While rescue teams are still struggling to restore and rebuild in Haiti after last month's earthquake, rescue workers are being called further South to assist victims in central and southern Chile after Saturday's 8.8-magnitude earthquake. Reports of damage from the quake and the subsequent aftershocks are still coming in, including the fatal injuries of over 700 Chileans.
The earthquake, which is tied for the fifth strongest since 1900 (according to the U.S. Geological Survey), was nearly a thousand times stronger than the January quake in Haiti. An estimated 2 million people have been affected so far, including those whose homes have been destroyed or damaged and those who have lost loved ones.
Chile's National Emergency Service reported that 1.5 million people are currently without power in the capital of Santiago, but the areas hit hardest by the quake are further south, in Maule and Bio Bio. A collapsed sewer system and shaky water towers prohibit residents access to basic sanitation services in Maule, where 541 of the 708 reported deaths happened. Conditions aren't much better in Bio Bio, a region with no safe drinking water, electricity or gas services. 64 deaths have been reported in Bio Bio.
Aside from a lack of clean water and food, a shortage of health care personnel is also a big threat, according to the World Health Organization. Six hospitals collapsed and two others were severely damaged in Saturday's quake. Four field hospitals have been constructed by the Chilean air force, but each only holds 60 patients max.
Chile's President Michelle Bachelet called on local organizations to collaborate to fuel restoration efforts:
"We're facing an emergency without parallel in the history of Chile. The passage of time has demonstrated that we're facing a catastrophe of unforeseen intensity, one that caused damages that are going to require immense, united efforts from all sectors of the country -- private and public," Bachelet said.
The WHO appealed for other countries today to dispatch rescue workers, medical supplies and other aid to supplement Chile's "severely disrupted health services." President Obama is among the world leaders who have pledged to lend every effort possible in assisting Chile after this devastating tragedy.
President-elect Sebastion Pinera, who will be sworn in on March 11, announced a new project to restore the country after meeting with current President Bachelet. The project will be called "Up With Chile."
"We will raise Chile," he said. "It's not going to be a short task, it's not going to be easy. It will require a lot of effort, a lot of resources, and a lot of time."
We'll keep you informed about the efforts our charity partners are making in the affected regions of Chile.
We spend a lot of time around here campaigning to end to the annual Japanese whale slaughter and encouraging our members to get educated and take action. While our passion behind this lies mostly in protecting these fascinating creatures and their habitats, research shows that in addition to being a cruel and unnecessary practice, commercial whaling also releases millions of tons of carbon into the atmosphere - an event that has a enormous impact on, you guessed it, global warming.
You see, each time a whale bids adieu to its life on Earth, it sinks to the bottom of the great blue sea, carrying with it tons of carbon that has been sucked out of our atmosphere and stored in their body for years to come. Similar to trees that filter CO2 from our air through photosynthesis, whales clear our oceans of these ozone depleting gases. You could say it's one of Mother Nature's way of cleaning house for us. Researchers are beginning to think that repopulating the oceans with whales could have a tremendous impact on our ecosystem.
"If you think about whales and fish in terms of their carbon, there is a potential for using carbon offset credits as an additional incentive for rebuilding this population," said Andrew Pershing of the University of Maine School of Marine Science and the Gulf of Maine Research Institute who presented his results yesterday at a meeting of ocean scientists convened by the American Geophysical Union in Portland, Ore.
According to Pershing, an estimated 105 million tons of carbon has been released over the past 100 years strictly due to whaling, a figure that he says is comparable to burning Oregon's forest or driving 128,000 Hummers for 100 years. Granted, 105 million tons is small potatoes compared to the 7 billion tons of carbon released annually worldwide, but as Pershing points out, the amount is akin to many of the current proposed strategies for battling climate change - reforestation projects or planting iron in the oceans to help phytoplankton absorb more CO2.
"Over the last 100 years, whaling removed more than 2 million whales from the Southern Hemisphere alone," said Phillip Clapham, director of the cetacean program at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association's National Marine Mammal Laboratory in Seattle. For many species, this represented 90-95 percent of their total numbers.
The demand for whale blubber is directly tied to the manufacturing of margarine, lamp or industrial oil, and of course - whale meat for human and animal consumption. Tasty.
Clapham notes that in addition to whales, larger fish like sharks and bluefin tuna also house a great deal of carbon.
"These guys are huge. They don't have predators. When they die they are very likely to sink and take their biomass to the bottom of the ocean."
When asked how he feels about Pershing's theory that redistributing whales could increase carbon consumption, Clapham says "It's a great idea. I love it...presuming that they are correct, it certainly is a very novel and innovative idea and another reason to save whales."
