Environment

Bamboo Bikes for the People

By |

Craig Calfee, an elite bicycle designer, makes high quality, fully functional bicycles out of bamboo that sell for over $2,000 in the United States.  
Now, Calfee has launched Bamboosero Bikes, which will bring a priced-down version of his eco-friendly bicycles to rural communities in sub-Saharan Africa, according to industry journal Bicycle Retailer.  
Most bikes in Africa are cheaply made imports from China and India. 
Calfee has designed a cargo bike made from locally grown bamboo that is more appropriate for heavy loads and bumpy roads than imported bikes.   
The bikes, which are said to be fully sustainable and require no power tools to make, are intended to to give rural Africans better transport options, and to foster a bike-building cottage industry.   
–Julia Hengst/Newsdesk.org 
Source:
“Africans Mold Bamboo into Cargo Bikes”
Bicycle Retailer and Industry News, March 2, 2009

Environment

Sweden's own Ecotopia

By |

The small town of Kalmar, Sweden, is on track to become entirely free of fossil-fuel use by the year 2030, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune. 
The city’s comprehensive program to reduce fossil fuels includes heat and electricity generated by a local wood pulp plant, an entire fleet of biodiesel municipal trucks, strict energy efficient building codes and tax incentives.  
Kalmar’s 60,000 residents save money by getting over 65 percent of their energy from renewable resources. 
They say that while the shift has been an adjustment, it “hasn’t made life miserable.” 
At first, most of the city’s politicians scoffed at the idea of independence from fossil fuels, but now they are overwhelmingly in support of the transition. 
“We are not eco-freaks,” one sustainability officer told the Tribune. “We’re just making it easy to change, giving people the tools.”  
–Julia Hengst/Newsdesk.org
Source:
“Going green: Entire Swedish city switches to biofuels to become environmentally friendly”
Chicago Tribune, March 3, 2009
 

Economy

Black Truckers Win Big Wal-Mart Settlement

By |

Black truck drivers who claimed that Wal-Mart discriminated against them have reached a settlement of $17.5 million, although the company denies any wrongdoing. The 23 drivers who filed suit will also receive priority job placement for future work with the company. According to the Associated Press, figures show that 15 percent of truckers were black from 2000 to 2005. However, in that five-year period only 4 percent to 6 percent of Wal-Mart’s 8,000 truckers were black, and none of the hiring committees at Wal-Mart’s various sites had a strong representation of blacks, despite a rule that the panels have 50 percent minority membership. — Brittany Owens/Newsdesk.org
Source:
“Retail giant Wal-Mart settles suit by black truck drivers”
Associated Press, February 20, 2009

Democracy & Civics

Historically Black Schools: Change They can Believe in?

By |

Historically black colleges and universities face declining enrollment, with expenses rising and the historic culture changing. Only 13 percent of African Americans pursuing higher education are enrolled at a historically black college, reports The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Mark Gamble, an African American who attends Georgia State University, where the population is 60 percent Caucasian, told the newspaper: “I like being around whites, blacks, Asians and all other minorities.” Indeed, students from some higher-income families are opting for a more diverse environment at schools such as Harvard, Vanderbilt and elsewhere. Those who choose historically black institutions find that they are getting a good education, but also a debt burden.