Thursday, March 18, 2010

WildAid Videos to Save the Tigers

WildAid is an NGO acting through various programs in China, India, Canada and the Galapagos. In 2010, their focus is on saving the wild tigers. With only a few animals left in the wild, the different tiger species are under very high extinction threat. The reasons behind the decrease in their population is all related to human activities: Destruction of their natural habitat and poaching. Their meat, bones and other body parts are used in traditional Chinese medicine and their skin is sold at very high prices. Some people still believe that consuming Tiger body parts will give them strength. Please watch and share the few videos below made by WildLife.
Don't let the year of the tiger be the last year of the tigers

Tiger farms


Wednesday, March 17, 2010

I’d Rather Wear Fur than go Naked

"I’d Rather Wear Fur than go Naked" - It is with this shocking statement that the French designer Quentin Veron introduced his latest collection during the Paris Fashion week a couple weeks ago. In the recent years, many organisations endorsed by celebrities have been fighting hard to ban fur from being treated as a fashion element, especially when animals are killed in cruel manners. Some of the major designers such as Channel have set the right example and now use synthetic fur which resembles exactly to the real one. Unlike popular beliefs, what used to be low quality is now as good if not better than natural fur, and no animal is harmed in the process.

PETA: I'd rather go naked than wear fur
The slogan used by Veron is in contrast with the PETA campaign against animal cruelty "I'd rather go naked than wear fur" (see PETA banner ad).

Not everyone will agree with me but I believe this kind of behavior is pure and simple provocation. There are other ways to get a couple of weeks of temporary fame/buzz. I'm gonna sound a bit harsh on that one but Quentin Veron IS a loser! I don't dislike his collections, I just hate that childish behavior. Below are a few pictures of dead racoons, foxes and minks.

Hundreds of Nuclear Bombs Lost in the Wild!

I stumbled upon a few articles today mentionning surprisingly high number of lost nuclear bombs. Nuclear bombs were invented in the early 1940's and have known many incidents since then. Many bombs have been lost when bombers crashed at sea, when navy boats collided or when nuclear submarines needed to be abandonned.

The most recent incident dates back to the year 2000 when the Kursk, a Russian submarine, encountered a terrible accident in the Barents Sea where all crew members drowned. This was the 7th nuclear submarine to be lost at sea (5 Russians + 2 Americans).
In total, it is said that there are so far 92 known cases of lost nuclear bombs around the world (15 of which we have an approximate idea of the location). Some of which could also be hiding in your backyard or farm field! This figure would be different in reality as I am certain some have been retrieved by now, but other cases might have not been reported for safety reasons. Some rumors raise that number to several hundreds.

Tuesday, March 16, 2010

It's a fact! Military Sonars Kill Whales

As technology evolves, we humans have developped increasingly powerful sonar equipments. They can be used to seek enemy submarines or off-shore petrol reserves. But these devices emit very intense sounds that disturb the orientation and communication between the sea creatures. After numerous military exercises, many whales, dolphins or other sorts of porpoises ended up washing up on the shores and later died of the diving disease, symptoms that would naturally never occur on these animals.

Below are three videos that explain the issue in more details.





Monday, March 15, 2010

Prince Charles' Copenhagen Speech [Video + Transcript]

In December 2009, Copenhagen held an international conference about climate change. Prince Charles made an alarming but wise speech underlining the crisis we face and the necessity to find sustainable ways of turning this trend around. I have enclosed below his speech as well as the transcript, which I believe is worth listening to. You can also read more on The Prince's Rainforest Project, Rainforest SOS.

Monday, March 1, 2010

Cycling 20,000 kilometers from Norway to South Africa for Unicef!

Poor Planet is not only about environmental issues. We also care about issues affecting those who live on this planet. This is why I want to present the following humanitarian project to you. This project struck me because it is a difficult challenge but also an amazing experience on many levels, especially human and cultural. Three Norwegian cyclists have decided to cycle from their home country Norway all the way down... to South Africa! Yes, that's nearly 20,000 kilometers and a year spent cycling through 20 different countries! Their goal is simple, raise as much money as possible. The donated money will go to UNICEF projects in order to fund schools in Africa.

You can follow their adventures on their online diary and show your support. They regularly update their blog with new stories and pictures of their trip. They have accounts with all major social networks such as Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, Vimeo, Facebook. Their initial goal was to raise $86,000. After six months into their trip, they have raised little over $5,000. Help them help children.

 
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