Posts Tagged ‘sharing’
Peter Harper: ‘Zero Carbon Britain 2030? in Sydney
Posted in Events by Kate Archdeacon on March 30th, 2011
Zero Carbon by 2030 – Britain’s dream or reality?
Technology says we can. Science says we must. Is it time to say we will?
SPEAKER: Peter Harper, Centre for Alternative Technology (UK), Coordinator Zero Carbon Britain
Two public lectures by UK scientist Peter Harper, from the Centre of Alternative Technology (CAT), in Wales on ZeroCarbonBritain 2030 – a plan offering a positive realistic, policy framework to eliminate emissions from fossil fuels within 20 years. Zero Carbon Britain(ZCB) brought together leading UK’s thinkers, including policy makers, scientists, academics, industry and NGOs to provide political, economic and technological solutions to the urgent challenges raised by climate science.
Governments and businesses seem paralysed and unable to plan for a rapid transition to a low-carbon economy. ZCB shows what can be done by harnessing the voluntary contribution from experts working outside their institutions. The ZCB report,released in June 2010, provides a fully integrated vision of how Britain can respond to the challenges of climate change, resource depletion and global inequity, with the potential for a low-carbon future to enrich society as a whole.
During lectures in Melbourne and Sydney, Peter will explore how we can ‘Power Down’ demand in the built environment, transport, land use and institute behavioural change, then ‘Power Up’ the energy system with renewables. He’ll outline the key thinking behind the report, including why a low carbon economy is an investment in the future, and look at the ways sustainable community based and multi-lateral initiatives will concurrently inform a global energy infrastructure.
Sydney, Tuesday 19 April, 6.30-8pm, Vestibule, Sydney Town Hall
Please register your attendance by Friday 15 April to amrit.gill@britishcouncil.org.au
Presented by the British Council, VEIL (Victorian Eco-Innovation Lab), Banksia Environmental Foundation, Key Message and the City of Sydney.
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Not Far From The Tree: Urban Orchard Network
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on March 9th, 2011
© Not Far From The Tree
Not Far From The Tree puts Toronto’s fruit to good use by picking and sharing the bounty.
When a homeowner can’t keep up with the abundant harvest produced by their tree, they let us know and we mobilize our volunteers to pick the bounty. The harvest is split three ways: 1/3 is offered to the tree owner, 1/3 is shared among the volunteers, and 1/3 is delivered by bicycle to be donated to food banks, shelters, and community kitchens in the neighbourhood so that we’re putting this existing source of fresh fruit to good use. It’s a win-win-win situation! This simple act has profound impact. With an incredible crew of volunteers, we’re making good use of healthy food, addressing climate change with hands-on community action, and building community by sharing the urban abundance.
With our first full season in 2008, Not Far From The Tree has grown quickly:
- We transport all of our equipment and fruit by bicycle, keeping our carbon footprint low.
- We were an official part of Nuit Blanche with our all-night cider-pressing art installation, City Cider.
- We participated in 40+ fairs, festivals, and community events across the city this year.
- We ran 12 preserving workshops to extend the harvest year-round and share local food skills.
- We harvest maple syrup from city trees, too, to demonstrate a local winter crop from Toronto trees (see Syrup in the City)
- We will be starting a public fruit tree mapping initiative to be launched in 2011.
- We helped Toronto’s first community orchard become established.
Visit the website to find out more about this very active project http://www.notfarfromthetree.org/
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Cargo Bicycle Library: Sharing Sustainable Transport
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on February 22nd, 2011
The Watershed Bike Library contains a fleet of specialist cargo bikes and trailers to allow cyclists to carry things that might otherwise require a car – from shopping, to kids, household items and more. (Bike Sydney has a great article on the statistics for the Bike Library’s first 150 days of operation.)
Check out the fleet:
Gazelle Cabby cargo bike
- A large capacity bike perfect for hauling kids and shopping
- The Cabby tub seats two children with seatbelts and has maximum load of 75kg
Xtracycle Radish cargo bike
- A highly versatile cargo bike
- The Xtracycle has a long wheel base, a large wooden platform behind the seat, and super size panniers
- Not suitable for transporting children
General purpose utility trailer
- Connects to most standard bicycles
- Perfect for carrying shopping and heavier loads
- Not suitable for transporting children
Pacific kiddie trailer
- A child bike trailer equipped with seats and seatbelts to carry one or two children
- Mesh front screen and fold up rain cover
- Maximum load of 36kg
Bikes are borrowed from and returned to:
The Watershed
218 King St, Newtown NSW 2042
Opening hours:
Tuesday to Saturday from 10am – 4pm and Thursdays from 10am – 7pm
Telephone: 9519 6366
The Watershed is a sustainability resource centre in the heart of Newtown. A joint initiative of City of Sydney and Marrickville Councils, it is part of an ongoing commitment to supporting sustainable environments within the urban community. The Watershed is free and open to the public and offers a variety of services such as a library, free workshops, practical ideas for everyday sustainable living, educational and business programs. We hope that a visit to The Watershed will inspire you to take action for a sustainable future.
