G-n-L Ganesh and Lauren

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e-waste

Monday, 30 March 2009

E-waste is a subject that's close to my heart... As a member of the IT industry it's also a responsibility that I have... While projects like Connectivity for Refugees, InfoXchange, Computerbank and others help reuse unwanted PCs, at some point the PCs are just too old to keep using. Most of these programs only accept Pentium IIIs or later for reuse. Not all the components are too old though... Changing the RAM and Processor can sometimes be all that's required to speed up the computer...

If I was in charge of e-waste policy for the nation this would be how it would work:

Technology suppliers would be required to submit design improvements to their equipment once per year.
Technology suppliers would increase the price of technology by, for example, $5 per item (or on a sliding scale dependent on complexity), this money would go directly into an e-waste fund.
Every local IT/Tech/Not for Profit shop would have the opportunity of joining the e-waste program to accept any form of e-waste. This would also ensure access to e-waste facilities for all - as there would be a facility at almost every shopping strip. Staff at these local shops would be paid $5 per piece of equipment accepted from the e-waste fund.
The local shops would be able to clean and resell any working pieces of equipment for a profit.
The shops would pull apart any unusable equipment and create bins of capacitors, metal, plastic etc. available for purchase for people using this equipment regularly or for public projects. Training would be provided free of charge for safe handling of equipment by all IT shops.
Councils would be paid from the interest in the e-waste fund to collect unsold, separated parts once per month and deliver to local manufacturing/reusing plants or store fronts.
Remaining waste would go to a facility like byteback where parts could be used for energy recovery. This facility would be within the participating country so no toxic e-waste would be shipped to developing nations (Though they would be able to have the waste if they could reuse it safely).

This would allow for maximum reuse... Would ultimately be a user pays model... and would support the local IT/Tech economy. There are so many precious metals and rare materials involved in the production of electronics, reuse is the only way for this industry to be sustainable.

The CSIRO has recently discovered that nitrogen trifluoride (NF₃) - used in the electronics industry as a replacement for perfluorocarbons (PFCS) in LCD screens - is an extremely harmful greenhouse and ozone depleting gas. We are only going to discover more of these issues as time goes on. It's time to stop raw materials producting in the Tech industry and start reusing what we already have!

Two initiatives are making promising headway in this field StEP and BAN but action is slow...

Labels: e-waste

Time to switch off the lights...

Saturday, 28 March 2009

Happy Earth Hour Everyone... I am now switching off my lights!

Note: I was very disappointed to find Melbourne the least active Earth Hour City in Australia! I am ashamed to say that it looked like our street had one of the lowest participation rates too! I was tempted to go door knocking (it was much lighter inside than out!) but I want them onside for the Sustainable Streetscapes project... 1 step at a time...

Labels: earth hour

Magic to do...

Thursday, 26 March 2009

Stand back Jonathan Creek! I have David Copperfield tickets!! I'll be off to see the magician who walked through the Great Wall of China on August 15th! And of course dragging along the slightly nerdier members of the family - G, Lach and Mum! And of course this is an excuse for my favourite musical song of all time:

Labels: magic

Bye Bye Amber

Tuesday, 24 March 2009

We'll miss you...

Labels: amber

Crafting an economic turnaround...

Sunday, 22 March 2009

Crafting is in the air... Ever since the original trash 2 treasure idea almost a year ago, repurposed, recycled and just plain clever crafting is back in fashion. If you're not reusing your stockings, spaghetti sauce jars and cardboard you're not only throwing out perfectly good building stock, but you are certainly not 'green'... Disapproving neighbours will glare angrily at your overflowing bin and make sure they report you to the water wally hotline when you're still watering at 8:01am... Personally I think the movement is fantastic! And seeing all the finely detailed paper cuttings a friend recently brought back from Shanghai has inspired me to get back into my love of craft! (Yes, my first job was when I was 8 years old... I performed musical concerts at old folks homes, sold them my crafted wares and donated the money the guide dogs association)... I must admit I feel a little guilty now about ripping off the elderly but at the time I thought I was being a good citizen!

My first project was an attempt to use all the old burnt out halogen bulb fittings mum gave me to create something extremely useful and beautiful and take out the inhabitats spring greening contest, but unfortunately work had a mind of it's own this week and it wasn't to be... At least this way I can see what everyone else made and borrow their ideas for my ultimate repurposing project!

Anyway, I thought I'd leave you with some of my favourite photos of the week... All repurposed or green items!

repurposed craft

If that was eye poppingly exciting, checkout this laptop bag from fused plastic bags. There are also some intriguing inventions at the Talk Market for those who made it to the end of this post!

