Vision

To help transition Japan to a peace promoting post-carbon country while enjoying every step of the process.
僕のビジョンは、祖国日本で、平和文化を育みポストカーボン(Post-Carbon) 社会を促進してゆく事です。
化石燃料や原子力に頼らず、他国の資源を取らない、
自給自足な国へのトランジションを実現させてゆきたいです。

Tuesday, January 31, 2012

全国原発状況 Japan Nuclear Power Update


皆様知っていました?
現在54基中、3基しか稼働していない事。
え?!原発が稼働してなくても電気は足りてるの?

しかも国民の知らない間に脱原発がこれだけ進んでいる!
原発ブームが流行って以来始めての出来事です。
ここからの課題は国民の意識をしっかり変えて、
再稼働と原発事故を止める事です。

福島や福島外の被害者をどうサポートしていくかも重要な課題です。


Did you know that Japan is the leading country in denuclearization!
Even more than Germany.
Currently, only 3 out of 54 nukes are operating.
In the next few months Japan will be nuclear energy free for a moment.
The pressure is on the "nuclear village" to restart.
It is truly a pivotal moment in Japan and the world.

Meanwhile the people of Fukushima continue to be neglected.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Eviction Order to Occupy Kasumigaseki

日本語は下の記事にあります。

On Friday, January 27th, the tent occupation in front of METI in Tokyo faces eviction by order of minister Yukio Edano. The eviction order follows a controversial public meeting where government officials met with nuclear industry personnel to discuss nuclear power plant restarts, while attempting to exclude the public from the meeting. Concerned citizens who registered to attend the meeting were forcefully removed and the meeting took place behind closed doors.

The tent occupation in front of METI has lasted over 4 months through the support of women from Fukushima, and many others around Japan who oppose nuclear power. People from all over the world have visited the occupation to show their support and learn about issues surrounding nuclear power post March 11th, including the severe conditions that people in Fukushima continue to face. Currently, women of Fukushima are in the process of a "10 month 10 day" 24-hour sit-in to protest against nuclear power and the government's mismanagement of the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant disaster that continues today.

An emergency press conference will be held on January 27th at 1pm at the Japan Federation of Bar Associations’ Building, Room 1006.
(Access: http://www.nichibenren.or.jp/jfba_info/organization/map.html)
This will be followed by a demonstration at the tent occupation from 4pm to 6pm, the hours of the eviction deadline.

Please email, telephone fax minister Edano and METI ( the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry) to retract the eviction order.

METI (TEL) +81-3-3501-1609
METI Public Relations (FAX) +81-3-3501-6942 

METI Minister Yukio Edano (TEL) +81-3-3508-7448
                                               (FAX) +81-3-3591-2249
                                               (E-mail) omiya@edano.gr.jp

AVAAZ version:

Dear friends across Japan,



Tomorrow, Minister Edano will evict the brave Fukushima mothers, bowing to nuclear industry pressure to silence their noble cause -- and putting their children's lives at continued risk. But our outcry can compel Minister Edano to stop this shocking action -- send a message now:

Sign the petition
It's outrageous! - the Minister of the Economy has just ordered the eviction of the Fukushima mothers peacefully camping outside METI to demand a radiation-free future for their children. We have just 24 hours before police move in to tear down the tents, it's up to us to stop them now!

Minister Edano is bowing to bullying from the powerful nuclear industry -- they are furious that the brave mothers’ hard efforts are working. Their struggle has captured public attention and across the country people are speaking out to end unsafe nuclear energy. But their fight for their children's lives will be crushed unless we now all support these courageous women and stop their eviction.

We have only one day! Let’s flood Mr Edano's inbox with thousands of messages now, calling on him to revoke his eviction order. It's time that our politicians put people and safety before profit.Click to stand with the Fukushima mothers now and help end the nuclear industry’s dirty tactics-- then forward this to everyone:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stand_with_fukushima_mothers/?vl

Something amazing is happening in Japan. Months after the Fukushima disaster, the public is waking up to the fact that nuclear energy is neither safe nor clean. The efforts of these few hundred activists have persistently broken into the media, and created a very real public concern about dangerous radiation levels and what they mean for the future of Japan.

