This might make you smile.

facesinplaces.blogspot.com

This is my favourite site of the week (so far).

Ecogeek pointed out this morning that one of the greenest things you can do is make what you have last as long as possible, and if you do have to get rid of it, recycle it. Makes sense to me.

Here’s my recycled lawn mower:

Reclaimed from my Grandad’s garden shed at the start of the summer, my mower is not only carbon neutral (no fossil fuels here!), but it’s also good for working on the guns.

And push mowers are having a bit of a resurgance. Treehugger reports that sales of some push mowers (reel mowers, as they’re called in the United States) are up by 60%.

But it’s definitely a case of buyer beware!

Apparantly the “liability issue” of having “dangerous”, whirring, unprotected blades is putting people off (in Naperville, anyway).

Read the rest of Green Mowing »

WOMAD Festival (World Of Music Arts & Dance) takes place at Charlton Park, Malmesbury, Wiltshire from 25th – 27th July. With a line up of musical genres from Roni Size & Represent and Malam Mamane Barka, to Martha Wainwright and Irish Ceilidh featuring Shane McGowan, WOMAD offers music from every corner of the globe. This year they have food from over 40 different countries, and an array of cultural workshops for children and adults alike.

In its 26 year history, WOMAD has hosted over 150 festivals in 27 different countries. It’s a festival for everyone, with an array activities from children’s workshops that include puppet making and drumming, to the Speakeasy Real Ale and Whiskey Bar that runs throughout the weekend.

We have teamed up with WOMAD, for one lucky winner to win a pair of weekend tickets (including camping passes, and one ticket allows two children 13 or under in for free), to go to this years festival.

Tickets for this years festival are still available (at the time of writing), but selling fast. Weekend ticket cost £125, £100 (ES40 claimants, students, over 60s & 14-17 year olds), and Day Tickets £50 (Sunday only).

To find out more about this unique event, please go to www.WOMAD.org

Win 2 tickets to WOMAD 2008:

…all you have to do is leave a creative comment (telling us why you want to go to the festival), here, on this post! 

The prize is a pair of weekend tickets (including camping passes) worth over £250.

You don't even need to create an account in order to leave a comment. Just make sure your e-mail address is valid, so that we can contact you to establish where to send your tickets, if you're the lucky winner!

You DON'T need to put any personal information (like your address) in the comment.

Make sure you're available from the 25th to the 27th July, too!

Finally, please keep it clean, this is a family show. 

Full terms & conditions here.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-hiE_tz37s[/youtube]

Check out the Busycle!

Pretty awesome mode of transport.

Just think how much fun we’d have if we replaced all our public transport with these!

Perhaps Boris should replace his bendy buses with lots of Busycles! Cleaner, greener and the streets of London might be a lot less meaner too if everyone had to work together to get around!

http://www.busycle.com/

There’s always a lot of controversy around the topic of reusable nappies. After all, having a baby is a sure fire way to increase your carbon footprint. There’s all the extra energy that a washing machine needs to heat the water etc.

Introducing Gary Lamont, the Real Nappy Guy from the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust.

Gary’s job is to promote the use of real nappies, so here are all the answers about using cloth nappies and how they’re better for babies.

Find out more about using cloth nappies »

What do you think? Should we be encouraging the use of reusable, washable nappies? Or should we be using something like Moltex – the eco-friendly disposable nappy. Or, in these times of economic uncertainty, should we all be jumping in our Hummers and heading down to Tesco to buy the biggest economy pack of <insert popular brand name here> we can find?

But is it relevant to your interests?

If you like this blog, leave us a comment. If you don’t, click here, and go and find another one.

Gary Lamont, Real Nappy Network Co-ordinator for the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust talks to Ethical Superstore about the benefits of real nappies.

Ethical Superstore: Aren't real nappies messy, smelly and difficult to change?

Gary Lamont: Changing real nappies is just as simple as changing single use nappies, you just throw the nappy in a bucket, rather than in the bin – and no need to tie the nappy in a little bag to stop the house smelling of poo, because that bit gets flushed away! No need for boiling or soaking, just chuck the used nappy in a dry bucket and add them to any whites wash. If you line your bucket with a net laundry bag (or old pillow case!), then you throw the open bag straight into the washing machine without even touching the nappies. Simple.

