EU Will Reach 2020 Carbon Emissions Targets Nearly a Decade Early

On January 25, 2012 in Footprint

Initially the European Union (EU) was slated to reduce its CO2 emissions by 20 percent in 2020. That initial estimate was given in the 90s under the Kyoto Protocol, and since, the EU has surprised the world by achieving over half their goal in a decade. Since the 1900s, the EU has reduced its emissions by some 17 percent, and is slated to exceed expectations by 2020 – promptly the union to see if it can’t do more.

While the creation of smart homes with Vivint and choosing to bike to work instead of drive have been great green efforts on the part of individuals, the EU can give accolade predominately to the union’s leading industries for actively pursuing initiatives that lowered their emissions. The EU had dramatically improved since the 90s, and will only continue to do so if given the right resources. Continue Reading →

Empower the World’s Poorest Children Through Education!

On January 7, 2012 in Kids and Dogs, News, Products

Back in 2005, The New York Times called it “The laptop that will save the world”. In early 2012, this durable, new super-low cost tablet, the XO-3, will debut with a promised price-point of $75 for the nonprofit called One Laptop Per Child.

“A child can do anything to this software and never break it,” explains Walter Bender, a co-founder of OLPC and a former director of the MIT Media Lab that created Sugar, the XO’s user interface. “Why? When you make mistakes you’re learning. When you don’t, you’re being incremental. Yet if penalty is high for making mistakes, you stop taking risks, you stop learning. We try to give kids a safe place to do trial and error, to go out there and do it in a way they can’t screw up.” Continue Reading →

Stickers Turn Cardboard Trash Into Playtime Treasure

On January 5, 2012 in Kids and Dogs

Box Play for Kids’ range of stickers help children creatively convert carboard packaging into a variety of objects and animals ready for play.

Even in today’s world where children are being treated to their own range of tablet computers, it’s still the case that many are quite content to while away their hours playing with simple cardboard boxes. With that in mind, Arizona-based Box Play for Kids now offer a range of whimsical stickers designed to jump-start kids’ imagination when playing with cardboard. Continue Reading →

Hair Loss and Hormones – It’s Not Just a Guy Thing

On January 3, 2012 in News

As a woman, no other physical feature better accentuates your femininity than nice hair. So what has a girl to do when she starts losing it? Many are unaware the way in which prevalent hair loss in women has become. Experts estimate that nearly 20 million women in the U.S. are suffering from hair loss, 40% of which are under the age of 40. The good news is you can not only put an end to premature balding and thinning of the hair but also restore hair in some of those “patchy” regions.

Men aren’t the sole ones who have to worry about losing their precious locks. Even though it may be more common among men, hair thinning in women isn’t as rare as you may think. It’s estimated that hair loss affects 1 in 5 women. The most common types of hair loss are telogen effluvium and alopecia areata. Although it’s more common than alopecia areata, telogen effluvium is less severe. This occurs when the hair follicles stop growing and lie dormant and fall out within two to three months. Being that telogen effluvium is oftentimes caused by stress, trauma or medications, hair growth is typically restored within 6 to 9 months. On the flip side, alopecia areata occurs when white blood cells attack hair follicles, causing the hair to thin and fall out, usually in patches. This sort of hair loss may require treatment as hair may not grow back on its own. Continue Reading →

Green Renovating with Eco-Friendly Paint

On January 3, 2012 in Products

Trying to find a way to make your house beautiful? There are numerous ways to update an old home, but whether you’re tearing down walls or just adding a bit color, one thing you’ll definitely should use is paint.

Virtually countless paint choices fill the shelves of your local hardware store, so deciding on a healthy, dependable, and eco friendly paint can take a little bit of time, unless . . . you are equipped with the knowledge of a few key qualities that set eco paints apart from the rest. Before we dip our brushes into that bucket, let’s look at some reasons why run-of-the-mill paint might be hazardous to our health and to the environment. Continue Reading →

Recycled-Content Picture Frames

On January 2, 2012 in Products

The work of collecting, sorting, and processing recycled materials only benefits the environment if those materials are manufactured into new products. But that won’t happen unless there’s a market for those new goods. Unfortunately, it’s not always easy to find a recycled “alternative” for the item you need right now! We hope the following information helps you to “complete the loop” and purchase products with recycled content whenever possible.

Recycling on the one hand is processing used materials (waste) into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling) by reducing the need for “conventional” waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions as compared to virgin production. Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction and is the third component of the “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” waste hierarchy. Continue Reading →

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