The video, made by Mae Ryan for Los Angeles public radio KPCC, traces trash from a burger lunch to its ultimate fate in a landfill.

Guests in the “Standing Hat” room at Cottage Lodge in the village of Brockenhurst, can now keep fit, watch their favourite programmes, and do their bit for the environment using the novel device.

Can't read this email? Read it in your browser...
Issue 5, 2012: 8th May News & comment on sustainable development
Sustainable procurement for green growth At Defra and the Aldersgate Group's recent roundtable discussion on sustainable procurement and green growth, sustainable development minister Lord Taylor stressed the need to account for the full costs of products and services: “Unless the whole life costs of goods and services, from energy in use to water in use, as well as wider social costs like pollution and carbon emissions, are taken into account, we will not achieve value for money in a meaningful sense.” We explore other areas of sustainability in business: adaptation plans to meet the risks of climate change, the implications of water scarcity and the opportunities of the Green Economy. Chris Naylor of the King's Fund argues that the right approach can deliver sustainabilty, efficiency and quality in health and social care. This month sees new features on our website - a regular round-up of government news, and a new calendar and archive of events and publications. Do get in touch if you've news to share. Nick Saltmarsh, Editor - sd.scene@defra.gsi.gov.uk Comment » Can we afford sustainable health and social care in a time of austerity? » The King’s Fund's Chris Naylor argues that sustainable health and social care can go hand-in-hand with efficiency and quality - if we rethink the way services are delivered. UK Government news » Driving green growth through sustainable procurement » Defra is supporting increasing business interest in the potential to use sustainable public procurement to drive eco-innovation and green growth in the UK. Government Heat Strategy buds on Carbon Plan to cut emissions » Government Heat Strategy builds on Carbon Plan to set out a vision of how to cut emissions from heating, helping meet fourth carbon budget of a 50% cut by mid-2020s. Habitats and Wild Birds Directives review findings » Major Infrastructure and Environment Unit and guidance for large projects that promote sustainable development by supporting growth and protecting habitats and species. New calendar and archive of events and publications » New calendar and archive of events and publications from government and international public bodies covering the sustainable development agenda. News round-up: Natural Capital Committee, NEA’s international impact, investment in green infrastructure… » Natural Capital Committee chair, NEA's international impact, investment in green infrastructure, SDC archive, Spelman speech, new chief scientist, fisheries & discards. International news » Sustainable Energy for All » Introducing the Sustainable Energy for All initiative, launched by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to make sustainable energy for all a reality over the next two decades. Video reflections on Sustainable Energy for All » National and local news » Training to fill micro-renewable skills gap » Introducing the National Skills Academy for Environmental Technologies and explaining its remit to develop skills for a low carbon future. Humankind Index for Scotland measures prosperity beyond GDP First results from Oxfam's Humankind Index for Scotland project, which aims to assess Scotland’s prosperity through a multi-dimensional measure of prosperity. Business news » Business attitudes to climate change » 80% of companies identify risks from climate change but less than half have adopted adaptation plans; summary of actions by infrastructure firms reports good progress. Water scarcity: the biggest threat to global food security? » Toby Pickard of the IGD discusses the implications of increasing water scarcity for food security and how companies can respond to water-related risks. The Ecosystem Markets Task Force » Ian Cheshire on the Ecosystem Markets Task Force's work to review opportunities to develop goods, services and markets which value and protect the environment. The Green Construction Board » The Green Construction Board: industry-government collaboration to make the most of business opportunities from the transition to a greener economy. Civil Society news » Moments of change » NEF report commissioned by Defra examines opportunities - from parenthood to global financial crisis - for encouraging individual behaviour change. Research news » Food security in the face of climate change » A new report from the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change (CCAFS) on achieving food security in the context of climate change. Evidence library on pro-environmental behaviour » New library of evidence on pro-environmental behaviours and behaviour change covers topics including travel, home energy, food choices, and communicating climate change. Events » Natural Environment 2012: Balancing Nature, Society and the Economy » 12 June 2012, London: examining The Natural Choice - the natural environment white paper - putting the value of nature at the centre of the nation's choices. BASE London: opportunities in London’s low-carbon built environment and infrastructure » London, 21 June 2012: inspiration and practical, sound advice on a range of sectors, including construction, property, transport, energy and resource management. Inspiring change: Bristol’s BIG Green Week » 9-17 June, Bristol: The UK’s first festival of environmental ideas, art and culture, bringing green ideas to life through lectures, poetry, celebration and more. Online events from 2degrees in May » Employee engagement, water risks, demand response, sustainable energy savings, CRC survey results, behaviour change, social hotspots, sustainable procurement.	About SD Scene SD Scene is the UK Government's monthly sustainable development newsletter, providing news and independent comment from government, civil society and business. Monthly newsletter SD Scene website Subscribe to our feed Follow us on Twitter Please share our news... Forward to a friend Forthcoming events and publications Publication of 2012/13 business plans New Sustainable Development Research Network (SDRN) Research and Practice Library of sustainable development case studies Sustainable development indicators informal public consultation More... Last month's most read Achieving sustainable development through planning Welcoming Lord Taylor of Holbeach, Defra’s Minister for sustainable development Climate: Observations, projections and impacts by Dr Tyrone Dunbar, Met Office Green economy: roadmaps, routes and destinations by Adrian Ely, STEPS Centre First Nature Improvement Areas announced Catch up Missed past issues of SD Scene? Browse our newsletter archive Keep in touch We'd love toear from you: you can now comment on stories on the website and we welcome all feedback, suggestions and contributions. Email SD Scene's editor

