MyEnviroMind

As the year of 2016 closes up tonight, I imagine our superstitions will breath a sigh of relief. It's been 'eventful' - I think that's a safe way to put it. We've been filled with highs and slummed through the lows - but it's not all over yet... I won't dwell on what's not been so great, what's been done has been done and now is the time to learn from the problems we've gone through and build on all the positives we've found. Just look at what Greenpeace has achieved in bringing us a safer and fairer world. We donb't hear enough of news like this. https://secure.greenpeace.org.uk/page/content/change-your-mind-about-2016?source=em&subsource=8E692&utm_medium=em&utm_source=gpeace&utm_campaign=8E692 We ridicule the roller-coaster of the mad house that was 2016 - yet there were so many opportunities for us to be happy. To celebrate all the talent, bravery and admirable traits that is in everyone. This year we saw buck...

Merry Christmas to you! Happy Holidays! http://wardgossip.blogspot.co.uk/2011_12_01_archive.html After the roller coaster of 2016, the time has finally come to kick back, hug a bit, laugh a lot and spread the joy as you celebrate a well deserved holiday this Christmas. It has been a somewhat interesting 12 months and I, for one, can't wait to forget about the uncertainties, forget about work, stress and just relax and have fun tomorrow. Except for the fear of a game of charades is getting close... We'll have music, some gifts and a heck of a lot of food. Something we shouldn't take for granted. According to 'Love Food Hate Waste,' the UK wastes around 15 million tonnes of food every year with about 7 million tonnes of food and drink coming from our homes every year.  Yes, there's waste in the shops. Yes manufactures throw good foodstuffs in the bin but, most of it comes from us. The website also says that the average household chucks £60 w...

“This is a concern for over a billion human lives,” the Dalai Lama said in 2015. The spiritual leader called for people globally to listen and act upon such an immoral, shameful and dismissive topic. No, this time it luckily wasn't terrorism. About 7,600 square kilometers of glacier in the Tibetan Plateau (about 18% of the total) has disappeared since the 1950s. The gleaming "roof of the world" retreats at an average of 247 square kilometers annually. My calculations tell me that this means it will all be gone in less than 200 years, with the primary cause still being climate change. However, this is assuming temperatures will stay as they are now and we all know that temperatures are destined to reach 5'C above pre-industrial levels by the end of this century and we are only beginning to see a 1.5'C increase this year. The Dalai Lama and other Tibetan leaders said two-thirds of the glaciers in their country may disappear by 2050 because of climate change. ...

Can you smell that? Air pollution from cars https://www.scientificamerican.com/ar ticle/nitrogen-dioxide-no2-regulation-epa/ In 2013, 11,940 premature deaths were caused by NO 2 pollution - according to a recent report provided by the European Environment Agency. An estimated 9,400 of these occur in London alone. To put this into perspective, the UK has been told it has the 2nd highest deaths from this pollution within Europe, behind Italy. Of course, this is below the 21,000 estimated annual deaths in the US from air pollution, as may be found similarly in other countries around the world, but we must remember this statistic takes  all air pollution into account (CO & particulates etc.) and, no matter how much our population grows and we become more crowded, we still live on an island and the US population is almost greater than ours 5 fold. A great proportion of these emissions originate from the dirty fuel in cars we lavish and can be linked to lung problems. ...

One month until Christmas! Now, I'm not normally someone to promote the celebration of such a desired event before the appropriate time, however today is also Black Friday and I feel the two go hand-in-hand as some of the most momentous days of the year. Let's not forget the vital question though - does Santa think you've been good this year? This post will be published in the evening, but no doubt that most of the sales today will be hectically scrambled for in the last few hours of today; when the population of Britain all rush from work to the comforts of their home and streets of the cities, to exploit the deals on offer. http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/black-friday-2015-best-beauty-deals-a6742491.html In the hustle & bustle of it all, it's easy to get swept into the moment and feel hurried and pressured by the array of deals into purchasing items that later on you may regret. Wait a moment. Let's think about what you are doing. ...

In 2006, that weekend welcoming show on BBC  Saturday Kitchen Live brought on a new segment - The Omelette Challenge. The young James Martin counted down "3, 2, 1,"... and just after that second, the egg-straneous race had begun. https://i.ytimg.com/vi/pqqHhLS8teM/maxresdefault.jpg Alain Roux, Marcus Wareing & Nathan Outlaw take part in  The Omelette Challenge Since then, hundreds of chefs have clattered pans, and splattered food to the egg-streme - in a way almost as dire as my puns. In the challenge, chefs compete to cook a 3 egg omelette in the fastest time possible. It's sad to see that on a cooking show with such wonderful dishes, humble foodstuffs can be abused so radically, with the majority of these egg 'dishes' becoming inedible and presumably discarded. Abuse? Yes, abuse of our privilege in this developed and cosy nest of a home we live in. This is a cooking show I take it?  So chefs can showcase their talent, ideas and passion for co...

98 years after WWI deceased, we remember those who courageously staggered, galloped and fell upon the desolate land. Today is Armistice Day. http://www.vivaboo.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/poppy-poppies-remembrance-veterns-day-November-11-3.jpg This is the day we think of those who have undoubtedly done so much and bravely done so with the sole purpose of protecting our futures. What heroes we have had amongst us. And hence, we take their message, their motive, their impulse into our daily lives by promoting peace and justice for the world. It was their only wish. And so people; we now come to a crossroads. Perhaps we have already turned to the right, but, there are many more to come. We must decided what routes are safest and which may have too many bumps and potholes ahead. (Excuse the metaphor.) President Donald Trump is perhaps now the most influential persona in global governance. And yes, his views are strong and somewhat provocative to many, many societies,...