Data centres: Social desert. Facebook’s building a datacenter in Prineville to leverage the natural climate cycle for cooling. I think that’s what you’d call “natural capitalism.”
In the news, ending 12 December 2008
Of interest in the past week:
Haiti’s road to ruin – Straight.com
Haiti’s environmental woes in a nutshell, and how they’re even more applicable after the hurricane.
Why not writing a story is innovation – Publishing 2.0
Down with rewriting and publishing press releases (and other such nonsense)!
The Newspaper Industry and the Arrival of the Glaciers – Boing Boing
Clay Shirky (aka Man of Foresight and Infinite Wisdom) saw all of this happening in 1995, and argues that the downfall of newspapers arrived at the same rate as glaciers. Really, I think this is a telling example of how we need to develop better long term thinking (and acting) abilities.
Peru aims for zero deforestation – BBC
The Peruvian government is requesting $25 million a year for the next 10 years to combat deforestation in the country. Deforestation in Peru contributes to less than 1% of greenhouse gas emissions worldwide.
How Risky Is India? – BusinessWeek
A piece touching the stability of the business climate in India because of the recent violence in Mumbai. Notes events from the last ten years to support the claim that the country might not be as stable for investment as thought. No mention of the environment or state of natural resources, however.
via Publish2
In the news, ending 5 December 2008
Of interest in the past week:
Text service provides more than a Band-Aid for rural health service – CNN
Coverage of Josh Nesbit’s Mobiles in Malawi project to enable community health workers with FrontlineSMS.
Alligator lacks editor applicants – The Florida Alligator
The Independent Florida Alligator is having trouble finding Editor-In-Chief applicants. Sign of the times?
The Worst Is Yet To Come: Anonymous Banker Weighs In On The Coming Credit Card Debacle – Executive Suite Blog – The New York Times
This whole thing is a mess. Reading through this explanation doesn’t leave me very optimistic.
Cities and new wars: after Mumbai – openDemocracy
Interesting analysis tying the attacks in Mumbai to a growing number of examples of asymmetric warfare.
The (Tuna) Tragedy of the Commons – Dot Earth Blog – The New York Times
Argues that tuna stocks on both sides of the Atlantic suffer from mismanagement and overfishing.
Education 2.0: Never Memorize Again? – Read/Write Web
Speculative article about the future of education in a hyper-connected world. Ideas presented aren’t entirely new, but it’s interesting to see a growing storm of discussion about this topic.
My ‘Crisis’ Advice to Newspaper Company CEOs: 11 Points to Ponder – Steve Outing
Steve Outing identifies his 11 points of advice to newspaper CEOs, all sage. The most relevant now? Number 11: “consider retirement.”
Haiti’s ongoing disaster – Boston Globe
Op-ed piece on Haiti’s continuing crisis, and steps the US can take to make change.
via Publish2