What's the polite way to tell the store cashier "Thanks, but no thanks" when he or she offers you a plastic bag for your purchase? In most situations, "Thanks, but no thanks" works like a charm. But as fashion illustrator Julia Durgee explains, there are more than a few ways for you to have a little fun when turning down another ocean-and-landfill-clogging piece of plastic. She's also included a few fun (and scary) facts about plastic, just in case you are still struggling to rid yourself of the wasteful habit.
What's your secret for remembering to bring reusable bags to the store with you?
Drivers who want to look tough while burning through gallons upon gallons of gasoline will soon have to find another massive SUV to satisfy their needs - the Hummer brand is just days away from becoming permanently shut down. Disappointing sales numbers and an unsuccessful attempt to sell the brand to a Chinese firm are bringing manufacturing of GM's powerful vehicles to a screeching halt.
"We have since considered a number of possibilities for Hummer along the way and we are disappointed that the deal with Tengzhong could not be completed," said John Smith, GM's vice-president of corporate planning and alliances.
"GM will now work closely with Hummer employees, dealers and suppliers to wind down the business in an orderly and responsible manner."
We can't say we are surprised at the brand's demise - they have long been criticized for their anti-environmentalist ways, earning dirty "how-could-you" looks from Prius drivers on the roadways.
The only way the Hummer brand will survive is if a last-minute bidder steps in with a purchase offer, and the chances of that happening are not good. Customers who want to scoop up one of the last remaining Hummers can still do so, there are still approximately 2500 Hummers on auto lots for sale.
As most of us land-dwelling creatures know, the ocean makes up about 70% of the total surface area of the Earth. You don't have to be a mathematician to know - that's a lot. The ocean isn't just wide, though - it's deep... very, very, deep. If you've ever wondered just how deep, you should take a look at this amazing image that illustrates ocean depth scaled to human size.
fjdlk;jaks;dfa! Did anyone else just get the heebie jeebies? As the image notes, only 10% of the ocean has been mapped. That's minuscule! What else do you think is down there?!
Are you fed up with the way your school is wasting energy? Have some brilliant ideas about how you could be a lot greener? Nick Cannon has partnered up with Do Something to encourage America's students to take action and become a bigger part of the green movement. Increase Your Green is a campaign to empower students to create plans to make their schools greener.
It's easy to get involved, and if your ideas are good (and we know they are), you could win some very cool prizes for yourself and your school.
A panel of expert judges will review how well you reduced waste, saved energy, got creative, and used technology to go green. Winning schools will receive up to $5,000 in environmental funding plus sweet HP computers!
Listen to Nick as he explains the campaign in the PSA below.
Increase Your Green is a national campaign launched by HP, the National Grid Foundation and DoSomething.org, who you can support here on SocialVibe.
With all the smart cookies we've got reading this blog right now, we're sure there are a ton of great ideas out there for making your school greener. Why not put those ideas into writing and submit your school? You never know, you could walk away with a brand new computer and major moolah to fund your plans!
By far one of the most sentimental moments of the Grammy Awards show last night was the tribute to Michael Jackson, a 3D video presentation of 'Earth Song,' a song Jackson intended to use as a call to action against the destruction of nature and animals by humans.
The tribute was introduced by Lionel Ritchie and featured live vocals from Usher, Celine Dion, Smokey Robinson, Jennifer Hudson and Carrie Underwood. The video footage was meant to be shown at the London concert series Jackson was preparing for at the time of his death. It was notably absent from the This Is It documentary, and perhaps this is why!
If you missed this magical moment last night, you can watch it in the video below.
Gotta love all the old-school 3D glasses in the audience! What did you think of the performance?
Leonardo DiCaprio, Chace Crawford and Justin Long are using their celebrity influence to encourage people to start using social networking as a way to lobby for an environmental bill in Washington.
This Is Our Moment is a new online campaign that asks people to, among other things, flood the inboxes of Senators who have the power to pass the Clean Energy, Jobs and American Power Act. The campaign is powered by The Natural Resource Defense Council Action Fund, of which Leo is a trustee.
The campaign's website, which features a star-studded PSA, reads:
"Everyone knows we have a dependence on oil we buy from countries that don't share our values. This threatens our security and our integrity. And it needs to stop. We know it does. Still, we've seen our dependence on foreign oil grow and pollute the air we breathe and endanger our planet. But we can change that. Now.
There's a bill in the Senate that will break foreign oil’s stranglehold on our country, reduce carbon pollution, and create jobs right here in America—good jobs that pay well and can't be outsourced.
It’s one of the most important pieces of legislation of our time. It's a clean energy bill. And it’s been a long time coming."
