Earth from Above

The French photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand takes truly amazing pictures of our earth.

What's important to this photographer is to show the impact humans have on the planet, and his book Earth from Above has sold millions of copies all over the world. I have a version of that book called Earth from above - 365 days. It's a fantastic book with amazing photos and next to each picture he talks about the beauty of that particular place but also what difficulites they face and what steps needs to be taken to take care of the planet, the people and the animals that lives here.

Yann Arthus-Bertrand is also the creator of Goodplanet Foundation that aims to raise awareness on environmental issues. They have several interesting projects including "7 billion Others". In this project they have interviewed 6000 people in 84 counties about their daily life and their hopes and dreams for the future. It's meant to show what unites us, to make us reach out to each other and to realize that we're all in this together.

Check out his website and browse through many spectacular pictures. The book Earth from Above is a perfect gift to friends and family.

Mad Men goes organic

Check out this cool commercial that won the Grandy (Grand Prize) for the most brilliant commercial 2012.

 Chipotle -   Back to the Start

Cell Phones

Using headphones when speaking on you cell phone is one of the easiest ways to keep radiation away from vital parts. Make sure also to keep your cell phone away from your body, i.e. in your purse, not in your pockets.

Recent research shows that we should keep our cell phones at least 15cm (6inches) away from our bodies. WHO has even put cell phones in the class 2B which means they are possibly carcinogenic to humans.

Check out this really interesting and scary information from Dr. Devra Davis;  Cell Phone Dangers. She shows the danger of radiation and especially warns pregnant women and children.

There is also some great tips on how to reduce the risks.

Diamonds are forever

If you want to make sure that your gold and diamonds come from a sustainable source there are a few things to consider.

The Kimberley Process is a social initiative that started in May 2000 to stop diamonds from conflict areas, so called Blood Diamonds. Many countries and companies in the diamond trade participate in this important task and they have reached great results in just over ten years. You can read a lot of interesting information about the process in the webpage. Since the KP certification is not legally binding for the participants every consumer plays an important role. The Kimberly Process really emphasis the importance we all play as consumers and what we need to ask for when shopping jewellery.

You can also look at Fair Trade Gems for more information and finding retailers.

Coalition for Green Gold is an interesting initiative on sustainable mining. Working against rainforest deforestation and mercury, cyanide and arsenic contamination this is extremely important. For example; mercury is used when extracting gold, and it's poisoning the water, the animals and the people living close to the mines. You can also find information about this work on Fairtrade and on Alliance for Responsible Mining.

If you want to shop some gorgeous jewellery, check out these websites;

Noën is a german company making beautiful jewellery in organic gold and diamonds. They don't want to compromise between beauty and social responsibility, and they really manage to mix those two together. The gold is extracted without chemicals and their diamonds are certified through the Kimberley Process. On their homepage you can even watch a video from one of the sites where they extract gold.

Ekoguld is Sweden's first Fairtrade certified goldsmith. Their gold are Fairmined certified and their gems are from sustainable and fairtrade sources. They even offer their customers to use recycled gold if they want to.

Cosmonova

Today I watched a preview of the movie To the Arctic at Sweden's only IMAX-cinema. IMAX uses the largest existing format for film and in Cosmonova it is shown on a dome-shaped screen that's 760m². It gives you a completely different movie-experience, like you're a part of the movie somehow. The tickets are the same price as in regular cinemas, and it's well worth a visit to see any of the different movies shown.






The movie To the Arctic is hopefully going to air in september, and it's a movie that speaks to all of us. It shows how the animals of the Artic is struggling to survive in this cold, pristine and inhospitable area of the world. Some of them, like the polar bear, will never be able to live anywhere else but here. For them this is paradise and they thrive far out on the ice. Unfortunately, if the temperature continues to rise these amazingly beautiful creatures will die. It's an important film to show, and I hope many schools will go see it. We were joined by a nine year old, and he really liked it. Even though it wasn't translated to Swedish yet just the pictures of polar bears, walrusses and seals were exciting. I hope those wonderful creatures will still be around when he's old enough to travel and see them in the wild. It was a great movie narrated by Meryl Streep with music by Paul McCartney.

Happy Cows

Springtime in Sweden means it's time to let the cows out of the barn for the summer.

It's a big happening on many farms around the country. Approximately 120 000 people will be watching on one of the arranging farms this year.

If you're nearby, don't miss this funny moment.

Watch the preview on YouTube.

More information about this can be found here.

Underkastelsen - Submission

I've just finished watching Stefan Jarls film Submission (Underkastelsen in Swedish). It's a fantastic documentary that teaches us how much chemicals we are exposed to every day. With the help of professors from all over the world Stefan shows us how everything around us affects our bodies, our hormones, our fertility, our overall health. From technical gadgets, the medicines we use, the toys our kids play with, the air we breathe, the water we drink.... It's a frightening picture of our everyday life. I can really recommend this movie for everybody that has just the slightest interest in where our lifestyle is taking us...
You can read more (in Swedish and English) here.