Donna Morton with First Power on TEDx

Earlier in the year I had the opportunity to interview Donna Morton who is the CEO and co-founder of First Power on the 19th Episode of GreenNews4U. Recently she was a speaker at TEDx were she talked about the end of poverty and climate change through %100 renewable energy. I highly recommend watching this video. TEDx is a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience. At a TEDx event, TEDTalks video and live speakers combine to spark deep discussion and connection in a small group. These local, self-organized events are branded TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event. The TED Conference provides general guidance for the TEDx program, but individual TEDx events are self-organized.  

Melvin Wylie

Consumers win the Right to Know About Their Food

State of Ohio dropping regulation in face of organic community pressure The State of Ohio today agreed that it will no longer pursue regulations limiting labeling on organic dairy products. Ohio had attempted to prohibit statements on labels which informed consumers that organic dairy products are produced without antibiotics, pesticides or synthetic hormones. After the Organic Trade Association (OTA) sued the State of Ohio, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals sided with consumers' right to know and gutted the Ohio rule, finding that it was unconstitutional. Ohio has now agreed to abandon the rule rather than trying to revive it, recognizing that the First Amendment allows organic dairy products to proudly state that they are produced in accordance with the organic standards, without the use of synthetic growth hormones, pesticides, or antibiotics. "This is significant for all of us who support what the organic foods are about, and for consumers who carefully read food labels to find out what's in their food and how it's produced," said Christine Bushway, Executive Director and CEO for OTA. "The Sixth Circuit opinion made it clear that states cannot unduly restrict organic labels or consumers' right to know how their food is produced, and the State of Ohio's actions today make it clear that the fight to keep labels accurate by OTA, its members, farmers, and consumers was worth it." In 2008, the State of Ohio issued an emergency regulation that restricted the free speech rights of organic and conventional farmers and marketers of milk within the State of Ohio. The regulation illegally restricted the right of farmers and marketers to state that some dairy products are produced without the use of synthetic and artificial ingredients. OTA and its members, including Horizon Organic®, Organic Valley®, and Stonyfield Farm®, appealed a lower court decision that upheld the rule in question to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. In 2010, the Sixth Circuit reversed the lower court decision, agreeing that consumers have a right to know how their dairy products are produced. Critical to the decision was the Court's reliance on an amicus brief filed by The Center for Food Safety and other organizations to rule that milk produced with synthetic hormones is different than milk produced without it (as all organic milk is). "Ohio's abandonment of this misguided rule is a victory for consumers, farmers and manufacturers alike," said Bushway, adding, "The organic label is a federally regulated program that provides consumers with the knowledge that their food is produced without the use of antibiotics, pesticides or added growth hormones. Consumers have the right to make informed choices about the foods they eat, and farmers and manufacturers can continue to communicate truthfully with consumers." OTA was represented by Randy Sunshine of Liner Grode Stein Yankelevitz Sunshine Regensteif & Taylor LLP. OTA looks forward to continuing the fight for transparency in labeling as part of the Just Label It: We Have a Right to Know initiative that kicked off earlier this month. This initiative is driven by a coalition of more than 400 businesses and organizations interested in seeing genetically engineered (GE) foods labeled as such. With increasing consumer interest in health and food safety, people want to know more than ever about what is in their food and how it was produced. The campaign has submitted a petition to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) with the goal of inspiring consumers to contact FDA to show their support of mandatory labeling of GE foods. Consumers can visit www.justlabelit.org to submit support of labeling to FDA.

