We do one of 5 new trails in the Cape West Coast Biosphere

After another average week, similar to the one most of us experience – rush, dash, hare down the road, swerve round that corner, beat that deadline, race to fetch/buy/get – the drive out to Paternoster did little to relax me.

The sun beat down on us, as we drove towards the slowly setting star that is the source of our energy, and the traffic was, well, it was Friday traffic, need I say more?

But as we strolled down onto the beach in Paternoster and I felt the sand between my toes – no watch, cell phone or child (he's been left safely with relatives) to distract me, bar the camera I hold in an attempt to capture the moment – it is as if I sink into a comfy and well-worn sofa.

For more about the trails – here's a whole blurb about each, who you need to contact for more information, and to book.

“The Five Bay Trail, Darling Stagger, Wheels of Time, Eve's Trail and the Berg River Canooze are hospitable Cape West Coast trails for everyone, from hardcore mountain lovers, twitchers and botanists to family groups and modern-day strandlopers.”

The Cape West Coast Biosphere Reserve, for those of you who, like me, didn't know of its existence, lies between Diep River in Milnerton in the south, the Berg River, Velddrif in the north, the N7 at the towns of Moreesberg and Malmesbury in the east and the Atlantic Ocean in the west.

It is one of only six biospheres recognised as such by UNESCO in South Africa.

The more I see how much DIY has become a worldwide trend in recent years - due to lack of money and a growing green conscience - the more I am beginning to believe that the recession has helped to trigger society back into a place of creativity and self-sufficiency.

From the Facebook group ReUseConnection

From making your own cushion covers to creating furniture from the wood of used Christmas trees, innovative creations have been springing up everywhere. And you have only to look to the internet or your own mind for ideas.

At last! A phone app that will help consumers spend money on products they agree with.

'e' is for ethical electronics

Voltaire said ‘never underestimate the power of the vigilante consumer' and I also believe that our spending power is something to be taken seriously. Ultimately, everyone is a consumer in some way or other and businesses have a nasty habit of misleading us sometimes.

‘What is the effect of our purchases?’ asks Eitan, project manager of the eLabel team, staunch believers in business transparency and public access to information.

If you are anything like me, you are sooo over greenwashing scams and may have become a little jaded about

Imagine there was a place you could go to learn about Climate Change in a fun, interactive way?

The International Polar Foundation is bringing these kind of science centres to the world and South Africa gets to accommodate the first one!!

A small taste of what is to be

(image by Grant Mcpherson)

For young and old, businesses and families, this science society interface will function to provide all the information and knowledge to empower a more ecologically responsible future.

With the recent discoveries on humankind’s specific

HSI

The Humane Society International is pressing policymakers to address animal agriculture’s role in global warming during the UN conferences in Durban.

COP17, the United Nations’ climate change conference, opened this week with hopes for a global agreement that will stave off the most dangerous impacts of climate change.

Given animal agriculture’s significant contributions to the climate crisis (see this report), the Humane Society International believes that conference outcomes should include policies to reduce the animal agriculture sector’s greenhouse gas emissions.

National Geographic: Orpington

Previously we gave you 10 great reasons to look into keeping your own urban chickens.

Now we take a look at some suitable home-range breeds, where to get them, and what you can expect to pay.

Durban International Convention Centre

A host of green events, entertainment and exhibits will be held as part of the Climate Change Response Expo (CCR) which opens next week Monday the 28th November.

The biggest green expo in SA to date, it will be running alongside the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 17) in Durban and is expected to draw over 30 000 people and 15 000 UN delegates!

More than 100 exhibitors will showcase their innovations towards clean and efficient energy, sustainable development and water resource management amongst a host of climate change initiatives.

Business, Green Solutions, Science and

CocoáFair is the first organic bean-to-bar chocolate factory in Africa based on social entrepreneurship.

I do not realise on entering the factory of CocoáFair, tucked into the corner at the Biscuit Mill in Woodstock, that I'm about to learn more about social entrepreneurship than I am about chocolate.

For many of us just the promise of locally made, artisan, organic chocolate is enough of an invitation to have us reaching for a taste...and believe me, having sampled, it is a mouth-watering experience.

But Thor soon explains, as I query the name, that yes, CocoáFair is definitely about the fairness involved in the way the cocoa is traded, but the emphasis is also very much on the 'affair' with cocoa – not only the love of it, but the relationship of cocoa with the people who grow it, and the people who turn it into chocolate.

Was it the pink smiley that attracted Walmart to Massmart?

The saga of the Walmart Massmart merger has exposed an uncomfortable fact in the South African business landscape: government doesn’t trust business to do what it does best. So says Brain Kantor, Investec Strategist and Economist, and Professor Emeritus at the University of Cape Town, speaking at a panel discussion at the Graduate School of Business .

In its third Social Speaking Series panel discussion, Net Impact South Africa, in partnership with the Human Sciences Research Council, pitted Kantor against Chris Tilly, from UCLA's Department of Urban Planning and Sociology and Director of the Institute for Research on Labour and Employment, to debate the Walmart Massmart merger.

It was a clash of ideologies that yielded some interesting facts, without any clear outcomes. The overall question is whether growth drives equity or equity drives growth; whether it is better to encourage