Triple Pundit: A juicy issue...

I have long held that Organic Soy, Hemp, or Almond milk (soup broth, etc.) in a non-recyclable* Tetra-Pack does not a green product make. This is one of those dilemmas of availability, as the alternative is often... nothing. The Triple Pundit article quoted below lists the promise of Biomimicry to make the process of reclamation more energy efficient. Now, if they'll just start doing something about that here in the states.

*Due to the lack of infrastructure here in the states, they are either landfill or shipped great distances to be 70% reclaimed.

Triple Pundit: A juicy issue...

Have you enjoyed some soy milk today? Perhaps a nice juice pack? Or added to your soup with a broth in a box? It's so convenient, having packaging that allows you to not depend on refrigeration, and not be limited by short expiration dates. Most of those packages are created by Tetrapak. They seem benign, these aseptic packages, keeping the germs at bay, and storing well for another day.

And yet, there's a problem: To get this level of non refrigerated packaging, it requires layering multiple materials upon one another, including cardboard, polythene, and aluminum. Add to this the plastic spout at the top, yet another material, and you'll find that recycling these is beyond the means and willingness of most places.

We Went to the Moon. We can do 35 MPG | EcoGeek

We Went to the Moon. We can do 35 MPG | EcoGeek

Great Image.

Convenience Wins, Hubris Loses and Content vs. Context, a Presentation for Some Music Industry Friends at FISTFULAYEN

This is an interesting article, both for what it is saying about the music industry (and content providers as a whole) as well (and perhaps more importantly) about illuminating the role that vested interest plays in stifling creativity and technological development in order to protect current position.

Imagine, for example, what cars would look like today if only we used our inherent ability as humans to create rather than protect, rather than the DRM-like struggle that was illuminated in the movie Who Killed The Electric Car? I know, the standard answer is that the market would encourage it if it were economical, but read this article (and watch the aforementioned movie) for an insight into the greater story, beyond the dogma of Econ 101.

The viewpoint of the author is very refreshing, and may point to a greater trend emerging in our approach to exchanging our creative potential.

"I’m here to tell you today that I for one am no longer going to fall into this trap. If the licensing labels offer their content to Yahoo! put more barriers in front of the users, I’m not interested. Do what you feel you need to do for your business, I’ll be polite, say thank you, and decline to sign. I won’t let Yahoo! invest any more money in consumer inconvenience. I will tell Yahoo! to give the money they were going to give me to build awesome media applications to Yahoo! Mail or Answers or some other deserving endeavor. I personally don’t have any more time to give and can’t bear to see any more money spent on pathetic attempts for control instead of building consumer value. Life’s too short. I want to delight consumers, not bum them out.

"If, on the other hand, you’ve seen the light too, there’s a very fun road ahead for us all. Lets get beyond talking about how you get the music and into building context: reasons and ways to experience the music. The opportunity is in the chasm between the way we experience the content and the incredible user-created context of the Web."

WorldChanging: Electric Vehicle Roundup

Sure, some of these may never see production, or may be 'optimistic' about the features and performance, but it truly is refreshing to see the design and engineering shake-up going on in industry as a whole; and the automotive world in particular.

This is a great article that shows some of the pre-order possibilities (and some that are ACTUALLY being produced) of EVs today. What I like about the article is the focus on start-ups and smaller companies (the Chevy Volt is conspicuously absent from the list) that are following a classic innovation path (as documented in The Innovator's Dilemma) to unseat the unresponsive Dino's of Detroit, and even some that think they are the greenest thing going.

Now, if we can just keep our old Camry going for a few more years...

Welcome to the Corn Ethanol Backlash | EcoGeek

From the original:

Welcome to the Corn Ethanol Backlash | EcoGeek | Ethanol, Have, Corn, Biofuels, Barley: "The Economist published a story entitled (no, I'm not kidding) Ethanol Schmethanol, which points out some of the limitations of the fuel itself, while National Geographic's cover story 'Green Dreams' bemoans the inefficiency of the current ethanol system. Finally, WIRED's cover story hits on much the same topic, but from a more technical perspective, with a focus on cellulosic ethanol and switchgrass. Long story short? Corn ethanol isn't working. It's inefficient, reduces supplies of actual food which actual people need to actually eat, and increased demand is only leading to the destruction of the last untouched American prairie lands. But solutions might be on the way in the form of cellulosic ethanol, which is much more energy efficient (though more expensive) to produce, as well as alternate forms of biofuels that are more energy dense and gasoline-like than ethanol (namely butanol.)"