view email in browser | unsubscribe | forward to a friend You have received this email because you previously signed up for the SD Scene newsletter. SD Scene is published by Defra, Nobel House, 17 Smith Square, London SW1P 3JR © Crown copyright | Access to information | Terms & conditions | Privacy | Accessibility | Help Defra helpline (Mon-Fri 8am to 6pm) 08459 33 55 77

Microsoft promises to go carbon neutral from July

Microsoft said that going carbon neutral was "the right thing to do" Continue reading the main story

Related Stories

• Climate change - where the centre leads
• How aviation can clean up its act
• Earth needs all the friends it can get

Microsoft has pledged to help protect the environment by reducing its carbon footprint.

From July 1st 2012 its data centres, software development labs and office buildings would all be carbon neutral, the firm announced.

Environmental groups have called on the technology industry to adopt more renewable energy sources.

Rivals Facebook and Google have pledged to move away from coal-powered data centres.

Clean cloud

"We recognise that we are not the first company to commit to carbon neutrality, but we are hopeful that our decision will encourage other companies large and small to look at what they can do to address this important issue," said chief operating officer Kevin Turner in a blog post.

As part of its carbon neutral plan, Microsoft plans to charge an internal carbon fee to business units responsible for incurring emissions from data centres, air travel, offices and software laboratories.

"The carbon price and charge-back model is designed to provide an economic incentive for business groups across Microsoft to reduce carbon emissions through efficiency measures and increased use of renewable energy," said Mr Turner.

It also plans energy efficient software solutions at its Redmond campus. It said that it hoped to achieve energy savings of approximately $1.5m (£928,000) in fiscal year 2013.

Environmental group Greenpeace said that it showed Microsoft had listened to calls for a "clean cloud".

"However, the devil is in the details, and the details will show whether Microsoft becomes a transformational leader in moving us toward a clean cloud, or continues to rely on coal," the campaign group added.

"As written, the carbon neutral plan allows Microsoft to keep building data centres that rely on coal, such as its new investments in Virginia and Wyoming, yet claim to be carbon neutral by buying renewable energy credits. That tactic looks good on paper, but won't power Microsoft's cloud with one more electron of clean electricity."

Greenpeace urged Microsoft to follow Facebook's lead and chose renewable energy when building new data centres.

"It would catalyse a shift from dirty to clean electricity and create the scale of positive change that Microsoft could be proud of," it added.

1 paper towel per day per person to dry your hands, you’ll be making your contribution to help conserve over 571 million pounds of paper towel products each year, and that’s in the U.S. only!

The short videos below show you how each of the items in the Water Saving Pack works.

AkzoNoble said it has seen rapid return on investment on a videoconferencing system.

