tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-59359592009-10-15T14:57:58.218-03:00This is my eclectic blog; environmental issues; art and craft; life in Nova Scotia, Canada; and anything else that interests me.Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.comBlogger97125AcresWildhttp://feedburner.google.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-57854879216114629112009-02-01T09:39:00.002-04:002009-05-09T16:27:04.262-03:00

I remember the winter of 1963. School was closed for time when the outside toilets froze up. We thawed our 1/3 pint bottles of milk around the stove in our classroom.On 1 February, 1963, Geoffrey Jones began filming "Snow" which was to win 14 major awards and an Oscar nomination in 1965. Jones was already working on a film for the British Railways Board when he had the idea of making a film

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2009/02/snow-and-steam.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-65130082555548924102008-11-18T08:03:00.004-04:002008-11-18T09:55:27.429-04:00

National Post columnist Don Martin wrote at length about the mistakes made by the Green Party in the last election. None of this is news, and pales into insignificance alongside his remark that he, and possibly other reporters in Ottawa, could not name another Green candidate.I could excuse this ignorance if it came from Joe Public, but not from a journalist. Surely they should keep themselves

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/11/state-of-journalism-in-canada.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-63300011332963212212008-10-17T11:36:00.003-03:002008-10-17T11:56:21.088-03:00

Picnic in the Forest happens tomorrow, October 18, 11am-2pm. It is hosted by Friends of Redtail Society to launch their campaign to save forest lands from industrial clear cutting.Redtail Nature Awareness is a nature retreat and experiential education centre located in a semi-wilderness region of northern Nova Scotia, Canada. It offers year round camps for youth and nature retreats for adults

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/10/picnic-in-forest.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-73492446585672306262008-10-17T07:56:00.003-03:002008-10-17T10:47:11.970-03:00

Once again an election has shown just how broken our voting system is.Turnout hits an all-time low of 59.1%.The only major party to persuade more people to vote for them than in the previous election was the Green Party, yet they won no seats. The Conservatives got 168,737 fewer votes and gained 19 seats. The NDP got 72,522 fewer seats and gained 8 seats.There were numerous calls for tactical

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/10/fair-votes.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-25358185426941413302008-10-09T07:53:00.003-03:002008-10-09T08:11:31.297-03:00

On Tuesday, prominent Central Nova Liberals endorsed Elizabeth May. Senator Jim Cowan said "The country needs her. Stephane Dion needs her, and I ask you to do your part."On Wednesday, CAW announced today that the union is throwing its support behind Green Party leader Elizabeth May in the Central Nova riding, as a part of the CAW's strategic voting approach.Remember, You Have A Choice:

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/10/liberals-and-caw-endorse-elizabeth-may.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-53370787774064166482008-10-07T14:47:00.001-03:002008-10-07T15:13:18.681-03:00

Green Party spokesperson Angela Reid talking about the need to vote for candidates and parties with a vision of the future.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/10/vote-for-visionaries.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-41569344817231611382008-10-07T09:15:00.002-03:002008-10-07T09:25:53.064-03:00

Hamilton Greens have created their own election video called Green Door. It is aimed at voters who are tired of the way politics is done in Canada, and maybe want to know more about green policies and the six fundamental principles underlying everything the Green Party stands for.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/10/tired-of-same-old-party-lines.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-28993109149998813922008-10-05T09:56:00.002-03:002008-10-05T09:59:34.434-03:00

Here is a nice idea for making a recyclable gift box that will cost you $1 in the US, or $5 in Canada!http://members.cox.net/crandall11/money/box/

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/10/recyclable-gift-box.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-20147625466167776402008-09-26T13:13:00.002-03:002008-09-26T16:15:17.370-03:00

Avaaz.org are organising a grass roots effort to prevent a Harper majority government...Dear friends,For the last two years, the Harper government has done everything it could to wreck the world's efforts to fix climate change. Given the "fossil award" by environmental experts, Canada (our Canada!) has been repeatedly voted the WORST country in the world on climate change. Now, it's election time

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com1http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/09/strategic-voting.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-32448532779261619962008-09-25T10:56:00.003-03:002008-09-25T11:22:33.654-03:00

There is an excellent article in the Globe and Mail today by Margaret Atwood. She is commenting on Stephen Harper's attack on the arts and culture community, in particular his comments suggesting that "ordinary people" don't care about "the arts."One sentence in particular stands out:Every budding dictatorship begins by muzzling the artists, because they're a mouthy lot and they don't line up and

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/09/dictatorship-in-making.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-90337157253630508532008-05-28T11:18:00.001-03:002008-05-28T11:18:01.109-03:00

Here is Paul Stamets presenting "6 ways mushrooms can save the world". The presentation seems terribly rushed. I had trouble understanding some of it, but found these links useful: Prototaxites, medicinal uses of fungi, mycoremediation, mycofiltration. He even suggests using mycellium to convert cellulose into fungal sugars which can be turned into ethanol.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/05/magic-of-mushrooms.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-73037299328348128352008-05-26T02:18:00.000-03:002008-05-26T02:18:00.855-03:00

More and more people are taking to their bikes as a means of transport. Here is a film by the (US) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on safely driving, fitting and maintaining a bicycle.They also have a leaflet about cycle safety.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/05/bicycle-safety.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-68856531288062521322008-05-22T06:18:00.002-03:002008-05-22T06:18:00.522-03:00

