Category Archives: Population

Plastics in labs: from waste management to management of resources

posted on July 29, 2014

The use of plastics in laboratories is often regarded as a factor contributing to pollution-derived damages in natural environments; the reasons pointed are the inefficient current disposable methods and the difficulties associated with effective recycling of a wide variety of consumables, some of which contaminated. Critics say it is ironic that research performed to better understand and protect nature and living beings can lead to such negative impact on ecosystems. Pollution originated form laboratories has finally become a serious matter of debate and new solutions for sustainable use of consumables and correct waste disposal are required. The MIT‘s initiative Working Green at MIT – Green Your Lab is one such example and it is highly significant that most Institutes, Hospitals and Universities share the same concerns. The Health and Safety Offices are usually the places to go for more information on the waste disposal policies of Science-oriented Institutions.

But can we go as far as to turn plastics into assets? The future is now and the answer is definitely yes. Old plastics can turn into new and valuable materials. It’s not recycling as we know it; these processes resemble re-making. Below I have compiled a list of companies – only a few examples, it is not a comprehensive list at all –  that are expected to contribute with bright solutions to a more eco-friendly use of plastics. Or at least so they are claiming (you can decide by yourself if you believe those approaches are the way forward; then please share your thoughts with us!). The new solutions are clever, technologically advanced, and… based on research performed in labs. More irony: it seems as if plastic has contributed to refinements in its own life cycle.

If the near future can bring Green lab consumables, these will lead to Green research, which can then be oriented towards Green discoveries.

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Plastics in labs can be a source of pollution or become a source of energy through the use of newly developed “recycling” strategies. Credits: http://instagram.com/scienceisherenow

A FEW COMPANIES:

Agilyx –  this company is expected to have” a significant impact in the reduction of the disposal of non-recyclable waste plastics, while creating a new source of domestic energy” by “converting previously non-recyclable and low value waste plastics into crude oil”;

Cynar – contributing to the European Union’s objective to achieve Zero Plastics to Landfill by 2020, Cynar claims that the “conversion of waste plastics to useable fuels” is the “alternative and complementary technology to existing waste management technologies”;

RES Polyflow – focusing on renewable energy, this company “makes energy products from difficult to recycle polymer and rubber waste that is destined for landfills or incineration” using “patented fuel conversion equipments” so that landfilled “plastic waste is reduced significantly”;

NIKE – yes, the sports giant has used state-of-the-art recycling technology in its bottles-to-T-shirts operation: for the just finished 2014 World Cup “An average of 9 recycled bottles emerged as a 2014 National Team Jersey”.

Marine Litter – video contest

posted on July 17, 2014

The MARLISCO project and its aim – to stop marine litter together –  was the reason for my last post, which you can read here. One important aspect of the project was the short video competition: youngsters were asked to catch marine litter on film.

In total, more than 2000 students contributed to 379 videos. By participations in the video contest, students became part of the discussion concerning the future of marine ecosystems; at school, they explored various aspects of the problem, including the responsibility of the society towards stoping marine litter and the series of actions that can be taken to minimize the consequences of human action.

Each country selected their best video and the 14 national winners were announced recently. The video above is a compilation of the winning videos (you can also find it here). Some countries have also made their list of videos available on Youtube, such as the UK, with the finalist project entries here.

World Population Day – Food Safety

Today is World Population Day. This post is part of the World Population Day series

FAO, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and the Thomson Reuters Foundation, the corporate charity of the world’s biggest news and information providers Thomson Reuters, have joined efforts to provide global information on issues related with food production, food security, food waste, agriculture, land use, and malnutrition. To improve awareness on hunger is also one of the main purposes. The initiative aims to launch an online food security information service later in the year. You can find more details here.

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Food -related issues, such as food production, food security, food waste, agriculture, land use, malnutrition, hunger will be the focus of this initiative. Image credits: http://instagram.com/scienceisherenow.

Because information is the basis for good decision making, the partnership now established commits to provide “accurate, updated and helpful information about hunger, nutrition and food production challenges”. The Thomson Reuters Foundation website will be the repository of such information and also the place to look for underreported stories that will be available for the general public. For how journalism can impact on people’s live, watch the interview with the Thomson Reuters Foundation Editor-in-Chief, Belinda Goldsmith, on Youtube.

Popular hashtags: #wpd2014, #WorldPopDay, #worldpopulationday, #food, #foodsafety

World Population Day – Every Newborn

This post is part of the World Population Day Series. (11th of July 2014) 

The Lancet medical journal has dedicated a special series of articles to the theme of newborn health around the globe.

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Every Newborn. Credits: http://instagram.com/scienceisherenow #worldpopday

The Every Newborn series,  published on the 20th of May, provides a comprehensive depiction of the progresses concerning the attempts to increase newborn survival. The numbers speak for themselves: every year 2.9 million newborns die and 2.6 million babies are stillborn. The areas of the world where most of the fatalities occur are south Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. Now, the five papers on Lancet have highlighted that the progress to prevent newborn mortality has been slow and that many child deaths are preventable. In particular, the day of birth was found to be the most dangerous for mother and child survival, and researchers have concluded that special health care measures should be concentrated on the days around birth.

An important aspect concerning these documents: The Executive Summary contains an Action Plan with milestones to end preventable newborn deaths and stillbirths by 2035.

For more information I do recommend The press conference for the Every Newborn series. It was Filmed May 20, 2014, in New York, Kim Eva Dickson, UNICEF Senior Adviser of Maternal and Newborn Health, and Joy Lawn of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine field questions at the Every Newborn press conference. 

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World Population Day Series

On the 11th of July we will celebrate The World Population Day. I am starting here a series of posts on population growth and associated aspects. Expect more on the days to come. Meanwhile, check here for information concerning this important day.

The World Population Day is an annual event. “Whether we can live together equitably on a healthy planet will depend on the choices and decisions we make now” can be read in the UN website Greening the Blue.

 

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World Population Day: 11th of July of 2014. Around the world as the World population increases. Building homes and feeding the ever growing population will remain a challenge. In addition, resources are not unlimited. #worldpopday