Plastic particles are acting a magnet for poisons in the ocean, according to a study being carried out by the University of Plymouth. These studies are suggesting that billions of plastic particles are drifting underwater and concentrating the ocean’s pollutants. These seeds of toxic threat are not only being found around the shores of the UK, but also across all 7 continents.

The investigation into how plastic fragments in sea water is also being carried out in Midway USA, with the effects on ocean organisms being closely monitored. If these organisms start to ingest these minuscule particles of plastic, it could pose a potentially devastating toxic threat to the world’s ecological system. Once inside an organism, there is a major risk that the toxins may be transferred into the creature itself, with the chemicals being re-released into the ocean.
 
The plastic content of the sea is rising. Samples are now showing that high tide sand around British coastlines are carrying as much as a quarter of plastic particles in the total weight measured. This is a worrying amount, especially as the plastic does not fully disintegrate, merely the particles fragment.The US Fish and Wildlife Services spokesperson Matt Brown warns –

“The thing that’s most worrying about the plastic is its durability; it’s not going to go away in our lifetime. If people don’t start to take away their plastic today, it’ll still be here when our grandchildren are walking down our beaches.”

> > click here to help Greenpeace protect the world’s oceans 

> > click here to sponsor a dolphin through Marine Connection

 

Northampton based nightclub Ghost lead the way to the future of responsible clubbing by becoming the first venue in the UK to become carbon neutral.

Having been open for just under a year, Ghost’s environmentally friendly stance is in stark contrast to some people’s misconception of most nightclubs. Can doormen, dolly birds and carbon capture live under one roof in perfect harmony? I spoke to Ghost owner Sam King about his innovative stance –

“Just because we work in the club industry, it shouldn’t mean we can’t help towards environmental issues. Most nightclubs create a great deal of rubbish with bottles and boxes, and it’s in everyone’s best interest to reduce carbon emissions across the country. This is now a global issue, and everyone needs to do their bit.”

Ghost pay a yearly fee to the Carbon Neutral Company, who then assess the clubs yearly carbon output. This is calculated via the amount of deliveries per week, the amount of rubbish collected, plus the CO2 emission produced by the vehicles used for the transport of stock and wastage. Once the figure of carbon emission has been determined, trees are planted in a designated area in the UK to neutralize the company’s output. It’s an excellent idea, and one Sam intends on using in the future -

“We plan to open 10 more Ghost nightclubs across the UK in the next 3 or 4 years, and all of them will be carbon neutral. It’s time for everyone to realise that the world’s environmental problems aren’t going to fix themselves.”

Wise words indeed. From as little as £25 you too can cut carbon emissions in the world by helping save an acre of rainforest with the World Land Trust.

> > Click here to help Greenpeace stop carbon emissions

> > Click here to make a donation to save an acre of rainforest

 

Grab your Noel Edmond’s jumper, glue on a little beard, and help Oxfam fight poverty with their novel party idea!

We all have loads of clothes we don’t wear, or need, collecting dust in closets and drawers around the house. Those snow wash jeans are never coming back into fashion, and that whole pirate look was never going to last (unless you actually WERE a pirate). But maybe some of your friends have had an eye on some of your fashion disasters with a look of wonder and awe. One man’s rubbish is another man’s treasure (again with the pirate theme!), so why not have your own fashion show and host an Oxfam ‘Swap It Party’ on 25th April?

Get your mates together with all your unused clothing, CD’s, books, and anything else that might be of good ‘swappable’ value, and see what gems you can unearth. So whilst your friends fight over your Bon Jovi collection, you will be gathering a plethora of charity donations. Whatever you have in surplus can be taken to an Oxfam shop, then in turn sold on for a profit which will help fund their fight to overcome poverty and suffering around the world.

> > click here for more ‘Swap it Party’ information

> > click here to make a donation to Oxfam

It’s been a busy year for Greenpeace environmental issues, not just in the UK but throughout the world’s governments. Obviously Greenpeace have been experts in this field for decades, putting them in the unique position of being able to address the world leaders at the U.N’s climate meeting last year. Now it seems that it’s the hot topic for politicians, but for Greenpeace the time for talk was years ago…

now is the time for action.

Greenpeace raised over £9million last year through subscriptions, donations and merchandising, with £8million being put back into the marketing and campaigning for global awareness. Here’s a breakdown of the Greenpeace expenditure-

 

 

These figures show that the majority of money raised by Greenpeace is ploughed back into the charity. Nearly all the money raised through subscriptions is put back into worthwhile campaigns, whilst administration and management run on less than 5% of the money raised. Over £1million was raised in donations alone, over 12% of their annual income. Donations can start from as little as £3 a month, with one off payments starting at £15. Why not start today in helping Greenpeace provide a safer future for our environment and the world.

