Green Office Tips

Going green is not only limited to your personal life but is applicable to your professional life as well. Your office is where you spent a large part of the day and therefore there is no better place to inculcate these green habits into your lifestyle. Not only should you make a conscious effort to follow these but also make your colleagues do the same. Some of these green office tips are bound to help.

Here are some tips from the green police:

• Switch off the lights when you move out of your cabin. Artificial lighting constitutes 44% of the total electricity consumption in offices and use as much natural lights as possible.
• It has been estimate that computers take up $1 billion worth of electricity. Therefore you should always switch off your computer when not in use. Make it a point to switch off the monitor when your computer lies idle for a while.
• Try and take prints on both sides of a sheet so that you do not waste paper. Try and minimize your paper usage as much as possible by taking most of your work online.
• Go for office stationery that is made out of recyclable materials.
• Travel to work via public transport and save fuel in the process.

Green Construction

Constructing structures with the aid of environmentally friendly materials is known as green construction. While the ultimate goal is to protect the environment from the harmful pollutants, the other factors of durability and comfort are not compromised either. Different methods of green construction have evolved over the years with more and more efficient technologies brought into the overall construction process.

One of the most efficient ways of utilizing energy efficient resources is to provide the buildings with adequate insulation on the walls, ceilings and floors along with installing high efficiency windows meant for air circulation. This minimizes the need for high energy sources while maintaining the optimum temperature indoors. The solar energy is used in providing both light and heat and the house thus constructed makes the maximum utilization of the easily available resources that are virtually inexhaustible. Most green construction projects generate power onsite in order to meet its requirements by harnessing the naturally available sources of wind and water.

Building materials are easily recycled or reusable form the basis of green construction. Creating the structure with bamboo or lumber from trees as well as recyclable stones helps to enhance the architecture as well. Waste reduction is yet another aspect of green constructions. According to the green police, using biodegradable material eliminates much of the possibility while the alternative sources of energy helps in limiting the emission of toxic fumes to a large extent.

Global Environment

The global environment is a family determined by the animal kingdom, the plant kingdom and even the climatic components. Our natural environment basically comprises of the ecological aspects which takes in the wide scale application of animals, microorganisms, vegetation, atmosphere, rocks, soil and other natural processes. Climatic changes are bringing in the most progressive transformations in the Global Environment. This is resulting in temperatures above or below normal, change of directions in the ocean and wind currents, delay of seasons, insufficient and inappropriate tenure of climatic phenomenon and increase in the hazards and disasters.

The Global environment is also affected by the physical and chemical reaction in the form of wind, water, air, energy, radiation, heat, magnetism and so on. According to the green police, in the past few decades the global environment is changing with alarming rates and alterations in all the above mentioned units have been spotted. The Global Environment is now facing grave difficulties in pertaining to its form because of numerous harmful impacts. On one hand the natural environment is getting modified by advance technologies while on the other it is getting degraded by acid rain, soil erosion, desertification, soil infertility, man imposed chemical and nuclear effects, etc. The overall health of both plant and animal life is going down considerably. The store of non-renewable resources is getting evacuated. More and more animals are approached by extinction.

Environmental News

As sports news covers the happenings of sports world and sports related events, environmental news covers the latest happenings related to environment. There is a wide array of subjects and topics within the scope and range of environmental news and there are different agencies and publications who publish the news from different corners of the world. Environmental news is available both from international and national level, in print and in web media as well.

Environmental news promotes environmental responsiveness and mass concern for community. While communicating about the environment issues, the objective of environment news is global promotion for conscious resolution for green planet.

Popular environmental issues of environment news are acid rain, air pollution, air quality, drought, global warming, environment policy, hazardous waste, ice ages, global pollution, organic garden, industrial hygiene, waste treatment and management, ozone holes, etc issues which have local as well as international impact on eco-balance and human survival.

Environmental news also covers the latest steps in preservation of environment; environment policies, recycling and waste issues and resolutions, sustainability etc. are also covered by news range.

The green police have listed a few well known newspapers and magazines related to environmental news: Conscious choice, Down-to-earth, National geographic, Grist, Elements, Green futures, Natural life, Orion magazine, Resurgence, World watch, Yes, Geo-times etc.

Eco Tours

No matter if you prefer to spend your vacation in a remote corner of the world surrounded by nature or in a cabin that is located on top of a mountain summit or choose to go trekking in the Alaskan glaciers or go rafting over the rapids, there is an eco tour that can accommodate all your tastes as well as skill level and lifestyle requirements.

