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Students at the University of Sheffield have donated four tonnes of goods to city charities. As...

Why Recent Graduates Should Join Code for America

Sympathy for the dodgy salesmen of Australian politics

Babel Rising

T.C. Boyle: Incorporating Environmentalism in Art

The Stone Roses confirm all planned shows to go ahead after Ian Brown calls Reni a 'c**t' onstage

The Open Architecture Network

How do you improve the living standards of five billion people?
With 100 million solutions. Your solutions.

The OAN is a free, Web-based network that's part database of architectural projects, part design tool, and part community, and its ambitious goal is to improve the living standards of 5 billion people—a number that includes not just the 1 billion people living in abject poverty today, but the one in three people who, by 2020, will be living in slums.

With 5,700 members and 1.3 million visitors in June, the OAN taps into the collective intelligence of the web to improve the living conditions of the urban poor.

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technology

iLife = iWaste

3 sep | Today’s most progressive and innovative designers know they play an increasingly important role in creating a sustainable future. But Apple looks content to just help pile up the toxic waste. From a sustainable design perspective, Apple is about as innovative as a beige box circa 1989. . . read more

Web 2.0 for the urban poor

14 jul | While Intel and the $100 laptop are joining forces to bring technology to the poor, a free, web-based network is tapping into the collective intelligence of the web to improve living conditions in urban slums. . . read more

Should The New York Times Ditch Paper, Distribute Kindle E-readers?

18 feb | All the news that's fit to Kindle? Silicon Alley Insider's Nicholas Carlson has done some inspired mathematical guesswork and come to the conclusion that The New York Times could save itself by ditching paper altogether.

Giving every subscriber a free Kindle e-reader, and then delivering the newspaper electronically, would be cheaper by 50% in fact. . . read more

Growing up digital

27 may | Growing up digital . . read more

Double Dividend: Make Money by Saving Nature

15 jul | Double Dividend: Make Money by Saving Nature . . read more

Eco Geek

13 jun | EcoGeek - technology for the environment . . read more

The Waterpod: Sustaianable Life Aquatic

23 dec | The Waterpod: Sustaianable Life Aquatic . . read more

The Zeer needs more Zazz

1 mar | At a recent dinner invitation I had the pleasure of meeting my friend's Great-Uncle Tom who lives in Lightning Ridge. When I learned of where he lived a whole notebook worth of questions instantly arose in my mind and Tom was more than happy to entertain my curiosity.

Simon Moore HPD's Environment Editor explains his fascination and tells us why Lightning Ridge and Nigeria might have some real solutions to climate change. . . read more

A bright idea for wasteful office lighting

23 nov | Commercial office buildings are one of the main culprits of the current climate crisis. They consume large amounts of electricity and release excessive carbon emissions into the atmosphere. Adura Technologies has developed a mesh-based lighting system that is reducing costs and consumption inside buildings. The technology consists of wireless radios that plug into florescent light fixtures giving employees more control over their personal lighting space. Adura has also created a dual motion sensing-personal control system that is being used at UC Berkeley that allows students to break the hard-wired connection and control their lighting from their desktop PCs. . . read more

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY!

"Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it." -- Ronald Reagan (1986)

Mavi Marmara: Israeli officers face Turkish trial

A Turkish court has charged four senior Israeli military commanders over the killing of nine Turkish activists trying to reach Gaza in 2010.

Ex-military chief of staff Gabi Ashkenazi and former heads of military intelligence, the navy and air force are expected to be tried in absentia.

The nine pro-Palestinian activists were killed after Israeli troops boarded their ship, the Mavi Marmara.

They had been hoping to breach Israel's naval blockade and deliver aid to Gaza.

Ron Paul on Why Bankster Power Must be Eradicated

It is imperative that the American people be educated on the dangers of the Fed and the importance of restoring sound money. Now that nearly 50 years have elapsed since silver was removed from circulation, fewer and fewer Americans have firsthand familiarity with real money.

The laying of the groundwork must begin today, so that the American people will be prepared for the day when the mirage the Fed has created evaporates completely.

Chinese army general calls for 'decisive action' vs PH

China should launch "decisive action" against the Philippines to reinforce Beijing's claim on the disputed Scarborough Shoal, a hardline Chinese army general said Friday.

People's Liberation Army (PLA) Major General Luo Yuan, in a commentary published by state-owned website china.org.cn, said China has not abandoned the idea of "war at all costs" to protect its interests.

"'Peaceful rise and 'period of strategic opportunity' preclude war," said Luo, who has been described by Western media as "hawkish" for his ultranationalist views.

"It is incorrect to assume that China will completely rule out military action in any event during this 'period of strategic opportunity,'" he said, referring to Beijing's dispute with Manila.

Think Again From The Outsider

The great challenge facing everyone who wants to change the world we live in is how do you get traction for your ideas? Gunter Pauli the inventor of the ‘blue economy’ has a novel approach. His missionis to develop globally 100 manufacturing innovations with viable business models that could generate 100 million jobs in 10 years. All with zero emissions and no waste.

The novelty? To drive this revolution in an economic framework that will attract investors and governments in entrepreneurial partnerships that feed self-interest while revolutionising outcomes – particularly in relation to carbon.

The blue economy was initially a report to the Club of Rome recommending innovations inspired by science and biometrics. This is a truly cool equation. Science + Economics = A Better Future.

The Really Big Apple

Recently it was announced that Steve Jobs had an FBI file that detailed his personality, how he ran his company and the possibility that he would be appointed to George Bush Sr.' s government.

What is more interesting about Apple at the moment is the $100bn in cash reserves it's accrued and what it might use them for.

End world hunger?

Take over other companies?

Pay its suicidal employees more?

Whatever it chooses, we should really stop focussing on Jobs' genius and start thinking about how the wealth his genius created can be spent for good.

The Future of Trust - From The Outsider

The images of senior Australian politicians being bundled into cars to escape the threat of indigenous demonstrators confirms how weak the post-apology environment is in Australia. The whole point of the apology was not to say 'sorry' but to build a new platform for the positive evolution of indigenous Australians. The apology created a climate of trust but the ignoble inaction that has followed, apart from proposed tinkering with the Australian constitution, has destroyed the platform and the belief in the trustworthiness of political process. Can't we (non-indigenous Australians) actually do something? Something communal not bureaucratic, spiritual not gestural – something that shows that we care.