Greenhouse effect

World environment day: European journalists 'green up' Europe’s cities

From Copenhagen to Kyoto we are repeating the same old trite, somewhere along the lines of ‘the last climate change conference was a failure’ or ‘the disastrous results of the united nations process shows the weakness of global climate policies…’ Back on the ground and in the tiny spaces of our own individual lives, we are recognising that the environment and sustainability are increasing parts of our daily routines. June saw European mothers calling up their expat children across the continent to warn them not to eat any salads or fruits and vegetables after the e-coli outbreak in (what was first rumoured to be) Spanish cucumbers. Citizens woke up to the prospect of nuclear strategies on their own turf after the Fukushima reactor accident in Japan, and governments (notably Germany) tightened up their own nuclear laws. In the framework of the ‘Green Europe on the ground’ editorial series between November 2010 and July 2011, pan-European teams of cafebabel.com reporters have been heading out to the cities of the continents to knock out their own understandings of green topics. We’ve danced ‘green’ in Berlin, illustrated ‘green comics’ in Brussels, planted ‘green products’ in Seville and designed ‘green’ in Budapest: read a pick of the articles for world environment day on 5 June (Image: (cc) NCM3/ Flickr/)

• Read the special edition World environment day: European journalists 'green up' Europe’s cities
• Frank Pe, Luc Schuiten: eco-dreams of Brussels' comic book art architecture
• Rome was not built in a day...nor for bikes
• The importance of being eco-ideological in Budapest
• Green dancefloors Berlin: spread the eco-dance germ to Europe
• Organic Seville: too many exports, not enough young workers or local mouths

Rome: far niente ecology

All roads do not necessarily lead to Rome when it comes to talking environment. The Italian capital might be the greenest in Europe after Oslo, but it ranks after Bombay as the city with the most amount of scooters in the world, which remains one of the most popular transport methods for Romans. Taking a bicycle out on those mean streets seems to stir up a bit of a kamikaze effect. But of course, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and if you look, you will find. There is a supreme sophistication in the simplicity of organic Italian food. Theatres and design boutiques reveal an alternative green edge to Rome, whilst more evidence is found on the city’s periphery and the solar roofs of the Vatican, even if its ‘green pope’ sends out mixed WikiLeak messages. Fourth edition in a 2011 monthly series, ‘Green Europe on the ground’ (Image: (cc) Reza Vaziri/ Flickr)

• Read the special edition Rome: far niente ecology
• Recycle, reuse, design: eco-creativity in Rome
• Rome was not built in a day...nor for bikes
• Pigs can fly or the pope is green
• Green Rome’s periphery: get thee to the Casale Podere Rosa cultural centre

Copenhagen climate: what the EU is being asked to commit billions for

Confused by talk of CO2 concentration and parts per million? In the run up to Copenhagen, what is all the fuss about climate change?

by Chris Coxon @ // 04/12/09

greenhouse effect, environment, economy, global europe, barack obama, united nations, netherlands