China Bans Free Plastic Bags!

Come June 2008 all stores in the entire country of China will be no longer be able to give out plastic shopping bags for free. The regulation is a part of Beijing’s effort to reverse the trend of their countries severe air and water pollution. As the country has experienced great economic growth due to the output of more and more low-cost consumer products, they have been met with the dark side of critical environmental conditions. Now its time to cut pollution, and conserve resources. The regulation requires all stores to mark the cost of each plastic bag and prohibits them for incluing the new price in the price of the product. The regulation also calls on all consumers to return to yesterdays cloth and basket methods for shopping.

While “white pollution” (as some call it in reference to the swarms of white plastic “thank you” shopping bags) has started to clutter our streets and pile up in our landfills, other cities are seeing the severity of the situation. San Francisco was the first U.S. state to impose a ban on all petrolium based bags, among other cities are Hong Kong, and Melbourne.

So peers, the race is on, and the wheels are turning us around. Forget about the hopes for switching to compostable plastic bags (although better, they are still made for one-time use experiences), get inspired by change then go out and do it yourself. Write an email to your Mayor or talk to someone in the Department of Environment, and encourage a new policy.

Glass, How Is It Made?

We all know and use glass everyday in one way or another. This week, we stumbled on this great video from the Discovery Channel covering the manufacturing process for glass sheeting.

Daily GreenBoard

Looking for A Scrap Resource?

Material Scraps is a reseller. They add new listings frequently to their site. The scraps come from Mechmar and other manufacturers who don’t want their excess material to go to waste. You will find items such as… 7/16″ Thick x 60″ Wide Gray Wool Felt - $41.39. For more information or to visit their store, visit materialscraps.com.

Architects For a Better World

Screening this winter and spring throughout Europe is Architects for a better world by Jacques Allard. It was filmed in 12 locations around the globe and brings many diverse perspectives on the sustainability in Architecture. The movie was filmed in High Definition and will be released in 8 languages. “This film is about people who care about our future, and who want to make a difference.” For more information visit lastcallforplanetearth.eu.

World Economic Forum Meeting

A must see video. “The World Economic Forum is an independent international organization committed to improving the state of the world by engaging leaders in partnerships to shape global, regional and industry agendas. Incorporated as a foundation in 1971, and based in Geneva, Switzerland, the World Economic Forum is impartial and not-for-profit; it is tied to no political, partisan or national interests.” This video moderated by Thomas Friedman features Bono and Al Gore discussing the climate crisis and extreme poverty issues.

Belts Made From Belts

Linda Demers from à La Mode Designs sells products that are often made from post-industrial scrap. Through her site, you’ll find these great belts made from automobile seatbelts, an urban twist on the classic “d” ring belt. She say’s her biggest challenges are being able to find consistent reclaimed materials to use and sourcing manufacturers who can sell or donate smaller quantities.

Getting Material With Paper

“Papercraft” or paper models are printed and assembled by many as a hobby. Some enthusiasts are scratchbuilding their own using programs like Adobe Illustrator. Templates can be found all over the internet, ranging from quite simple to really complex. We recently stumbled upon this robot from Star Wars available for download here…