Internet search for the planet
When you use the search engine Google, the company makes money (obscene amounts) by auctioning off your interests so you can get bombarded with tailored advertising.
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The search engine Ecosia is downloadable in seconds and instead of keeping that ad money for itself, it uses it to plant trees. Fifty million+ trees have been planted so far and the company has just bought a forest in Germany to protect it from logging.
A fairly comprehensive independent review exists on Youtube if you are interested.
Martin Thackray
Dalmeny
'Dementia does not discriminate: Do you?'
Dementia Australia is challenging all Australians to think differently about dementia by asking: "Dementia doesn't discriminate. Do you?"
We are calling on our communities to consider how discrimination impacts people of all ages, living with all forms of dementia and their families and carers.
While the number of Australians living with dementia is close to half a million, there are an estimated 1.5 million involved in the care of people living with the disease.
Nobody chooses to have dementia. We can however choose how we respond to the people in our lives and in our community who are living with dementia.
We are asking readers to complete a short survey to help us to create an informed, national picture to better understand how discrimination for people living with dementia occurs, and what it would take to shift that discrimination. More information can be found at www.dementia.org.au
Graeme Samuel AC
Maree McCabe
Chair and CEO
Dementia Australia
Climate wishlist
Eurobodalla Shire Council needs to urgently prioritise funding for the following:
- shade trees on all streets in the town centres and areas of high pedestrian traffic
- awnings on all shops to provide protections from the weather, particularly the heat
- 24-hour, public-access, cool venues in each town centre for people to escape heat waves. These would include kitchen facilities, tables, seating, reverse cycle air conditioning, solar with batteries that work when the power goes down.
- swimming pools kept open to 10pm on high temperature days to provide an opportunity to cool off and escape the late afternoon heat.
- shelters to cover car parking spaces, fitted with solar panels. Byron Shire installed these at Mullumbimby, and a number of Council's in QLD have also installed them. These car parks are dark bitumen colour and, as a result, are heat sinks.
- Bus shelters to protect people from the weather. It is often low-income, children and the elderly waiting at bus stops.
- Many more water fountains so that people can easily stay hydrated.
- Develop a comprehensive strategy to engage the Eurobodalla community on climate change matters and to provide integrated information, advice and support on reducing energy bills and cutting emissions.
These measures would not only make the Eurobodalla safer for its residents but also for our tourists, the majority who visit during the summer months - December and January.
Why has the release of the council's Adaptation Plan has been delayed indefinitely?
Such a plan would show the council is serious about looking after its community.