dbarefoot's story links

Infographic showing how much power or 'vampire energy' consumer appliances consume in 'standby' mode. The worst perpetrators are plasma TVs, computers and game consoles.

IKEA has launched a site discussing (and soliciting discussing about) their environmental and corporate social responsibility record. It feels a little like greenwashing, but the company has a legacy of legitimate socially and environmentally responsible choices. For example, stores in Canada charge for plastic bags, provide shuttle buses to transit hubs and preferred parking spots for customers with hybrid and low emission vehicles.

Mow Down Pollution is the Clean Air Foundation's annual campaign that encourages Canadians to turn in their old and busted lawn mowers. Over the past seven years, they've retired 18,000 gas lawnmowers and trimmers, resulting in the reduction of 406 tonnes of greenhouse gas and smog-forming emissions.

Artists and scientists write a letter to their great, great grandchildren about their vision and hopes for their world in 100 years, in the context of global warming. They're poignant predictions of the future, both hopeful and bleak.

The Waste Isolation Pilot Plant presents an interesting thought experiment. They store the nation's most dangerous nuclear waste, and the US Department of Energy is legally required to dissuade anyone from coming too close to the site for the next 10,000 years. How do you do that?

We're usually pretty serious on DeSmogBlog, but we like to have some fun every once in a while. So, this month we're hosting a photo contest over at Flickr. It's entitled The Greenest Photo Ever. The challenge, as you may have guessed, is simple: take the greenest photo ever.