Post Script

This goes way beyond recycling garbage

Mother Nature Network lined up 10 Intriguing Environmentalists; an interesting and inspiring mid-week mini-diversion. Enjoy :)

A food book that's a little hard to swallow

"Just Food" is the title of the foodie release by James E. McWilliams. So far so good. But then comes the tagline: "Where locavores get it wrong and how we can truly eat responsibly."

And that seems to be a good indicator of what's inside this book -- acknowledgment that our food system needs some tweaking, followed by condemnation of the way in which socially conscious consumers have been going about it. 

A balanced diet for the brain being as important as one for the body, it's always good to listen to the voice of dissent and hear another perspective The critics, though, were put off their food, both at InHabitat.com and The Christian Science Monitor.

First Lady is on her way to where the air is sweet ...

... that would be Sesame Street.

Obama Foodorama tells the story of Michelle, the Muppets, and some talking vegetables here.

Playful, breezy and pretty

No, not a kitten. This lovely foodie blog - definitely one for the bookmarks.

De-coding the climate talks

The Guardian has a nifty beginner's guide to the COP15 document; the paper that will guide climate negotiations in Copenhagen this December. Click on the green tab, and you get a paraphrased explanation, with some background context, for each key passage.

Not only will you understand what is and isn't achieved in Denmark, now you'll have the most impressive dinner party conversation over the holidays.

UW chef caught rooftop gardening bug

From the Journal Sentinel online, this bite-sized tidbit about Sandburg Hall, a chef and a bunch of lettuce growing on the dorm roof.

Can tax breaks encourage store owners to stock the healthy stuff?

It's a well-documented conundrum: poorer neighborhoods are filled with convenience stores stocked with junk food, but suffer from a serious lack of healthy, fresh food. Fast food is cheaper than slow food, and people buy what is available locally. And so the obesity epidemic continues.

How do you encourage small neighborhood grocery store owners to fill their shelves with fresh fruit and vegetables? Give 'em a break, says NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg. A tax break, to be exact.

Targeting northern Manhattan, central Brooklyn, the South Bronx and Jamaica (Queens), Bloomberg is pushing a plan to offer zoning and tax incentives to store owners - in return for selling healthier food.

Kudos to the Bloomberg administration for taking on an urgent healthcare issue. Some are skeptical, though, about the plan's chances of success. From The Atlantic's food section.

Grist author gripes about Obama's food policies

A weekend read for you: 

Tom Philpott at Grist.org lets off a little steam about the zigs and zags of President Obama's foodie appointments. Frustrated by seeing the appointment of lawyers with Monsanto ties, Philpott argues that our leader veers madly between progressive policy-making and status-quo maintaining - resulting in whiplash for poor Mr. Philpott.

In praise of Mad-Town

Our neighbor is known for its university and union terrace, farmer's market and twin lakes. But this Mother Nature Network article takes a look at the green features of our state's capitol. Madison is a fun day trip, for certain... and don't forget, food author Michael Pollan is in attendance at the city's Food for Thought Festival this weekend.

Six degrees of climate change

A report in The Washington Post gives the lowdown on a new climate change study; one that has a sobering conclusion: "(...) the planet will warm by 6 degrees Fahrenheit by the end of the century, even if the world's leaders fulfill their most ambitious climate pledges."

See the United Nations Environment Program report for details.