Monday, August 8, 2011

Reduce - Reuse - Recycle - Respect





Recycling is processing used materials (waste) into new products to prevent waste of potentially useful materials, reduce the consumption of fresh raw materials, reduce energy usage, reduce air pollution (from incineration) and water pollution (from landfilling) by reducing the need for "conventional" waste disposal, and lower greenhouse gas emissions  as compared to virgin production.[1][2] Recycling is a key component of modern waste reduction and is the third component of the "ReduceReuse, Recycle" waste hierarchy.
There are some ISO standards relating to recycling such as ISO 15270:2008 for plastics waste and ISO 14001:2004 for environmental management control of recycling practice.
Recyclable materials include many kinds of glasspapermetalplastictextiles, and electronics. Although similar in effect, the composting or other reuse of biodegradable waste – such as food or garden waste – is not typically considered recycling.[2] Materials to be recycled are either brought to a collection center or picked up from the curbside, then sorted, cleaned, and reprocessed into new materials bound for manufacturing.
In the strictest sense, recycling of a material would produce a fresh supply of the same material—for example, used office paper would be converted into new office paper, or used foamed polystyrene into new polystyrene. However, this is often difficult or too expensive (compared with producing the same product from raw materials or other sources), so "recycling" of many products or materials involves their reuse in producing different materials (e.g., paperboard) instead. Another form of recycling is the salvage of certain materials from complex products, either due to their intrinsic value (e.g., lead from car batteries, or gold from computer components), or due to their hazardous nature (e.g., removal and reuse ofmercury from various items). Critics dispute the net economic and environmental benefits of recycling over its costs, and suggest that proponents of recycling often make matters worse and suffer from confirmation bias. Specifically, critics argue that the costs and energy used in collection and transportation detract from (and outweigh) the costs and energy saved in the production process; also that the jobs produced by the recycling industry can be a poor trade for the jobs lost in logging, mining, and other industries associated with virgin production; and that materials such as paper pulp can only be recycled a few times before material degradation prevents further recycling. Proponents of recycling dispute each of these claims, and the validity of arguments from both sides has led to enduring controversy.
Please see more information: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recycling

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Paul Nicklen: Tales of ice-bound wonderlan



Paul Nicklen photographs the creatures of the Arctic and Antarctic, generating global awareness about wildlife in these isolated and endangered environments.


Diving under the Antarctic ice to get close to the much-feared leopard seal, photographer Paul Nicklen found an extraordinary new friend. Share his hilarious, passionate stories of the polar wonderlands, illustrated by glorious images of the animals who live on and under the ice.

Paul Nicklen grew up one of only a few non-Inuit in an Inuit settlement on Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada -- a childhood that taught him the patience, stamina and respect for nature required for his beat in the frigid climes of Earth’s polar regions. Best known for his vivid and intimate wildlife photos for National Geographic, Nicklen started out a biologist in the Northwest Territories, gathering data on such species as lynx, grizzlies, and polar bears. Today he bridges the gap between scientific research and the public, showing how fragile and fast-changing habitats are profoundly affecting wildlife.


During the course of his workday Nicklen regularly comes face-to-face with fantastic creatures: narwhals, Arctic foxes, elephant seals, and more. His most amazing experience? An underwater encounter with a leopard seal who for four days tried to feed him penguins through the "mouth" of his lens.
"When you get in the water with a wild animal, you're essentially giving yourself to that animal because, as humans, we're quite helpless and vulnerable in the water. You're at the seal's mercy. You're at the predator's mercy."
Paul Nicklen, National Geographic

Frans Lanting - Fotografías líricas de la naturaleza



En esta impresionante presentación el célebre fotógrafo de la naturaleza Frans Lanting presenta el proyecto LIFE, una poética colección de fotografías que cuentan la historia de nuestro planeta, desde sus eruptivos comienzos hasta su diversidad actual. Banda sonora de Philip Glass.

Frans Lanting is one of the greatest nature photographers of our time. His work has been featured in National Geographic, Audubon and Time, as well as numerous award-winning books. Lanting's recent exhibition, The LIFE Project, offers a lyrical interpretation of the history of life on Earth.
In the pursuit of his work, Frans Lanting has lived in the trees with wild macaws, camped with giant tortoises inside a volcanic crater, and documented never-before-photographed wildlife and tribal traditions in Madagascar. The Dutch-born, California-based photographer has traveled to Botswana's Okavango Delta, the rain forests of Borneo and the home of emperor penguins in Antarctica.
The resulting photographs -- staggering in their beauty, startling in their originality -- have brought much-needed attention to endangered species and ecological crises throughout the world. In 2001, HRH Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands inducted Lanting as a Knight in the Royal Order of the Golden Ark, the country's highest conservation honor -- just one of many honors he has received throughout his illustrious career.

"As a chronicler of natural history today, Frans Lanting is a singular extraordinary talent. He has the mind of a scientist, the heart of a hunter, and the eyes of a poet."

Monday, April 25, 2011

The Mountain and The Aurora

French: http://bit.ly/em5uez  

The Mountain

Terje Sorgjerd is master of drawing the unbelievable out of the natural world. The Norwegian photographer and videographer, whose work has been published in National Geographic, Reuters, the Washington Post and elsewhere, is probably best known for his mind-blowing photographs of the Eyjafjallajokull volcano that erupted in Iceland in 2010, disrupting air travel between North America and Europe for nearly a week. Terje Sorgjerd has a talent for videography and time-lapse photography as well; his video "The Aurora," recorded over the span of a week in the Kirkenes and Pas National Park bordering Russia, captured the ripple of the Aurora Borealis.
On April 4, Sorgjerd set out to capture the Milky Way with the same vividness as the Aurora. Shooting from El Teide, Spain´s highest peak, the result was "The Mountain:"



The Mountain from Terje Sorgjerd on Vimeo.

"El Teide is one of the best places in the world to photograph the stars and is also the location of Teide Observatories, considered to be one of the world´s best observatories," Sorgjerd wrote on his Vimeo page: 


The goal was to capture the beautiful Milky Way galaxy along with one of the most amazing mountains I know, El Teide. I have to say this was one of the most exhausting trips I have done. There was a lot of hiking at high altitudes and probably less than 10 hours of sleep in total for the whole week. Having been here 10-11 times before I had a long list of must-see locations I wanted to capture for this movie, but I am still not 100% used to carrying around so much gear required for time-lapse movies.


While Sorgjerd's photographs are nothing short of astounding, the music -- "Nuvole bianche" composed by Sorgjerd's friend Ludovico Einaudi -- truly makes the video. Read more about Sorgjerd's technique at Vimeo.


The Aurora



The Aurora from Terje Sorgjerd on Vimeo.