A normal 60 degree wash cleans & sterilises your nappies, so no need for harsh chemicals, messy soaking or energy-draining boil washes.

Now you know the basics, you need to know how to get started using real nappies, but it can help to actually see the nappies for yourself which is where I come in. To encourage more families to use cloth nappies in Wiltshire, the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust has a scheme which provides a co-ordinator i.e. me, to give free and independent information, trial kits for parents to borrow and try out the various nappies on offer, a money back voucher to assist with initial costs (up to £30 refund) and I help organise local events and demonstrations with opportunities to meet other Real Nappy users.

ES: What about Nappy Rash?

GL: The incidence of nappy rash has massively increased since disposables were introduced to the market place. The most important thing to prevent nappy rash is keeping your baby's bottom clean, not just feeling dry. It's really easy to know when a real nappy needs to be changed, not so easy for a disposable that always feels dry, and changing your baby as soon as possible is the key to avoiding nappy rash. Many of the real nappy parents I know saw hardly any nappy rash, and only then when their babies were ill or teething. Nappies made from natural fibres, with a breathable wrap over the top allow much more air to circulate, keeping skin cooler and less irritated than a combination of paper pulp, chemicals and a non-breathable plastic layer.

ES: What about comfort?

GL: Would you choose chemically treated paper pants over natural cotton ones? Would your baby? Real nappies are soft and comfortable, let skin breath and reduce the possibility of irritation from added chemicals. Babies have been in real nappies for hundreds of years, without all the modern styles of nappies, with no problems at all. It's only adverts for disposables that make us think that they must be more comfortable, common sense tells us otherwise!

Again, adverts for disposables would have us believe that no baby ever learnt to walk before the new, hyper-slim-fitting disposables were invented, and we all know that's rubbish, literally. While some real nappies may look a little bulky at first, it's just a matter of what you are used to, and of course a nice soft, comfy cotton nappy gives lots of padding when the little ones land on it when they're learning to walk.

ES: What about hygiene?

GL: What's hygienic about putting poo in the bin? Human waste belongs in the sewer system, where it can be properly treated, and not in a landfill site where it can leach out pathogens, viruses and emits methane, a powerful greenhouse gas. If soiled nappies are washed at 60 degrees, then real nappies are far more hygienic than putting poo in a bin. With any kind of nappy, store used ones sensibly, and out of reach of toddlers.

ES: What about childcare?

GL: A lot of people worry about what their child-carer will say about real nappies. No registered child-care provider should have a problem with using real nappies. After all, you are paying them to care for your child, and if they have a problem with your choice of nappies, what else might you disagree on? Some child-carers need just a little bit of advice and support, and they will be changing real nappies along with the best!

ES: What about going out?

GL: Going out & about with just real nappies for the first time can be a bit daunting, particularly if you've used disposables before, but it's really not a problem. All you need is a waterproof bag to store the nappies in until you get home, when you can throw them in the bucket. For days at nursery or overnight stays you'll want a bigger bag, or a couple of smaller ones. If you're using flat nappies, it can be handy to have a couple folded & ready to put on in your nappy bag. If your nappy arsenal includes any shaped or fitted nappies, when you're trying to balance your baby on one of those teeny public changing stations, they can come in handy.

Changing real nappies, like every bit of being a parent, comes with practice, none of us are experts to start with, but it doesn't take long to be winning nappy-change races against those who haven't cottoned on to real nappies yet!

ES: What about nights?

GL: Those pesky ads again! Babies have been sleeping through the night for generations before sodium-polyacrylate was invented (that the nasty gel which absorbs all the wee & can absorb vital moisture from delicate skin). There are millions of parents around the world who get a good night's sleep with a baby in real nappies! Disposable nappies don't make babies more intelligent, sleep better or for longer, eat better, or able to do somersaults at the age of 2, that's all just marketing, designed to get parents to spend £100s on rubbish, literally. When using real nappies at night time, an extra booster to add absorbency can help. And fleece liners keep babies feeling dry, which isn't important unless that is what your baby is used to, so if you're switching from disposables, they might help.

ES: What about breastfeeding?

