Google has announced that it is going to launch a series of tools to understand the impact of climate change at a global level and to help devise solutions to tackle the issue of global warming and climate change.

The first in the series is a 2 minute introductory tour with narration by none other than Al Gore, the most visible person in the fight against global warming.

The effort is in collaboration with the Danish Government, which is hosting the 15th Conference of the United Nations Climate Change Convention in December this year.

They have also announced that they will be launching a youtube channel specifically targeted at COP. At the channel, we can post our questions to the decision makers and these questions (videos) will be broadcast on screens placed around the conference area.

Tags: climate change, Global Warming

On Friday April 17, Oxfam India launched, with the Indi rock band Euphoria launched a special music video Payenge Aisa Jahan on climate change.

The aim of the music video is to create awareness among people at large about the perils of global warming and the resulting climate change. The launch also had farmers from AP and UP recite their real life stories - on how reckless industrialisation and commercialisation has changed their lives and livelihood.

An online climate change signature campaign at www.climatechange.com was also launched by the Oxfam ambassador and actor Rahul Bose.  I logged in this morning to be a part but looks like the site is under construction. Anyhow, the campaign has been designed to create enough public pressure for the upcoming UN meeting in Copenhangen in December 2009.

Tags: environment conservation, Global Warming, green living

Scientists are planning to launch robotic fish off the port of Gijon (North Spain) to detect pollution levels in the sea. The fish are remarkably life-like and can remain underwater for several hours.

Each robotic fish measures about 1.5 m in length and has cost some Rs. 14.9 lakh to make.  These robotic fish will collect data and transmit it using Wi-Fi technology.  They are battery operated and are designed to get back to their charging stations every 8 hours or so to recharge their batteries…sounds straight out of a sci-fi movie!

Tags: environment conservation, Pollution, save nature, science & technology, underwater world, Water Conservation

Earth Hour is a good way to raise awareness of the issue of global warming and how our collective effort can save our beautiful planet. However, while a whole lot of people participated in the earth hour on 28th of March and switched off all non-essential lights for an hour from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm, it was weird to see the same people switch on a galaxy of lights immediately after and go about their business as usual. Well, is that what earth hour is all about? All hype and little substance? Do people participate just to sound ‘cool’ and ‘with it’ or do they really understand the meaning behind the campaign?

If negating global warming and saving the planet really mean the earth to us, then why don’t we make “consuming less” a  way of life? Why do we need to switch on a sea of lights on the Vegas strip? Why do office building have most lights on even long after all staff has left? Why do hotels and restaurants have a sea of lights on all the time? Why do we keep our windows covered with blinds? Why don’t we use natural light? Why do we keep the AC on in our cars when the weather outside is pleasant enough? Why do we first stay all the time in air conditioned environs and then go for sauna and visit spas and gyms to sweat and get rid of toxins?

Tags: environment conservation, Global Warming, green living, Stop Wasting, Sustainable Living

Will we take a break and ask ourselves why aren’t we doing something about the environment while we can? We shake our head, shrug and feel how one person’s (read my) consuming less will help while the rest of the world is hogging resources. Lets remember little drops of water make up the ocean…

Tags: "the age of stupid", environment conservation, Global Warming, green living, Save Earth, Stop Wasting, Sustainable Living

Not just global warming but also higher costs for corporations. A recent report by McKinsey & Co. suggests that data centers are grossly under used leading to tremendous wastage of energy on a global scale and causing major cost inefficiencies at the corporation level. With one of the companies which they studied, they observed that a third of their 500 servers had utilization rates below 3%; and about 2/3rds had utilization rate below 10%. Wow, what a waste of power. If not for global warming, then atleast to pare their costs, companies need to work out processes to better manage their data center capacities.

McKinsey’s research brings up interesting findings like, almost every company can double its data center energy efficiency through better, cohesive data center management, better planning, and increased accountability. And this will lead to more efficient energy usage, cutting down in terms of both capital investments for setting up or expanding a datacenter (including expensive real estate) and recurring costs, and, a good level of reduction in CO2 emissions! Plenty of incentives to do what is necessary. And indeed I can’t help saying that common sense isn’t so common after all. While it would seem to be common sense to expand capacity only when the current set up is fully utilized, it appears that companies end up spending billions more than necessary because of poor management.

Tags: Global Warming, Stop Wasting, Sustainable Living

Several researches in the present times have focused on Global Warming. A recent report of such a research published in Science suggests that at least half of world’s population could face serious food shortages.

• There is a greater than 90% probability that the lowest crop-growing-season temperatures in the tropics and sub-tropics will be higher than any recorded to date.
• India to be among the worst hit areas. Higher temperatures will mean some of our crops can-not be cultivated. Or will face reduced yields.
• Extreme warnings that have happened the world over in the recent past - like heat waves in Europe, hurricanes, droughts, floods could become the norm in the long-run.
• Cities or countries could get wiped out because of rising sea levels, which would lead to a further shortage of agricultural land.