Melvin Wylie

Fracking Litigation Conference in Dallas Dec. 13

DALLAS, TX - Responding to the controversy and need for clear legal perspectives around "hydraulic fracturing," commonly called "fracking," HB Litigation Conferences will hold its second conference on the subject in Dallas on Dec. 13, 2011, HB CEO Tom Hagy has announced. A panel of experts, including plaintiff and defense attorneys, will join chairs Marc Bern of Napoli Bern Ripka LLP and Joshua Becker of Alston & Bird LLP to discuss a variety of topics relating to hydraulic fracturing litigation. "The increased use of fracking to extract natural gas from underground rock formations raises environmental and legal challenges and will be the topic of discussion by attorneys, professors and scientists at this program," Hagy said. HB's first program, held in Philadelphia, drew more than 100 attendees. The "Gas Drilling Operations Conference" will be held Dec. 13, 2011 at the Cityplace Conference and Event Center in Dallas. The event is fully accredited for CLE. Experts include: John Imse, RG, Principal, Environ International Corp.; Gary Brown, PE, RT Environmental Services, Inc.; and Phillip Watters, P.E., Kleran Purcell, P.E. and John Orr, CPCU, all of Rimkus Consulting, Inc. Litigators include: Adam Orford of Marten Law; Keith Hall of Stone Pigman Walther Wittmann; Hope Friewald of Dechert; Corey Zurbuch of Thomas Genshaft; William Jackson of Jackson Gilmour & Dobbs.; Beverlee Silva of Alston & Bird; Allen Stewart of Allen Stewart; Jennifer Quinn-Barabanov of Steptoe & Johnson; Richard Faulk of Gerdere Wynne Sewell; John Nevius of Anderson Kill & Olick; and Steven Pate of Fulbright & Jaworski. Topics include: the fracking process; the role of government; shale gas plays; land valuations; health and environmental risks; remediation; case intake; discovery; damages; examining contamination and injury cases; insurance coverage implications, plus a mock session illustrating what can go right and wrong for landowners, drillers and brokers. Discounts are available for groups and based on need. Some sponsorship opportunities are still available. Press passes are available upon request. For more information call Brownie Bokelman at (484) 324-2755, x212 or email her at Brownie.Bokelman@litigationconferences.com. See the latest agenda at www.LitigationConferences.com. HB Litigation Conferences is a nationwide provider of continuing legal education for plaintiff, defense and in-house counsel, focusing on emerging issues in mass torts and insurance. HB is an independent provider of legal education, formerly operating as Mealey's Conferences. It is not funded or affiliated with any organization.

Melvin Wylie

Gardner Mountain Conserved, Lyman's Scenic Backdrop

More than 1,000 acres protect bat habitat, working forest LYMAN, N.H. - Critically important bat habitat and a significant portion of Gardner Ridge, the scenic backdrop for New Hampshire's Town of Lyman, have been conserved, Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust and The Trust for Public Land announced. The conservation of 1,081 acres on Gardner Mountain includes an easement, supports timber management, protects important habitat, and guarantees public access, while restricting development not related to agriculture or forestry. This property has been operated as a commercial forest for more than 200 years and the current owner, the Merrill Family Trust, wished to see the property conserved rather than developed. In 2004 a wind farm development along Gardner Ridge was proposed and rejected by Lyman voters. A conservation project was then proposed for a new town forest for Lyman, but residents voted down a bond for the purchase of the property in March of 2009. Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust (ACT), the North Country's land conservancy, and The Trust for Public Land (TPL), a national conservation organization, pursued an alternative conservation strategy, conserving the land with an easement but keeping it in private ownership. After three years working with ACT and TPL the land has now been sold to a new owner, who will operate it as a commercial working forest subject to the conservation easement. Continued forestry will be done on a sustainable basis and will continue to support New Hampshire's rural economies. ACT will manage the easement. "Land protection projects often take a lot of time and work, as this one did," said ACT Executive Director Rebecca Brown. "I'm sure we all wish John Merrill had lived to see this happen. It's a great tribute to him and his family, and a tremendous gift to people everywhere who care about seeing our landscape conserved for future generations." "Gardner Mountain is a remarkable Lyman landmark worthy of protection," said J.T. Horn, project manager for The Trust for Public Land. "Our sincere thanks to the Merrill Family, New Hampshire's LCHIP fund, our other funding partners, and the Ammonoosuc Conservation Trust for seeing this project through to the end." Gardner Mountain includes some of the most important wildlife habitat in New Hampshire. Paddock Mine, an abandoned copper mine on the property, is one of the largest bat hibernacula in New Hampshire. Bats are under severe stress from a new and mysterious disease known as White Nose Syndrome, which is causing high mortality rates among several common species of bats. New Hampshire Fish and Game and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service believe that conservation of the Paddock Mine hibernacula is a critical part of the response to White Nose Syndrome in New Hampshire. "We appreciate the work that The Trust for Public Land and ACT have done in protecting this land," said Emily Brunkhurst, wildlife biologist for the NH Fish and Game Department. "Conserving this hibernacula provides a safe wintering habitat for bats who survive white-nose syndrome and their offspring. As you enjoy this newly conserved land, please help save our bats by staying out of the mine to allow them to hibernate without disturbance." Lyman is a rural community that set goals to maintain its heritage of agriculture, forestry, and open recreational access. The property contains a significant portion of the Gardner Ridge, Lyman's scenic backdrop with western views from the church and fields in the center of the Town. The property will also remain open to pedestrian access for hiking, cross-country skiing and hunting. Visitors will be able to enjoy the dramatic views from the property toward Mount Moosilauke and the Kinsman Ridge in the White Mountain National Forest. Funding for the $600,000 project came from the New Hampshire Land and Community Heritage Investment Program (LCHIP), Open Space Institute - Saving New England Wildlife Fund, New Hampshire Charitable Foundation - Upper Connecticut River Mitigation and Enhancement Fund, the McIninch Foundation, Fields Pond Foundation, the Byrne Foundation, New Hampshire Fish and Game Department through the Landowner Incentive Program, and many private individuals.

