I think the hit counter is spoilt.

It's impossible that no one is reading this.

Even Rainwater Harvesting is Possible in Desserts

It's pretty hard to imagine that somewhere in the driest part of India, rainwater harvesting is possible. And we're not talking about a few hundred gallons of water per harvest, but 3 million gallons of water per harvest. That's the kind of luxury the ancient Indians created in the harshest part of the planet. And this ingenious architecture was conceived 400 years ago and is still used until today.

It's not a question of where is the best place to harvest rainwater, but rather, how to survive when Mother Nature tests your survival skills.

In this inspiring and fascinating presentation by Anupam Mishra, you'll begin to understand that the modern man needs to learn more from his past in order to move forward. Every method used to produce these efficient megastructures to harvest rainwater is truly innovative and resourceful. Something only an astute engineer would think of. Only when this was 400 years ago, these men were not engineers nor were they architects, but merely villagemen. Every build was well-thought out in terms of functionality and practicality. Even the aesthetics was well-crafted.

Watch the video and see for yourself, the legacy of an architecture that surpassed any modern feat in rainwater harvesting. This is proof that a greener world is absolutely possible if we were to learn from our ancestors and their way of sustainable living.

Can CDs be recycled?

Both CDs and DVDs—which are primarily composed of polycarbonate, a type of plastic—can be recycled or reused. So can the jewel cases, which are made from a hard plastic called polystrene.

*Source: Green Consumer - National Wildlife Federation

Chris Jordan's stark truth about human and birds.

From Chris Jordan's website:

Midway - Message from the Gyre

These photographs of albatross chicks were made just a few weeks ago on Midway Atoll, a tiny stretch of sand and coral near the middle of the North Pacific. The nesting babies are fed bellies-full of plastic by their parents, who soar out over the vast polluted ocean collecting what looks to them like food to bring back to their young. On this diet of human trash, every year tens of thousands of albatross chicks die on Midway from starvation, toxicity, and choking. To document this phenomenon as faithfully as possible, not a single piece of plastic in any of these photographs was moved, placed, manipulated, arranged, or altered in any way. These images depict the actual stomach contents of baby birds in one of the world's most remote marine sanctuaries, more than 2000 miles from the nearest continent. ~cj, October 2009

--- end of message ---

We've seen a lot of gruesome photos unveiling new ways (every day) on how our inconsiderate thinking and actions have resulted to killings (in every way). Every day is a new story, every day comes with a new discovery. And we applaud individuals like Chris Jordan. We need 'researchers' such as them to reveal 'hidden' consequences such as these that we never thought of at all during point of action. Perhaps then, we learn to 'see' further than just momentarily gratifying our actions.

Change the way we look at sustainability in automotive business.

The influx of Hybrids and EVs becomes almost every manufacturer's intend in lowering CO2 emission at consumer level. I think it's high time they should look at the total CO2 emission right from the beginning, starting from manufacturing. That should speak more volume about the brand.

Lexus HS 250h claims that 30% of the combined interior and luggage area is made of Ecological Plastics (TM), which is created, in part, using plant-based materials sourced from the fibers of the kenaf plant and oils from castor seeds. Subsequently reducing the reliance on petroleum-based materials which helps to lower CO2 impact of manufacturing.

Carbon reduction should be considered at three different stages of the product-consumer cycle which is at point of manufacturing, at point of usage and at point of disposal. Therefore, to truly claim sustainability, automakers need to consider a holistic approach to the manufacturing process (because this cause the greatest impact on the environment). Putting out products which are kind to the environment will someday be a 'given' because as I mention before, social conscious consumers will 'vote' with their money. Last but not least, manufacturers should not stop there. They should also plan strategies to educate their customers on the disposal of their products. Now that's closing the loop.

Food Inc - Hungry for change?

Watched Food Inc. An independent documentary on the American food industry ala Michael Moore with better art direction. The big States seems to be always getting the spotlight for their lead role – the tyrant of all sorts when it comes to consumer scandals (whether or not it’s within their shores). Independent filmmaker Robert Kenner strips away America’s packaging without shame to expose some of the most hideous acts and pure selfish motivations of the country in the name of capitalist growth. It may seem insignificant now, but not in the near future.

Not too long ago, we completed the research on ‘The Green Chronicles’ and have been actively pursuing and propagating sustainability by encouraging people to make the right decisions. Not by going against the system but by actually utilizing the same system these capitalist monsters have been using against gullible human and nature, called consumerism. Yes, you can vote every single day for what you believe in and what is right for your family, community, society, country and ultimately the world by spending your dollar wisely, choosing only manufacturers and service providers that put social business back into commerce. Corporations have always been consumer-centric anyway, but it’s increasingly important for us to acknowledge the importance of being crowd-centric instead. Considering communities as a whole before profit, even before the consumer, I dare say... Simply because being consumer-centric only means profit generation. The problem starts when they get all fuzzied vision about it and forget that they too are living in a society spiraling downwards in this era of environmental doom.

Well, vote responsibly with your money and support local industry (I speak for Malaysia – please understand that a lot of the ‘nice imageries of delicious foods and made-up vitamins’ come from packaging design and really smart brand marketing – take it from someone who is from the advertising industry aight’?), so yea… if the quality isn’t too bad then why not vote for local produce the next time you purchase something? Find out more about the slow food movement and collaborate with your local community and perhaps, start food appreciation at home instead of external food establishments.

I’ll be interested to find answers to these questions in Malaysia. Please share if you have them.

1) What are the laws which are protecting consumers and which ones are protecting the food industry and what is the balance?

2) What are we importing and exporting and why are we exporting better goods offshore instead of providing it to local consumers?

3) What agricultural practices are we implementing that take a holistic approach from ensuring farmer’s wellbeing up to consumer consumption education? For example, the UTZ Certified coffee beans in New Zealand that strongly practice sustainability in their coffee, tea and cocoa production supporting local communities.

4) Exactly how sustainable are we? In all our food productions; fisheries, agriculture, etc? And how many graduates are we churning out per year who do not just take over their seniors but to one day, lead and innovate these important but most overlooked industries?

On a separate note, read about this new spot in Manhattan called Rouge Tomato. It’s another one of those posh places where dining is fine art I supposed. But what’s commendable is, it too, is riding the wave of social-consciousness that’s sweeping across America hence providing an alternative to high-end customers. To wine and dine at their place, simply because RT belives in Grass-Fed New York Strip Steak (mind you, not CORN-fed. If you watch the movie, you’ll understand what I mean). Here's a peak:

Switch Off

This exercise ran a week before the Polystyrene exercise. We've asked everyone in Dentsu Utama to turn off their computer main switches and other switches (i.e. printer and copier) before leaving the office. We've found out that when the main switches are not turned off, we're draining up to 5 watts of unused energy per hour, per switch. Imagine if you multiply that by the number of non-working hours in a year?!

So we've imposed a fine of RM2 if anyone's caught not turning off their main switches. We've seen 80% improvement in the past one month. Though repeat offenders' attitudes are hard to change, but their money is good enough to cover our other 'green' expenses for the office :) At first we have 4 repeat offenders, a week later, it was down to 2. I'm really happy with the progress :)