The pressure is working. Right now, there are only 4 nuclear power plants operating in Japan, and at the end of April that number could drop to zero. The powerful nuclear industry is scared, and is now fighting back with all its might -- it knows that the longer the Fukushima mothers camp outside of METI, the more public support they gather. That's whyit's using all of its might to push government allies to end the protest, and return things back to a nuclear friendly normality. But we can’t go back.

On Friday, Tokyo police and METI officials will move in to forcefully remove the protesters.They will threaten them with prison and fines, but they are there peacefully, and legally. Let's come together now as Japanese citizens and urge the government to listen to people, not the clinking of sake cups at nuclear-sponsored dinners. Our action today can protect the democratic right of people to protest and also strengthen the resolve of the brave mothers and activists who are fighting for a safe tomorrow for all of us. There's only 24 hours left, send your message now, and forward this to everyone you know:

http://www.avaaz.org/en/stand_with_fukushima_mothers/?vl

The window of opportunity to build a green and clean energy future in Japan is wide open right now. If we stand together, we can keep it open, and it starts now, by protecting the right of the Fukushima mothers to peacefully protest.

With hope,

Iain, Kya, Ben, Alice and the rest of the Avaaz team

Sources:

Fukushima Diary "JP Gov is planning to remove the antu-nuclear tent in front of METI":
http://fukushima-diary.com/2012/01/jp-gov-is-planning-to-remove-the-antu-nuclear-tent-in-front-of-meti/#.Tx_tgGGqDb8.twitter

経産省前テントひろば "【緊急】報道・記者会見予定など拡散願います。":
http://tentohiroba.tumblr.com/ 

経産省前テント広場 緊急報告

This is an emergency update about the eviction order given to the METI tent occupation (aka Occupy Kasumigaseki). There will be a press conference and demonstration on January 27th, the day of eviction. Please see the official website for details.



「テントひろばに心を寄せ、思いを共にする全ての人々に、経産省前テントは
今重大な事態に立ち至っていることを告げ知らせねばならない。
そして経産省の不当な退去・撤去命令に心底からの怒りをもって抗議し、テント
ひろばを守り抜くための行動に共に結集されるよう呼びかける。
今日1月24日(火)、枝野経産相は定例の記者会見において自ら経産省前
テントを話題にし、テントの自主撤去を強く求めると言明した。テントは不法占拠
である、火気に関して管理上の危険が存在する、というのがその理由であった。

それを受けて、経産省大臣官房情報システム厚生課厚生企画室長は、「1月27
日(金)17時までに当省敷地からの退去及びテント・持ち込み物等の撤去」命令
を文書でもって通告してきた。その理由として火気についての細々としたことを書
き連ねられている。
この経産省の一連の行動は、とみに強まっている再稼働策動の重大な一歩であ
る。とりわけ、先日のスレステスト意見聴取会での傍聴人排除、利益相反委員に
よる審査という不法行為、密室での少数委員によるお墨付きというなりふり構わ
ぬ姿勢と共通のものである。

テントひろばが4ヶ月半にわたって存在しているのは、福島の女たちをはじめ、全
国津々浦々の、さらには全世界の人々の脱原発を求める心と思いに支えられて
であり、反原発の象徴として、それらを一つに結び合わせ、交流・表現する公共空
間となっているからである。

枝野経産相もそれは充分承知の上であろう。彼が9月に言明した「国民的議論
が必要」という考えをなお保持しているのであれば、テントひろばと向き合い、話し
合いや公開議論の場をこそつくるべきであろう。


テントは24時間の泊まり込み、「とつきとおかの座り込み」に表されるように生活の
場でもある。そして雪が降り積もるような厳冬下、暖房の確保は生存権・生活権に
関わることである。


一切の暖房を認めないとする経産省は、凍死者が出ることを願っているのであろう
か。原発を推進してきた経産省にとって、人命とはかくも軽視すべきものなのだろうか。
テント広場では防火責任者をおき自主管理で運営し、消防法上も「危険な行為」な
ど一切ない。経産省とテント防火責任者が何度も話し合っており、これからも共同で
防火に努めれば「危険」などないはずだ。経産省は姑息な口実はやめるべきである。