GL: Breastfeeding is best for you and your baby, and the benefits increase the longer you are able to breastfeed for. There is lots of help and support available in all areas of the UK (and Wiltshire), so ask your midwife or health visitors for more information on local support groups & advice.

Breastfeeding is only a nappy-issue for the first months, before introducing solid food. Because breast milk is exactly what your baby needs, so much of it is digested that the resulting poo can be quite runny, so you'll want to think about what nappy system will hold it in. Any nappy, flat or fitted, made from terry material will hold on to the poo best, the bigger the loop, the better the poo-handling. Get in touch for more advice.

ES: What about potty training?

Children today are potty training 6-12 months later than they did 50 years ago, and many parents using cloth nappies see their children potty trained by 2 years. Cloth nappies allow babies to feel when they are going to the toilet, and so they do not have to learn a whole new set of sensations when training. Choosing wraps or nappies which close with poppers for this size can help, as they can be pulled up & down like pants.

ES:Gary, thanks for your time.

GL: I hope you've found this short guide useful!

If you'd like to talk to Gary about using Real Nappies then you can call him on 01380 725670 (ext.236), or e-mail him at GaryL@wiltshirewildlife.org

Let him know you read about nappies in his article on Ethical Superstore!

www.wiltshirewildlife.org

Greenpeace released a new article in the US earlier this week. This time, they’re looking at supermarkets and fish.

This article on the Boston Times’ Green Blog suggests that U.S. supermarkets are not doing enough to protect fish.

Have a read through the comments if you want to be shocked/amused/baffled.

I had a quick trawl (boom boom) through the Greenpeace UK site to see where our supermarkets stand.  I’ve noticed a degree of improvement when it comes to labelling where the fish comes from, and how the fish has been caught, but it really depends where you’re shopping.

Interestingly, it looks like the last time UK supermarkets were examined was in 2006, with M & S coming out top.

If anyone can find a newer report (or you know when the next one is due), let me know.

Find out more about Trevor Baylis’ brand new Mini Eco Radio in an interview posted over at Ethical Superstore.

The  Eco Mini Radio is Trevor’s smallest ever wind up radio, but this time it’s augmented with a solar panel and the option to charge via USB.

Trevor also talks about his plans for the future, including the wind-up mobile phone, and a solar powered GPS!

Read the full Trevor Baylis interview here »

It’s hot hot hot. Literally . . . and it’s just about to arrive at Ethical Superstore. It’s the charcoal you need for some proper green grillin’ this summer.

It’s that time of year already: the season of the sausage – barbecued that is – and this year’s hot topic is how to barbecue ethically. It’s not only meat versus meat-free sausages that ignites debate – there is the barbecue charcoal to consider if you want to achieve some proper green grillin’.

Currently, the UK imports over 90 per cent of its barbecue charcoal, and many of these imported charcoals are not FSC certified, which means there is no guarantee they aren’t responsible for the deforestation of virgin tropical forests and endangered mangroves.

But bag yourself a sack of UK charcoal this summer, and not only is it estimated that CO2 emissions are reduced by 85 per cent compared to imported charcoal, but make it FSC and you can guarantee you are supporting well-managed woodlands and the species that live within them. The pearl-bordered fritillary – the UK’s fastest declining butterfly species – will thank you for it, not to mention the nightingale and dormouse who all thrive in well-managed, coppiced woodlands.

And it’s largely down to the whiz kids at BioRegional who have raised the bar for ethical living yet again. Establishing a unique network of charcoal suppliers from woodlands up and down the UK, small producers of their FSC certified HomeGrown charcoal can supply direct to retailers like Ethical Superstore, and the charcoal can be sourced as local as possible to distribution centres, reducing transport considerably.*

It’s hot stuff. Literally. Made from British hardwoods, HomeGrown charcoal burns hotter for longer, is easy to light and ready in just 15 minutes. No need for firelighters, it leaves your food untainted and is additive-free. And a little goes a long way – a 3kg bag is equivalent to 4kg of lumpwood charcoal – making economic sense too.

So, whatever you are barbecuing this summer, don’t put the ethics on a backburner, bag yourself some wood that does good.

BioRegional FSC certified HomeGrown charcoal is available now from EthicalSuperstore.com, priced £5.99 for 3kg.