Welcome to our latest green news. Take a look at the top story in each category below, or scroll down 'news and editorial' and catch up.

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Poison drift debilitates Boland residents

Poisonous spays from farms drifting onto people – workers, children, family and neighbours – is finally coming to a head in the Boland. Numerous incidences of long-term, serious health problems, linked by doctors to the careless management of spray drift from surrounding farms mobilized the establishment of a special group in Stellenbosch, called TATIB (The Air That I Breathe). Pesticide drift is an issue that has long concerned more aware residents in towns surrounded by farms, especially as those most at risk are workers and children exposed over long periods of time.

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business

The upward spiral from naiveté to action

Our capitalist economy, together with low education levels, create a huge rift in most organisations between good intentions or policies and shopfloor adherence.

Many organisations today have environmental/sustainability policies in place, which give voice to the senior management’s commitment to environmental responsibility.

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creativity

Money spinner in your bin

‘’I couldn`t bear the thought of all the plastic, and baby nappies going into the rubbish bins and worrying about the effect it had on the environment. I was determined to find a way to use the plastic to make handbags!’’ says Unine Allen, founder of ‘For the Love of Recycling’ bag designs and full time mother of three.

Between the two mothers Unine and Lauryn Bredell, business partner and also a mother of 2, they have created a source of income by designing and making eco-friendly fashion hand bags. The plastic is sourced from local recycling points, personal bins as well as friends and neighbours. They use all types of plastic, for example salad packaging and bottle tops from juice containers to craft their bags. All bags are 100% recyclable, reducing their business’ carbon footprint.

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eco communities

Ecovillage Convergence

Ours is not a better way, ours is merely another way.

The first annual Ecovillage Convergence in South Africa took place on 18-20 September 2009. This coming together of kindred spirits had been growing in the hearts of many who share the desire for authentic, earth-based living.

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energy

Energy Efficiency: Part 5 - TAKE CONTROL WITH A PHASED METHODOLOGY

With the expectation of electricity prices doubling in the near future, it is easy to join the cause of saving energy or utilising renewable sources. I have watched discussions with great interest in the past few days since the 45% per annum (over three years) phased Eskom tariff application was “leaked” to the press. I am amazed at how glibly people can make statements without analysing alternatives at all. Even if Eskom tariffs double today, running a generator will still be four times more expensive than using Eskom power.

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farming/gardening

Spier’s going biodynamic!

Behind the groomed Spier Estate we all know with its smooth picnic lawns and fine food, lies another world. Rolling back for hundreds of hectares is farmland going through biodynamic conversion.
There are 3 models inspiring what’s happening – Sekem in Egypt, Polyface Farm in the USA, and la Vialla in Tuscany.

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food & drink

global warming

Message from Parliament of the World’s Religions

We, from the major faith communities of the world, meeting at the Parliament of the World’s Religions, Melbourne, Australia, from 3rd to 9th December 2009, send warm greetings to all who are gathering at Copenhagen for your crucially important Conference. We wish to assure you that prayers are being lifted up around the world for this meeting as we recognize that climate change is the single most important issue presently confronting us and the entire Earth community.

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home & holidays

Forest chill out to shake off the old year

Looking for greener accommodation, together with peace and quiet? We found such a place at ‘Osho Oasis’ in a forest near the old road between George and Knysna. I felt at home in the many arched lines and rounded spaces. The feminine, restful energy was just the place to chill out after hunting deadlines and running a green publication in the mad world of newspapers.

Scattered A-framed wooden huts huddle amongst tall trees around the central covered dining lapa. I sensed immediately the love and care with which over the past 6 years Meera van Pletzen, originally from Austria, and her former partner Hamid Croukamp had crafted this place by hand.

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natural health

Walking to feed the soul

“Being in powerful landscapes slows one down to take in the breathtaking scenery and the details of a wild flower. This renews our energy for life, with its unpredictable turns.”

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shopping

Porter Estate Market

...any fresher and pigs might fly.

Porter’s is a fresh food market, no mistake. The smell of moer koffie and bacon greet you. “We styled it after old European markets where people come to hand-select fresh produce and catch up with friends,” said Gail Coetzee, the market manager, in a polo-neck jersey with her hair in a pony tail.

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species protection

Save the leopards with Anatolian dogs

It is essential for livestock farmers to find non-lethal methods to protect their animals from predators. The Anatolian Shepherd Dog fits this bill perfectly. Anatolians have the ability to protect livestock through their physical attributes of size, strength, good eyesight, sense of smell and hearing and their dedication and loyalty to their ”adopted families”.

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vulnerable people

Footprint of a street person

Peter is 60, lying under an oak tree with his head on a small bag containing his worldly possessions. I’ve greeted him many times when out on a run; today I stop and ask him his story.
“I grew up in the Karoo and went to a Catholic school with German nuns. When I came to Cape Town I worked in a candle factory in Observatory until it closed down in 1994. I couldn’t get another job and have been on the street since then.”

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waste

Recycling champions

I love win-win, which is what Oasis is. When I visited I smelled biscuits baking, saw recycling happening in every possible open space, and met lots of happy people – who save 24 000m3 of landfill each year.
The people at Oasis are intellectually disabled.

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water

Beware the water guzzlers this summer

February is the worst month for water consumption in the Cape. One resident shares her water consumption calculations and saving devices and plans with us. Read Theresa Wilson’s story and share yours with us as well.

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youth

Schools earn green money for activism

Boland schools worked hard and won most of the top prizes in the yearly Our Schools Cares/Adopt-a-Spot competition, sponsored by Peninsula Beverages.
Bloemhof Girls’ High from Stellenbosch came first in the senior school section and received R8000 from the sponsors.

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