The company’s CIO Pieter Schoehuijs said that even according to its “fairly conservative assumptions” AkzoNobel is saving 50,000 working hours a year based on 4,000 staff in the video sessions - and 25 tonnes of CO2.

“We have achieved the estimate we put in the business case but more importantly we’ve saved employee hours and CO2 emissions. Not only is it financially attractive but from a sustainability and values perspective it’s a no brainer,” he said.

We can have safe, sustainable energy

With renewables we can contain consumption – and climate warming at 2C – if the big users act now

• • Share10
• Comments (60)

• Maria van der Hoeven
• guardian.k, Tuesday 24 April 2012 22.50 BST
• Article history

Progress in renewables shows rapid change is possible; the output from onshore wind has grown 27% annually over 10 years. Photograph: Peter Parks/AFP/Getty

The world's energy system is being pushed to breaking point, and our addiction to fossil fuels grows stronger each year. Many clean energy technologies are available, but they are not being deployed quickly enough to avert potentially disastrous consequences.

This is the message the International Energy Agency will deliver on Wednesday in London at the Clean Energy Ministerial, a meeting of ministers and representatives of nations that together account for four-fifths of world energy demand. In a new report we find that achieving a more secure, sustainable energy system, in line with the goal of limiting the rise in global temperatures to 2C, is still possible but requires urgent action by the world's major governments.

The present state of affairs is unacceptable precisely because we have a responsibility and a golden opportunity to act. Energy-related CO2 emissions are at historic highs; under current policies we estimate energy use and CO2 emissions will increase by a third by 2020, and almost double by 2050. This would probably send global temperatures at least 6C higher within this century.

It doesn't have to be this way. One need only look at the recent progress made by a portfolio of renewable technologies to see that rapid technological change is possible. In particular, the output from onshore wind power has grown by 27% annually over the past decade. Solar panels easily installed by households and businesses (known as solar PV) have grown 42% annually, albeit from a small base.

But other technologies with great potential for energy and emissions savings are making much less progress. Vehicle fuel-efficiency improvement is slow in many countries, and manufacturers' sales projections for electric vehicles after 2014 are a fraction of government targets. Carbon capture and storage is not seeing the rate of investment needed to develop full-scale demonstration projects. In addition, half of new electricity demand has been met by coal; and to make things more challenging, 50% of those new coal-fired power plants are still being built with inefficient technology. All these trends are going in the wrong direction.

Every day that goes by without action means higher costs down the road. Fortunately, the ministers gathering this week in London have the power to encourage investment, innovation and reform. With that in mind, we offer three key recommendations.

First, level the playing field for clean energy technologies. This means ensuring that energy prices reflect the "true cost" of energy – accounting for the positive and negative impacts of energy production and consumption. It also means removing fossil fuel subsidies (which were at $409bn worldwide in 2010, against the $66bn allotted for renewable energy support), while ensuring all citizens have access to affordable energy.

Second, unlock the potential of energy efficiency, the "hidden fuel" of the future. The IEA has developed 25 energy efficiency poli recommendations that, if implemented globally now, could cumulatively save about 7.3 gigatonnes of CO2 a year by 2030. That's equivalent to Europe's current energy bill, or about €850bn a year. Governments should commit to applying these measures as soon as possible.

And finally, accelerate energy innovation and public support for research, development and demonstration. This will help lay the groundwork for private sector innovation and speed technologies to market.

The ministers meeting this week have an incredible opportunity before them. It is my hope that they heed our warning of slow progress and act to seize the security, economic and environmental benefits clean energy transition can bring.

Maria van der Hoeven is executive director of the International Energy Agency

a paint called Boysen KNOxOUT that is able to filter out nitrogen oxides from the air. The chemical within the paint reacts with sunlight and water vapor making it absorb NOx at a rate of about 20 percent. T

• Environment
• Wind power

US and UK to collaborate on 'floating' wind turbines

The new technology could allow Britain to harness the consistently higher wind speeds available over deeper water

• • Share48
• Comments (58)

• By Staff and Press Association
• guardian.co.uk, Monday 23 April 2012 12.15 BST
• Article history

A floating wind turbine with a capacity of 2.3MW, about 12km south-east of Karmøy, Norway. Photograph: StatoilHydro

The UK and US will work together to develop "floating" wind turbines to harness more offshore wind power at a potentially lower cost, the government said on Monday.

