January 2007 | Mindful Living
Countdown the days with the 2007 Women of Biodiesel
Sienna Wildwind had more volunteer models than she knew what to do with, all of whom hankered to makeover the car-ornamenting pin-up girl. Inspired by a growing demand for cleaner ways to drive, Wildwind tapped the Bay Area’s sustainable biodiesel community for people to pose for the first Women of Biodiesel calendar. The owner of Green Means Go, a brokerage that finds prospective buyers used diesel vehicles to purchase, hopes her calendar helps spreads the word about biodiesel, which is made from vegetable oil, can run in almost any diesel engine and can reduce CO2 emissions by up to 75 percent. “It’s really great not to go to the gas station,” says Wildwind.
“I really wanted each woman to choose how she wanted to be represented herself,” she says, which lead to a diverse collection of photographs gracing the 12 months of 2007. There’s only one stereotypically sexy shot, featuring a fishnet-wearing nurse (sustainable fuel advocate Jessica Redford) about to inject a VW Beetle with a dose of biodiesel. After a mention on Salon.com and on sustainable fuel websites around the country, Wildwind has already received hundreds of orders.
Wildwind’s idea for a Women of Biodiesel calendar was on the backburner until she attended the Sustainable Biodiesel Summit last February in San Diego. There she met women from all over the country who were taking leadership roles in their sustainable fuel communities, so she committed to try to bring these hard-working women and their green messages closer to the mainstream.
To buy a $15 calendar, visit greenmeansgocars.com or stop by the Biofuel Oasis in Berkeley. Half of the proceeds will go to the Biodiesel Council of California. —Emily Dulcan
AltMedicine in the Mainstream
Coffee Drinking Decreases Incidence of Diabetes
Ah, there’s nothing better than a steaming cup of coffee. Too bad it’s not good for you.
Or is it?
A recent study confirms what researchers have suspected for several years — coffee consumption is good for you, where diabetes is concerned. In the Dec. 1 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology, a study led by W. H. Linda Kao of Johns Hopkins reports that increased coffee consumption correlates with a decreased incidence of Type 2 diabetes.
Not only does a cup o’ Joe a day help keep diabetes away, but the more the better. Studies from coffee-loving Finland found their lowest diabetes rates among those who drank 10 cups a day!
Apparently, caffeine is not what’s helping. Decaffeinated coffee, in several studies, proved more beneficial than regular brew. Scientists posit that other ingredients, such as chlorogenic acid or magnesium, may get the credit.
Diabetes has been all over the headlines recently. In June, the American Heart Association announced startling news: Among middle-aged Americans, the incidence of Type 2 diabetes has doubled over the last 30 years. While coffee drinking apparently protected against diabetes, Hopkins’ researchers were surprised to find that sweetened beverages had no measurable negative effect.
But many nutritionists remain unimpressed. Sharon Mayer, certified nutritionist at California Pacific Medical Center’s Health and Healing Center, counsels weaning ourselves off coffee entirely. While acknowledging the role in blood-sugar metabolism, Mayer asks, “What is caffeine doing in the rest of the body?” It can, for example, increase blood pressure. Even water-processed decaffeinated coffee, she argues, is detrimental. “There’s an emotional link to that ritual of drinking coffee,” Mayer says, that can be replaced by a healthier ritual, such as meditation. “Caffeine stimulates adrenaline.” Mayer says, adding that too much adrenaline is not good for the body in the long term. “Most bodies are already pretty stressed.”
The Hopkins researchers are also quick to stress moderation. While acknowledging its medicinal effect with diabetes, too much coffee, they say, can cause other problems, such as high blood pressure. So don’t emulate those Finns. After all, ten cups of coffee is enough to give even a sperm whale the heebeegeebees. —Monica Woelfel
Worth repeating
“I’ve never learned anything from refusing to listen to other people or refusing to engage in conversation with them, and that surely can’t be the basis for healthy politics in our society.”
— Sen. Barack Obama responding to objections to his invited participation in an HIV/AIDS summit at predominantly Republican Saddleback Church in Orange County, 12/2/06.
“For some reason, when Democrats are in power the press corps immediately goes from being merely shallow to insufferable, sophomoric assholes.
— digby on digbysblog.blogspot.com, blogging about mainstream media’s disdain for Dems, 11/17/06.
“[The US] destroyed Iraq. There was no civil war in Iraq until we got there and took certain steps to pit Sunni against Shia. We need to know that we are responsible.”
— Journalist and author Nir Rosen to Democracy Now! upon his return from months in the Middle East, 11/27/06.
“[Acceptance of the DVDs would place an] unnecessary risk upon the capital campaign, especially certain targeted supporters… [and there is] little, if any, benefit to NSTA or its members.”
— The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) in an email refusing 50,000 free DVDs of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth to distribute to their members. One of their targeted supporters is the Exxon Mobil Corp.
You’ve heard of the Love Boat and the Peace Train
From Japan: Meet the Peace Boat
Japan’s human rights record is, to say the least, not its greatest strong point, historically. But that doesn’t mean the citizens of the country accept that lying down. And let’s be honest, we all know a thing or two about a citizenry left unrepresented by its government. If only we had come up with this idea:
In 1983, a group of Japanese students objected to their government’s censorship of their country’s tarnished history. In response, they chartered a boat to sail around the Asia-Pacific region so they could learn about some of the past military aggression first hand and apologize to the people for it.
Since then, the organization has thrived, extending its itinerary over the years to include longer and multi-regional trips. Where there used to be just one Asian-region voyage a year, there are now three global voyages as well. They go by boat because it becomes a neutral village, promoting a sense of community and enabling direct dialogue. To date, the Peace Boat has taken 54 voyages and reached more than 30,000 people in more than 100 ports in 80 countries.
The organizers of the Peace Boat use on- and off-board programming and ongoing projects to spread the word that that equal and sustainable development, human rights, and respect for the environment are all inextricably linked to each other and to peace. The onboard education programs consist of lectures and workshops conducted by educators from around the world – including students from war-torn regions. When off-board at ports, the passengers interact with locals; playing games, learning handicrafts, and having dances.
The passengers are anyone and everyone. Most of the people on board are Japanese (it is a Japanese NGO, after all) but they actively recruit teachers and participants from around the globe. There is a focus on tourism (executed sustainably, of course) as a way to start global communication and cultural exchange.
Peace Boat’s ongoing goals are lofty and varied. They include everything from ending the occupation in Iraq and achieving peace in war-torn regions; to creating a common history textbook for Northeast Asia; to sustainable organic projects in Colombia, Japan and Eritrea.
The voyages are three months long and the ports of call vary per trip. One departed from Yokahama, Japan on Nov. 2 and is taking a mostly Northern Hemisphere course; including a two-day stop in San Francisco on January 22 as its only North American port of call.
For more information, go to peaceboat.org/english —Lina Swislocki
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