News

Finally finish Breaking Bad or Orange is the New Black and searching for a new feature on Netflix? Don't look further. The sensational CNN documentary Blackfish, directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite follows Tilikum, a SeaWorld orca whale that has killed three trainers. After watching Blackfish, I'm boycotting SeaWorld for good. Find out more about the controversy of Blackfish, after the jump.

Monday. I’m sure you looked at the alarm clock this morning, rolled over and put your pillow over your head, begging for 8 more hours of sleep and another day of the weekend. (Or was that just me?) Monday also has another new meaning in Philadelphia: Meatless Mondays. But what does this resolution mean for Philadelphians? What’s the point of eating meat most, some or none of the time?

We’ve heard the buzz: July 2013 was the 341st consecutive month where temperatures have been over the 20th century global average. Since 1880, average global temperatures have rose about 1.4 degrees Fahrenheit causing an average 8 inch sea level rise. Sea level rise has gone up from approximately 1 millimeter per year to almost 3 since 1900. With impacts from climate change, Pennsylvania has been declared a disaster area 14 times since 2000. It’s estimated by 2100, average sea level rise is conservatively projected at 2 feet. 10 sq kilometers of Philadelphia is only 1 meter above sea level, placing it underwater in the next century - low lands around the airport succumbing before that. Find out about the upcoming Carbon emissions limits on coal plants and the battle with the EPA, after the jump.

Happy Friday, friends! We have a return to our Friday link roundups since there's too much to cover by one little (green philly) blog:

Today July 11 has been named World Population Day 2013 by the United Nations. Each year the United Nations focuses on what they consider an important global issue. In 2012 the UN spotlighted the need for universal access to reproductive health services. And, in 2011 the focus was on their 7 billion campaign and reflected on the growth of 2 billion the world experienced between 1987 and 2011. This year the UN's focal point is the issue of adolescent pregnancy. The UN is calling on government officials to take action to help young girls make "responsible life choices and realize their potential." According to the UN Population Fund roughly 16 million (!) girls under the age of 18 give birth each year and another 3.2 million have what are deemed as unsafe abortions.

But in the late 1950s, the National Weather Service began measuring the levels of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere, with the worry that rising levels might someday disrupt the fragile balance that makes our planet so hospitable.  And what they’ve found, year after year, is that the levels of carbon pollution in our atmosphere have increased dramatically. That science, accumulated and reviewed over decades, tells us that our planet is changing in ways that will have profound impacts on all of humankind. - President Barack Obama, 6/25/13 President Obama gave a speech on Climate Change yesterday at Georgetown University. Here's the full transcript on the Wall Street Journal. Guest blogger Russell Zerbo of the Clean Air Council shares his remarks on the speech and the impact on our nation.

This week New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's new mission to require food composting made headlines. The plan to begin collecting food scraps across the city has been called ambitious by some, though other cities like Seattle and San Francisco have had success with food compost programs. The intention of the proposed program is to decrease residential food waste.  Initially the program will be voluntary but Bloomberg's administration is hopeful that within a few years it'll become mandatory. Sanitation officials said more than 5 percent of households in the city would be on board voluntarily by next year, and more than 600 schools will take part as well.

Looking to get some volunteer hours in this summer? Want to meet locavore lovers and those who love to eat?  Farm to City has a volunteer opportunity we are sharing below: Farm to City is looking for energetic and passionate volunteers to staff an information table at our biggest market, the Saturday Rittenhouse Farmers’ Market. Volunteers will provide information and resources on vendors, community activities, and Farm to City programs including:

One of my favorite Philly sustainable boutique, Arcadia, announced that it is closing its Rittenhouse location later this month. According to (Find out more, after the jump!)