今必要なことは、テントの撤去ではなく、再稼働をやめ、原発をなくすための努力を
することである。そのためにテントを守り抜かねばならない。
テント運営会議は、1月27日には、記者会見・声明の発表、枝野経産相への会見
申し入れ、そして午後4時~6時の抗議行動を決定した。
ともかく、本当に大規模な抗議行動が必要であり、どれだけ多くの人々がテントを必
要とし、テントと結び付いているかを、経産省に思い知らせねばならない。
テントに心と思いを寄せる全ての人々の結集を呼びかける。

そして明日から週明けまでの1週間は、右翼の襲来も予測される。(本日すでに街宣
車4台で登場。)様々な事態がありうる。是非テントひろばに駆けつけて、朝~夕の座
り込み・夜の泊まり込みに参加して下さい。
土・日にはテントひろばで様々なイベントを繰り広げよう。」

テント広場より


Monday, January 23, 2012

Upcoming Tokyo Earthquake 東京大震災予報


Big Tokyo earthquake likely 'within the next few years'


The chance of a big earthquake hitting the Japanese capital in the next few years is much greater than official predictions suggest, researchers say.


-BBC News Asia
FULL ARTICLE



首都直下地震「4年内に70%の可能性」 東大試算 


首都直下地震など、マグニチュード(M)7クラスが懸念されている南関東での地震について、今後4年以内に発生する確率が約70%に達する可能性があるとの試算を、東京大地震研究所のチームが23日までにまとめた。
政府の地震調査研究推進本部はM7クラスの南関東での地震について、過去の地震の発生間隔などから、今後30年以内の発生確率は70%程度としている。研究チームの平田直・東大地震研教授は「発生確率はそもそも非常に高かったが、東日本大震災でより高まった可能性がある」としている。
平田教授によると、地震学では経験的に、地震の発生回数はMの大きさに反比例するとされる。Mの数値が1小さくなると回数が10倍になるといわれており、この法則が南関東の地震にも当てはまるとの前提で計算した。
東日本大震災以降、南関東でも地震活動が活発化し、M3以上の地震の発生が例年の5倍程度になっている。今後も活発化の傾向が続くとすると、4年以内にM7クラスの地震が発生する確率が70%程度との試算が導かれるという。〔共同〕
-1/23 日経新聞

Sunday, January 22, 2012

1.23.12 Japan, Fukushima, Radiation Update

I've been meaning to write an update about the situation in Japan, and about my trip to Fukushima.
There is just so much going on, and its not an easy subject to write about.


I am in an interesting position where I have access to experts, diverse groups of Japanese activists, some foreign activists, and information in Japanse and English (paints a different picture than what we have here in Japan). Unfortunately, I'm not the best person to digest it all, especially policy related issues. If only I was smarter with more time.... but I guess my role is to connect people and ideas.

My conclusion so far is that the post-Fukushima reality is particularly hard to perceive clearly.
Radiation is not visible, the general public literacy about energy and radiation is extremely low, and corruption in the industry and government seems rampant. Additionally, neither mainstream media nor P2P social media have reliable quality control, so its hard to get a solid footing in the information chaos. Cultural factors also make things quite challenging, as Japanese have a tendency to hide impurities as a duty to society.


One thing I am sure about, we are still in a state of emergency despite the surreal calm. Even in Fukushima city, where we measured 0.6 micro sieverts around the bullet train depot, everything seemed normal. Unless you had a geiger, you wouldn't know that it is not a safe place to be.


Currently, children and families are still unable to evacuate from high-radiation zones, government and industry are pushing for nuclear power plant restarts, and many Japanese and non-Japanese still seem to be in the dark about what is really going on.

Here is something I wrote up a little while ago
1. Brief update on the situation in Japan
Currently, we are still facing a near media blackout on the actual conditions of Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant and the extent of current radiation contamination in Japan. The media and government have been taking steps to insure that the situation appears under control, and are preparing the way for nuclear power plant restarts. Yet, citizen groups have found radiation contamination in food, house dust, and children's urine samples all the way to Tokyo. No mention is made of the conditions of day laborers who are cleaning the power plants for little money and benefits. Many Fukushima residents are struggling to evacuate as the government will only financially support evacuees from geographical area it deems necessary, and parents must make extremely difficult decisions about subjecting their children to radiation or leaving everything they have and risk financial hardship. Meanwhile, the industry and government are colluding to bailout TEPCO, while gross negligence and corruption in the industry are surfacing. These are some of the key issues affecting Japan.