Some of the great options and locations available to you if you want to experiment with an eco tour are: Florida’s Key West, the great natural wilderness of Alaska, the Grand Canyon in Arizona, and the jungles in Belize or bird watching in Montverde, Costa Rica

An eco tour of the Key West in Florida offers individuals a guided tour of the exotic red mangrove trees, paddle through the shallow, crystal waters, a chance to see a variety of tropical fishes, moray eels, squids, lobsters, octopuses and nesting ospreys

In Alaska an eco tour allows you to trek through the Davidson Glacier, go sea kayaking with humpback whales and sea otters as company or simply watch the grizzlies wrestle or bathe on the river and across the shoreline.

You can also take an eco tour across the jungles in Belize where you have an opportunity to ride a horse along the jungle trail or sleep in ecological cabins that have rustic appeal of thatched roofs or bathe in the waterfalls among the Mayan remains or simply relax in the delights of the tropical paradise! The green police strongly encourage those who can to take an eco tour.

Clean Environment

Today what each one of us aspire is to have a clean environment which is pollution free and devoid of any public health hazards. A clean environment implies a return of the natural endemic local ecology and it is what we strive for. We need to create a cleaner and a greener planet if our marvels of science and technology are going to be matched and not outweighed by current tragedies consisting of human starvation in many parts f the world and extinction of other forms of life.

Global warming is an increase in earth’s temperature and this in turn is causing the rapid change in climatic condition. Global warming also results in droughts and disrupts agriculture. A clean environment means not to despoil the remaining parts of the world which are still not developed.

According to the green police, in some parts of the world extinction of other life forms is growing fast. It is ironic that space exploration will now only take place at the time when earth’s own oceans, and freshwater areas while they grow increasingly polluted and their life forms are still largely unknown and where known are probably misunderstood.

This is the time to start pushing ourselves to make the earth a planet with clean environment with the assistance of different agencies which have started to make this planet a greener and a cleaner place to live.

Solar Power Generation

Many ancient civilizations worshiped the sun, believing it to possess powers to create and sustain life. For all their naivety, the green police believe that they had actually grasped the truth. As environmental scientists have discovered, the only way to conserve fast dwindling energy resources is to switch to solar power. Solar power generation is also the answer to the menace of global warming, caused primarily by burning fossil fuels that release toxic gases into the atmosphere.

The popular belief is that you need large and complex machinery for solar power generation and these machines can only be used in an industrial setup. But you will be surprised to learn that even something as simple as installing large picture windows and skylights on the south side of your house will let in sunlight and reduce the need for central heating or daytime lighting. If you live in California, then you have loads of opportunities to tap the abundant rays of the sun and use them to your advantage. You will be amazed by how much your power bills are slashed.

Staying in a cold place does not mean that you will rake up whopping power bills. Invest in active solar hydronic systems to retain the heat generated and you will save loads in terms of electricity usage.

One way of going green is to go in for solar power generation.

Man Made Disasters

Man-made disaster or man-made hazard is a menace evolving from a human-made system or process. The juncture of man-made disaster is unforeseeable and as a result it poses a challenging threat which should be dealt with proper surveillance and retroaction. It can be broadly categorized into Sociological disaster and Technological disaster.

Arson, civil disorder, war and terrorism are examples of sociological disorders made by human kind. Among them Terrorism is the most popular in modern times. The tactics and strategies used in terrorism have changed drastically with the advent of modern technology and science. Terrorism has been an effective weapon for the weaker party in a collision or disagreement. It is a constant threat to the human world especially after the worst cataclysm of its kind struck the WTC on September 11 2001.

Technological disasters are mainly caused by fire, power outage, industrial hazards, radiation contamination and structural collapse. Forest or mine fire can be started by lightning but also by man-made mistake or arson. The Great Chicago fire and the Peshtigo Fire of 1871 are the biggest city-related fires that ruined the cities and caused mass destruction. Power outage like the New York City Black out 0f 1977 has been a great example of man-made disaster that lead to severe urbane anarchy.

According to the green police, bioterrorism is one of the popular terms in the list of man-made disasters of recent times. It is the calculated deliverance of bacteria, viruses or germs to cause ailment or death in people and other living organisms.

