http://www.elrst.com Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:13:05 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en According to a press release from the WWF a conservation program reached the mark of one million hectares of forests in China being certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). This is done to fight the important local illegal logging and improve the management of forests as they represent a strong ... http://www.elrst.com/2009/01/09/certified-chinese-forest-reaches-million-hectares/ The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)  has been advocating for a global green New Deal to restart our economies and I reported that they are not the only ones to think the same. It seems that there is at least one country so far that listened to their voices and started ... http://www.elrst.com/2009/01/08/a-38-billion-usd-green-new-deal-for-south-korea/ This is not exactly hot news as I already wrote more than a year ago about how the United Nations believe this to be true, but a new study brings further credence to this theory. Climate change and its many consequences such as decreasing snow amounts, rising sea levels and millions ... http://www.elrst.com/2009/01/06/toward-a-new-world-war-because-of-climate-change-part-ii/ I never have been a fan of coal as it is by very far the most carbon dioxide emitting energy solution. It is also the most polluting as what occurred on December 22nd  in Tennessee  shows. Indeed 48 times in volume of what was spilled by the Exxon Valdez was accidentally ... http://www.elrst.com/2009/01/05/a-massive-coal-sludge-accident-in-tennessee/ On December 24th, the famous Earthrise photo turned 40 years old. Andrew Revkin, New York Times' journalist and blogger at Dot Earth published that day a most interesting note on this event. Since I use this photo for this very blog I left a comment there. The day after I had ... http://www.elrst.com/2009/01/04/a-video-of-aurora-borealis-seen-from-space/ Hello dear readers and subscribers. For my first post of 2009 I would like to take the opportunity to wish you a happy and sustainable year. This is also the occasion to introduce you to the new design of this blog. The purpose of this redesign is to bring a more ... http://www.elrst.com/2009/01/02/new-year-new-design/ Since I don’t have that much time to blog, I restrain myself to publishing here around 25 articles per month. However, many more great news are worth reading and blogging about. My goal being to provide you with the latest headlines and best researches on sustainable development, climate change and the ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/31/worth-an-article-my-december-2008-tweets/ Even if I learned more than two years ago about the theory on passive housing for my Master's Thesis at the Audencia Nantes Management School, the reality is little known to me. Even if I knew such houses don't need any heater it seemed too vague a notion. But an interesting ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/30/why-passive-houses-need-to-become-widespread/ This year I avoided the emission of more than a tonne of carbon dioxide - more likely 1,500 kilograms - by simply taking the train on various occasions like business or leisure trips. Fast trains in France -  like the TGV on the left - are powered by electricity, which is ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/29/i-avoided-a-tonne-of-co2-emissions-this-year/ Like every last Sunday of each month, this is time for me to present you my selection of the best pictures of the NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD) Like each month, this one was packed with beautiful images and it was very difficult to select just ten. I am ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/28/great-astrophotographies-december-2008/ I described Barack Obama's election as a new hope for a planet in peril. This couldn't be more true as the President-elect chose real scientists to run the environment and energies agencies. This is a stark difference with President Bush's policies and environmental record. But a fact was little noticed: Dr. ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/26/obamas-environment-dream-team-steven-chu/ It's Christmas eve and you are perhaps looking for a last minute gift. So, it is time for me to introduce you to a little jewel that caught my attention for the past two weeks. World of Goo is a video game for the Nintendo Wii, PC and Mac that will ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/24/world-of-goo-a-brilliant-video-game/ According to a recent news by the WWF, the region of the Greater Mekong (left)  is a biological treasure trove, as it enabled to discover more than a thousand new species in only ten years. Nonetheless, all these species are threatened by economic growth and the lack of environmental protection in ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/23/the-greater-mekong-is-a-biodiversity-treasure/ According to recent studies global coal reserves may be much smaller than previously thought. Indeed, estimates are now of 662 billion tons instead of 850 billion tons. That's 23 percent smaller. So, what occurred with estimates of remaining oil is also true here : countries overestimated their coal reserves and peak ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/22/overestimated-global-coal-reserves/ 2009 is due to be in many countries a recession year. This makes it the perfect occasion to embrace the tenets of sustainable development and consume less energy, water and so on. This will save you money,  preserve our environment and make you live a fitter life. A bright prospect called ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/19/towards-sustainability-a-series-of-lifestyle-tips/ One of the most worrying consequences of climate change is the decreasing amounts of snow. At the end of winters, snow melts and  thus brings water to billions people during the drier seasons. Thus the snow of the Himalayas brings water to nearly 1.5 billion people, a quarter of Mankind. As ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/18/decreasing-amounts-of-snow-in-the-himalayas/ The French national utility Electricité de France - EDF -  just bought half of nuclear activities of US based utility Constellation for 4.5 billion US Dollars (3.3 billion euros). This occurs only a few months after the acquisition of British Energy by EDF, which is willing to become a major global ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/18/edf-buys-half-of-constellation-nuclear-activities/ By browsing through the RSS feed of the Oil Drum I came across an interesting article on how increasing gas prices and lowering income tax in the meantime could bring huge benefits. This is not new to me as I have already discussed this very topic in my review of Le ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/16/higher-gas-prices-and-lower-income-tax/ The Poznan conference on climate change ended on Saturday. Due to prepare the Copenhagen meeting - which will bring to light the successor of the Kyoto Protocol - it is a major disappointment. Poor countries are the least satisfied with the results of the talks as developed nations are stepping back ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/15/why-the-poznan-conference-is-a-disappointment/ Let's face it, if you live in a large urban area with a decent public transportation system, you don't really need that much to own a car. Indeed, renting one when you need one would satisfy you. This is why car sharing systems are beginning to appear all around the world ... http://www.elrst.com/2008/12/15/less-cars-in-towns-with-car-sharing-systems/