Ecuador has become the first nation in the world to grant constitutional rights to the natural environment. On Sept. 28, the country voted for a new constitution that, among other changes, gives many of the same rights to rivers, forests, plants and animals as it does to people. (From the Green Report, Toronto Globe and Mail)
Rivers, Plants and Animals Now Have Constitutional Rights
Clean Energy Act Sets Philippines Up for $3 Billion Savings
Landmark legislation to accelerate use of the vast renewable energy potential in the Philippines through incentives for investors could save the country over $2.9 billion dollars, a study has found. The newly passed Renewable Energy Act assures investors in wind, solar, ocean, hydropower and biomass premium rates in electricity generated from these clean sources.
US Gas Prices Down Nationwide
The average price of regular gas has dropped 35 cents over the past two weeks to $3.31 a gallon. The cheapest gas is in Wichita, Kansas, at $2.79 for a gallon of regular. Analysts say the prices could drop even lower with crude oil prices falling below $80.00 a barrel. (Video below)
50 Years of NASA Innovations Gave Us Easier Life
In celebration of 50 years of NASA, take a look at 50 innovations that, thanks to space exploration, have made our lives better — everything from safer food and the light emitting diode (LED) to cleaner oceans and faster rescues of hikers and mountaineers. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Cancer Sniffing Dog Saves Woman
Scientific evidence has confirmed the ability of dogs to smell cancer. Now, a foster puppy returned the favor to a North Texas woman who rescued the dog from an animal shelter. Peanut sniffed out her cancer and alerted the woman to its location.
World’s First Double-Arm Transplant Recipient Calls ‘Being Whole Again’ Indescribable
Doctors spent 15 hours in July grafting human arms onto the body of 54-year-old farmer Karl Merk, who lost his own just below the shoulder in a farm accident involving a combine six years ago. (Fox News has story/photos — or watch the Video below)
Brad Pitt’s First “Make It Right” Homes Completed in New Orleans
The first homes in Brad Pitt’s Make It Right rebuilding project are complete, some three years after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. A 68-year-old grandmother Gloria Guy was on hand to give the actor a big hug. Guy is moving into one of the first of some 150 Make It Right homes planned for a district where levees crumbled after Katrina, unleashing floodwaters that knocked previous homes off their foundations. (Yahoo News has the AP story)
Stem Cell Generation From Ordinary Cells Now Safe
Japanese researchers who invented a way to make powerful stem cells out of ordinary cells say they have now found a safer way to do it. Kyoto University researchers invented a new way to transform ordinary cells into embryonic-like stem cells called iPS cells, using mice and a method they believe can work in people, too.
Puppy Rescued from Well After 3 Hours
A Texas puppy fell into a 75-foot deep well and it took firefighters more than 3 hours to get it out using a pulley system they devised. (Read the story at KLTV or watch video below)
13-year-old Tennis Ace Who ‘Died’ for 15 Minutes… and Survived
An elite 13-year-old athlete who dreamed of becoming the next Andy Murray died for 15 minutes but has miraculously survived. The healthy teenager is one of the youngest people in the UK to have suffered a heart attack and made a complete recovery. (Daily Mail online )
Hard Up Man Makes £36 Million for Simple Zip Tie Invention
Television contestant Andrew Harsley won’t be strapped for cash anymore – after a £36million deal for a little plastic tie. The “amazingly simple” device which hooks on to itself, was snapped up by a leading plastic distributor which has ordered a billion. Now, the 35 year-pld has become by far the most successful wannabe on the BBC program, Dragons’ Den. (The UK Mirror online)
Sheriff Suspends Foreclosure Evictions Against Innocent Renters
Even renters who have not missed a payment are caught in the foreclosure squeeze nationwide, but now Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart has taken a stand saying he would help innocent renters who are playing by the rules, but whose landlords are facing foreclosure, by protecting them from surprise eviction. (Great video below; more video and text story here)
Silver Linings in the Economic Crisis (w/ Video)
There may be a dark cloud over the economy, but it does have a silver lining, explains a financial journalist, beginning with gas prices. Floridians and Virginians are now paying under $3 per gallon. Vera Gibbons also points to housing sales, higher rates for savings (your money can earn 3-4%; compare at Bankrate.com), and lower prices predicted for holiday gift-buying.
Indonesia Reaches Historic Agreement To Protect World’s Most Endangered Tropical Forests
Indonesian authorities have pledged to stop the devastating loss of forests and species in Sumatra, one of the world’s most ecologically important hotspots. To protect the homes of iconic species like the tiger, orangutan, rhinoceros and elephant, all ten governors on the island have committed to obey the principles of “ecosystem-based planning”, where any projects detrimental to ecological health would be banned.
Rescuers Save Hundreds of Penguins Stranded Off Course (Video)
More than 1000 juvenile Magellanic penguins washed-up either dead or dying along the Brazilian coast after their search for food left them stranded, hundreds of miles from their usual feeding grounds. One week later, 373 had been rehabilitated, loaded onto a Brazil air force cargo plane and flown 1,550 miles. Watch the inspiring release coordinated by the rescue group, International Fund for Animal Welfare — and more videos about the rescue at their website.
Pending Home Sales Rise Unexpectedly
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in August, jumped 7.4 percent, and is 8.8 percent higher than August 2007. Lower interest rates and bargain home prices pushed the August total to the highest level in 14 months.
New Ford Car Key Lets Parents Limit Teen’s Speed
Talk about a back-seat driver! Ford Motor Co. has created a device which allows parents to control how fast their teenagers drive, limits the volume on the car radio and makes sure their seat belts are fastened. It’s called “MyKey”…
Va. Governor Slashes Own Office Budget, Takes Pay Cut
Responding to the economic slowdown, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine is giving himself a pay cut. Demonstrating to Wall Street CEOs how to act when times are tough, the Democrat announced yesterday he’s cutting his own salary by five percent and the executive budget by 1.4 million dollars.
Cuts include “the grocery list for the Executive Mansion by one-fourth; less dry cleaning for drapes in the mansion; and fewer official trips by Kaine and first lady Anne Holton.” (More Details at WAVY-TV.com)
Bailout Bill Benefits Green Consumers and Renewable Energy Industries
Whatever you think about the financial rescue package the US Congress and president passed into law last week, it also includes incentives and benefits for consumers and businesses helping to expand energy conservation and renewable energy in America.
The bill provides a $3,000 tax credit toward the purchase of a fuel-efficient, plug-in hybrid vehicle. Additional tax credits boost industries pushing alternative fuels, geothermal and wind, but the big winner by far was solar.
Hundreds of New Marine Species Discovered by Australian Scientists
Hundreds of new marine species and previously uncharted undersea mountains and canyons have been discovered in the depths of the Southern Ocean, Australian scientists said today. A total of 274 species of fish, ancient corals, molluscs, crustaceans and sponges new to science were found in icy waters up to 3,000 metres (9,800 feet) deep among extinct volcanoes, they said.