Before this week's clean-energy meeting of ministers from 23 countries in London, the government announced it will collaborate with the US in developing wind technology to generate power in deep waters that are currently off-limits to conventional turbines.

In order to exploit the UK's huge wind resource, which accounts for about one-third of Europe's offshore wind potential, new technology is needed to access waters between 60 and 100 metres deep: too deep for turbines fixed to the seabed, but where wind speeds are consistently higher.

It is hoped that developing the technology will increase the UK's potential for offshore wind power, particularly after 2020, by which time many shallower sites will have been developed.

The government believes it could also reduce the current high cost of offshore wind, cutting the expense of seabed foundations and allowing repairs on floating wind platforms to be carried out in port rather than out at sea.

The energy secretary, Ed Davey, said: "Britain has more wind turbines installed around its shores than any other country in the world, and our market is rated year after year as the most attractive market among investors. Offshore wind is critical for the UK's energy future, and there is big interest around the world in what we're doing.

"The UK and US are both making funding available for this technology, and we're determined to work together to capitalise on this shared intent."

The Energy Technologies Institute is commissioning a £25m offshore wind floating system demonstrator, which will require the chosen participants to produce an offshore wind turbine that can generate 5MW to 7MW by 2016. The project could be demonstrated off the Cornish coast at the WaveHub site.

In the US, four offshore projects are being backed by the Department of Energy, potentially including a floating wind demonstration.

Norway already has a full-scale demonstration of a floating wind turbine, while a similar project is underway off Portugal.

This week's Clean Energy Ministerial will be co-chaired by Davey and his US energy counterpart, Steven Chu. The two countries are signing a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on a series of areas including power generation, energy efficiency and transmission.

There are a few things you can do as a consumer to minimize the overall costs of your electronics. Perhaps you could stand to skip a generation or two? As a business practice, launching newer phones with minor feature updates forces users to renew contracts, and paying out of pocket for the latest and greatest piece of technology. If you, like many of us, prefer to have the most current releases of our favorite gadgets — consider your options by reusing and recycling.

The infographic below, developed by Madeline Harris, outlines some of the real costs of the iPhone.

The concept of green IT – to help reduce the energy consumption of an organisation’s IT infrastructure – should be familiar. However, beyond efficient datacentres and power-managed client estates, large companies are now turning to IT to manage energy consumption and report on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the enterprise.

The OU is deploying Microsoft Lync 2010, which will save the university around £2 million over the next five years, as well as substantially cutting travel and subsistence costs.

“To have success in sustainability – you just have to make it sufficiently hard for yourself that it becomes easy”. This was the advice from Kirsten Aggersborg, the director of the super sustainable Hotel Axel in Copenhagen.

I think there is some real value to this observation, and this is no where more true than with the Danish Presidency of the European Union Council.

By June 30, when the European Union Presidency 2012 Denmark concludes, the Danish Foreign Ministry Logistics team will have supported the organization of 100 meetings serving 15,000 total participants while meeting criteria of the ISO 20121 event sustainability management system.

