blue and green tomorrow – and so she thinks

Should I stay or should I go? The environmental tourist’s travel dilemma

admin — Mon, 14 Apr 2014 20:42:15 +0000

True environmental travel is about education, and not about taking selfies with a bottlenose dolphin.
We rocked and rolled across the sand dunes of Fraser Island – the largest sand island in the world, off the coast of Queensland, Australia. Our guide told us how unique the location is, how it is home to fauna and flora not found anywhere else and how it is an important ecological site for the world. “But we’re driving right over it?” I say. “How can this be good?” (And yes, I know I had chosen to do this.) “How else will you see it?” he asked me.
He had a point. But I wondered, should I even be here? However many sapling trees we plant or bananas we don’t eat in an attempt to compensate for our travel, tourism leaves a footprint on the world. We can try to be green, but by travelling and touring we are emitting gases, using fuels and ultimately harming the planet. Hardcore evangelists of the slow travel movement argue that it is impossible to be green if you fly somewhere, and that in fact, to minimise damage, it’s best if we all just stay at home.
Read more at Blue & Green Tomorrow.

Ecotourism flourishes when local people are engaged with sustainability – Blue and Green Tomorrow

admin — Sat, 29 Mar 2014 07:14:54 +0000

http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/ecotourism-flourishes-when-local-people-are-engaged-with-sustainability/
‘Green’ is a term that has been getting on my goat during my travels. Everyone is green; everyone is eco-friendly. Simply by virtue of operating outside – which let’s face it, we all do at some point, even if only when walking from the front door to the car – seems to allow people to classify themselves as such. So when arriving inKaikoura, an ‘ecotourism’ town in New Zealand, what was I to find?

Sustainability on a sofa: couchsurfing is the ultimate in living like a local

admin — Fri, 07 Mar 2014 20:05:30 +0000

What better way to experience new places and cultures, and save vital resources, than to stay on someone’s sofa for the night?
I’m a bit new to this couchsurfing lark. With over 7 million members in 100,000 cities, Couchsurfing.org, founded in 2004 as a non-profit organisation although since filed as a company, has become a global phenomenon.
Read more http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/sustainability-on-a-sofa-couchsurfing-is-the-ultimate-in-living-like-a-local/

Sustainable tourism: ‘going green’ doesn’t just mean a splash of colour

admin — Thu, 06 Mar 2014 19:19:12 +0000

Green has become cool. Show me a hotel, restaurant or travel company that doesn’t have a green policy or environmental statement and I will eat my organic hat.
This is, of course, fantastic: the more places that commit to recycling or saving water, the better for us and our environment. Problems appear when ‘going green’ becomes just another marketing ploy; a reason to add 25% to the cost or attract a new audience. In these cases, it is little more than daubing the signage in grassy hues.
Read more http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/sustainable-tourism-going-green-doesnt-just-mean-a-splash-of-colour/
http://www.glasshouseecolodge.com/index.html

Sustainable design should change our behaviour for good

admin — Sat, 19 Oct 2013 20:28:13 +0000

“The best/worst thing about great design is that you shouldn’t notice it; it should just make your decisions easier and your life run smoother.” So says Therese Higgins, brand manager and designer. If you’re reading this, it’s a good bet that you agree that life runs smoother in a healthy, ethical, functioning environment. Manufacturers and brands know that we will pay a premium for life running smoother, and advertising plays on this dream. How about rather than simulate the appearance of a simpler lifestyle, the products and processes that we use are designed in a way that allows this – for the individual and their environment.
Read more at Blue & Green Tomorrow http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/sustainable-design-should-change-our-behaviour-for-good/

Solo living is not helping the only Earth we have

admin — Sat, 19 Oct 2013 20:25:55 +0000

As well as psychological impacts (veering from, “I will die alone with cats”, to apparently increased levels of anger, selfishness and depression), the rise in solo living is having a distinct effect on the environment. More and more people are living alone, driven by a more transient workforce, changing demographics, and practicalities, as well as an altered perspective as to what counts as success and validation, and its implications upon a family and marriage. Author of Going Solo: The Extraordinary Rise and Surprising Appeal of Living Alone, Eric Klinenberg states that it is a reflection of “modern values – individual freedom, personal control and self-realisation […] It allows us to do what we want, when we want, on our own terms.”
Read more at Blue & Green Tomorrow http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/solo-living-is-not-helping-the-only-earth-we-have/

Livin’ (Sustainably) in the City

admin — Sat, 19 Oct 2013 20:24:33 +0000

If ‘living sustainably’ was a colour, it would be green. Green: the colour of the countryside, rolling hills, nature and where being part of your environment is surely much easier. In the cities it’s all more grim and gritty; people are busy; there is too much technology and transport; and too many buildings and businesses to truly live sustainably. Right?
Read more at Blue & Green Tomorrow http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/livin-sustainably-in-the-city/

Festivals play a crucial role in switching on our environmental antennae

admin — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 01:59:51 +0000

Music playing, beer flowing, away from home, everyone hanging free, sweet songs flowing through the breeze, and a time when everyone is your friend. Festivals are an opportunity to step away from everyday life and forget worries, when the normal world seems very far away. Who has the time or indeed inclination to worry about their environmental impact as they harness their inner passions so closely in a field of fun? Except of course a sustainable solution is one that is both always on, and therefore is relatively easy to undertake – even at a festival.

See more at: http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/festivals-play-a-crucial-role-in-switching-on-our-environmental-antennas/#sthash.fWNh1CtJ.dpuf

Festivals play a crucial role in switching on our environmental antennae

admin — Sun, 21 Jul 2013 20:59:51 +0000

Economy or environment – why choose?

admin — Fri, 19 Jul 2013 11:04:25 +0000

Of the many issues and news stories in the media and our minds, the economy and the environment are two that often warrant the most column inches. This commonality is however what many deem to be the only feature that the two share. Admitting to a focus on the economy has you cut out as a bonus busting capitalist, whereas a fondness for the environment has you eternally pegged as an unwashed eco warrior. Is one really more important than the other and are they destined to be forever in conflict?
See more at: http://blueandgreentomorrow.com/features/economy-or-environment-why-choose/#sthash.6TXzmdlW.dpuf