A Plea to Protect Burns Bog as a UNESCO Site

Environmentalists tend to be a passionate lot, on fire with conviction about the importance of preservation, conservation, and the well-being of the planet. But, despite our convictions, not all of us are activists. Dana L. Miller of Vancouver, British Columbia (B.C.), is an environmentalist who not only espouses her beliefs, she follows through with focused activities that support them. Miller is a vocal and dedicated advocate for protecting British Columbia’s Burns Bog with UNESCO designation as a World Heritage Site.

Blue Planet Green Living (BPGL) spoke with Miller by phone from her B.C. home. We began by asking her to tell us what’s unique about Burns Bog and why UNESCO designation would help protect it….

Notes from Namibia — Waiting for Elephants

As a Peace Corps Volunteer working in HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention in Namibia, it never occurred to me I would be intimately involved in human-wildlife conflict: I consider having to wait 40 minutes for elephants to cross the road before driving the last hundred yards to our campsite pretty intimate.

But does this really come under the heading of human-wildlife conflict? Not for me anyway! I found it terribly exciting and only lamented the fact that I couldn’t get a really good photo through the windshield of our Land Rover.

It is sobering, though, to realize that year after year, people where I work lose not only crops but sometimes their lives to wildlife. …

John J. Audubon, Iconic Painter of Birds

Sometimes, the most extraordinary and singular lives prove to be the most typical. Through a sheer depth and diversity of experience, a person who appears well outside the norm can serve to embody it. If this were ever true of anyone, it was true of John James Audubon.

In the life and work of this failed businessman — turned bird painter — turned environmental icon, one can discern a piece of the fundamental American character. The energy, resourcefulness and enterprising nature of early Americans are bound up in Audubon.

As his biographer, Richard Rhodes, wrote, “No life was at once more unique and more representative of that expansive era when a national character emerged than Audubon’s. Celebrate him for his wonderful birds; but recognize him as well as a characteristic American of the first generation.” And as America made Audubon, so too did Audubon make himself….

Planet Earth Video Inspires Awe and Action

“A hundred years ago there were one and a half billion people on earth; now over six billion people crowd our fragile planet. But even so there are still places barely touched by humanity,” says narrator David Attenborough in the opening scene of the 11-part mini-series, Planet Earth. “This series will take you to the last wildernesses and show you the planet and its wildlife as you have never seen them before.”

Four years before audiences around the world saw the wonderment of Planet Earth on television, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) set out to make the most ambitious documentary ever witnessed. Planet Earth captures the full range of experiences in observing wildlife in their natural setting, and arouses emotions in the viewer typically associated with major Hollywood films….

An Arctic Journey in a Changing World

“What I have to share with you is more story-telling than science,” says David Thoreson, “but I truly believe I am the canary just back from the coal mine, the ground zero of climate change.”

An Arctic Journey in a Changing World chronicles the adventures of six intrepid sailors on the Cloud Nine, a 57-foot ketch, as it attempts to traverse the Northwest Passage. Produced by Chris Gourley of Iowa Public Television, the film tells the story of the crew’s journey from St. Anthony, Newfoundland, east to west across North America, to dock at last in Dutch Harbor, Alaska…

Ecotourism – Leave Nothing but Footprints and Goodwill

Perhaps you’ve dreamed of vacationing at a resort on a tropical island, surrounded by a luxury hotel with every convenience you could desire: Food and drink served in abundance in any number of dining locations. Beach chairs and umbrellas on the pristine sands of an exclusive beach. A swim bar in the middle of a sparkling pool for guests only. Nightclubs with live entertainment right on the property. Sophisticated staff from countries around the world. And a direct shuttle to carry you safely between the airport and the hotel.

Why would you care to venture out and see the island, with everything you need right here? And why would you want to meet the local people, when their extreme poverty would put a damper on your luxury vacation?

Why, indeed?…

Good-bye, Mr. Rabbit

Time. There never seems to be enough of it. I am always running late. Too many things crammed into too little time.

A few months ago, in a hurried sprint to my car, I noticed a rabbit in my backyard. Nothing unusual about him, he was just one of those run-of-the-mill brown rabbits. He kept a wary eye on me, but he made no effort to run away. He just stood there next to my little trellis garden, peacefully munching on grass. He seemed to be mocking me. I was the one scurrying off to a consulting appointment, all suited and tied, my watch in hand, saying, “Oh dear! Oh dear! I shall be too late!”…

Fishing with Nell

Sometimes the kid in us gets lost when we grow up and take on the responsibilities of making a living, running a business, caring for a family, or serving a cause. Nell Newman seems to be different. When she talks about her childhood, a tomboy comes to life. It’s easy to picture her pushing open the screen door at sunrise, with a cane pole over her shoulder and a can of worms in one hand, walking down to the river to fish….
In Part 1 of a two-part series, we talk with Nell about her lifelong love for the environment, beginning as a young child. In Part 2, Nell talks about the the logical extension of her environmental activism, Newman’s Own Organics.

Polar Bear Sculpture Floats Down Thames

London 26th January 2009:

A stark reminder of the dangers of global warming arrived in London today, as a life-like 16ft high sculpture of an iceberg featuring a stranded polar bear and its cub was floated on the Thames. The sculpture was specially commissioned to mark the launch of the new Natural History Television channel Eden, which starts today and features programming including Planet Earth and Attenborough Explores Our Fragile World at 10pm.

Broadcaster and eminent wildlife conservationist, Sir David Attenborough says: “The melting of the polar bears’ sea ice habitat is one of the most pressing environmental concerns of our time. I commend Eden for highlighting the issue; we need to do what we can to protect the world’s largest land carnivores from extinction.”

Seeking Sustainability in a Harsh and Beautiful Land

Miriam Kashia, a Peace Corps volunteer who returned from Namibia one year ago, recently spoke with Blue Planet Green Living about her experience. What follows is Part 2 of a two-part interview.

BPGL: I’ve heard, over the years, about problems with poaching of African game. Is that an issue in Namibia?

KASHIA: In almost all African countries, there’s been a lot of poaching of wild animals. And most animals now only live in the game parks. There are very few left just roaming wild. There are still many varieties of antelope and, depending on where you are, a few others. But most of the more exotic animals now live in game parks or on game farms, actually. When I say farm, I’m talking about what we would call a ranch. Because it’s a desert, it takes thousands of hectares to support their livestock of goats, sheep, cattle, and wild animals.