As human beings we should be more responsible and should try to bring down man-made hazards by disaster mitigation and following safety standards and regulations.

Green Gifts

We are often at a loss while selecting a gift for someone. Why not choose a unique gift this time around so that the recipient treasures it for the rest of his or her life. Green gifts are slowly picking up momentum these days when everyone wants to chip in with their contribution to making the Earth a cleaner and greener place to live in. If you want to be in the same league that try presenting some of these green gifts to your loved ones. Bamboo is one of those products which is been increasingly used these days for creating different artifacts and even fabrics. So you choose a show piece or a piece of furniture made of bamboo or even a dress made of fabrics derived out of bamboo pulp as a gift.

The green police suggest that a great green gift for a fitness enthusiast would be yoga mats or clothes made of eco-friendly material such as jute. Materials like organic cotton, hemp and harvested wood are used for making even skateboards and snowboards. You can also go for a cycle or a bike that is an environmental friendly vehicle. Gadget freaks need not be disappointed when it comes to green gifts. Leading manufactures have come up with devices that make use of minimal energy. So go ahead and select one for your loved ones!

Environmentalists

Individuals who believe and advocate environmentalism are referred to as environmentalists. Environmentalism deals with the various factors that have an adverse impact on environment.

Given the way the environment is getting affected in the present day, environmentalists are the people who vouch to stand up for environmentalism, preach, teach and act to stop environmental degradation.

If you love your planet and if you want to protect your environment, the green police encourage you to be an environmentalist too. If all individuals stand up for environment protection and fight against all the issues that harm the environment and life of all living organisms, the planet will be a more beautiful place.

Factory wastes, use of plastic, cutting down of trees, dumping garbage, pollution, genetic modification of vegetables, global warming etc. are all reasons of environmental degradation. The more people become aware of the adverse effects that these have on the environment and the damage it does to us and our future generations, the faster they will act to prevent it. Issues like illiteracy, poverty, lack of hygiene are also taken up by the environmentalists as these problems are often lead to environmental problems.

Environmentalists not only act themselves against these issues and many more, they also spread awareness among the masses.

Environment Protection Act

Environment protection act is designed to enumerate the laws that will help us conserve our resources and protect our environment. The environment today faces a lot of challenges, foremost among them being pollution. Environmental problems are largely correlated and are man made in a large number of cases.

With human beings having no control over the forces of natural and the natural causes of environmental degradation like volcanic eruptions, it is very important to curb the destructive acts of man that induces irreversible harm to the environment. The environment protection act aims to set the rules and protect the environment for the present and also for the future.

The environment protection act not only seta the laws regarding preservation of the natural resources and the environment, it also designs the environmental policies and goals of the nation. It created the special legislative body authorized to deal with environmental issues such as cutting down of forests, industrial pollution, and carbon emission and so on.

It is not only important to have appropriate rules to reduce pollution. It is equally important to assess the environment periodically and make necessary amendments in the act to suit the demand of the present day scenario. This will help make the planet clean.

Eco Friendly Clothing

Environmental concern is all pervasive and this is reflected in all aspects of our lifestyle. It has also caught up with the fabrics that we were and eco friendly clothing is in vogue. The textile industry is keen on developing fabrics from sustainable resources and eco friendly clothes have started to make their mark in the apparel industry. It is not too far from now that it would be an integral part of our regular wardrobe.

Also termed as recycled clothing or organic clothing, this is a nice way to be a part of the environmental movement and at the same time is in tune with the fashion of the times. Some of the fabrics that are used for making eco friendly clothing include recycled fleece, bamboo fabric and organic cotton.

Using recycled fleece ensures that less number of clothes is discarded; it creates a lot less soil, water and air contamination and also reduces dependency on oil. Bamboo fabric is made up of bamboo pulp. It requires minimal amount of water for dying and no chlorine is used for bleaching purposes. In comparison to the regular variety of cotton, organic cotton is much less harmful to the environment as there is no usage of insecticides and pesticides for its growth. Go for the eco friendly clothing made of these materials and be an active participant in the environmental movement.

Clean Energy Technology

Clean and green are the new catchwords in the environmental scientist’s lexicon and s/he is driven by these to develop cleaner and thus more eco-friendly forms of energy. Clean energy technology refers to the development and usage of renewable sources of energy, like sunlight, the rains, wind, ocean waves and tides. These are the more conventional modes of renewable energies. Currently research is on to tap the potential of newer forms of renewable or alternative energies like biomass, geothermal, biofuels, and small hydro.

