Ideaplants

Neither the inspiration for the header nor the picture came from me, but I just really liked it, so I hope WWF won’t mind me using it. And what else is there to say? The poster says it all – Are you going to turn the lights of with me and (at time of writing) 5647320 supporters worldwide tomorrow?

Want to know more about it? http://www.earthhour.org

Happy cosy darkness,

Sylvia

The other day on my way to work I walked passed a house on which’s doorstep three book-filled yellow bags were waiting for the trash man. It hurt seeing books being thrown away just like that! There are several second hand books shops, independent ones, as well as Oxfam or Les Petit Riens, there are libraries, there are second hand markets, there are friends and there are bookswaps.

Eight years ago a British man had a great idea, he liked to read and did not like to throw books away, but he only had so much space in his appartment. This was when he started a book swap.

The principle is quite simple you bring your old and read books and you pick up some interesting other ones. Over time quite an amount of books was brought in by the readers of Brussels – mainly in English, but also French, German and other language books kept on popping up. The bookswaps mailing list grew to over 200.
Once a month, either on the first Monday or Tuesday, he and his friends would fill the pub’s tables with all those books. At the beginning the book-filled boxes had to be carried there each time, then they found a pub that allowed them to store the books, making the whole organisation of it much easier.

Now the pub has changed owners and David cannot store the books there anymore; and he thinks its time to move on. If you want the bookswap to continue and know of a location and/or would like to organize them, I can put you in touch with David. If no new organiser is found, the books will go to charity.

The last bookswap is happening on Tuesday March 9, no new books will be accepted. I am not putting the address here as I it would feel strange if 30 new people would show up to the last one, but if you are wondering about continuing it and meet David, that would be a date to keep in mind, but drop me a line and you should have all the necessary info ; – )

Happy swapping,
Sylvia

Have you ever been in a conversation and got tired of the other person complaining all the time?

Sometimes it seems to be a popular nation-wide sport, complaining about what others did or did not do, about how bad the world is, but no of course none of us could change the world anyway.
But then sometimes you come across these little projects initiated by a few creative people and you just think: “This is really neat!”

One of those initiatives is Easy Sunday‘s. It’s a simple idea and it works. Four colleagues (of mine actually) got together and founded Easy Sunday’s. This was almost a year ago, since then they cook and bake and prepare food about once a month to then invite friends and everybody else to join them for a brunch on Sunday’s each time at a different location in Brussels.

Everybody that enjoys the food and drinks donates a bit of money, which then goes to a good cause, be it to buy school supplies for a Moroccan school, supporting handicapped babies in Vietnam or like this coming Sunday to support children with severe heart problems. Will you come too on Valentine’s Day?

For more info check their site, you can also sign up on Facebook

http://www.easysundays.info/
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=48328815999

Bon appetit,

Sylvia

The ocean is big and can take any kind of abuse!

Ok, now seriously:
“The oceans and seas are a source of life on our planet. They cover almost three quarters of the Earth’s surface and contain some 90% of the biosphere. Their protection is essential to the future of our planet. Pollution of our seas and destructive fishing practices are anathema to that. Our oceans and seas also play a strategic role in sustaining climate and weather patterns, distributing solar energy, and absorbing carbons.” (Commissioner for the Environment Stavros Dimas)

Three quarters of fishing grounds are almost depleted. Rising water levels inflicted by global warming are threatening sensitive corals and low lands. Now I won’t blog more about it as others can do this better. Here a good overview by a member of the Ocean Project and here more on the topic by the following organisations UN, the European Commission or GreenPeace. You can sign a petition with GreenPeace on protecting 40% of the world’s oceans as marine reserves.

The Ocean Project has a list of events around the globe, nothing though for Belgium. However, Sunday June 7th is la Fête de l’Environnement 2009 organised at Parc Cinquantenaire by Bruxelles Environnement, where you can meet actors of the environmental field. The Brussels Aquarium will also have a stand there. In the evening there will be a free concert.

Related links:
World Ocean Day history

I just found out this morning: tomorrow is World Environment Day and lots of things are happening worldwide! Events range from conferences (for example the environmental day conference in Brussels) to a release of the movie HOME.


HOME is a film by Yann Arthus-Bertrand, the sky perspective photographer. I have his book at home and it’s the best photography book I know, it has been opened many times by me and friends of mine. The special thing about this release is, that it will be in over 50 countries on the same day and in different formats: movie theatres, TV and DVD.


