$#! The Independent !#$

A comment on the article written by Johann Hari in The Independent “We’ll save the planet only if we’re forced to”

In this article says that everyone who is living on earth should be careful in their lifestyles and they always have to think about not causing global warming. He wants us to reduce the amount of using carbon dioxide and decrease the greenhouse gases. But in the writer’s opinion all of those changes won’t be done unless we forces to.

In my opinion, first of all who must force the people? Government!! I think they are the first who are responsible for all of that pollution in our environment. Changing people nowdays is very hard and seem to be impossible because they are used to live a very easy life styles and the first proof of what I am saying is that anyone in this world, especially in modern countries, can’t live as their parents lived.

As a solution for that, I think the technology is getting more and more useful which I believe it will invent something that will help our earth in survive, such as electrical vehicles, producing energy by the solar system, water falls and the wind.

""The MASDAR City""

Masdar city is the unique example of a cool city and the first which will be built in the world. Hearing that let us feel proud of our country as Emiratis. The city is located beside the international airport of Abu Dhabi. This city is not for everyone; it’s just for those who want to live in a completely simple life style environment. As a result they will not affect the world by global warming because Masdar is going to produce zero carbon emissions and zero waste. All waste production is recycled and the desalinated water will be reduced by 80%. The transportation in this city will be on foot or on cycles, which means no cars or buses. The master plan means that no one will be further than 200 kilometres from the essential facilities. This city will only depend on the solar energy and the power of winds.

Although this project is very amazing it might achieve success or might fail. But we hope that it will succeed to affect our environment in a good way. Abu Dhabi will benefit from this success to be one of the coolest cities in the world and Abu Dhabi’s atmosphere will be cleaner and free of smoke.

((**Cool Cities & Abu Dhabi**))

By recognizing the global warming is a serious problem which is affecting us in many different ways. A reminder to all of us, that we are the first ones who are responsible for that. A solution of this problem is the cool cities, which means a campaign that stands against the global warming. Many of the cities in the world want to be a cool city so they started to reduce the effects of the global warming, because they want to live their future in a clean atmosphere.

As we all know, Abu Dhabi is trying to be the best in everything and from any position to raise our countries name which will make us proud. One thing that Abu Dhabi is planning for is to be one of the cool cities and it has all the qualifications required. One of the best steps of Abu Dhabi in the world is that they are going to construct the “Masdar City” which you will know in the coming post.

:.: Global Warming :.:

!? Critical Thinking ?!

!?.My Carbon Footprint.?!

My Ecological Footprint Quiz Result:-

= 10.60 Earths

Reduce your footprint

(To Reduce your Carbon Footprint)

Use cleaner transport

-Walk, bike, or take public transit whenever possible.
-Avoid allowing your car to idle. If you’ll be waiting for more than 30 seconds, turn off the engine (except in traffic). And don’t take the drive-through—park the car and walk inside instead.
-Have your vehicle serviced regularly to keep the emission control systems operating at peak efficiency. Check your car's air filter monthly, and keep the tires adequately inflated to maximize gas mileage.
-Avoid short airplane trips—take a bus or train instead.

Add energy-saving features to your home

-Install compact fluorescent bulbs in all your home light fixtures—but remember, compact fluorescents contain mercury, so look for low-mercury models and be sure to dispose of old bulbs safely through your local hazardous waste program.
-Weatherproof your home. Make sure your walls and ceilings are insulated, and consider double-pane windows. Eliminate drafts with caulking, weather strips, and storm windows and doors.
-Insulate your water heater. Even better, switch to a tankless water heater, so your water will be heated only as you use it.
-Choose energy efficient appliances.

Adopt energy-saving habits

-Keep thermostat relatively low in winter and ease up on the air conditioning in summer. Clean or replace dirty air conditioner filters as recommended to keep the A/C operating at peak efficiency.
-Unplug your electronics when not in use. To make it easier, use a power strip. Even when turned off, items like your television, computer, and cellphone charger still sip power.
-Dry your clothes outside whenever possible.
-Make minimal use of power equipment when landscaping.
-Defrost your refrigerator and freezer regularly.
-Choose green electricity. Many utilities give you the option to purchase electricity generated by wind and solar power for a small rate surcharge.
-Purchase carbon offsets to make up for the energy use you can’t eliminate.

(To Reduce your Food Footprint)

-Eat more local, organic, in-season foods.
-Plant a garden—it doesn’t get more local than that.
-Shop at your local farmer’s market or natural foods store. Look for local, in-season foods that haven’t traveled long distances to reach you.
-Choose foods with less packaging to reduce waste.
-Eat lower on the food chain—going meatless for just one meal a week can make a difference. Globally, it has been estimated that 18% of all greenhouse gas emissions are associated with meat consumption.

(To Reduce your Housing Footprint)

Choose sustainable building materials, furnishings, and cleaning products.

-Explore green design features for your building, like passive solar heating, a rainwater catchment or grey water recycling system, and recycled materials.
-Choose efficient appliances, including low flow shower heads, faucets, and toilets.
-Choose furnishings that are second-hand, recycled, or sustainably produced.
-Plant drought tolerant plants in your garden and yard.
-Use biodegradable, non-toxic cleaning products.

(To adopt water-saving habits)

-Take shorter, less frequent showers—this not only saves water, but the energy necessary to heat it.
-Don’t use the garbage disposal. Compost instead.
-Run the dishwasher and the laundry machine only when full.
-Wash cars rarely, or better yet, take them to a carwash. Commercial carwashes use less water per wash than home washers, and they are also required to drain used water into the sewage system, rather than storm drains, which protects aquatic life.
-Avoid hosing down or power-washing your deck, walkways, or driveway.
-Regularly look for and fix leaks.

(To Reduce your Goods and Services Footprint)

-Buy less! Replace items only when you really need to.
-Recycle all your paper, glass, aluminum, and plastic. Don’t forget electronics!
-Compost food waste for the garden. Garbage that is not contaminated with degradable (biological) waste can be more easily recycled and sorted, and doesn't produce methane gases (a significant greenhouse gas contributor) when stored in a landfill.
-Buy recycled products, particularly those labeled "post-consumer waste."

Table View

++An Inconvenient Truth++

This film is very important for every one who wants live in this world and who wants to see their children to live in the same style or even better lifestyle than they live.

It is a documentary movie which is presented by “Al Gore”. The movie is about the global warming and the statistics related to the climate change. Al Gore has done a great job by doing this presentation. He chooses a very important issue these days which is the global warming. Al Gore has spent a lot of time to fulfil this presentation. He takes the words of the specialists in the natural resources, climate, and atmosphere to know the truth of this issue. He took the statistics that show the climate change and the temperature change.

This film is done to caution or warn people, to start thinking about this serious problem and to start acting to avoid these problems, which will appear in the coming years. However, planning for this problem will give us a chance to avoid these problems and make the earth as beautiful as it was before.