According to the green police, years of industrialization and rampant use of renewable forms of energy like coal, oil, and natural gas has had pollution levels rising all over the world. The incessant burning of fossil fuels releases toxic gases into the atmosphere, resulting in global warming. This is turn leads to drastic climate changes. Constant use has also meant that the natural reserves of fuel are nearing exhaustion, as evident from the skyrocketing prices of petroleum.

Clean energy technology thus aims to shift to the use of energy forms that do not contribute to pollution, nor deplete the already dwindling natural reserves. Researchers are looking into more affordable means of providing alternative energies and thus extend the scope of clean energy technology to domestic, industrial, and commercial consumers.

Top Ten Endangered Animals

A Top Ten list, whether of action flicks of all times or fashion faux pass committed or the PC games released in a year, is always eagerly awaited with bated breath, greeted with skepticism, and finally accepted with a pinch of salt. The Top 10 endangered animals list is however, always met with stunned disbelief followed by an overwhelming sense of grief. The green police strongly believe that each inclusion in the list is a sad reminder of the rapidity with which we are losing the animal species of the world.

Recently the World Wide Fund (WWF) came out with their Top 10 endangered animals list. The list includes the animal species that are most threatened by extinction. Heading the list is the majestic tiger, rapidly dwindling in numbers in their once-strongholds of Sunderbans in India and Bangladesh. Research shows that these big cats have decreased by 40 percent in the last decade. The polar bear, the earliest and probably one of the hardest hit by climatic changes brought on by rampant global warming, continues to feature in the list and so do the Pacific walrus and the Magellanic penguin.

The leatherback turtle is a surprise in the Top 10 endangered animals list. This species of marine animals have been on this earth for more than a hundred million years but these tough customers too, are now facing the threat of extinction. A penchant for sushi food among the gourmet food lovers has spelled doom for the Atlantic bluefin tuna. It can only be hoped that its inclusion in WWF’s Top 10 endangered animals list will raise awareness among its voracious consumers.

At present, there are only 720 mountain gorillas in the wild and less than 60 Javan rhinos in the world. Rampant killing by humans and destruction of their habitats have not spared these gigantic but helpless beasts. They feature in WWF’s Top 10 endangered animals list along with the delicate Monarch butterflies and the reclusive giant pandas, the latter being an abiding symbol of wildlife conservation.

WWF’s Top 10 endangered animals list is one Top Ten list that merits urgent attention and rapid action.

Rainforest Endangered Animals

The rain forest biomes are the home to almost 50%-75% animal and plant species of the entire world. Because of the wide scale depletion of these green resources the list of the
Rainforest endangered animals are increasing at an alarming rate.
There are several reptiles and insects that are getting endangered in the rainforest.

The Daintree region accounts for many Rainforest endangered animals like Bennett’s Tree Kangaroo, Southern Cassowary, etc. The green police have determined that rainforests of Indonesia have seen a large scale endangerment of Orangutans. Some non-profit rescue Australian organizations of the rainforest animals had began working in 1998. These organizations have helped to recover the habitat of many of these animals over the years. The rate of Rainforest endangered animals is also high in Sri Lanka, Ecuador, Brazil, Sumatra and India.

Other Rainforest endangered animals that are listed by the IUCN Red List of the Threatened Species are Jaguar, Harpy eagle, Golden Lion Tamarind monkey, Chimpanzee, Toucan, Gray mouse, Manatee, Gorilla and some others. The areas covering these animals are mostly in Mexico, Amazon basin, Madagascar, Central Africa, Caribbean and parts of South America. This list was composed in 1963 when almost 15,500 species and sub-species were already under the threat. The red-eyed frog is a rare species and is already listed under the critically endangered category.

Green Buildings

Green buildings is actually a concept developed for building homes and buildings in an eco-friendly manner making use of things that in no way cause the environment any harm. The eco-friendly houses come with water efficiency, energy efficiency and material efficiency. Apart from doing good to the environment, green buildings are a great way to reduce expenses and have things that are high on durability and utility at home.

However, it has been proved that a majority number of people opt for the design of green buildings when building homes owing to the fact that it is an extremely healthy option. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says that the pollution inside the house can be 3-70 times of the pollution that is outdoors in the major cities.