Planning for sustainable development Caroline Spelman has welcomed the National Planning Policy Framework's presumption in favour of sustainable development, which aims to support sustainable growth and protect and enhance the natural and historic environment: “By placing sustainable development at the heart of planning policy, the new planning Framework demonstrates the Government’s commitment to mainstreaming sustainable development by embedding it in everything we do.” Defra minister Lord Taylor of Holbeach discusses his responsibility for mainstreaming sustainable development, meeting the needs of the economy, society and environment through good governance and sound science. We also hear an argument for more creative approaches to the green economy, and news on environmental regulations, climate projections, resource security and more. Please let us know if you've news to share. Nick Saltmarsh, Editor - sd.scene@defra.gsi.gov.uk Mainstreaming Sustainable Development » Welcoming Lord Taylor of Holbeach, Defra’s Minister for sustainable development » In a message to readers of SD Scene, Lord Taylor of Holbeach explains the Government's commitment to mainstreaming sustainable development and his responsibility for it. Achieving sustainable development through planning » Sustainable development is at the heart of the National Planning Policy Framework to allow sustainable growth and protect and enhance the natural & historic environment. Comment » Green economy: roadmaps, routes & destinations » Adrian Ely, of the STEPS Centre, considers the need for more individual and creative approaches to a green economy, alongside roadmaps for industrial sectors. UK Government news » Simple, strong and effective environmental regulation » Announcing the results of a review of environmental regulations, Caroline Spelman explained that regulations will be simpler and more effective but as strong as ever. Climate: Observations, projections & impacts » The potential impacts of climate change on more than 20 countries have been studied by the Met Office Hadley Centre on behalf of DECC. Debating agri-food policy: the Green Food Project » Defra's Green Food Project invites views on agri-food policy through a forum open until mid April, looking at increasing food production and enhancing the environment. Making the most of valuable materials: the Resource Security Action Plan » Ensuring reliable and sustainable supplies of precious metals and minerals is the focus of Defra's Resource Security Action Plan: Making the most of valuable materials. First Nature Improvement Areas announced » Caroline Spelman has announced 12 Nature Improvement Areas, aiming to create wildlife havens, restore habitats and encourage local people to get involved with nature. International news » World Water Day 2012: Water & food security » UN World Water Day 2012 focussed on water and food security, raising awareness through video, events, resources and a new interactive game for children. National and local news » Seeking London Leaders for 2012 » The London Sustainable Development Commission is recruiting 15 London Leaders to deliver projects that demonstrate sustainability in action. Scottish competition for app to help businesses go green » The Scottish Government, SEPA, SSE and Microsoft have launched a competition for developers to produce a mobile app to help Scottish SMEs reduce carbon emissions. Business news » The benefits of environmental management systems for small and medium enterprises » New evidence of the financial benefits of green business shows embedding resource efficiency across business operations brings benefits to the whole organisation. Civil Society news » Working with civil society for sustainable development » Four government departments have published a plan to tackle sustainability issues in partnership with civil society, reflecting the commitment to the Big Society. Connect, collaborate, change » Dr James Taplin describes the role ICT can play in the transition to a sustainable society, examined in Forum for the Future's ‘Connect, Collaborate, Change’ report. Research news » Funding to transform food manufacturing and reduce waste » Funding of £15 million is available for projects to transform food manufacturing and reduce waste, increasing sustainability, efficiency and competitiveness. LE >

Housing round-up: regenerative design, urban neighbourhoods, building Britain » Recent reports on sustainable development and housing: regenerative design and development, sustainable urban neighbourhoods, sustainable growth.

Events »

Online events from 2degrees in April » Supplier management in the low carbon economy, public procurement for low carbon technology, presenting sustainability, timber regulation, more responsible soy.

About SD Scene

SD Scene is the UK Government's monthly sustainable development newsletter, providing news and independent comment from government, civil society and business. Monthly newsletter SD Scene website Subscribe to our feed Follow us on Twitter Please share our news... Forward to a friend

Last month's most read

Mainstreaming Sustainable Development one year in by Jonathan Tillson Caroline Spelman sets out UK ambitions for Rio+20 The key to water efficiency is engaging users by Ryan Millar The role of higher education in addressing sustainability by Professor Daniella Tilbury Capability building to embed sustainable development in policy making: a personal view by Minas Jacob

Catch up

Missed past issues of SD Scene? Browse our newsletter archive

Keep in touch

We'd love to hear from you: you can now comment on stories on the website and we welcome all feedback, suggestions and contributions. Email SD Scene's editor

Inefficient cooling results in unnecessarily high levels of energy consumption. At Strathclyde the entire Graham Hills server room is continuously cooled; cool air is not restricted to cold aisles, nor is it directed to identified hot spots. Another problem at Strathclyde is that this server room is not nearly used to full capacity. These two factors would suggest that simple improvements could be made fairly easily. However, things are not that straight forward. The chillers cannot cope with any more hardware so we cannot simply increase the quantity of equipment being cooled within the current levels of air conditioning operating. We have to find other ways of creating savings.

Here is a picture to the right asking people not to dive due to a water drought but honestly having no water is no joke and effects almost everyone.

Due to climate changes you will find that there is more water in some places and not as much in other places as shown in this picture as an example.

How can i save water?