Brussels DG Environment is planning a special screening of the film at the RESIDENCE PALACE – 155 Rue de la Loi at 5pm. I will definitely go. Let me know if you want to join as well. You will need to register in advance with an e-mail to basha@unric.org


Otherwise you can also watch it online or on TV.
Click here to read about what else is happening in Europe.
Facebook event


Sylvia



PS: > More about World Environment Day
> More about the movie here
PPS: If anyone is planning to go to the conference in Brussels, please let us know! We’d be happy to blog about your impressions.

Together with Mira and four others we visited a co-housing/ecovillage project in Poncelle, Province of Luxemburg, Belgium this past weekend.


Imagine a little village in the least polluted areas of Belgium on a sunny day. You arrive around lunchtime and have lunch with Michel, who three years ago had the idea of starting up a co-housing project and acquired a piece of land with similarly minded people. He tells you about his vision and even though it is obvious that much work is still needed, you can see it: a place of happy co-housing. Everybody has their own house and income, but there is also a big common house, that can be used at any time by Lorien’s people for parties or for workshops, but can also be rented out to generate a bit more income.


Lorien’s land came with a few unfinished buildings and land of 1,5ha. The potential is plenty, but the money is not. So until more people join, i.e. buy a piece of it, finishing the houses needs to wait. In the meantime the garden can be put into place.


So this is what we helped with: we cleared an area in the garden, planted some vegetables, cleared up another area for a neighbour’s donkeys and fenced it off, so they can graze on the long grass. Soon there will be a workshop that will take the development of the garden to the next level.


The weekend was not all about work though. After a dinner which some of us prepared, we sat around a campfire until one in the morning talking over beer and wine. We all felt it was interesting to learn more about the project, but also putting up fences, etc. together with friends and others brought up interesting conversations. This combined with camping and fire made for a great weekend and I am looking forward to visit again. Would you want to come along next time? If so, please comment on this page and we will let you know the details. If you do not have a tent, there are also caravans that you can sleep in.


For more info on Lórien, check here: Lorien & ecovillage profile

“All this talk about dirty energy?! In my house the energy comes from the power plug and there is no mess at all!”


Great! But how does it get into you power plug?





I live in Brussels, Belgium. Now, the energy market is open and you can choose from several providers, such as Belpower or Lampiris? There is also still the only former provider Electrabel, which claims they are green, but are they really? I found this nice URL that gives an overview of what energy provider options we have here in Belgium. Money talks and if we give it to the right solution..


I switched to Lampiris right after the markets were opened, they were not just alot greener than Electrabel, but also cheaper and it was real easy too, all I had to do is to sign up for Lampiris and they did all the rest!


If you know of a similar site for other countries, please do post them.

About half the worlds population needs to battle with Red River Indians each month – some turn moody, some schedule vacations around it others just have a little bit less energy. You still don’t know what I am talking about? Maybe monthly flow, period or menstruation mean more to you.

Now why exactly would this be a topic for a blog on mainly environmental issues?
Unless you use washable towels, having your period produces waste: pads, tampons. Also these things can be quite pricy and when travelling to certain countries your preferred choice might not even be available. So when I heard about this thing called mooncup, I really liked the idea and thought maybe you would be interested in hearing about it as well!

What is it?
“The Mooncup is a reusable menstrual cup around two inches long and made from soft silicone rubber.” (Mooncup UK)

It claims to be better for your health as well as it does not introduce any chemicals or will leave fibres behind. Personally I never had this problem, but glad to hear it! Anyway, so you buy it once, use it for up to 15 years, you need to clean it, but this can be done with toilet paper and water and once in a while boiling it in water might be a good idea.

Here is a list of some companies where you can buy this product. Note it comes in different prices, but some will last longer than others: Mooncup, Keeper, Divacup, Lunetteinfo

Yesterday, a friend of mine and I went to visit the Lappersfortbos in Brugge, where activists have been occupying a forest for seven months already so that won’t be turned into office buildings or a car park.

The people living there were very friendly, one of them gave us a tour of the area, while another one let us climb up to her tree house. It was very interesting to wander the area with all its tree houses, to see the kitchen and the bicicly repair store. We were glad to learn that they were supported by local stores and people.
Every first and third Sunday they have a “Boscafe” or Forest cafe in English, where they offer drinks and snacks. Its for free, but you are invited to leave a donation.
Click here for a video about it on a Flemish news channel.