These are a few stories we found this week that may be of interest to institute regulars. If you have a news tip, please send it to lowtechinstitute@gmail.com.
Low Tech News
Rooftop cooling system reflects sunlight and sends excess heat out into space – TH
800,000 low-income homes to go solar in the UK – TH
Streets really are for people, not cars – TH
Backyard Chickens Carry a Hidden Risk: Salmonella – NYT
Sustainable Uses of Food Waste – PRI
[Episode #51] – Climate Science Part 6 – Emissions Scenarios – Energy Transition Show
$5,000 Earthbag House in Senegal – NBB
6 Everyday Gadgets with Manual Powered Alternatives – PRI
How a Japanese Table Can Lower Your Heating Bills – PRI
Abundant Land: The Rich Legacy Of Traditional Hawaiian Land Management – PRI
France plans to end all fossil fuel production by 2040 – TH
Environmental News
“Your eyes start itching”: Pollution Soars in Houston After Chemical Industry Leaks – EF!/Guardian
If You Think the Government Will Do Something About Chemical Explosions in the Wake of Houston, Think Again – MJ
Harvey stirs up a toxic, industrial soup – G
Yikes, 13 of Houston’s Superfund sites flooded during Harvey – G
How to Follow Hurricane Irma – NYT
Wildfires are raging across California, too – G
Research News
Why laptops don’t belong in the classroom – TH
Has Salt Gotten An Unfair Shake? – NPR
Canada Will Study How Solar Storms Threaten Our Energy Grid – VM
Plastic particles found in most tap water samples across the globe – TH
Why Do Parrots (And People) Eat Clay? – NPR
Op-Ed¹
Climate history backs bold actions now to keep fossil fuels in the ground – E
What Hurricane Harvey says about risk, climate and resilience – The Conversation
I was an Exxon-funded climate scientist – E
The ‘internet of things’ is sending us back to the Middle Ages – The Conversation
Dangers and Promises of Genetically Modified Organisms – PRI
Swapping the classroom for the field: my summer internship with The Nature Conservancy – TH
ReWild: The art of returning to nature – E
What Lies Beneath? The Scientific Understatement of Climate Risks – Resilience
Source Abbreviations
E – The Ecologist
EF! – Earth First! Newswire
G – Grist
MJ – Mother Jones
NBB — Natural Building Blog
NPR – National Public Radio
NYT – New York Times
PRI – Permaculture Research Institute
TH – TreeHugger
V – Vice
VM – Vice: Motherboard
Disclaimer: The news stories and posts linked above are not meant as an endorsement of the information presented. They are provided as they may be of interest to our readers and further our aims of solutions for a post-fossil-fuel world. We strive to provide fact-based information. If you feel that political views are being presented in a partisan fashion, we are happy to provide equal time to opposing view points as long as they are derived from verifiable data and facts.
¹Opinion pieces represent the independent thought of their authors and may or may not represent the position of the Low Technology Institute.