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Sharing City Space: A Temporary Playstreet
Posted in Models, Movements by Kate Archdeacon on February 10th, 2011
Via Going Solar Transport Newsletter
Photo of Playstreet © Dudleystewart via flickr
78th Street Playstreet, Jackson Heights, New York City:
The idea is simple: 78th Street, between Northern Boulevard and 34th Avenue, is closed to traffic on Sundays in Summer to allow for games, free play, performances, markets, and other activities to take place in the car-free street. 78th Street is right next to Travers Park, our small neighborhood park. With thousands of residents around it, Travers Park is very crowded on weekends, and often there is not enough space for everyone to enjoy the park. The Play Street makes it possible for the park to spill into the street, allowing people to stroll, play, attend events and relax in the space, while reducing crowding in the park.
The Play Street is also a space for the Greenmarket on 34th Avenue to expand, adding more vendors, and making it more comfortable for shoppers. Jackson Heights has one of the highest densities of children per acre of green space and is the city district with the second-to-last amount of green space in the entire city. We need more park space, and the Play Street is a small practical step in our search to expand and improve neighborhood parks.
A coalition of neighborhood groups initiated and developed this project with the support of NYC Department of Transportation. These groups are: JH Green, Friends of Travers Park and The Western Jackson Heights Alliance.
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Each year since the launch in 2008, the Jackson Heights Green Alliance has been able to gain permission for the Playstreet to continue. Looking at their website, it looks like the event is running more often and for longer periods. Check out their website for photos, presentations and the original proposals for council.
http://jhgreen.org/playstreet.html
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Ridekicks: Car-Pooling Game
Posted in Models, Movements by Kate Archdeacon on December 13th, 2010
Source: Springwise
From “Site turns ride-sharing into a social game“:
Ridekicks is a UK-based site that turns carpooling into a social game with rewards for earth-friendly driving.
Ridekicks aims to use fun to help change the way that people use cars. Toward that end, it awards points to users for every shared ride. Users planning a trip can post it on the site as well as promote it on their own social networks, while those hoping for a ride can search for opportunities to share. Drivers who want to charge passengers for the ride can even do so through the site; Ridekicks charges a 5 percent fee per transaction. In any case, every shared mile by either driver or passenger equates to one Ridekick point, allowing both sides of the equation to be rewarded. Points are also earned when those who share a ride put “stickers” on each other’s profiles, as well as when they complete reviews. Points are taken away, however, for those who are reviewed badly. In Foursquare-like fashion, the ultimate goal of the game is to become “The King of the Road,” or the highest-scoring participant; those who earn that title, however, only get to keep it as long as they keep sharing. There’s also the chance to become “The Hometown Hero” — the highest-scoring participant from any given city — or “Captain Planet,” the player who travels the most miles as a passenger. Ridekicks hasn’t yet decided on any reward scheme for accumulated points, but it’s open to suggestions.
Ridekicks website http://www.ridekicks.com/
Article on Springwise http://www.springwise.com/transportation/ridekicks/
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Mexico City Pact: Cities Addressing Climate Change
Posted in Events, Movements by Kate Archdeacon on November 23rd, 2010
Sustainable Cities Net: Posting from the UCLG Congress in Mexico City 18-25 November
Article via ICLEI:
Mayors from around the world have signed an agreement to address climate change at the World Mayors Summit on Climate, hosted by the Government of Mexico City and Marcelo Ebrard, mayor of Mexico City and chair of the World Mayors Council on Climate Change. During the summit, representatives from 135 global cities signed the Mexico City Pact, which establishes a monitoring and verification mechanism for cities to address climate change. The Mexico City Pact will be presented to the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) when it meets later this month in Cancun, Mexico.
“With more than half the world’s population today living in cities for the first time in human history, mayors and urban leaders are on the frontline of the planet’s fight against a changing climate. Today, the cities meeting here are taking action to reduce harmful greenhouse emissions through their commitment to the Mexico City Pact,” said Marcelo Ebrard.