Melvin Wylie

Pew Calls for Extra Resources to Protect Penguin Food

Actors Damon and Pitt Give Tiny Krill Big Exposure in New "Happy Feet" Sequel WASHINGTON, D.C. - Tiny krill are about to take centre stage at the 30th Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) meeting, where governments will consider greater protection for the shrimplike crustaceans that are the building blocks of the Antarctic food chain. The attention these little animals receive will be amplified in mid-November, when the sequel to the film "Happy Feet" opens, with Matt Damon and Brad Pitt playing krill characters. Krill, a largely unknown but critical ocean species, are the primary food source for penguins, whales, and seals in the Southern Ocean. However, demand for these animals as feed for industrially farmed fish and to produce high-value oils used in nutritional supplements is triggering an expansion of the fishery beyond a level that its population can sustain. Left unchecked, krill fishing in certain areas could outpace efforts to protect the well-known species that depend on it. "It is perfect timing that two of Hollywood's biggest names are portraying the smallest actors in one of the world's most pristine ocean ecosystems," says Gerald Leape, a senior officer at the Pew Environment Group. "Existing efforts to regulate krill catch must be sustained and enforced, so that animals such as penguins and seals are not competing against industrial fishing vessels just to survive." In the past decade, fleets from more countries have begun to fish for krill. Some have adopted fishing technologies and methods that allow them to catch and process this species continuously, resulting in much higher catches. These operations, combined with accelerating loss of the sea ice that provides essential habitat for krill, threaten to deplete stocks in key feeding areas for penguins, seals, and whales. From 24 October - 4 November 2011, CCAMLR, a regional fisheries management organization whose mandate is to conserve the marine life of the Southern Ocean, is meeting in Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. Its 25 member governments include the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Argentina, the European Union, China, South Korea, Russia, Ukraine, Norway, and Japan. The Pew Environment Group is asking CCAMLR delegates at this month's meeting to:

• Require observers on all krill-fishing vessels.
• Set up a dedicated fund to monitor populations of krill predators.
• Maintain smaller sub-area divisions of the ocean to manage krill, in order to prevent local depletions that will harm animals such as penguins.