Greenpeace actively try to stop global environmental abuse, whilst challenging the people who have the power and resources to make the changes happen. Non violent action is integral to the Greenpeace movement’s message, exposing environmental injustice to the politicians and general public. Here’s a summary of their sterling efforts to make a change in 2007.

ACTION

Ensuring the sustainable fishing debate became a major issue at last year’s Seafood Expo in Brussels.

Active disruption of low stocked Mediterranean Tuna fishing and North Sea Cod fishing.

Engaging the International Whaling Commission at this year’s ballot, with the voting against returning to commercial whaling upheld.

Giving evidence to World Bank on forest destruction in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Stopping soya sourcing in the Amazon stopping widespread rainforest destruction.

Clearing Woolworth’s shelves off energy sapping lightbulbs, causing the company to compromise and phase out all inefficient bulbs by 2010.

Exposing safety and finance problems in the construction of 2 new, nuclear power stations in Finland and France.

Exchanging train tickets for plane tickets for unnecessary journeys at airports across the UK.

Stopping oil companies from burning Indonesian swamp forest’s by building dams across drainage channels.

Halting the re-firing of an unused coal power station in New Zealand through legal challenges.

Blocking a Trident nuclear submarine from leaving the UK to patrol international waters.

Exposing Tony Blair’s involvement in developing nuclear weapons, causing a record number of MP’s to vote against new weapons of mass destruction.

Shutting down the coal feed at Kingsworth power station in Kent, the proposed site for the first coal power station in the UK for 33 years.

Just one of these coal power stations will pump more CO2 into the world than the 24 least polluting countries put together. 3 years ago the Government promised that no new nuclear power stations would be built without a full public review. Yet only a year later the Government began pushing nuclear power as the only viable solution to climate change. Last year saw Greenpeace take legal action against the Government’s first ‘review’, with their victory securing a second consultation.

In the UK we should be looking towards renewable energy sources like wind, solar and ocean power, not nuclear. We have the ability to be a world role model in how to tackle climate change and the usage of renewable fuels. By the year 2025, we could provide 25% of today’s electricity consumption with wind power alone. With advances in energy science, the UK has enough natural resources to power itself without the over consumption of fossil fuels.

The biggest power expenditure in Great Britain is gas, which we use to heat our homes and the country’s industrial requirements. Yet nuclear power can do nothing to help lessen gas usage and cut the UK’s CO2 emissions, as it can only be trafficked for electrical needs (of which it covers less than 4%). Since the 1970’s the Government have spent £13billion on nuclear power research, whilst another £70billion has been spent on cleaning up the 200 million metres of cubic waste produced. How much has been spent on the research and development into renewable energy?

£1billion.

There is enough renewable energy potential in the wind, sun and ocean to power the UK for years to come, we just need the facilities to maximise our natural resources The nuclear industry is looking to build 10 new reactors in the UK alone, at a cost of between £20-40billion. These reactors would not be ready till the earliest 2017, with some not being ready till 2030. Isn’t it about time the Government started channelling it’s time and money into the development of renewable, non CO2 emitting fuel sources?

The clock is ticking…

> > click here to make a monthly donation to Greenpeace

> > click here to help save an acre of rainforest with the World Land Trust 

 

The RSPB’s Big Garden Birdwatch survey in January showed a massive rise in the number of Finches seen in UK gardens. Encouraged by warmer temperatures to stay in the UK as opposed to flying to Southern Europe, Finch sightings were at their highest for 5 years.

Sources at the RSPB mirror the rise in Finches with a startling drop in some of the more commonly spotted birds, like starlings and the sparrow. Milder climate change and more food available gave the Finch more feeding options than in Scandinavia, where seeding crops have been poor.

Almost 400,000 people counted more than six million birds across 228,000 gardens during the survey weekend of January 26th-27th. An average of 28 birds per garden were recorded this year, but whilst the Finches flourished, a lot more of the common UK birds floundered. Though Sparrows may still be the most frequently seen bird, there number are down by 64% in the last 29 years, whilst the Starling’s figures are down 77% since the survey began in 1979.

The top 10 species of birds in the UK for 2008:

• 1 House sparrow
  2 Starling
  3 Blackbird
  4 Blue tit
  5 Chaffinch
  6 woodpigeon
  7 Collared dove
  8 Robin
  9 Great tit
  10 Goldfinch

With conditions in the wild getting tougher for birds to survive, gardens are becoming vitally important in the feeding of many species. Plus with the climate change offering warmer winters in the UK, you can expect to see a wider diversity of bird in your back garden. You don’t have to be a member of the RSPB to join in the survey, but from as little as £2.67 a month you can help stop the UK’s endangered birds disappearing from our landscapes.

