Environmental Graffiti

Image from jonrawlinson

South Africa, has seen great success with its conservation efforts. The national elephant population has risen from 8,000 to 18,000. However they may have been too successful:

Image from wumai

Something phenomenal has happened in the last 24 hours. Our friends over at DeSmogBlog took it upon themselves to see what the scientists who are on the famed list of “500 scientists who don’t believe in global warming” actually think and as it turns out, many of them didn’t know they were on it.

Image from pingnews and Library of Congress

As the environmental movement looks to the future, it can often forget its past.

We often make light of it here, but there really are some people out there that think that environmentalism is all the product of some imperious, self-righteous group of city slickers trying to tell them how to lead their lives. As it turns out, that point of view is not wrong, just slightly antiquated.

“Honey, think of how lucky we’re about to be! This normally costs $200!” Image from joeycrabb

It seems that there’s no limit to what people will submit themselves to if you try to pass it off as “luxury”– a New York spa is offering the $216 “geisha facial,” an hour-long journey into a magical land where it’s acceptable to smear feces on your face.

He’s being a good citizen. Other ones, not so much. Image from aussiegail.

Well, flatly, no, they’re not–but maybe they should be, according to Ellouise Leadbeater, a researcher at Queen Mary, University of London. The behavioral ecologist got her idea from one of Darwin’s journals, and then observed it in person: bees biting through the backs of flowers to avoid carrying the plant’s pollen

He lives in New York, so is better than you. Image from joyseph

A 62-year old man is raising chickens in the basement of the Manhattan high-rise that he’s superintendent for, a posh building near the UN that has many condos starting at 1.8 Million US.

Image from Paraflyer

There are often multiple ways of looking at a problem, and lateral thinking is probably the only way progressive decisions by governments are ever made.

The rare Keds tree, a cousin of the money tree my parents told me didn’t exist… From Aaron Siladi

Ever get really, really frustrated? So frustrated, perhaps, that you considered simply firing your footwear at the nearest tree you could find? Well, me neither, but it seems that some people have, and in the process inspired over 70 “shoe trees” all over America, each holding hundred of pairs of sneakers in their branches.

Calimari-sicles for 10,000, please. Image from Hideki Saito

Scientists from New Zealand have begun the process of thawing and dissecting a squid corpse that they’ve kept in a freezer for the past year. It is huge, weighing in at half a ton.

Image from pfig

Or, more appropriately, the Vice-President’s security detail ignored it. Jusuf Kalla, who participated in a fun walk meant to spotlight the car-free day seeking transport that’s more eco-friendly and convenient to urban life, was trailed the whole time by his security detail, who were in cars.