Melvin Wylie

Zidisha.org Facilitates $100,000 in P2P Microloans, "Turns Microfinance On Its Head"

While conducting fieldwork for a microfinance organization in West Africa in 2006, Zidisha.org founder Julia Kurnia noticed something startling. Loans that were funded at zero interest by well-meaning participants in the popular microlending website Kiva.org were costing the impoverished beneficiaries more than 35% on average in interest and fees. The exorbitant rates were charged by the local intermediary organizations that administered the loans, in order to cover their operating costs. It is generally assumed that such high interest rates are a necessary cost of making small loans in isolated and impoverished areas.  Microlending websites that administer "crowd-funded" loans through local intermediaries assume that the borrowers not only lack the necessary computer skills to communicate with lenders themselves, but also that they cannot be trusted to repay loans without constant visits by loan officers. Kurnia believed these assumptions were outdated, and to test her theory she founded Zidisha.org, a peer-to-peer microlending platform that turns the traditional approach to microfinance lending on its head. First, there are no intermediaries: instead, the entrepreneurs themselves post loan applications and communicate directly with lenders via facebook-style profile pages.  Zidisha does not outsource loan disbursements and repayment collection to local organizations either, but rather uses grassroots technology like mobile banking to conduct financial transactions with borrowers directly.  The result?  Radical transparency, and lower cost to borrowers than has ever before been possible in the developing world - even though Zidisha.org lenders earn interest as well. Zidisha is tapping into the growing population of computer-literate, but still economically disadvantaged, small business owners and explosive growth of internet access that have transformed developing countries in recent years.  Borrowers log in to Zidisha.org to share business updates with lenders from cheap internet cafés, old laptops donated to local schools, and solar-powered smartphones shared by entire villages. Today, loans funded through Zidisha.org surpassed the $100,000 mark. Since making their first microloans - to three nomadic herders in Kenya's remote Masai Mara - in October 2009, Zidisha lenders from around the world have financed 181 small business ventures in Burkina Faso, Indonesia, Kenya and Senegal. Zidisha's average lender interest rate is 2.96%, and the repayment rate to date is 99.5%. Zidisha believes in transparency. So ask questions, meet our remarkable entrepreneurs, and become part of the conversation. Join us at www.zidisha.org.

Melvin Wylie

National Race to End Women’s Cancer 2011

November 8, 2011 – This past Sunday, November 6, 2011, I was privileged to attend the National Race to End Women's Cancer. I was invited by Pam, a fellow high school graduate of Osbourn Park High School, to be part of her team "I Dream of Jeanie". It was a nice sunny brisk morning with a very large crowd of people from all over the country attending the event. Many had stores on how they got there. Some were there to honor loved ones, some cancer survivors, some still battling cancer and some for support. I was there to help celebrated the life of Pam's mother, Jeanie Nay Watson, who passed away from battling cancer. The love and encouragement from the attendees, onlookers, police, and support personnel could be felt in their cheers of encouragement. As we walked by, many cheered "Go team I dream of Jeanie", they clapped, nodded their heads in encouragement and some took pictures and video. The rout started in front of the Old Posts Office Pavilion, went up Pennsylvania Avenue, near the Capitol and wound its way back to the Old Post Office. The highlight of the race had to be nearing the finish line as the announcer said "Here comes Team I Dream of Jeanie, thank you for all your support…" Crossing the line was emotional as I have lost my mother who battled cancer for many years eventually passing away from the disease. After crossing the line Pam broke down as this race meant a lot to her. I've come to realize that cancer not only hurts the victim but also affects the family, loved ones and friends. It's a tough road filled with pain and hopefulness that everything will get better. If anyone had to be there for a parent or loved one can truly understand what it's like rushing to the hospital late at night because something went wrong. I'm happy I lived close enough to be a support for my mother who battled cancer and my father who needed the strength to cope with the situation.

I want to thank Mike, Teresa, Christina and Beth for showing up to making Pam's race a success. I also want to thank all the people and organizations that work day in and day out to help find a cure to end this disease.

It was great getting together with people I have not seen in over 20 years and making new friends. If you have not given to any causes I would encourage you to help support ending cancer. I will be running this race next year in Washington D.C. as part of Team I Dream of Jeanie and I will be asking the readers of GreenNews4U to help raise money for team I Dream of Jeanie.

Melvin Wylie