> > click here to join the RSPB

> > click here to find out more about wildlife charities

Eco Fishing On The Up

Thanks to the tireless efforts of the Marine Stewardship Council and Greenpeace, the British fishing industry is about to become one of the most environmentally friendly in the world market.

The Council has so far persuaded 60% of all British fishing fleets to join their responsible fishing scheme, with a record number of fleets being awarded coveted “eco-labels” for their catches. The fact that the industry acknowledge that the practices of the yesteryear aren’t sustainable, and that eco friendly catches are good for all concerned, is a promising sign.

250,000 tonnes of fish caught next year will be carrying the blue eco friendly label, with the stamp currently only making it on to 4,580 tonnes of fish this year. The MSC have also persuaded the 2 major Scottish fleets to apply for the eco sticker, who’s North Sea catch is roughly 200,000 tonnes a year. Along with the change in attitudes from the fishing industry, welcome changes are afoot within the leading supermarkets, who retail a large proportion of the fish.

Supermarkets are now competing amongst themselves to be the ‘greenest‘ fishmongers in the UK. Having been forced into removing threatened species from their counters by Greenpeace campaigns. Asda have now promised that within 4 years ALL its fish will reach MSC requirements. Waitrose and Mark and Spencers have already banned unsustainable fish from their counters, whilst Sainsbury’s have pledged to double their ranges of eco friendly fish.

At the moment nearly all eco friendly fish sold in the UK is imported from as far afield as New Zealand and Alaska, but with these new plans in place the tide is turning. The British fishing industry seems to have grasped the concept that when the fish run out they won’t have an industry at all, and I for one am looking forward to ordering Pollack and chips in the very near future!

> > Click here to make a donation to Greenpeace

> > Click here to find out more about the Marine Stewardship Council

Recent newspaper reports say that Prince Harry was ‘livid’ to find that of the £1.15million accumulated by his charity Sentebale, only £84,000 had actually gone to the children. Sentebale was set up in April 2006 by Prince Harry and Prince Seesio of Lesotho, to help children who have been orphaned by the HIV virus in Lesotho, South Africa. Lesotho itself has the 3rd highest infection rate in the world, with more than 35% of its inhabitants carrying some strain of the deadly virus. Adult life expectancy is low, with figures estimating a meagre forty-eight years for men and fifty-six for women.

Sentebale - meaning “forget me not” in the language of Lesotho, was named to commemorate the tireless effort towards AIDs awareness performed by Princess Diana during her lifetime of charity work. The Princes first came up with the idea for the charity when Prince Harry took the time to visit for 2 months whilst on his gap year in 2004.

This visit first brought to light Lesotho’s growing HIV problem, with ITV commissioning a documentary team to follow the Prince in the making of “The Forgotten Kingdom - Prince Harry in Lesotho”. Having just watched this documentary myself, it’s heartbreaking stuff. So heartbreaking in fact, that after the first airing of the show a massive £600,000 was donated by viewers. The documentary was then sold around the world for another £500,000. This money was then donated to the British Red Cross Lesotho Fund, who were struggling for funds before the programme aired.

Sentebale were one of the main beneficiaries of the 2007 Concert for Diana which was seen by over 500 million people in 140 countries. Plus, in the last 2 years alone, they have raised £1.15m. So the question has to be: “where has all the money actually gone?”

As is oft the case when people give generously to worthy causes, there’s always a legitimate desire to know that as much of their donation as is possible has actually found its way to where it can do the most good? So how is Sentebale doing in that regard? In the first set of accounts filed to the Charity Commission, with £600k worth of undistributed donations still in the Sentebale account, it works out that for every £1 donated to the fund 60p went towards distribution.

So how is the money you give to charity actually spent?

Charity expenditure is usually broken down into 2 main factors :

• the campaign cause
• generating income and management.

Obviously, every business has manpower costs, plus advertising needs to be budgeted for - to gain public interest that leads to donations. But how much from your donation is spent on wages, and how much is spent on the actual cause / issue to which you’d contributed?

Here’s the breakdown of the ‘per pound expenditure’ for some of the UK’s leading charities :-

Top of the pile is UNICEF, though with 64% of their funds coming from the Government, a lot less needs to be spent on advertising. What these figures do show is that the majority of your donation DOES go towards your chosen charities major initiative, not on unnecessary behind the scenes expenditure.

