I’m aware 24″ to 26″ monitors that use 1920×1200 sized wallpapers have become popular. LCDs and even some of the new LED monitors in large sizes are selling in the $300 range. I’m working on convincing the current picture host to get with changing times and looking for other free hosting options, but short-term the largest I’ll be able to post is the 1600×1200 size. A slight majority of those are high-res 300dpi (today’s is 400dpi) and they tend to do OK using the stretch to fit mode in desktop options.
Protect nature for world economic security, warns UN biodiversity chief
According to the UN Environment Programme, the Earth is in the midst of a mass extinction of life. Scientists estimate that 150-200 species of plant, insect, bird and mammal become extinct every 24 hours. This is nearly 1,000 times the “natural” or “background” rate and, say many biologists, is greater than anything the world has experienced since the vanishing of the dinosaurs nearly 65m years ago. Around 15% of mammal species and 11% of bird species are classified as threatened with extinction.
Djoghlaf warned Britain and other countries not to cut nature protection in the recession. In a reference to expected 40% cuts to Britain’s department of the environment spending, he said: “It would be very short-sighted to cut biodiversity spending. You may well save a few pounds now but you will lose billions later. Biodiversity is your natural asset. The more you lose it, the more you lose your cultural assets too.”
Preserving biodiversity is not some elite science concept. There are costs attached to doing nothing and benefits for acting to preserve biodiversity. In the U.S. pollination bu insects provides billions of dollars worth of food and income. We get most of our medicines from natural sources or synthesize chemicals that science has discovered in the natural world. Polluted air costs the nations billions in health-care costs and the corrosive effect it has on man-made structures. It costs less to keep water clean for human and manufacturing use than it does to clean it then use it. Soil – or dirt if one prefers – is not an inert substance – it must have a healthy combination of environmental conditions and nutrients to provide for tress and food crops. Wildlife still plays an essential role in the complex web of interactions necessary for a healthy eco-system.
What the Heck is a Sustainable Supply Network Anyway?
Whether you are a corporate professional, student, or just curious, this article will help you demystify the complexities of a supply network while giving you a clear and practical understanding. My previous article, Social Accountability 101: Moving from Sweatshops to Sound, Sustainable Supply Chains focused on the first category of a sustainable supply network – Social Compliance and Accountability.
…4. Waste Management
“In 2008, Americans generated about 250 million tons of trash and recycled and composted 83 million tons of this material, equivalent to a 33.2 percent recycling rate. On average, we recycled and composted 1.5 pounds of our individual waste generation of 4.5 pounds per person per day.”
Within a Supply Network, waste management can involve disposal of hazardous waste, recycling, managing the use and disposal of azo dyes (used in the coloring process of jeans, textiles, t-shirts, and leather), solid, liquid, toxic, and gaseous wastes, along with their unique disposal methods. One area I want to highlight is recycling / reuse. As more and more factories and manufacturing facilities utilize recycling and reuse, their costs go down (profitability goes up), and they decrease their carbon footprint, which benefits the environment.
Just as the natural ecosystem is about the connections between elements with that system so is sustainability. Some other areas Oren Jaffe covers in the Sustainable Supply Network are social accountability, carbon footprint, energy efficiency, water management and raw material extraction.
One of the obvious side effects or issues that comes with much of new green technology is dealing with the new trash and waste. Including how to handle the inevitable old discarded or damaged solar panels. Solar Power Unearths Surprising E-waste Enigma
The great news? Solar panels can be recycled. The downside? It isn’t widely available yet. This creates a call to action for solar technology consumers to press for producer foresight and responsibility.
tangledwing 