Eco friendly website – Ecopedia.com

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Someone recommended I check out Ecopedia, which is a pretty cool website, giving you information on what actions, or products, are environmentally friendly, eco sensitive, carbon neutral, etc., so you can begin to live a less impactful life, regarding the environment. Check it out! (And no, that photo has nothing to do with the site – I just thought it was cool).

http://www.ecopedia.com/Main_Page

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The Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) opens the way to eco-tourism

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In 1953, the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) was established to provide a buffer between the conflicting Northern and Southern nations–and today it is the most heavily militarized border in the world. But amid this icon of armed standoffs, in the narrow strip that divides the Korean Peninsula where no one is allowed, a highly diverse ecosystem has blossomed. And now, in a rare putting-aside of differences between the two countries squared off along the DMZ, the two Koreas will work together for the preservation of the corridor that has so long divided them.

The Korean DMZ, 155 miles long and roughly 2 miles wide, has been a literal ‘no man’s land’ for 57 years–and that means its been a virtual haven for wildlife. The heavily fortified strip of land is home to some of Korea’s most endangered species, like the Korean Tiger, Asiatic Black bear, and the extreme rare Red-crowned and White-naped cranes.

After years of speculation, today it was announced that after a meeting between cabinet-level agencies in South Korea, that the gem that lies between their two nations would be transformed into an ecological corridor to promote tourism and the preservation of the DMZ’s rich ecosystems.

According to Folha, the project will include a bicycle routes and an observation center within limited sections of the ecological corridor, still heavily guarded on both sides by the North and South Korean military. Further details about the project will be announced in September by the Ministry of Culture, Sport and Tourism of South Korea.

The lessons that can be garnered from the situation along Korea’s DMZ are two-fold. On one hand, the fact that two otherwise feuding nations could come together peacefully to ensure the preservation of their shared ecological heritage is encouraging. On the other hand, that the corridor has become so naturally diverse simply because no humans were there to muddle with it speaks wonders to the significance of our presence in other regions of the world.

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Costa Rica designated BioGen by NRDC

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As written by Alexandra Marks of the Christian Science Monitor–

I’m currently sitting in the airport in Costa Rica, fresh from a yoga retreat and heading back home to Sheep Dog Hollow, the 100-year-old farmhouse we’re trying to renovate in as green a manner as is economically practical. (Think: from calming, tropical paradise to construction mayhem.)

I confess, I’m not quite ready yet to tackle the questions that I know are waiting for me – from timing on when we can start spraying our foam insulation to worries about our fast-draining checking account and whether we can really afford those $7-a-square-foot reclaimed wide board floors (that’s $7 a square foot not including installation or refinishing.

No, in my mind I’m still hearing the gentle roar of the ocean waves, the morning’s orchestral array of bird songs, and the rustling of palm fronds in the wind.

And so, since I won’t get to Sheep Dog to check on progress and attack some of those questions until Wednesday, I thought I’d just take a moment to reflect on how lovely it is to spend time in a genuine “BioGem.”

Yes, Costa Rica is the first country in the world to be designated a BioGem by the Natural Resources Defense Council. The reason for the designation, says the NRDC, is the government’s commitment to “becoming the world’s first carbon-neutral nation by 2021.”

For years, it’s also pushed sustainability and eco-tourism and expanded its natural parks to preserve its biodiversity. To say nothing of the fact that Costa Rica one of the hemisphere’s oldest, most stable democracies, which ranks pretty high in the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals and the UN’s Human Development Index.

Yes, it’s an extraordinary place.

When you arrive, you experience it in subtle ways. The people have gentleness about them, or, as they say in Spanish, are they are “mui amable” – very amiable. The food you buy in the supermarkets, such as the tomatoes, have that sweet, home-grown taste that here in the States you can only get from a home garden.

And then, of course, there’s the pure air and the abundance of birds, iguanas, and little lizards you frequently see lazing in the sun. Yeah, there’s heat and dust – as well as pollution in the big cities – but compared to the other Latin American countries I’ve visited, it’s a veritable ecological Eden.

But there’s another reason the NRDC designated Costa Rica a BioGem: Because it’s potentially threatened. As the website Earth Explore notes:

Pressures to open coastlines to oil and gas exploration and drilling, and exploit virgin rainforest for timber and mining are ramping up. All too easily, this small nation could be directed down the path seen so often in the tropics; of slash and burn and quick profit.

To help the country stay on its current ecological path, the NRDC is “working with the Energy and Environment Ministry to identify measures to help the country meet its [goal to be carbon neutral.