Labels: craft

Liquid Gold

Saturday, 21 March 2009

Today I am a thief. My part in a large gang of professionals who resorted to robbing a bee hive of more than a third of its liquid gold has left me craving the sweet taste of more honey! As I have previously posted, bees are vital to our survival and the mysteries behind the colony collapse disorder have been heralded as the canary in the coal mine for climate change... today, however, we enjoyed the traditional act of robbing a hive, uncapping the frames and extracting the honey in a centrifugal extractor... The honey was much richer and thicker than previous robberies because all the re-vegetation we've done in the area has finally taken off! Mmmmm.... deliciously sweet honey! Now that I have more than 5kg of honey in my possession I've stumbled across some intriguing new recipes to try out. Chocolate addiction has been temporarily overcome with honey addiction! And I can lick my lips all day with my home made honey kissed lip balm!

Labels: honey

Tiny Tomatoes

Thursday, 19 March 2009

For most of my adult life I have been under the impression that the smallest tomatoes were cherry tomatoes... Today my beliefs have been crushed as our first tomatoes ripened to about the size of peas! When our tomato bush initially filled with beautifully cute green tomatoes of miniature proportions I was thrilled! I was sure it was only a matter of days or weeks before I was selling tomatoes by the kilo on the side of the road. This dream, however, was not to be. The little green tomatoes did not grow at all! They just ripened, reddened and while they smell and taste as a tomato should, it's hard to find enough to fill a spoon, let alone make spaghetti sauce! I have since discovered that these tiny tomato samples are actually 'red currant tomatoes'... Officially the world's smallest tomatoes!

Labels: garden, tomatoes

Feathering the nest

Monday, 16 March 2009

The chickens have arrived! 2 lovely game hens - names yet to be decided. We brought them home, cooked them some lovely oats with warm milk and honey... warmed up their beds and put them into the enormous coup we'd spent all week on - and they wouldn't get out of the box! I think they were just tired because they've been very jumpy ever since. The whitish hen is much more friendly and placid, while the brown one seems to be petrified of humans!

I've learnt a lot about chickens in a very short time frame... From how to hold them (palm up, 2 fingers between the legs, the other 2 fingers either side) to the fact that they need garlic in their water for 4-5 days per month, and even that you should lime the dirt they run on to prevent bacteria build up! One of the most surprising rules was that they can't eat bread or potatoes...

Depending on how much trouble they are, the chickens may have to serve as May's mini adventure!

Update: Names decided! Drum Roll.... Introducing.... Amber and Russet!!

Labels: chickens

Spiders on Drugs

Wednesday, 11 March 2009

One of my favourite tshirts came free with my New Scientist subscription... It's a black tshirt with a picture of spiders webs created under the influence of caffeine, marijuana, lsd and benzene. It's one of those exceptionally rare tshirts that's not too tight, not too loose, perfectly stretchy and lovely and soft. I was wearing the tshirt while passing by a camera shop, and we went in for a look... The guy in the camera shop got very excited about the tshirt and started asking me questions like "Which side are you on?".. It quickly became apparent that I had no idea what he was talking about, but it made me curious... Is there a secret underground society full of "Spiders on Drugs" tshirt wearers? It would be hilariously funny if the people at New Scientist inadvertently converted a generation of geeks into hip society members!

Labels: spiders on drugs

My own worst enemy!

Tuesday, 10 March 2009

I guess it's not hard to see why I'm not getting any healthier despite all the exercise... Over the long weekend we had a working bee to finalise the chicken coup and make planter boxes around the vegies... I, of course, had to make cup cakes for the occasion. Not just any cup cakes though... Sweet potato cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. I can honestly say these are the best cup cakes I have ever ever tasted... Possibly the best food I have ever tasted... The people at Better Homes and Gardens have outdone themselves with this recipe. I knew I was in trouble after the first bite. Mum and Lachlan polished off 3 each fresh out of the oven... and I took some around to our neighbour, Jack, as well... but it was a large batch and 2 remain in the kitchen. I want to eat them both right now. I guess this is what addiction feels like! They are just exquisitely delicious... So I am blogging to take my mind off certain mouthwatering specimens of perfection in the kitchen.

Apart from that I am mid career crisis at the moment... Do I try to make a career out of sustainability? Or do I refocus and build my technical skills so I have something tangible to work with? Should I try for my dream of community development work? It's so hard... The classic "jack of all trades" - I love variety! I'm having a lot of trouble making the decision and it's not fair on the people around me! I need a crystal ball to see into the future...

Anyway, I'd better get some real work done.. The piles are beyond enormous. I need to take a month off work just to catch up on work!

