This project, conducted by the Toxics Use Reduction Institute (TURI) and the Silent Spring Institute in partnership with the Resilient Sisterhood Project, worked to educate women about chemical exposures that can contribute to hormone disruption, asthma, diabetes, and cancer risk among Black women, and to share information about safer alternatives. The first year of the project focused on learning more about how women make choices about the products they purchase and use. The second year focused on sharing information widely by training and supporting social media influencers.
Day: March 2, 2023
The Package Deal: Innovations and the latest thinking in sustainable packaging
Read the full story and listen to the podcast at Waste360.
In the latest episode of NothingWasted!, you will enjoy The Package Deal: Innovations and the Latest Thinking in Sustainable Packaging. The discussion centered on how, every day, businesses, consumers, and the waste-and-recycling industry are continuing to grapple with big questions and concerns related to packaging. Thus, the need to implement sustainable—and creative—solutions is increasing.
Nestlé moves Nesquik into reusable steel packaging in Germany: ‘We want to use less virgin plastic; this is a concrete solution’
Read the full story at Beverage Daily.
In Germany, food major Nestlé is testing the use of reusable stainless-steel containers, rented from start-up Circolution, for its Nesquik cocoa brand.
Five ways to finance early coal phaseout
Read the full story from RMI.
Financial institutions can accelerate the early closure of coal power plants while funding clean energy projects for the affected communities.
A ‘game changer’ for clothing recycling?
Read the full story from the University of Michigan.
Less than 15% of the 92 million tons of clothing and other textiles discarded annually are recycled—in part because they are so difficult to sort. Woven-in labels made with inexpensive photonic fibers, developed by a University of Michigan-led team, could change that.
Point of View: Rethinking academia in a time of climate crisis
Anne E Urai, Clare Kelly (2023). “Point of View: Rethinking academia in a time of climate crisis”. eLife 12:e84991. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.84991 [open source]
Abstract: Addressing the climate crisis requires radical and urgent action at all levels of society. Universities are ideally positioned to lead such action but are largely failing to do so. At the same time, many academic scientists find their work impeded by bureaucracy, excessive competitiveness, and a loss of academic freedom. Here, drawing on the framework of “Doughnut Economics,” developed by Kate Raworth, we suggest seven new principles for rethinking the norms of scientific practice. Based on these, we propose a call to action, and encourage academics to take concrete steps towards the creation of a flourishing scientific enterprise that is fit for the challenges of the 21st century.
Climate conundrum: Study finds ants aren’t altering behavior in rising temperatures
Read the full story from North Carolina State University.
A new study finds that ants are not adjusting their behavior in response to warming temperatures, persisting in sub-optimal microhabitats even when optimal ones were present. The finding suggests ants may not be able to adjust their behavior in response to warming ecosystems.
River Runner
River Runner allows users to drop a raindrop anywhere in the contiguous United States and watch where it ends up. A global version is currently available in beta.
The tools use USGS/MERIT Basin data. Code and data are available on Github [River Runner US | River Runner Global]
The incredible shrinking world of sustainability communications
Read the full story at GreenBiz.
When it comes to sustainability, few companies seem to have mastered the art of storytelling. And to the extent they tell stories, they’re all too often filled with impenetrable jargon, head-scratching facts, overarching generalizations — and way too many buzzwords — that can undercut or obscure whatever message they’re trying to communicate.
Opinion: Net-zero emission pledges may not lead to full decarbonization
Read the full story at The Regulatory Review. See also the United Nations Environment Programme’s 2022 Emissions Gap Report and the authors’ recent paper in PLOS Climate.
Examining countries’ net-zero pledges reveals variations and loopholes that will allow for slippage in climate progress.
Environmental News Bits 