On the other hand, there has been a surge of activities, such as organized groups of mothers who are fighting for the safety of their children and exposing industry and government lies concerning radiation contamination. There has been an occupation on the property of the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry (METI) since September 11th, and the occupiers are determined to stay until all nuclear power plants are shutdown. Demonstrations have become common place in a country where such actions have been a rare occurrence. Most nuclear power plants are currently temporarily shutdown for inspections and this is a major opportunity to have a nuclear free Japan.

The global stakes are high as Japan is the best candidate to follow Germany's lead and demonstrate to the world that the people will not tolerate the enormous costs and risks associated with nuclear power. On the other hand, if Japan reemerges as a country that continues to embrace nuclear power despite this tragedy, then that will create a new platform for the global nuclear industries to push their agenda. We are in need of a lot of international support.

2. GREEN ACTION
Green Action is a small organization that has been actively engaging with the various issues associated with nuclear power, from pressuring the government to supporting children stranded in radioactively contaminated regions. We are also a bridge between the West and Japan.

We are in need of more international collaborators in our mission to end nuclear power in Japan and help current and future victims (children). Financial support is greatly needed for increasing staff, conducting training, expanding campaigns, developing outreach media, and helping Fukushima victims neglected by the government. Global strategizing is an area we would like to further develop. International pressure is critical for us, especially as the national media continues their blackout and misinformation campaign.

Here is our website which is a bit outdated

3. Global Conference for a Nuclear Power Free World
In collaboration with several organizations we are co-hosting the
Global Conference for a Nuclear Power Free World on January 14th and 15th, 2012. Below is the press release:

"On January 14-15 (Sat-Sun), the Global Conference for a Nuclear Power Free World will be held at Pacifico Yokohama.

This two-day conference is being organized by a coalition of 6 Japan- based organizations (Citizens' Nuclear Information Center, FoE Japan, Green Action, Greenpeace Japan, Institute for Sustainable Energy Policies, and Peace Boat), and has been endorsed by many groups around the world including the Nobel Women's Initiative.

Local and international experts as well as ordinary citizens will gather to develop actions to realize a world not dependent upon nuclear power. 10,000 participants, including over 100 from outside Japan, will join the dozens of symposiums, workshops, exhibitions and screenings over two days."


ACTIVISM
So far, I've mainly been engaged with Occupy Kasumigaseki (officially "Keisansho tento hiroba"), the Global Conference for a Nuclear Power Free World organizers, e-shift (an association of various group working to abolish nukes and promote green energy policies), and Green party (still in the making) youth team. Yesterday I met up with an art/designer collective, Sayonara Atom, who have been making really creative products, zines, and designs to help make this movement more fashionable and accessible to the mainstream. One other group I'm hoping to connect more with is Shiroto no Ran, who have been central to the large protests and sound demonstrations. There is a video "Amateur Riot" a few posts back that covers their activities.


During my meeting with them, they introduced me to this very powerful mini-film.
The film is set in post-nuclear Tokyo in a dimension not so distant from ours. 
Young salary-man’s morning commute takes a surreal turn....



While doing further research I came across Green Peace's website. They had a groovy timeline so I decided to embed it in this post. Its a bit too much info for me right now, but that seems to be a theme these days.



We need help. 
All the help we can get. 
This is an international catastrophe and crime scene.
Please put pressure on the "nuclear energy village," an old corrupt network of Japanese industries, government, media, and academics.
The elite, who commit crimes beyond comprehension, are not above the law.
This is a global citizens uprising for sanity and life!
For democracy, peace, and a future.