According to the green police, indoors can be kept pollution free with the use of bamboo flooring which is sustainable and durable at a par with hardwood; recycled glass tops look fashionable and at the same time are eco-friendly, water heaters that come without tanks, so that water is heated on demand and energy is saved; use of energy efficient light fixtures and appliances; use of eco-friendly furniture that is recyclable and sustainable; use of renewable energy sources like solar power; and low flow shower heads that help save water.

Green buildings are a boon for the environment and for the health of all who live in it.

Environmental Movement

The environmental movement is actually a diverse social, political and scientific movement for addressing the issues of the environment. Note that the environmental movement is represented by very small as well as very large organizations.

It is a drawback that the environmental movement is not always united its goals for the only reason that it comes with a large membership, speculative nature occasionally and strong beliefs that keep varying. An environmental movement may be led by politicians, extremists, environmentalists, religious devotees, professionals and the private citizens.

The green police believe that the environmental movement or the green movement should begin at home; every human being is responsible for the conservation of energy at home, for reducing the waste of water as much as possible, minimizing the usage of plastic bags as much as possible, growing more trees and reducing the number of trees that are felled, and several other environment friendly activities. Killing of animals should stop for saving the creatures from extinction and for maintaining the ecological balance of Earth.

With global warming becoming a threat to the existence of humans, animals, and all the inhabitants of Mother Earth, it is high time that human beings start being involved in environmental activities striving towards making the Earth a better, cleaner and greener place to live in.

Endangered Wild Animals

Today more than 500 of the spectacular species of animals have become extinct due to the humans and what is even worse is that most of this took place in this century itself. Apart from these 500 species of animals there are about 5,000 endangered wild animals in the world today. It is believed that at least one species of the wild animals or plants dies out each year. Their numbers have been steadily rising; some of these get added to the list of endangered wild animals without most of us even having knowledge of these facts.

The green police proclaim that the most important reasons behind the declining number of the wild animals is shrinking habitats, due to human encroachment, deforestation, and the impacts of climate change on their habitat as well as on what they feed on.

The wild animals are of great importance and value to the human beings and if adequate measures are not taken to safeguard their interests and to check the rapid decline in their numbers in the wild, it would not be long before we lose most or all of these beautiful creatures.

The first step towards saving the endangered wild species is to learn about these animals. Some of the animals that require our immediate help are the loggerhead turtle, the tiger, the greater horseshoe bat, macaque, empire penguins, elephants, the great apes, and the rhinos.

Endangered Animal Species

Endangered animal species are some of the earth’s most spectacular living beings. With the passing of each day the numbers of endangered animal species continue to increase across the globe, so much so that many of these endangered animal species are on the verge of extinction. From the elephants in Asia and Africa, the great apes of Africa, to the tigers and the rhinos also face serious danger from being extinct.

The greatest threat to these endangered animal species is the destruction of their natural habitat by the human beings. Many countries have now established laws for the conservation of these endangered animal species and adopted conservation methods for the protection of these species as well as their natural habitats. However despite their efforts there are only about 4000 tigers that remain in the wild the world over and the population of the tigers continues to decrease as these majestic big cats continue to be poached illegally for their skin, teeth and other body parts. So is the case of the other endangered species. According to the green police, the great apes were once found in Asia as well as Africa and had a mighty population. But today its numbers has reduced to an alarmingly low number so much so that these gentle giants are almost at the brink of extinction.

Animals That Are Endangered

Animals that are endangered today can be extinct animals tomorrow, so it is up to the human beings to help save the animals and stop them from being extinct. Our future generations need to know the value as well as the presence of the animals that we today know as rare or on the verge of extinction and the ecological balance also have to be maintained, there fore animals are an important requirement of Earth.

Animals that are endangered are usually very few in numbers are gradually becoming fewer due to human activities like poaching, over exploitation of animals such as whaling and killing for the animal body parts, as well as destruction of vast stretches of forest land that is the habitat of several animals. Diseases also are responsible for certain animals being on the verge of extinction. Global warming is another menace that threatens the existence of both animals and humans.

According to the green police, animals that are endangered include the Asian orangutan, Atlantic salmon, elephants, polar bears, koalas, marine turtles, rhinoceros, giant panda, Siberian tiger, gazelle, komodo dragon, leopard, tapir and several other animals.

The US Fish & Wildlife Service, Division of Law Enforcement has come with several laws that are for the protection of the endangered species of animals.