far from this fundamental concept, however are executed rather differently. The most interesting of these new growing methods is Stackable Vertical Farms, which is a process that requires no sun, no soil, and little to no water. Instead of submerging the roots in soil and then watering and fertilizing the soil, the roots of the plants are in fact suspended in vertical cylinders, and the roots are sprayed with water while remaining suspended; no root submersion required. For descriptions of other soil-less growing methods, and for an image of a Stackable Vertical Farm, please visit the link below, and let us know what you think of it all on Twitter.

www.theenvironmentalblog.org/2012/05/soil-less-agriculture/

photo courtesy of http://www.public-domain-image.com/plants/fruit-and-vegetable/slides/chilli-plants-green.html

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Has The Future Come Early?

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Climate change and global warming have been hot topics on the radar for several years now; movements that have finally started to see some results in the huge shift towards electric vehicles this year…but are these efforts too little too late? Rising sea levels have been a “debatable” issue in the environmental realm for quite some time, as one of the main concerns of the impacts of global warming. Sadly, these warnings were not heeded, and we officially a country that is drowning, and this won’t be the last.

The Republic of Kiribati, located North of Fiji, is currently being drowned out by rising sea levels, as a result of global warming. The Republic of Kiribati is consisted of 32 atolls (coral island either partially or fully surrounding lagoons) and one main island. Residents are already seeing that several atolls are being swallowed up by the waves, leading Kiribati government officials to find a migration solution for the 100,000 inhabitants of the Republic. They are currently negotiating terms with Fiji to inhabit a 6,000 acre area as an area of migration for their citizens.

Should we consider this our first warning? What are your thoughts on the future of climate change, and how to stop it from drowning out the rest of the world? Join the conversation with us on Twitter.

photo couretsy of Midge64

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Hump Day Tips

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Wednesdays tend to be a struggle for a lot of people who work in offices. They are a day where a lot of work needs to get done, but the motivation to do so seems so far away as that holy Friday afternoon is not within grasp yet. Ever feel like you’re dragging your feet on these days and just straight-up don’t feel like working? Well, we have a few little tips to get you through this hump day.

Attitude is everything, so when your attitude is off, or “blah”, or just plain negative, you tend to feel bored, blank, etc. Looking at the root cause of this issue, why not try to do something about that boredom, or that sense of “I don’t want to” and make this time you have count for something. An interesting article entitled “The Boredom Manifesto” suggests a very alternate perspective on boredom that doesn’t include trying to add colour to the grey parts of your day.

When put under the microscope, our lives consist more of relatively boring portions of time that lay in between the things in our lives that we enjoy and benefit from the most. The reality of this situation is not deniable…so what can we do about it? That answer doesn’t seem very appealing, but it’s simple: succumb to the boredom! Embrace and realize the fact that the accomplishments you achieve in these boring portions of time are what allow us to benefit from the exciting times we experience. Use your hump day effectively. Get as much work done as you can so that you can set yourself up to leave worry-free on Friday and embrace that weekend of yours.

Happy Hump Day!

photo courtesy of ANGELOUX

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Over The Counter

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The world we live in is a very enticing place. No matter what you may be looking for, there always seems to be an alternative, a better product, a cheaper product, a comparable price point, a better price point, etc. The same instance occurs in the realm of real estate. There are ways to market yourself or to run your business by spending little to no money. However, despite the likeliness of your not wanting to hear us say so, we’re going to say this anyways: “You’ve gotta spend money to make money.”

This statement has stood the test of time for one simple reason: it’s the truth. Sure, you may rather write your name and number down on a “sticky note” than spend money on business cards to hand out; you may decide to take out an ad in the paper instead of getting a professional website done; you may even get your friends or family to take photos of you for marketing purposes instead of a professional, but you will never reap the full benefits of the more efficient counterparts in these scenarios.

Sadly, the same predicaments as these lie within real-estate back-office solutions. Buying software over the counter is a very affordable alternative to subscribing to a service. You can pull out the heavy “how to” guide accompanied with the software to figure it out if you don’t understand anything about how you want this software to work for you (the likeliness of this is all too high), and then grumble through your anticipated call to the “1-800” hot line that’s been set up and staffed by people who are not hands on with the company or the software, to have a shot at figuring out your budgeted purchase.

If this process sounds appealing to you, then by all means fire away, however we seriously believe that we can help you beyond your wildest dreams with your back-office solutions. Let Enviromint take care of you and personally tend to your affairs instead of call-center referrals or thick instruction manuals. Because, honestly, your business is something you should never sell yourself short on.

 

photo courtesy of jeff_w_brooktree

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