In partnership with United Cities and Local Governments (UCLG), ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability, and the World Mayors Council on Climate Change (WMCCC), the Government of Mexico City organized the summit to provide a forum for the signing of an agreement that commits cities to action and urges national governments to advance a binding global treaty.
“Cities have great capacities to address climate change, even in the absence of a binding global treaty among nations, which is why we are here today. We are demonstrating the leadership of mayors and cities around the world to take action,” said Martha Delgado, Mexico City’s secretary of the environment and ICLEI vice president.
The Mexico City Pact calls for cities to develop and implement climate action plans that promote local laws and initiatives to reduce GHG reductions. To establish and follow up on cities’ commitments, the signers will establish their climate actions in the Carbon Cities Climate Registry (CCCR) at the Bonn Centre for Local Climate Action and Reporting (carbonn).
Visit the website for more information about the pact and the summit, or download the pact (also available in Spanish & French).
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Guide to Sharing: The Mesh Directory
Posted in Movements by Kate Archdeacon on August 19th, 2010
Source: Springwise
Regular Springwise readers are already familiar with transumers and the many ways in which they share and exchange goods without ever having to own them. The Mesh Directory is an online network that attempts to encapsulate that trend, aggregating all the many companies that now “create, share and use social media, wireless networks, and data crunched from every available source to provide people with goods and services at the exact moment they need them, without the burden and expense of owning them outright,” in the site’s own words.
Mesh Directory provides a freely searchable index of some 1,500 companies that are helping to enable the new sharing economy. Designed as a companion site to a forthcoming book on the same topic, the directory allows users to browse alphabetically or by category as well; among the categories included are transportation, fashion, food, real estate, travel, finance and entertainment. Provided for each company on the list are its URL and contact information along with a description of its offerings; there’s also an option for companies not already on the list to request to be added.
Read about it on Springwise.
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Exchange for Change: Ethical Sustainable Fashion
Posted in Events, Models by Kate Archdeacon on June 25th, 2010
Oxfam Australia and CarriageWorks presents Exchange for Change: The festival for a fashionable world without poverty
The latest kicks, those perfect fitting jeans, that jaw-dropping dress. We all have fashion cravings. But often our fashion sense has a flow-on effect that we don’t get to see. What are our clothes made of? Who makes them? Under what conditions? Could we be making better choices – more eco-friendly, people-friendly choices? Oxfam Australia and CarriageWorks are delighted to join forces to present a series of events that examine the workings of the fashion industry. Exchange for Change celebrates the positive steps many have made to address the environmental impacts of clothing production, as well as fair wages and safe working conditions for the people who make our clothes. Above all, the three day event will focus on what we can do in our everyday lives to make a difference.
Stitched together with a lineup of live local music, and wintry treats from the CarriageWorks café and bar, this is an event for anyone ready to evolve their fashion sense. The 3-day event features discussions, a designer showcase, and one of Sydney’s biggest clothing swaps – all for free!
Toy Rental Service for Businesses
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on June 14th, 2010
Source: Springwise
Image: dougitdesign via flickr CC
From “Toy Rental Service Targets Businesses with Waiting Rooms“:
Serving Vancouver, B.C., Lucky Duck Toy Box provides a wide assortment of toys for kids aged newborn through five years old. Parents or grandparents simply choose a subscription plan—ranging from CAD 24 to CAD 69 per month for 3 to 12 toys—and pick out which toys they’d like to start with. Lucky Duck then delivers those within days. A month later, customers login once more to choose their next set; when their delivery date arrives, Lucky Duck swaps the old ones for the new ones. For businesses, Lucky Duck Toy Box offers a like-minded solution to the problem of old, dirty, worn out toys in waiting rooms. Instead, it delivers a fresh assortment of sanitized playthings to keep businesses’ youngest customers safe and entertained. All toys are lead-tested, inspected and cleaned with environmentally friendly products. Weekly and custom delivery plans are also available.
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Growing Communities: Start-Up Programme
Posted in Models by Kate Archdeacon on June 7th, 2010
Source: SustainWeb
Growing Communities 2010 Start-Up Programme
Growing Communities (GC) is a social enterprise run by local people in Hackney, East London. It has been running a community-led box scheme since 1993 and now packs over 900 bags of fruit and vegetables a week, most of which come direct from local, sustainable farms and some of which is grown in their urban agriculture sites dotted around Hackney.
GC wants to help more communities round the UK to set up their own community-led box schemes, as a practical way to change the food system and increase the economic sustainability of food growing projects. There is now a Start-Up Programme with materials, training and web-tools to help groups set up community-led box scheme using the Growing Communties Model.
If you are interested in joining the programme or if you want to register to receive email updates, visit the website.
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