Labels: career, cup cakes

Resolution Evolution

Saturday, 7 March 2009

Almost 2 and a half months into the year and I'm starting to wonder about the progress of my resolutions (as well as where the time went!)... Here's an overview to date:

Get Healthy: No progress here. Despite my proper lunches (avacado and lettuce sandwiches on light rye), eating sensible dinner rather than freddos, cake without sugar and bike riding, my weight remains unchanged. I'm sure I would survive on fat stores alone very well during an apocalypse! I suppose more drastic action is required. Perhaps a weight regime in the morning to help build more muscle?
Carbon Footprint: I'm quite chuffed about this. All our utility bills have been reduced, despite moving to a much larger place and growing lots of fruit and vegies. We're even down to 58 litres per person per day... take that target 155! We've also reduced significantly at work thanks to behavioural change alone!
Style: Well despite my lack of style I invested in some recycled garments from Nomads during the sustainable living festival - which are certainly looking a little perkier than the rest of my wardrobe and have the added bonus of making me feel good while wearing them! I guess this is a start if nothing else :-)
Creative Recycling: While I've found some fantastic resources for this and had some good feedback from community groups, I'm struggling to finish all the coding in time. Each time I sit down to code my clients have website issues that need urgent attention. I suppose that's what comes from having too many jobs!
Voluntary work: I'm back on board with EWB and helping out for the National Conference at the end of the year... Some online work and some face to face... I guess I'm easing into it! I'm having some good conversations with the council regarding the sustainable streetscapes idea as well, so this should help build my face to face quota if it comes off!
Learning (dancing, books, nepali, conversation): Dancing lessons have commenced... I've kept up with at least 1 book per week... Seem to be forgetting more Nepali than I'm learning though... Still haven't had a chance to attend toastmasters meetings!
43 Things: The tickets to see the eclipse are booked and paid for so even if I have to camp at the airport for the duration I will see the eclipse!
More focused blog posts: Well I do post a lot more frequently about chocolate. That can't be a bad thing? Seriously though, this might be the first resolution to take a tumble!
Friends: Slow progress here... but I'm really enjoying the company of the girls from work...
Adventure: 2 for 2! Though we'll need something simple (and cheap!) for March.. Perhaps a Korrumbura exploration and camping under the stars next weekend.
Be less sensitive: I'm trying... I'll get there eventually! It's such a long, slow process!
Try to be funny: Stuck here - suggestions welcome!

Labels: new years resolutions

Earthquake!

Friday, 6 March 2009

I think I just experienced my first earthquake! (or underground nuclear test!) What happened to Australia being mid-tectonic plate?!

Labels: earthquake

Travelling rewards

You wouldn't know it from my blog entries, but I have become a published author! My long term dream of being a travel writer for Lonely Planet has been fulfilled... Next step, a best selling novel :-) Seriously though, this all came about because occasionally, during rare moments of inspiration, I submit reviews and blue lists to Lonely Planet - 2 of which are published in the Kathmandu travel section of this site..

Today I received an email from Lonely Planet regarding the next edition of the Nepal guide book... Not only will my 2 blue lists be published, but so will my restaurant reviews :-) Exciting! Though looking back through some of them I start to cringe at my somewhat misguided attempt to wax lyrical:

"Amidst the hustle and bustle of Kathmandu, the constant and fascinating noises of sweet talking street sellers, rattling rickshaws and dry dust or humid heat, Pilgrims remains an idyllic retreat, untouched by the outside world. Soothing strains of meditational music play softly as you peruse a library of hidden treasures, discovering the lost side of the Nepalese culture. Nothing restores your faith in humanity like a sweet cup of Pilgrims nepali chiya whilst you pour your way through novels surrounded by an ocean of pillows. Slightly more expensive than the going rate but well worth it for the ambience."

I'm now very much looking forward to China for new experiences to write about and a way to 'earn' my trip! Off the beaten path here we come! :-)

Labels: author, lonely planet, nepal

1987

Sunday, 1 March 2009

George Orwell may not have been far off when he portrayed 1984 as a year in which the world had turned into a very ugly place. While pervasive government surveillance and control and increasing encroachment on the rights of the individual may be debatable - in 1987 the world reached a terrible milestone. Human beings used up 100% of what the Earth is able to produce in a single year. Since then we have been eating away at our 'ecological capital'. In 2009 we expect to use up our yearly capacity by September... Makes it very hard to feel like cleaning up pieces of rubbish will make much difference - despite the fact I'm a big supporter of Clean up Australia day... I wish we could just stop reproducing until we were able to control our population appropriately.

Labels: 1987, human milestone