agriculture

From Motown to Growtown
The growing international food crisis, coupled with spiralling energy costs, is without doubt causing much suffering. But there is a silver lining – as the unsustainability of business-as-usual becomes apparent, alternatives are beginning to gain traction in mainstream consciousness. Detroit provides the perfect example of the need for change – once the thriving hub of the US motor industry, the city has seen a massive exodus of its population and major industries, leaving vacant plots e...

Islanders to Plant 20,000 Fruit and Nut Trees for Security
We’ve already celebrated as the Transition Towns movement reached Australia, but it looks like the people of New Zealand are also getting stuck into preparing for a post-petroleum future. The above video comes from Waiheke Island’s Fabulous Fruit Tree initiative, which is aiming to plant 20,000 fruit and ...

It sounds like a common enough story. Freshly minted parent can’t find chemical-free clothing for their new-to-the-world child. What makes this version different from so many of the introductions found on new green apparel websites, is that it happened 32 years ago. Heinz Hess created organic clothing for his son, and in doing so pioneered a corporate ethic, through his firm Hess Natur, that is only now being taken up by the most enlightened of businesses.

A model of responsible enterprise that is soon to be making its presence felt in North America. A German clothing company that pays 40% more than they could fo...

Couple Document Aquaponics for Complete Beginners
From my video roundup of DIY aquaponics systems to posts on the Growing Power urban farm and Backyard Aquaponics Magazine, the idea that we can produce both high-quality protein and fruits and vegetables in an integrated, mutually beneficial system has certainly caught my interest, and I’ve been itching to check out a syst...

We’ve run a hive full of stories here (links below) about Honey Bees and how their decline can adversely impact agriculture. However Australia, due to its island-like border security has, to date, fortunately been spared the devastating industry losses experienced elsewhere. But the local industry is accutely aware this could change suddenly unless it remains vigilant.

The apiarists who managed the 673,000 registered hives in Australia, producing over 30,000 tonnes of honey annually, worth about $50 million AUD, have had keen eyes on a parliamentary committee who recently handed down their report on the bee industry.

The committee’s chair Dick Adams sai...

Image: Kudzu weeds engulf a light pole by a47nn on Flickr
Weeds: are they troublesome invaders, ecological opportunists or key to tackling a potential global food crisis? According to research done by weed ecologists, our ambiguous relationship to these resilient plants could soon change in a world where carbon dioxide levels are rising – and where weeds could grow to oversized proportions (think 12-foot tall lambs-quarters, a common weed).

Of course, “weed” can be a rather subjective label, depending on your context – fa...

Image courtesy of Flourish.

Whenever we’ve discussed Triodos Bank, the European sustainability-oriented savings bank with branches in the UK, Spain, The Netherlands and Belgium, we’ve always been impressed at the number of customers who attend their annual meetings. In many ways it’s no surprise though, as these events are far from the usual dry run-through of the organization’s finances – last year’s event included an organic lunch and a chance t...

Yesterday we took a look at Peak Moment TVs visit to White Sage Gardens, an Oregon experiment in backyard permaculture but, given the rising costs of food and fuel, we can’t get enough of any information that helps folks to grow local, sustainable food. While watching yesterdays video we came across another episode of Peak Moment that also explores the idea of diverse, edible landscapes for our homes and...

It’s been a while since we checked in on Peak Moment TV, the innovative public access TV show bringing you “Community Responses for a Changing Energy Future”. In the episode above, Peak Moment explores White Sage Gardens, an Oregon experiment in backyard permaculture-informed sustainability created by Scott McGuire. Unfortunately the website for White Sage appears to be down right now, but for more informa...

Is it possible to keep Kosher and still keep a vegan diet?

Wales, China, and South Africa are only a few of the places with sustainable cities in the works.

An urban family in Pasadena, California turn their average city lot into a sustainable homestead.

Pedal powered telephones hit the streets of Nicaragua.

Conscious companies in the U.S. commemorate Arbor Day with tree plantings.

Most Huggable is a regular roundup of some of Hugg's top green news stories. Why not

A fast-unfolding food shortage is engulfing the entire world, driving food prices to record highs. (Check out the full report or podcast.) Over the past 50 years grain prices have occasionally spiked due to weather-related events -- such as the 1972 Soviet crop failure that led to a doubling of world wheat, rice, and corn prices. The situation today is entirely different, however. The current doubling of grain prices is trend-driven, the cumulative effect of some trends that are accelerating growth in demand and other trends that are slowing the growth in supply....

Leisa Thompson/ Ann Arbor News

One of the side-effects of the race to print TRANSFAT FREE! on the side of every package is a big boom in production of palm oil, on plantations cut from the rainforest home of orangutans. 12 year old girl scouts Madison Vorva and Rhiannon Tomtishen of Ann Arbor, Michigan have stopped selling Girl Guide Cookies, and have started an education drive, website and petition against palm oil.

Palm oil production leads to conflict between orangutans and people, the girls said. "We've seen pictures of orangutans set afire and beat...

We’ve already learned from the BBC how families around the world are changing their eating habits to deal with rising prices, but what does all this mean for the growing movement towards more sustainable lifestyles? We’ve already caused some healthy debate on why economic challenges might be good or bad for the environment, but now CNN has

The size of food product packaging may have to increase, not contract, if recent thinking on providing more information on environmental impacts was to be enacted. We’ve heard about carbon labelling for food in the UK, now an Australia academic is proposing also adding water impact labelling to the mix.

Speaking from last week’s Water Down Under conference in Adelaide, James Hazelton, a senior economics lecturer from Macquarie University, floated the concept of packaged food carrying a label indicating how much water was used in its...

The Pacific Northwest caps the U.S. in the least gas consumption.

Old fashion toys foster creativity and goodwill for the earth. Will tots trade in Bob the Builder for plain old building blocks?

Will future farms resemble skyscrapers?

The Green Parent gears up kids for Earth Day with eco-inspired party ideas.

An interactive map of the U.S. reports on the price of corn-based ethanol.

Most Huggable is a regular roundup of some of ...

Commercially legal crops of industrial hemp have been approved for the Australian state of New South Wales. The NSW Minister for Primary Industries reckons the approval could open up “the establishment of a new viable industry” for the state.

“For example, it could be used as an additive to wool in soft textured durable yarns, for insulation, as an alternative to fibreglass, in paper products and textiles and also for load bearing masonry for building. Hemp seed oil can also be used as a base for skin care products and paints.”...

Oil is setting record high prices. People are rioting over the price of food in Haiti, Egypt, parts of West Africa and the Philippines. Since March 2007 the price of soybeans is up 87%, and the price of wheat has risen 130%. Global grain stores are at the lowest levels on record. Amid this turmoil the International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD) release...

We all know that healthy soils are a central part of sustainability. From carbon sequestration to increased crop production, it’s hard to overestimate the contribution good soil can make to our collective well-being (or the damage that can be done by abusing this most precious of resources). Contrary to common misconceptions, he...