AlternativesMagazine

A tub-thumper of a report from the League of American Bicyclists lays it on the line: more cycling – and walking – would radically improve health in America, as well as reduce traffic congestion. However, the 409-page Benchmarking Report shows with stats and graphics the increasing number of bicyclists and pedestrians being killed annually on America’s roads. The report claims a lack of leadership by federal and state leaders on road safety has failed to make improvements in bicyclist and pedestrian safety. “The way we’re investing in infrastructure isn’t working,” said League policy director Ken McLeod, lead author of the report. “There is a crisis in traffic safety and we have the tools to reduce the number of bicyclists and pedestrians killed on our roads every year.” McLeod added: “We need leaders at the national and state levels to take action: adopt Complete Streets policies, draft and implement bike and pedestrian master plans, and build protected infrastructure.” “While th...

Over the past 12 years of publishing Alternatives Magazine I've read and featured a lot of articles about carnages, disasters and WTF moments. BUT I've never seen anything like this. I recently subscribed to a newsletter called " Veganuary ." Yes, it's about being a vegetarian. I've been a meat eater most of my life but thought I would check out vegetarianism, given the horror stories I've been reading about our meat processing and factory farmed food.  However, I never expected to see what I saw on this video. If you watch it and last through the first 5 minutes without having some abnormal body trauma you would have lasted longer than I did.  It's a 2-hour documentary (I plan to watch it in small doses). It's not for the faint of heart. It's called Dominion   https://www.dominionmovement.com/watch

ReGen village, in the Netherlands, will collect and store its own water and energy, grow its own food, and process much of its own waste. Also: no cars. A half-hour commute from Amsterdam, a piece of farmland is slated to become a new kind of neighborhood. Vertical farms, along with traditional fields and orchards surrounding homes, will supply food to people living there.  Food waste will turn into fish feed for on-site aquaculture. Houses will filter rainwater, but won’t have driveways. A “village OS” tech platform will use AI to simultaneously manage systems for renewable energy, food production, water supply, and waste. READ entire article >>

06.20.18 WORLD CHANGING IDEAS A sustainable economy won’t mean much if we are still driven by a desire for unceasing consumption and mired in unhappiness and alienation. The average American house size has more than doubled since the 1950s, while the average family size shrunk by half during that same period.  Moving to a new house that is 3D-printed with wood-based materials and is solar-powered might be good for the environment (as long as it does not further increase resource consumption per capita). But it won’t combat widespread loneliness and social isolation in America, where nearly half of all adults feel lonely today, a rate that has more than doubled since the 1980s. Continue >>

INSANITY Why more cities need to embrace bike lanes, bike parking and other bicycle infrastructure in their urban cores. The Value of Bicycle Lanes and Thoroughfares There is a growing connection in the relationship between amenity- or service-oriented businesses and the proximity to bicycle thoroughfares. These kinds of businesses would include restaurants, coffee shops, pubs, boutiques, and the like.  Michael Andersen, who writes for BikePortland and People for Bikes, has written numerous articles that detail this trend. “Bikes, it turns out, seem to be a perfect way to get people to the few retail categories that are thriving in the age of mail-order everything: bars, restaurants and personal services. And in Portland, where an early investment in basic bikeways has made bikes a popular way to run errands, retailers are responding by snapping up storefronts with good bike exposure.” READ >>

Small home leaks waste more than 1 trillion gallons of water annually nationwide, which is enough to provide water all year to 11 million homes. The average single household alone wastes more than 10 thousand gallons of water a year just from leaks that go unseen or unfixed. This amount of annual water waste is why ten years ago, the EPA introduced Fix a Leak Week to help educate Americans on finding and fixing leaks in their home. Go >>

Every dumb thing you own required some ghastly combination of fossil fuels, water, and marketing misanthropy to find its way into your home. Sure, you’re not about to fashion  an iPhone out of foraged twigs, but you  can  put an end to impulse shopping. Impulse purchases rarely have to do with actual needs — they’re often just an emotional coping mechanism. Who among us has not tried to push away thoughts of inevitable demise with a pair of wedge moccasins that you’ve never worn in five years, not once? Quitting that nonsense is better for your emotional health, credit card bill, the KonMari balance of your closet,  and  the war against the capitalist machine. Fun habits die hard, even expensive ones! But, like us, they do have to die, so I got on the phone with a psychologist — not my own! — to get some advice.  April Lane Benson  specializes in the treatment of shopping addiction. Understand  why...