Thursday, January 19, 2012

SOPA, PIPA, and internet freedom


ウィキペディアが18日にサービス停止、SOPAへの抗議 




The internet is perhaps the most valuable tool for grassroots democratic movements and cultural innovation today. It is truly a power to the people technology, a major threat to the 1%. In the West we often hear reports on internet censorship in places like China, but it is also something we face and will continue to be challenged in our own countries. Don't take it for granted, democracy means we all take responsibility to protect what we believe in and stop dangerous attempts to consolidate power. There will most likely be an endless attempt to control the internet.

Remember to have hard copies of things you might miss.
And learn how to use a ham radio.
I learned about that at the PNW permaculture convergence 2010.



 

Opponents include GoogleYahoo!, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, AOL,LinkedIneBayMozilla CorporationRobloxReddit, Wikipedia and theWikimedia Foundation, in addition to human rights organizations such as Reporters Without Borders, the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the ACLU, and Human Rights Watch. 

-from Wikipedia

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

ラジオ番組のご案内: パーマカルチャーとローカリゼーション

Announcement about a radio program in Japan interviewing David Holmgren and Helena Norberg-Hodge  on 1/28.

パーマカルチャー創始者のデビッド・ホルムグレンのインタビューが日本のラジオで放送されます。

昨年暮れに取材陣がホルムグレン邸を訪ねた際のインタビューです

パーマカルチャーの原理から具体的な実践例まで詳しく紹介されます。

また、同じ番組にはローカリゼーションの提唱者であり、「懐かしい未来」の著者で映画「幸せの経済学」の監督でもあるヘリーナ・ノーバグ・ホッジも出演します。ヘリーナのインタビューもぜひ、お聞きください。

番組は「アースラジオ」。
放送は1/28(土曜日)18:00から。
Inter FM 76.1MHz ·、ぎふチャン 1431kHzなどのほか、オンラインでもwww.kaitouchearth.jpよりストリーミング配信される予定です。
ぜひ、お聞き逃しなく。

*デビッド・ホルムグレン
パーマカルチャー:農的暮らしを実現するための12の原理』(コモンズより近刊予定)

『未来のシナリオ』(農文協より既刊)

*ヘリーナ・ノーバグ・ホッジ
『懐かしい未来』(山と渓谷社)
http://www.amazon.co.jp/ラダック-懐かしい未来-ヘレナ-ノーバーグ・ホッジ/dp/4635308014

『幸せの経済学』

Monday, January 16, 2012

ブロックス・パーマカルチャー・ホームステッド Bullocks Permaculture Homestead page

最近は東京での脱原発や社会変革活動に燃えていますが、
もともとこのブログの始まりは、
ブロックス・パーマカルチャー・ホームステッドでした。

そこは美しい自然に囲まれたユートピア的な
パーマカルチャーコミュニティーです。
感動と幸せ豊富な生活でした。

森の中で寝むり、
みんなでご飯を楽しみ、
色々教え合い、
一緒に畑を耕し、
お互いを支え合い、
笑いの止まらない
自由な生活をおくっていました。
まさに理想を現実にした生き方でした。

久しぶりにブログのエントリーを全部見て(230)
ブロックスにいた間のポストをまとめました。
懐かしい〜!
帰りたいけど、
まずは親孝行しながら脱原発を実現せねば!

ラベルとページを作ったので是非一度は
写真だけでも目を通してください。
いつか日本人ツアーを行いたいです。

以下がブロックス・パーマカルチャー・ホームステッド関連の記事です。
日本語訳をしなかった記事もあります。ソーリー!
http://livingpermaculture.blogspot.com/search/label/Bullocks%20Permaculture%20Homestead

最後に、まだ整理していない写真が数百枚くらいあるので、
ゆっくりとポストしていきたいと思います。
また、ブロックスの有名な3週間のデザインコースを録画したので、
技術者が見つかればみんながアクセスできる形にしたいです。



Its been a while since I mentioned the Bullocks, the roots of this blog.
I started this blog at the beginning of my internship at the Bullocks Permaculture Homestead back in April 2010. It was the best living I have ever experienced.  Exceptional landscape, food, education, and most importantly, community. Paradise.

Living in the forest, communal meals, naked gardening, sharing circles, non-stop laughing, and freedom. Just an extremely high quality of living. The Bullocks are very special people.

