The Atlanta BeltLine, dubbed, the country’s “most ambitious” or “best” smart growth project is, obviously, a big project. It involves re-purposing a 22-mile rail corridor to include new forms of public transit (streetcars or light rail connected to MARTA at a number of locations), trails for walking and bicycling, and a number of parks, all around the center of Atlanta. The city is putting $2.8 billion (yes, billion) into it and there is a ton of private investment going in as well.
How To: Smoothies
We got on a huge smoothie kick this summer. We discovered that a dinky little blender of ours could actually make them and were making smoothies every day for a week or two. Now, while smoothies are a delicious, special treat, they are not at all difficult to make. However, if you’ve never made one before, you may not believe me. So, I’m writing this short little post (photos included) to tell you how to make smoothies (or, at least, how I like to make them) and to let you know about one of my favorite recipes.
Playing for Change: Gimme Shelter {Music Video}
This is a totally awesome song and video a friend shared with me awhile back that I just got around to listening to. It’s got a great message for us all, I think. To bring that out a bit more, here’s the description and a little more from the YouTube page
Arsenic in Your Apple Juice? Probably..
While the EPA limits arsenic in our drinking water to 10 parts per billion, recent tests* have found the amount of arsenic in apple juice (Mott’s Apple Juice, in particular) to be 5.5 parts per billion — 5.5 times more than what the EPA will let us drink! The FDA does not regulate arsenic in juice at all, unfortunately. However, as a result of this finding and recent research it has conducted on food imports in the U.S., Food & Water Watch is pushing the government agency to start doing so.
Most Walkable Cities in U.S. (2011 Voting in Progress)
I love writing on walkable cities. Have you noticed? I’m not the only one, though. There are huge communities and organizations of people working on that one particular issue. There’s also a great website, Walk Score, that ranks cities on their walkability (which I’m frustrated to find out is still not a word according to my Google Chrome spell checker).
Gelatin Made from Humans — Vegan?
Wow, this is an interesting one. Some scientists are working on creating gelatin derived from human flesh and bones. Seriously — an article has been published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. My mind is a little blank trying to think of what to say about this. On the one hand, I have plenty of thoughts, but on the other hand, I’m in a little bit of shock.
Boston Tree Party! (Growing Fast)
Fruit trees everywhere! Wouldn’t that be nice. Well, a bunch of people and organizations are working to make that happen. They’ve formed the Boston Tree Party, a little more productive than the modern-day Tea Party nightmare we have in Congress.
Walkable & Livable Communities Institute {Green NGO Highlighted}
There are so many great non-profit organizations (aka non-governmental organizations or NGOs) out there that I thought I might start a series highlighting some of these great NGOs. The first one I’m highlighting is one a friend recently directed me towards — the Walkable and Livable Communities Initiative.
Where Does You Supermarket Shop?
I wrote, in May, about a WWF-UK effort to protect the Cerrato in Brazil, a unique habitat that is being destroyed faster than the Amazon. WWF has gotten many UK supermarkets to help address the habitat destruction by agreeing to not buy soy connected to Cerrato destruction. But there’s still a long way to go. Here’s a useful infographic on the Cerrato, how we are destroying it, and what we can do to save it.
New Weight Study… Which Foods Make You Fat?
I’m not all that interested in weight, to be quite honest. If anything, I need to put on weight. But some recent news on weight gain caught my attention. A new study, Changes in Diet and Lifestyle and Long-Term Weight Gain in Women and Men, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, has found that the food you eat may be even more important than the quantity of food you eat when it comes to weight gain…