Free Wild Plant Identification eCourse You are out in the forest and looking at the glorious plant life surrounding you. Whether you are a beginner and have never identified one plant, or a Botany professor at a university, you might appreciate this refreshingly simple approach to plant identification. I remember lovingly (and sometimes screamingly) that my college classes in Systematic Botany required me to become acquainted with that local Washington Flora that we plant dorks call “Hitchcock and Cronquist”. I always felt a contradiction of rapt fascination and obsession, alternated with profound burnout, when trying to navigate this enormous dichotomous key! In addition, my observation skills as an ethnobotanist were refined , foraging for wild foods, fibers and medicine. What will I need? A combination of actual need for sustenance, curiosity and simple observation skills are almost all you need to start with plant identification. Meet a Plant Approach the plant of your choice and find a place to start.
Textiles * FOR our textiles price indicators, click on the Textiles Prices Archive link to the left - or you can also see below for 2014 price indicators * Despite currency and demand fluctuations in overseas markets, demand for used clothing from the UK has remained generally good over the past few years. Most used clothing in the UK is collected via textile banks and charity shops, however an increasing amount is collected door-to-door either as part of a local authority kerbside collection service or separately by charities and textile recyclers. While some items of used clothing are sold through charity shops, a large quantity of material is collected for sorting - either in the UK or abroad - and then exported for sale in Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East. While these countries provide valuable end markets for UK textile merchants, they are vulnerable to market fluctuations as a result of economic and political pressures. Disposal Three textile guide price categories are shown here:
Five cross-sector partnerships innovating to solve social problems | William D Eggers and Paul Macmillan | Public Leaders Network | Guardian Professional Despite the economic downturn, we've seen a massive growth of entrepreneurial activity targeted at solving larger social problems. A burgeoning new solution economy has emerged, where players from across the spectrum of business, government, philanthropy and social enterprise converge to solve big problems and, in the process, create tremendous public value and new wealth. The wavemakers who make the biggest impact think holistically about their role and their relation to other players – not as competitors fighting over an ever-shrinking pie, but as potential collaborators, who can share in the rewards of creating a new and larger concoction. Here are five of the more interesting examples: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. These examples are but the tip of the iceberg. William D. • Want your say? To get our articles on policy and leadership direct to your inbox, sign up to the Guardian Public Leaders Network now. Looking for your next role?
Auf den Spuren von HayDay und Clash of Clans: Boom Beach für iOS veröffentlicht Supercell, die Macher der beiden Games HayDay und Clash of Clans, haben ein neues Game in den AppStore entlassen. Boom Beach heißt das Spiel, das ebenfalls im Genre der Aufbau-Strategie-Spiele angesiedelt, erinnert aber mehr an Clash of Clans als an HayDay. Auch dieses Spiel kommt als typisches Freemium-Game, wobei typisch bei Supercell etwas gewagt ist, da die Entwickler es durchaus verstehen, bei diesem Modell fair zu sein. Ich habe mir das Spiel gestern natürlich sofort geladen und erst einmal angespielt, auch wenn ich noch nicht allzu weit gekommen bin. Die Story des Games, falls man es überhaupt Story nennen kann, ist die Befreiung von Inseln, die von bösen Kräften eingenommen wurden. In der Einführung bekommt der Spieler die grundlegenden Prinzipien erklärt, wer jemals ein Spiel dieser Art gezockt hat, wird sich sofort zurechtfinden. Auf der eigenen Insel hat man relativ wenig zu tun, sie ist mehr als Basis für die Vorbereitung der Angriffe auf andere Inseln zu sehen.
2.6 Trillion Pounds of Garbage: Where Does the World's Trash Go? - Derek Thompson This year, the world will generate 2.6 trillion pounds of garbage -- the weight of about 7,000 Empire State Buildings. What kind of trash is it? Where does it all go? The answer is that just under half of it comes from "organic" waste -- food, mostly -- and most of it goes into landfills, according to a new report this week from the World Bank. Here's that story in pie charts, provided by the report. The rich, of course. Mostly food and paper. WHERE DOES OUR TRASH GO? In both rich and poor countries, the vast majority of our waste goes into landfills where it's (often) covered up. And a tweetable stat for the road: The typical person in a developed country produces about 2.6 pounds of garbage a day.
Using Story to Solve Social Problems How narrative intelligence can help everyone design solutions and generate useful data. Last week I was in a meeting with a dozen leaders of social agencies and enterprises, exploring options for a joint event in the coming year. Though the group was keen, we didn’t have a facilitator, and the conversation wandered. An hour later, we still hadn’t identified a goal for the event or even clarified why we wanted to do it. The query drew several smiles—and brought the discussion into sharp focus. This idea of applying a story framework to strategic planning is a new-school take on old-school ways. An emerging concept, narrative intelligence is ill defined and unfamiliar to many. The basic idea is that we are exposed to information in story format from the time we are born. When we come across a problem, we subconsciously start to analyze it and ask ourselves, “Have I run into a problem like this before?”
