Postcards against GM

Last year I asked for your help to battle against GM foods in Europe. The campaign goes on and there is something we can all do to help. Here is a plea for support from Green Peace which landed in my inbox today.

Dear friends,

Environment Commissioner Dimas needs some support right now! Can you help?
Last year more than 130,000 people joined our cyberaction supporting Commissioner Dimas' proposal not to authorise the cultivation of two new GMOs in Europe. However, the agri-chemical industry and their lackeys in Brussels are fighting back very strongly, trying to isolate Dimas and to force him to authorise their GM products.

If Dimas receives picture postcards from all over Europe -- and from supporters around the world -- he'd know he's not alone. You know the feeling. It's so rare to send real hand-written postcards these days, that every single one makes an impression.

Do you want to keep risky GM crops away from European fields, food and feed?

Will you participate in this urgent action? Then please let us know and click here:

I will take part -- and will send a card to Mr. Dimas! (link to webpage with Dimas' postal address and tips)

Thank you!

Marco Contiero, (Policy Advisor on GMOs, Greenpeace European Unit, Brussels)

P.S. 130,000 people sending messages to the Commission is a lot! But, we need to be even more, and send Commissioner Dimas as many postcards in support as possible. Therefore please forward that message to at least three friends and ask them to take action as well.

For more about why we should be worried about GM foods check out: the GM Free Ireland website.

Can flying ever be eco-friendly? - Part Two - Carbon Offsetting

Carbon offsetting is the system that allows an individual or a business to counteract their carbon footprint by investing in the planting of trees or, more recently supporting eco-friendly projects overseas. Simply by paying a company like Carbon Neutral or Climate Care a small fee - as little as 75p sterling for a flight to the UK -  you can rest assured that the carbon you are generating is made up for elsewhere. It's always seemed a bit good to be true to me so I thought I would look into it further.

The first thing I discovered is that offsetting carbon is not just about planting trees. In fact tree planting has fallen out of fashion. The problem seems to be that although a single tree can absorb 1/2 a tonne of CO2 in it's lifetime, it is only temporarily stored and when the tree dies and decays the carbon is released again for more see Sinks Watch. There have also been stories about heavily sprayed, large mono-culture plantations populated with fast growing tree species which suck nutrients out of the ground and don't deliver on their CO2 targets. That is not to say that planting trees is a waste of time. Last week I was speaking to Keith Shirley who is thinking about planting trees on his own land to offset his carbon emissions. Climate care also supports a rainforest restoration project which works with Ugandan rangers to replant deforested lands.

Carbon offsetting companies are now offering other alternatives. Some support wind farms in developing countries, others work with communities in the developing world on projects that include providing energy saving stoves, people powered foot pumps and energy saving bulbs. I have no problem with helping these communities but I do feel that by offsetting my carbon this way I am allowing myself to be decadent with my emissions whilst expecting people in other parts of the world to pick up the tab. All this aside, I feel that by offsetting my flights in future I will be giving something back.

A more effective alternative to offsetting is to simply cut back on the amount of flights that youtake. To really make a statement why not take the pledge at low fly zone to stop flying for 12 months.