Community Canoes to Help Bees and Butterflies
A new initiative in Toronto is trying to help the local ecosystem and bring people closer to nature through canoes. Not by paddling, but by bringing bees and butterflies to…
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Monocle Looks at the Best Urban Farm Projects
Monocle recently took a look at some of the world’s best urban farming projects. Monocle’s favourite cities combine small-scale neighbourhoods with green spaces, but not all cities were built with…
Sweden Ran Out of Garbage
Late last year Sweden ran out of garbage which caused problems in their energy network. In an ironic step, Sweden’s efficient waste diversion programs are so good that their trash-burning…
Saudi Arabia Starts $109 Billion Push for Renewable Energy
The end of cheap oil is inevitable and it’s clear that at least one oil-producing nation gets that. Unlike Canada, which seemingly wants to destroy half a province, Saudi Arabia…
Suburbia Gone Wild
The idealized version of the American suburb has spread around the world and can be found in nearly every country. The banality of the spread has been ignored by artists,…
Using Behavioural Science to Lower Energy Consumption
Alex Laskey wants to lower people’s energy consumption by using tricks and practices from the world of behavioural science. It sounds great and would be great to see implemented, check…
Cheap and Easy Ways to Keep Cool Without Air Conditioning
I’m one of those people that can’t handle unrelenting heat and so I’m always looking for ways to stay cool. I’m also one of those people who doesn’t like air…
Washington D.C. Approves Living Wage Bill
Washington D.C. lawmakers approved a proposed bill that institutes a living wage for the region. This is after a loud and boisterous campaign from Walmart to keep poverty-level wages. Walmart…
Suburban Community Considers Higher Taxes for Paved Properties
Toronto and area received massive rain fall last week and one suburban community has decided that the need to encourage better water management through taxes. Basically, if you pave over…
Camino Wear: Clothing for Walking
Camino Wear is a clothing line that is focused on celebrating walking, travel, and adventure. The inspiration for the clothing line comes the founder’s walk along the Camino de Santiago.…
Green Roofs Assist in Flood Prevention
Yesterday Toronto got more rain in two hours than it normally does in a month which meant some serious flooding happened. This got me thinking of a program that Toronto…
Building Better Homes for Refugees
Ikea’s charitable arm has used the expertise of the cheap furniture manufacturer to design a better housing unit for refugees with the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). Hopefully these designs will…
Kenya Medics Increase Reach Thanks to Bicycles
Bikes4Care is an initiative in Kenya that helps medics and other health care workers get to more places thanks to bicycles. It’s a simple and effective concept to get people…
15-Year Study: Stop Drug Use Through Harm Reduction
The American style “war on drugs” undoubtably ruins more lives than it saves (all while militarizing North American police forces), yet some people think that punishing drug users is sound…
The Vegetarian Calculator
It’s well known that meat production has a large carbon footprint. A diet that includes meat requires more land than a plant based diet so even decreasing the amount of…
How to Get Out From the Invasive PRISM Surveillance Program
Thanks to the brave efforts from Edward Snowden we are now aware of something long suspected: that the USA (and many other nations including Canada) are reading our communications. The…
Car-Addicted LA is Getting on the Bike-Train
Los Angeles is known to be a car-addled and car-addicted place but not for much longer. They have consciously set out to make their city more pedestrian and bike friendly.…
Do You Make the World Better? There’s an App for That
By now most people have heard what a carbon footprint is, but have you heard about your gloabl ‘handprint‘? The notion is that it’s the opposite of a negative counter…
Plants Which Clean the Air
Ever wanted to have really fresh air in your place? This TED Talk by Kamal Meattle provides some insight into which plants you should have in your home and what…
Bike Delivery Business on the Rise
Red Riding Goods is one of a few companies in Toronto that deliver goods via bicycles. In other cities from Mumbai to San Francisco bike-based delivery is nothing new and…