Ed Dowding

Month: October 2010

I Love Charts

Two excellent charts, one hilarious, the other depressingly obvious: I Love Charts – Bohemian Rhapsody. Also from I Love Charts via Mr Robert Loch.

Urban Farming

I’ve just started listening to Stewart Brand’s new book, An Ecopragmatist Manifesto (audio version | book version) whilst I was out getting the very last of the blackberries and doing some planting, weeding, apple picking, peeling, and making crab apple jelly. (It’s astonishing what one can get done in two hours.) So far, it’s brilliant. ...

Economic reality check

I’ve written quite a lot about money, and plan to write a lot more. In the meantime Tim Jackson’s economic reality check video at TED summarises a great deal of it rather nicely.

Change your search engine, save the world

You’re still using Google, but results are piped via Ecosia, who use the money from the adverts (same amount as Google) to fund rainforest protection. Brilliant, easy, simple. Takes about 2 minutes to make it your default search engine. “Each web search saves about 2 m² of rainforest for free. We already protected 186,443,380 m².” Take ...

Prince Charles' new film, Harmony

HRH (who I’d LOVE to work with, if anyone knows anyone) has a new book & film coming out. httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWJtS2VpYm0

World greenhouse gas emissions

Please note that deforestation accounts for TWICE AS MUCH greenhouse gas as all road transport. I think 10:10 would approve of getting people who like hunting, flying them to areas where illegal logging is taking place, and declaring fair game on all illegal loggers. I’d suspect that a few weeks in Indonesia or Brazil for ...

9 things I'd do if I were in government right now

Remember that reducing use is easier and more effective than increasing supply to meet ‘demand’. Invest in research (especially algae and solar). Invest in infrastructure, especially electricity grid, rail, and electric car stations. Do not build more roads. We have plenty, and cars are getting smaller anyway. Remove VAT from renovation works. Add VAT to ...

How did it come to this?

Considerably better lyrics than I had ever expected from Take That: Just the other day somebody Said to me, hey maybe you’re slightly schizophrenic And a little out of reach my friend. I said, yes that?s partly true, But jokes aside, I can explain, It?s just my way of keep in track with Living on ...

Bamboo water bottle

Nice design. Bamboo Bottle Company.

Solitude

Happy the man, whose wish and care A few paternal acres bound, Content to breathe his native air In his own ground. Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread, Whose flocks supply him with attire; Whose trees in summer yield shade, In winter, fire. Blest, who can unconcern’dly find Hours, days, and years, slide ...