Learning and Living the Green Life in the Philippines

Biofuel Questions Answered

After typhoons Ondoy and Pepeng life and living in the Philippines, will surely be subject of much rethinking. Filipinos are now awakened by the creeping threat of Climate Change, and have started asking: how we can survive it, how we can stop it, how we can reverse it. Green Living should now not just be a "fashionable lifestyle option," but the only way we should be living our lives.

When there is talk of cutting carbonfootprint, car emissions and fuel alternatives are the first to come to mind. Our government has made policies on the promotion, development and use of biofuels.  Yet some of us are still wary of shifting to biofuels.

 

Climate Change : Our Worsening Health

The Philippines had a Crash Course on Climate Change and it wasn‘t the desirable kind. We could only wish now that we learned it first in the classroom or from a friend over good coffee. For some of us, we actually might have heard it before but have brushed it aside for some more pressing problems, maybe.

Some are not too inclined to view graphs, charts and chemical formulas -- science to some may best be explained through analogy.

What’s Your Carbon Footprint

First, we ask, “What is carbon footprint?” Once that is clear, it’s interesting to know how big our own CARBON FOOTPRINT is.

Each one of us contribute to GLOBAL WARMING; and, yes, to CLIMATE CHANGE -- even if one doesn’t drive a “truck”, even infants, and even the “greenest” of us. The way we live our lives -- how we earn our keep; what we eat; what we drive; what we wear; what we use to cleanse ourselves; where we travel to -- shape our personal imprint and determine the immensity or relative smallness of our input or share in the increase of greenhouse gases in our atmosphere.

 

What is Climate Change

Many Filipinos now are asking, "What is Climate Change?"

Simply, it's what we have been experiencing in recent years -- hotter summers, out-of-season rainy days and sunny days, off-the-textbook rainfall and flood volume, record floods, record temperatures. Simply, it's what we just suffered from this weekend. CLIMATE CHANGE is REAL. It is not just a hypothesis as many discount it to be.

Greentionary Part 2

We will, in the course of our study, learn a few new words. We'll look at available definitions on the internet, and refer to them; if there's none or we think we can define them better, we'll do so. We had our first Greentionary 2 months ago. You could always look them up again: there's the Green Dictionary link on the left margin.

Green Space at The Sunday Times

I sent a copy of a previous post, as my second contribution, to the Green Space spot of ECHOstore in the Sunday Times.  Read from Manila Times' website or go back to the post, Green Tipping Point and Greenwashing .

 

Why Hate Greenwashing and Why Aspire for the Green Tipping Point

Any small step towards greening should be appreciated, that was the principle I follow; thus, I shun from belittling efforts of neither individuals nor groups, neither private nor commercial.

Any small step is a good step towards the right direction: a shove, a push towards the tipping point of the eventual "greening" of our society.

One would know the eventual "greening" state of the society when:

Greentionary: the Green Words We Need to Know

In my research, I encountered several words and acronyms which made me realize how much of green living, green architecture and ecological intelligence I do not, yet, know. In order for me to further my education, I have to take some foundational steps like building up my green vocabulary.

Each week, I'll post definitions to key terms and acronyms. Suggestions for words for me to post are welcome. Any word in mind?

I listed these on the book edge and vowed to look them up and share them here:

• green home -

one that meets at least a few of the following criteria:
Made with generally non-toxic building materials;
Energy efficient - a generally tight house with energy efficient appliances and windows and HVAC and ventilation systems;
Solar home - derives most of its space and water heating from the sun
Recycled content materials;
Resource efficient materials;
Materials from renewable resources;
Sensitive to its neighbors and context;
Use of locally manufactured building materials
Source: SustainableABC.com

carbon footprint - The total set of greenhouse gas emissions caused directly and indirectly by an [individual, event, organisation, product] expressed as CO2e. Source: Carbon Trust

life cycle cost - is the product life cost. In the past this has been primarily a way of assessing ‘cost of ownership’ throughout life, which totals capital cost, running costs, servicing and maintenance, and eventually disposal. The concept can however be extended to cover the product’s impact on the environment and/or the energy involved in the activities, remembering that all purchased materials will have consumed energy at all stages from the extraction of raw materials to final manufacture. Source: University of Bolton

life cycle assessment -A 'Life Cycle Assessment'('LCA', also known as 'life cycle analysis', 'ecobalance', and 'cradle-to-grave analysis') is the investigation and valuation of the environmental impacts of a given product or service caused or necessitated by its existence. Source: Answers.com

greenwashing - is the practice of making an unsubstantiated or misleading claim about the environmental benefits of a product, service, technology or company practice. Greenwashing can make a company appear to be more environmentally friendly than it really is. It can also be used to differentiate a company's products or services from its competitors by promising more efficient use of power or by being more cost-effective over time. Source: SearchCRM.com