Posts tagged environment

A job I want

I’m looking for a job. Frustrated by the fact that most jobs are acquired through contacts rather than job ads, I decided to make my own job ad - but I turned it around so it is aimed at potential employers. Plus, this heartfelt spoof also has the bonus of showing I know what I want and what my strengths are.

Click below to check it out.

And for more info about me and to see recommendations for my work look on my LinkedIn page or my testimonials page.

JobIwant (2)

Will we be eating meat grown in a lab in the future? Will it be the ethical choice? I consider the ins and outs of in vitro meat in a new Creatology blogpost on Scientific American. 

Will we be eating meat grown in a lab in the future? Will it be the ethical choice? I consider the ins and outs of in vitro meat in a new Creatology blogpost on Scientific American. 

Last week, I wrote a news story based on a paper in Geophysical Letters for SciDev.net. The bare bones of the story is that a modelling study of West African rainforests and adjacent cropland found a pattern in local rainfall - rainfall increased by 4 to 6 times over cropland when next to rainforests, and fell by half over the rainforest.  Of course, rainfall in these areas is also affected by other factors such as ocean storms. But the local effect is significant, and, as I wrote in the SciDev.net article, can benefit farmers.  However, there is also a conservation aspect to this story. What happens to the rainforest due to the fall in rainfall is not known, and we can only speculate. But speaking to Tim Baker, a geographer at Leeds University, it was clear that he was concerned that the conservation angle should not be overlooked. One of the implications of the rainfall modelling study for farmers might be that they should deforest in a ‘patchwork’ or ‘fishbone’ way (read more about this in this Mongabay article). But Baker said: “There is so much deforestation in West Africa that the forest is already in many areas, such as Ghana, very fragmented.” FAO figures show that Africa has had the second highest rates of deforestation between 2000 and 2005. “So there is not a strong policy message to say that we should have corridors or a patchwork of deforestation rather than large patches,” Baker continued. “People talk about tropical rainforests ‘creating rain’ and being important because they maintain these cycles. It’s true, but it’s not just a forest…it’s a source of firewood, biodiversity, carbon storage…” he added.

Last week, I wrote a news story based on a paper in Geophysical Letters for SciDev.net. The bare bones of the story is that a modelling study of West African rainforests and adjacent cropland found a pattern in local rainfall - rainfall increased by 4 to 6 times over cropland when next to rainforests, and fell by half over the rainforest. 

Of course, rainfall in these areas is also affected by other factors such as ocean storms. But the local effect is significant, and, as I wrote in the SciDev.net article, can benefit farmers. 

However, there is also a conservation aspect to this story. What happens to the rainforest due to the fall in rainfall is not known, and we can only speculate. But speaking to Tim Baker, a geographer at Leeds University, it was clear that he was concerned that the conservation angle should not be overlooked.

One of the implications of the rainfall modelling study for farmers might be that they should deforest in a ‘patchwork’ or ‘fishbone’ way (read more about this in this Mongabay article). But Baker said: “There is so much deforestation in West Africa that the forest is already in many areas, such as Ghana, very fragmented.” FAO figures show that Africa has had the second highest rates of deforestation between 2000 and 2005. “So there is not a strong policy message to say that we should have corridors or a patchwork of deforestation rather than large patches,” Baker continued.

“People talk about tropical rainforests ‘creating rain’ and being important because they maintain these cycles. It’s true, but it’s not just a forest…it’s a source of firewood, biodiversity, carbon storage…” he added.

Government agencies are often responsible for regulating - or rather failing to regulate - the industry that is causing the damage

Michael Mansfield QC on how a real ecocide trial woud differ from the mock ecocide trial. Listen to the full Audioboo below.

Comment from Michael Mansfield QC (mp3)

I wrote a feature for The Ecologist exploring the concept of sustainable advertising. What would it look like: public space ad bans, as have happened in Sao Paulo? Or subvertising the medium to undermine cynical marketing techniques or expose corporations? Image: thanks to http://www.publicadcampaign.org/

I wrote a feature for The Ecologist exploring the concept of sustainable advertising. What would it look like: public space ad bans, as have happened in Sao Paulo? Or subvertising the medium to undermine cynical marketing techniques or expose corporations?

Image: thanks to http://www.publicadcampaign.org/