Google bringt Pokémon auf Smartphones und Tablets Google kommt einmal mehr um die Welt zu retten. Während man von Nintendo wohl auch in absehbarer Zeit keine der wertvollen Titel auf Smartphones sehen wird, kann man jetzt zumindest dank Google ein bisschen Pokémon zocken. Realisiert wird dies über Google Maps auf Android- oder iOS-Geräten. Unter dem Suchfeld erscheint ein Start-Button, danach wird man sofort zum Pokémon-Labor katapultiert, dass sich komischerweise in direkter Umgebung des CERN-Forschungsinstituts in der Schweiz befindet. Auf der Karte sieht man dann verschiedene Pokémon, die man direkt fangen kann. Jedes gefangene Pokémon wird in den Pokédex aufgenommen. 150 Stück der niedlichen Monster gibt es zu sammeln, so viele wie in der Original-Version des Spiels. Das Promotion-Video zeigt noch eine ziemlich coole Augmented Realtiy-Funktion, die sich über Maps allerdings nicht nutzen lässt.
You Didn't Know That You Could Get Paid For Recycling These 6 Things Recycling is great for the planet, saves resources and basically helps clean up our world. Many of us know that we can recycle things like plastic, paper, glass bottles and metals. However, there are many other items that you probably didn't know could be turned in for cash or a tax deduction. Here's a list of a few of them. TrashA company called TerraCycle will pay for your trash. Wine CorksWhile this may seem a bit odd, cork is a heavily used resource and recycling them won't make you rich, but they could definitely pay for a free bottle of wine. SEE: 8 Secrets For Selling On The New eBayThe second option is to send them to Yemm & Hart Green Materials. Gift CardsMany of us receive gift cards for a holiday or a birthday to a place we will never shop, eat or visit. Gift cards, gas cards, grocery store savings cards are all made from PVC. SEE: Will Your Gift Card Go Unused? Prices range from 33 cents to 66 cents per gallon. You can even find buyers of hair on eBay and Craigslist.
La "shared value" aux sources d'une révolution entrepreneuriale Voilà qu'une analyse de Michael E. Porter et Mark R. Kramer – le premier s'étant notamment illustré avec ses travaux sur la façon dont une entreprise peut, en maîtrisant son environnement concurrentiel, obtenir un avantage compétitif ou encore sur la notion de pôle de compétence géographique ou cluster – vient de jeter un "pavé dans la mare" en revisitant quasiment le mythe fondateur de l'entreprise. L'article paru dans l'édition de janvier-février 2011 de Harvard Business Review et intitulé "Creating Shared Value" pourrait bien créer une rupture en lançant la réflexion sur cette nouvelle notion de l'entreprise. On pourrait à loisir et à plaisir dérouler la pensée de ces deux auteurs qui laissent entendre que l'entreprise aura ainsi demain une empreinte sociale : "Business must reconnect company success with social progress".
20 sustainability apps that made waves in 2013 Whether it's improving energy efficiency, driving out toxic substances or supporting barters and exchanges as part of the "sharing" economy, sustainable business practices have a lot to do with encouraging the right behavior. And with more people than ever glued to smartphones, tablets and Web-connected notebook computers, mobile apps and cloud services can influence change for good — and track progress. Sustainability executives can use dozens of mobile or cloud resources to guide decisions or drive green business change within their companies, their customer base or in their own daily activities. We hear every day about apps or services that can improve home energy consumption, help consumers swap equipment or clothing or stuff that they aren't using, or even pass along potential food waste. But what's emerging in the business-to-business realm is just as compelling. Here are 20 innovative and influential tools that might fit your team. Building materials 1. Chemicals management Design 3.
Changing a Recycling Company's Business Model, More Than Once At TerraCycle, while we’re trying to keep stuff out of landfills and change the way people think about waste, the ultimate goal is to make money. Over the years, I have been challenged again and again to find ways to build our revenue and refine our business model to make us profitable and to maintain aggressive growth. Along the way, we have changed our model numerous times. The original plan for TerraCycle was to develop an eco-friendly waste management company. TerraCycle started packaging liquefied waste in used soda bottles as “TerraCycle Plant Food.” Desperate to save the brigade program, we decided to try to find sponsors — corporations that would be willing to pay the shipping costs in return for some positive publicity. While the companies didn’t want to pay us to collect waste produced by other companies, they were very eager to pay us to collect waste from their own products. But there was a problem. Have we finally found our business model?
La valeur partagée, un nouveau concept de Michael Porter Michael Porter, professeur de management à Harvard, voudrait que les entreprises prennent en main le management de leur responsabilité sociale, avec un nouveau concept : la shared value (valeur partagée). La RSE, une contrainte pour les entreprises Pour les libéraux purs et durs, la responsabilité sociale de l'entreprise (RSE) reste une obligation imposée par l'extérieur : la société civile, les médias, les dirigeants politiques. Michael Porter, professeur de management à Harvard et l'un des consultants les plus influents des Etats-Unis, si ce n'est du monde, avait montré il y a quelques années comment une grande firme pouvait intégrer cette RSE à sa stratégie[1]. Porter constate que le capitalisme est en crise, et que les entreprises sont perçues par beaucoup comme des entités égoïstes prospérant aux dépens de leur environnement naturel et humain. Intégrer la responsabilité sociale de l'entreprise à sa stratégie Le gourou de Harvard ne renie pas ses convictions. En savoir plus Marc Mousli