The NRDC also just signed an agreement with the national electric utility, Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad, on energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. In collaboration with other Latin American environment agencies, it’s also launched “a rainforest rejuvenation project to plant 30,000 trees to restore a natural rainforest.”

So, as I head back home from that tropical ecological paradise, my Sheep Dog Hollow worries and questions have been put into a new perspective.

Yes, this green renovation is costing us more in the short term – in cash and headaches – but I again realize that if I can do a little bit now to help future generations enjoy the natural beauties of our country as I just have enjoyed Costa Rica’s, I know it’s worth the cost.

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Dive with Great White Sharks

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Cue the theme to Jaws: volunteer travel specialist, i-to-i has launched a new research project for volunteers to help research Great White Sharks in South Africa.

Volunteers are needed to help monitor Great White Sharks and the rest of the ‘Marine Big Five’ – whales, seals, dolphins and penguins – on a new, two-week project based in Kleinbaai, 180km southeast of Cape Town.

The Western Cape is known as the best place in the world to see Great White Sharks in their natural habitat. Working with local ecotourism operators, volunteers will have the chance to see the sharks from both boat-side and from a submerged protective cage.

Their primary task will be to record data and observations on the sharks and other marine animals, learning how to identify individual animals through dorsal fin markings and other measurements. The aim of the project is to collect and collate data to inform efforts to arrest the decline of this threatened species.

Shark education is a prominent part of the project, with lectures by marine biologists, and volunteers will also gain insights into the workings of ecotourism, as they will be assisting the ecotourism operators during their daily shark-viewing tours.
The project cost of $2549 includes airport pickup, orientation, training in ecotourism operations and data collection, 24-hour emergency support, services of an in-country co-ordinator and a contribution to the project. Additional weeks cost $800, up to a maximum of four weeks.

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The Costs of EcoTourism to the consumer

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Nowadays as eco-tourism has become a new trend, travelers have started debating the seemingly high costs of such tourism.

Does traveling green necessarily mean we have to pay more? Nowadays as eco-tourism has become a new trend, travelers have started debating the seemingly high costs of such tourism.

“I vote for green travel, but if it’s more expensive that way, then I would probably reconsider it.”

Such was the concern voiced by many individual travelers and international leaders at this year’s Copenhagen Climate Summit.

Where does the extra money go during an eco-trip? And how do we avoid overspending? Here are some tips that we can share with you.

Air Passenger Duty

Will eco-tourism save money or add extra costs to our trip? For insight, let’s look at the changes made by the UK Government on Air Passenger Duties (APD).

APD is an excise tax levied by the UK government that came into effect on November 1, 1994. It is charged on the carriage of chargeable passengers flying from a United Kingdom airport on chargeable aircraft.

The UK government has justified the hikes in APD primarily on environmental grounds. The APD doubled in February 2007 and rose again in November 2009. The next increase will take effect this November when passengers flying to the United States must pay 60 pounds in tax (a 50-percent increase), while those flying to the Caribbean will pay 75 pounds(an increase of 87.5 percent).

Carbon Offsets Purchase

With an aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, the term “carbon neutral” has come into focus recently. But it also entails higher costs for travelers. Companies offer customers the option of buying so-called “carbon offsets” to counter the planet-warming emissions generated by their airline flights. But as of yet there is still no common standard on carbon offsets purchases. That is to say, each company may have its own method of charging carbon offsets and will offer various prices and different projects.

The Prime Price of the Eco-Hotels

The hospitality industry is also facing price increases in the name of environmental protection. Let’s take Marmadukes, a famous boutique hotel in Yorkshire, England, as an example.

Marmadukes is famous for its gorgeous Victorian architecture and delightful original features. Even though it is a three-star hotel, Marmadukes is more expensive than some nearby five-star hotels.

According to Eric, a traveler, this is because Marmadukes passes on the increased costs of environmental protection to its guests. But some hotels disagree with this assertion.

URBN Hotels in the heart of Shanghai is Asia’s first carbon neutral hotel. As soon as it opened in 2007, the hotel started calculating the carbon footprint of its emissions and purchased carbon credits to offset them.

“We will not shift the expenses onto our consumers because such a practice will not bring us fine reputation,” the hotel’s former manager said.

As we mentioned above, eco-trips indeed hike the costs of traveling. But for some travelers, the extra expenses spent on flights and hotels can be compensated during other parts of their trip. For example, you can choose to travel on foot or by bicycle rather than by taking a taxi or driving yourself. These options are the best low-carbon ways to travel, and you don’t have to pay more for your environmental guilt.

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