But surely, when the running costs exceed the donations being handed out, can the term ‘charity’ still apply? The £86,000 spent on the Sentebale website alone is more money than the orphans of Lesotho received from the charity.

Obviously in the early days of Sentebale there’ll be start-up costs that won’t be repeated year-on-year and over time they’ll hopefully start to get their admin costs under control.  However, what is pleasing to note from the figures above is that, typically, the major part of your donation DOES indeed get put to good use ‘at-the-sharp-end’.

Hopefully, this early expenditure review of the Sentebale accounts will enable the Princes’ high-profile, sterling work in Africa to continue to bear fruit - and that those charged with administering Sentebale on their behalf, will take this opportunity to benchmark their admin performance against some of the best charity organisations.  We wish them well in their endeavours.

By sponsoring a child through World Vision, you are not only donating money to provide food and water, you are giving them the initiative to help themselves. From as little as 60p a day, you can help children in poverty stricken countries throughout the world. Your donations will help World Vision not only provide the daily care needed to sustain communities in 3rd World countries, but specifically help one child, of whom you will be sole sponsor.

We ourselves at Venturian Media provide monthly payments to sponsor 6 year old Eliza Manuel in Malawi, a landlocked country bordering Zambia, Mozambique and Tanzania in Southern Africa. Farming is most people’s trade for survival, but with crop harvests running dry between January and April, aid is needed to provide clean drinking water and healthcare. We were over the moon to see our donations were being well spent when we received this letter from little Eliza –

Dear Sponsor,

Eliza is very thankful for sponsoring her through the Nemachote area development programme which is found to the South East of Zomba Monopantir, which is about 90km from Blantyre City.
Eliza lives in a house made up of burnt sun bricks roofed with iron sheets. Her parents ease living by growing crops like maize, sorghum and groundnuts. These crops are used both for food and for sale.
May God bless you abundantly,
Written by Adranda Chikometsa (sponsorship monitor)
Name - Manuel Eliza
I/D – 169767-8519

So as you can see, your help is desperately needed, and gratefully received. World Vision provide not only the things we take for granted like food and clean water, but also the seeds for farming to sustain communities, even through the difficult months. 60p a day is a small sacrifice that could go a long way to providing for someone’s long term future.

> > click here to sponsor a child today

> > click here to make a donation to World Vision

Shelter’s latest housing donation initiative is the Virtual City, where from as little as £5 you can buy a plot of ‘virtual land’ and advertise your business. With 28 drop in centres receiving 45,000 phone calls a year, your donations help to provide the expert housing advice that needs to be given to over 170,000 people.

Your virtual property can be of any size and shape you desire, with even a bespoke service offering an exact virtual replica of your business building. Prices range from £5 for a piece of parkland to £1000 for a skyscraper, with ex Red or Dead owner Wayne Hemmingway’s featured house designs available for as little as £20 (the real thing may cost you a bit more!). Also available are Tudor and Victorian style houses, shops, pubs, restaurants, hotels and department stores There are even Windmills available, because as Shelter well know, everyone at one time or another has wanted to live in a Windmill!

All you need to do is visit the virtual map and find yourself a nice plot of land, then make your choice of donation to purchase your dream home. You then have the option of uploading a photo and leaving a message when people click on your property. Also you have the ability to leave a webpage link, offering excellent advertising opportunities for your charitable donation. You can then send a link to friends who can come and ‘live’ in your part of the City, everybody needs good neighbours!

Shelter cannot exist without your donations, and with only 1% of each pound going to management and admin, you know your money is being spent wisely. So go buy that dream house you always wanted, and remember that the money you’re spending is also helping the people around you find housing too.

> > click here to find out more about Virtual City

> > click here to make a donation to Shelter

 

Dell and Microsoft have combined forces to release a pair of laptop’s and one desktop to raise money for the Aid’s awareness charity – Red.

The charity ‘Red’, was set up by U2 singer and general man on a mission Bono. His promise is to give a percentage of profits on all things sold that are ‘Red’, to buy and distribute anti-retroviral medicine to people dying of AID’s in Africa. Current ‘Red’ products include charity credit cards like the American Express Red, along with iPods, clothing, and now 2 Dell laptops and a desktop.

Both Dell ‘Red’ products will have no extra cover charge on the same current models available. Instead, Dell will themselves be donating to the Global Fund £25 for the sale of each laptop, and £40 for the desktop, generous stuff!

The PC’s, which were part designed by Bono himself, are expected to be big sellers this year and another major contributor to the Global Funds proceeds. Having only been established since 2006, the Global Fund and ‘Red’ have already raised over £30 million worldwide.

> > click to apply for the American Express ‘Red’ credit card

> > click here to find out more about charity credit cards