Upcycling is a method in which old or discarded materials are converted into something reusable.

The difference between upcycling and recycling is simple. Recycling takes consumer materials such as plastic, paper, metal, and glass and breaks them down so that they can be made into a new consumer product (usually of lesser quality). When you upcycle an item you aren’t breaking down ant materials, just purely refashioning it.  Additionally the quality of the upcycled item has same or even ...

As stated in our “How Methane Heating Works” article, “Natural gas derives from animal and plant matter that was heated and pressurized in earth’s layers (hence why it is referred to as “fossil fuel”).” Within the last century, the burning of these fossil fuels combined with other human related activities, has released heat-trapping gases into the atmosphere. In effect it has caused the Earth’s temperature and sea levels to rise.

This rise in sea level is linked to thermal ...

• Provided workshops for over 250 students in the US and Brazil
• Participated in the reforestation drive for almost 400 rare species of Pau Brasil# trees with our social entrepreneurship partner organizat...

Prime Minister Naoto Kan reiterated in a speech to parliament that Japan was grappling with its worst problems since World War II."This quake, tsunami and the nuclear accident are the biggest crises for Japan" in decades, said Kan, dressed in one of the blue work jackets that have become ubiquitous among bureaucrats since the tsunami. He said the crises remained unpredictable, but added: "We will continue to handle it in a state of maximum alert."

Here's some good news for New Yorkers who are tired of West NY getting attention for their (amazing) wind farms.

The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has applied to develop an off shore wind farm 24km off the coast of Long Island that would begin pumping 300 MW of energy into the region, but whose capacity would be 700 MW (to be achieved by 2016).

According to Newsday (subscriber's only), the project comes with a price tag of about $1.5 billion.

No...

The U.S. recycling rate for post-consumer polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is 28 percent in 2009, marking the sixth straight year that the nation’s recycling rate has increased, despite a four percent decrease in the availability of PET containers, by weight, according to a new report.

The report, “2009 Report on Post Consumer PET Container Recycling Activity” (PDF), also details the end uses for a record 937 million pounds of recycled PET used in manufacturing applications, reflecti...

Can the poorest be reached with finance? “Ultra poor” members of society face a series of constraints and deprivations that distinguish them from the general poor. Limited social networks, chronic malnutrition, and reliance on patronage systems characterize a socioeconomic class that is hard to “bank.” Research now indicates that most microfinance institutions serve poor and lower-income customers, but not the poorest. A new FAI Framing Note on “Targeting the ...

Our colleague and good friend Steve Schneider, the Melvin and Joan Lane Professor for Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies and senior fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford, died on July 19, 2010, while traveling from a meeting in Stockholm to London. Steve was not only a man of formidable intellectual depth and breadth, but also a committed and compassionate advisor, mentor, teacher and friend. ...

Providing access to safe water is a priority for all nations, as water is a limited resource essential to human health and economic activity. For many people in Africa, there is little or no access to safe drinking water. Water scarcity in Africa is expected to increase in the near future due to economic growth and increasing populations. By 2025, 45% of the populat...

While these results may be encouraging to those concerned with how economic growth will affect the environment, they do not sit well with the environmental real...

The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission has authorized a measure that would add a fee of between $4 and $34 per ton of carbon dioxide to electricity generated from coal-fired power stations in North Dakota that is exported to Minnesota. By adding this fee to coal power, it is hoped that it will spur the further development of renewable energy sources.

Coal Creek Station, Underwood, ND. (Actually owned by a Minnesota electric utility) Source: Great River E...