Last weekend I was at Moncton Market and picked up an interesting booklet at a table selling environmental cleaning products. It was produced by the Conservation Council of New Brunswick and titled 'Roadmap to a self-sufficient energy future' (pdf).They report that New Brunswick is already experiencing the effects of climate change. The snow pack in the southern part of the province is only half

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/05/diseconomies-of-scale.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-78597785289197858872008-05-20T11:32:00.001-03:002008-05-20T11:32:00.274-03:00

I heard on the CBC recently that transit companies in both Halifax and St.John are seeing increased ridership. With the cost of gas, this is hardly surprising.Other areas are reporting similar increases. In Colorado, bus driver Chris Gray says he has seen plenty of evidence that people are using transit as an alternative to driving themselves. In Michigan ridership is up 7% this year, and "Gas

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/05/bus-ridership-increasing.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-61212605675428460762008-05-18T09:44:00.001-03:002008-05-18T09:44:00.977-03:00

Do you live in an urban environment full of unkempt vacant lots? Why not seed bomb them and add a little beauty to the 'hood? Here's how.Read more about seed bombing and Guerrilla gardening on wikipedia.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/05/seed-bomb-your-neighbourhood.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-64759168593803947922008-05-16T08:50:00.002-03:002008-05-16T08:58:45.046-03:00

Climate change is already creating serious problems in Canada. Here is a video of Elizabeth May addressing the Global Greens Conference in Sao Paulo earlier this month.The text of the speech is here if you prefer.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/05/climate-change-in-canada.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-34531583019410132852008-03-20T07:33:00.002-03:002008-03-20T11:34:02.740-03:00

If you haven't yet realized the environmental consequences of a carnivorous diet, take a pause before your next tasty mouthful and think about the global warming it will cause.In Climate change experts target cow flatulence, the Telegraph reports on research being conducted in Scotland to reduce the amount of methane a cow produces. They report that a cow has the same impact on greenhouse warming

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/03/meat-and-methane.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-63372155540990635992008-03-19T10:43:00.002-03:002008-03-19T11:21:09.628-03:00

I just came across an piece in the Western Standard, Cooling it on Warming.I can't say that I am swayed by Jan Narveson's editorial. He obviously hasn't much of a grip on the subject, as shown by his confusion of weather and climate change. He does make the point that if everybody lived up to Kyoto, the net result in terms of climate cooling over 50 years would be in the order of 0.1 degree

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/03/would-you-like-to-live-in-sudanese.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-5090864141666763032008-03-18T07:18:00.002-03:002008-03-18T07:29:39.213-03:00

I just got this in from avaaz.org, an organization that has over 2 million members, and has begun to make a real impact on global politics. The Economist writes that Avaaz is poised to deliver "a deafening wake up call" to world leaders, the Indian Express welcomes "the biggest web campaigner across the world" and Nobel Prize winner Al Gore says "Avaaz is inspiring, and has already begun to make

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/03/tell-china-to-respect-tibet.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-2383688379855254512008-02-22T09:59:00.002-04:002008-02-22T10:09:01.156-04:00

Here is a treat for you from 40 years ago. "Lady Madonna" was released as a single in March 1968. They don't make 'em like that any more:)

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/02/lady-madonna.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-37242829748513780612008-02-13T07:18:00.003-04:002008-02-13T07:49:46.256-04:00

A new report from the Royal Society says that gannets who feed their chicks on waste from fishing boats are giving them junk food.The problem they discovered in the western cape of South Africa was that waste from the hake fisheries was too low in fat to sustain chicks. The gannet's natural food is high fat species like anchovies and sardines, but these species have become seriously depleted.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/02/fisheries-waste-insufficient-for-gannet.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-50041535395639679802008-02-12T09:40:00.000-04:002008-02-12T09:56:57.527-04:00

George Monbiot makes some good points about fuel sources. He cites a recent report that Peak Oil is upon us, and although environmentalists and geologists have being warning of this for some time, this new report is written by capitalists, so perhaps now governments may start to pay attention.Growing biofuels to replace fossil fuel seems to getting a lot of criticism, and Monbiot says that land

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/02/peak-soil.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-34164532039323877562008-02-11T20:41:00.000-04:002008-02-11T21:07:02.923-04:00

Last week one of the main news stories in Nova Scotia was the discovery of nearly 100 cats and dogs being kept in appalling conditions at a private animal shelter. This is yet another reminder of the gross overpopulation of cats and dogs, many of which will end up homeless or at a shelter desperately hoping to find a loving home.PETA have two videos on the subject which I'd like to share with you

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com1http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/02/for-love-of-dog.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-10590676265635563132008-02-05T06:31:00.000-04:002008-02-05T06:47:46.031-04:00

Christians in Britain are being urged to give up carbon for Lent and they can even download a 40 day calendar to help.It's not a bad idea, but why just do it for Lent? But I do hope that it encourages people who don't already take these actions to begin doing so, all year round.

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com0http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/02/give-up-carbon-for-lent.htmltag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5935959.post-12105319810314921972008-01-30T08:13:00.000-04:002008-01-30T09:12:38.155-04:00

I first came across Hilary Pfeifer's blog when she took part in the International Turning Exchange 2006. Hilary describes herself as a mixed-media sculptor, making small wood parts that are assembled into larger sculptures.Two years ago she did an installation of 1500 lovebugs at the Fuller Craft Museum and later at the Museum of Contemporary Craft. Now you can get a pair of these lovebugs mailed

Derek Andrewshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12058511671737531988noreply@blogger.com1http://acreswild.blogspot.com/2008/01/lovebug-for-your-valentine.html