“The Green Ninja,” a character created by a climate scientist and his team, provides an entertaining and educational way to help children – and everyone else – grasp the intricacies of climate change and learn what they can personally do to become involved in fighting it. See additional details about the series or head straight to this week’s episode, “Incandescent Exposure: Why to Avoid Incandescent Bulbs.”
This week, a girl walks down the sidewalk when a strange, bearded, clandestine character appears from an alleyway and confronts her. After capturing her attention, he opens his coat to show off a myriad of household incandescent light bulbs. Why is selling light bulbs a shady business? In 2007, the sale of household incandescent bulbs became illegal, and it was for a good reason, too. Incandescent bulbs waste a lot of energy and are much less efficient than any of the modern alternatives.
The initial low costs of incandescent bulbs may seem appealing, but as it turns out, their cost increases over time as they waste electricity and raise your power bill. Modern LED bulbs last far longer without needing replacement; they use less electricity, give off less heat and are often much brighter. Although CFLs use less energy – thereby reducing carbon emissions – they contain mercury, which can be dangerous and needs to be disposed of appropriately.
After realizing that selling incandescent bulbs is not so bright, the slippery con man decides to change tactics and he offers a chunk of coal for sale. Why would anybody want coal? Although most modern households do not directly use coal for heat or light, the US still uses coal-burning plants to generate electricity, releasing chemicals into the air that can be harmful to the environment and humans alike.
Lots of info here about good energy choices!
We’re not backing down in the face of Trump’s threats.
As Donald Trump is inaugurated a second time, independent media organizations are faced with urgent mandates: Tell the truth more loudly than ever before. Do that work even as our standard modes of distribution (such as social media platforms) are being manipulated and curtailed by forces of fascist repression and ruthless capitalism. Do that work even as journalism and journalists face targeted attacks, including from the government itself. And do that work in community, never forgetting that we’re not shouting into a faceless void – we’re reaching out to real people amid a life-threatening political climate.
Our task is formidable, and it requires us to ground ourselves in our principles, remind ourselves of our utility, dig in and commit.
As a dizzying number of corporate news organizations – either through need or greed – rush to implement new ways to further monetize their content, and others acquiesce to Trump’s wishes, now is a time for movement media-makers to double down on community-first models.
At Truthout, we are reaffirming our commitments on this front: We won’t run ads or have a paywall because we believe that everyone should have access to information, and that access should exist without barriers and free of distractions from craven corporate interests. We recognize the implications for democracy when information-seekers click a link only to find the article trapped behind a paywall or buried on a page with dozens of invasive ads. The laws of capitalism dictate an unending increase in monetization, and much of the media simply follows those laws. Truthout and many of our peers are dedicating ourselves to following other paths – a commitment which feels vital in a moment when corporations are evermore overtly embedded in government.
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