Make Some Music

Don't worry! Thinking about the green-ness of your music does not mean you'll be stuck listening to earthy, hippie music all the time (unless of couse that's what you're into). A recent white paper by folks from Carnegie Mellon University and Stanford University takes a look at the carbon footprint and energy usage of various music acquisition methods. Do you buy CDs at the music store, or do you download music? How you get your music may have ecological impacts that you've never really considered. Learn more by looking at The Energy and Climate Change Impacts of Different Music Delivery Methods!

Saving the World...One Cow Burp at a Time

This story was just too crazy not to share! The folks at Stonyfield Farm have been looking at their carbon footprint for some time. Stonyfield, the world's leading organic yogurt company, knew that the biggest carbon contributor in their overall footprint was the milk production itself. While they had worked to decrease carbon emissions from transportation, farm energy, etc., they figured they couldn't do much about their largest source of farm emissions - methane from cows. I mean, you can't green a cow...can you? Well, it turns out you can! Stonyfield learned about research from it's global partner, Groupe Danone, that indicated a diet higher in natural omega-3 sources would reduce the number of burps coming out of their cows. That is how the Stonyfield Greener Cow project was born. The result? Fewer methane emissions from the cows and milk with more omega-3s and lower saturated fat content. A win-win-win, for poeple, cows, and the planet!

My Beer's In Trouble?...Now I Care About Global Climate Change!

Jim Salinger, a climate scientist with New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research, recently shared some bad news with attendees at the Brewing and Distilling Convention. It turns out that global climate change will likely reduce the amount of malting barley that can be grown in New Zealand and Australia. This could mean more expensive beer or no beer at all, and these changes will likely occur within the next 30 years. Salinger only spoke about New Zealand and Australia, but similar changes could happen worldwide. This is the kind of climate research I can see researchers jumping on. You could be the one who saved the world one beer at a time.