Does paint a scary picture, this report! However, while I am sure the scientific community will be doing its bit to ensure crop yields are not affected this much by rising temperatures, let this be a reminder to all of us to do our bit to preserve our beautiful planet.

Tags: Global Warming, Stop Wasting, Sustainable Living

Well, now that we are officially heading towards times when cost-cutting and reduction of overheads will be the key to survival, I thought it was a good opportunity to initiate some steps in our small office as well. I checked up with a friend who owns a mid-sized firm and they are well on their way to making such changes a way of life at his workplace. The good thing is that each of these measures also has the potential to reduce greenhouse emissions. Heres a partial list of what they have started doing:

• Switching off computers when not in use. Atleast switching off monitors. Its a waste of energy if the system is on and not in use. And switching off computers when not in use, can pare energy usage by two-thirds.
  According to an estimate by the research firm Gartner, PCs account for some 40 percent of greenhouse gas emissions coming from IT & Telcom.

• Reducing drastically on personal meetings with clients and vendors they have worked with in the past. And relying on phone and email for business communication instead.
• Installing power saving flat screen monitors in place of the old TFT monitors. And boy, do they look good!
• Switching off extra lights.
• Allowing natural light to come in through windows. Earlier, the blinds were always drawn.
• Turning off the coffee dispenser when not in use.
• Printing only when imperative.
• Making slip-pads out of one-side used paper.

What’s your office doing? Any other ideas?

Tags: Global Warming, green living, Save Earth, Stop Wasting

Reckless texting, net surfing and emailing is killing the planet! Surprised? Thats exactly what my reaction was when I heard it for the first time. This gentleman, I met last year, heads a Cooling solutions company that specifically looks after Data Center cooling. During the course of an informal conversation, I learnt facts that were appalling. Like everytime I forward a fun sms to a friend, somewhere at some data centers it is taking up energy enough to light up a football field!

Data Centers, typically the size of a football field, house servers which work behind the scenes everytime we send that sms, or email or access the internet. They are power hungry and generate immense heat, green house gases. According to a study by McKinsey, by 2020, the greenhouse gas emissions from data centers would have surpassed those by the airline industry. Data Centers will be major contributors to Global Warming!

And so understandably, there is immense interest in innovations for Green data centers. However, while that happens, lets do our bit to save the planet:

• Lets think twice before we forward that totally unnecessary sms to friends.
• Lets think twice before we while away hours on a social networking site. I am going to just hop over and see friends who live close by. Nothing like chatting with a friend in person, over a good cup of coffee
• Lets get a DVD to watch a movie and if its new, watch it at a movie hall with friends and family. In the long run, it will turn out to be cheaper than mitigating the effects from Global Warming that result from downloading or watching a movie online.
• Lets reduce the number of spam mails we send…yes, we all spam our friends’ mailboxes with fun email forwards.

The information technology has impacted our lives, and, more importantly, the way we communicate with each other, radically. But in our enthusiasm, lets not forget that until further advancements ensure Green Data Centers we’ll be better off if we keep our ‘data center footprint’ to what is necessary.

Its difficult - ask me! I make a living out of internet services - but possible.

Tags: Global Warming, green living, Sustainable Living

Found this award winning video on Global Warming dis-believers. Too good! Check it out…

Did you know that US alone is responsible for 25% of world pollution thats causing Global warming? Take a look at this award winning video…

Well, we all have to care. There is no other alternative.

Let’s not be embarassed to:

• Carry our own bag for shopping.
• Wrap our gifts in  newsprint.
• Switch off extra lights.
• Switch off the AC if fans can treat us well enough.
• Go on foot to places within walking distance. Its healthier too.
• Use public transport as far as possible. The DMRC is an excellent alternative.
• Order food that just enough. If the food still get left-over from a meal, let’s not be embarassed to ask for it to be packed.
• Eat at the restaurant instead of getting it packed at a take-away. Will just take a few minutes extra but we can save a whole lot of plastic and paper that would otherwise go into packing the stuff.
• Use washable cups and glasses where possible. Atleast avoid styrofoam as much as possible. There is no way to recycle it!!
• Use one-side used paper for printing.
• And yeah, print only when absolutely necessary.
• Print in toner saving mode as far as possible. Not only reduces our carbon footprint but also goes easy on the pocket.

Simple measures but then little drops of water fill up the ocean

Ever wondered how at an individual level you affect the climate? This carbon calculator will tell you just how much.

Tags: Global Warming, Save Earth, Sustainable Living