I looked through all my posts today, 230 of them, and labeled all the posts specific to life at the Bullocks. I cordially invite you to take a look at them, even just this pictures. You might be enticed to venture to the magical permaculture homestead. I know I want to go back...but first its time to take care of family, deal with the Fukushima disaster, and bring democracy to Japan!
at least until I get depressed:)

http://livingpermaculture.blogspot.com/search/label/Bullocks%20Permaculture%20Homestead

*I still have several hundred pictures from last year to organise that I'll post up slowly.
Also, I recorded the PDC from last year, so if I can get help, maybe that will bloom into something people can access.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Exploring Fukushima 福島視察

Hey everybody, so I'm finally in Fukushima. I have mixed feelings about it, but I think its important to experience the reality (its not really visually apparent like a war zone). I'm here with a delegation of foreign guests and media, first of its kind, as a pre-conference investigative tour. Hopefully this tour and the conference will have a solid impact on the direction Japan takes, and the rest of the power-hungry world.

Join us in what ways you can.

We can use all the ideas and actions we can get.

This needs to end here and now.

Here is a cool video I came across on the anti-nuclear movement in Japan (in English)


皆様こんばんは。
とうとう福島に来てしまいました。
やはり【現場】を見て、感じて、自分の活動を
もっとしっかり位置付けたい気持ちがあります。
今回は脱原発世界会議の海外ゲストとメディアの
為の福島視察で通訳としてきました。
このように大勢の海外の人が福島視察をするのは
始めてだそうです。
ドイツ、ブルガリア、バングラデッシュ、南アフリカ、
韓国など様々な国から色んな職の人が来ています。
福島視察と脱原発世界会議で日本をもっと安全で、
民主主義を実践する国への大きな一歩になればと思います。
抑圧と搾取をテーマとした企業中心型国家から、
市民中心型の日本に変えて行きましょう!


イルコモンズのブログより

Friday, January 6, 2012

Blog Blog Blog. A bloggers reflections.

I never thought I'd become a blogger. Especially after going through a rapid process of simplifying my life because of activism-burnout that I experienced in 2006. My email box is still full of over 1000 unopened emails during my UC Santa Cruz organizing days. Its overwhelming to even think about looking through those.

But, what started out as an experiment to explore new technology and poke fun at my primitive self, has now become a regular practice in my daily life. It has been an amazing tool to organise my thoughts, stay connected with friends (since I don't facebook), distribute "valuable" information, and network with people. All without the stress of external deadlines, quality standards, and costs.

This blog started as a way to learn about blogging through posting pictures and my notes from life at the Bullocks Permaculture Homestead. One of my main goals has been to provide more info about permaculture in Japanese. But, I also wanted to spread the love to my non-Japanese readers, as I believe the knowledge and experience at the Bullocks is an invaluable resource for creating a sustainable world.

Now, the blog is a bit of a mess, but a good representation of my cluttery active mind.
I believe the main topics are:

  • Permaculture, natural farming and sustainable living
  • Activism
  • Mindfulness and Engaged Buddhism
  • Nukes
  • War and Peace
  • Systems sciences
  • Consumer culture and cultural change
Its all related.


Realizing that I still have a lot to learn about blogging, and that this blog was getting a little chaotic, I decided to start new blogs for new projects. Now I have a total of four blogs and I'm cautiously considering another. Here is the critical question, is the blog a tool that I benefit from, or is the tool now controlling my life?

I chose not to own a car, a cell phone (until I moved to Tokyo a couple months ago), a facebook account, etc. because they seemed to be controlling how people around me lived. People talked of how they couldn't imagine life without these tools. But, my life has been great without owning those things. And now that I have a cell phone, I can't quite say if my life is better or worse. It's convenient in some ways, and inconvenient in other ways. But I  know I can live without it, and be happy.

I spend a lot of time blogging. And thinking about blogging.
For now, it seems like a good way to use my time and energy,
especially now that I live in the hyper-urban tragedy known as Tokyo.

But, I'm not sure how I would feel if the internet went down,
and if I could no longer access my blog, email, and all the virtual info that I depend on.
Losing access to a "free" internet could happen, and perhaps not too long from now.


This blog, like many others, started out with a thought that I would write a quick article and list my blogs, and here I am 40+ minutes later still typing. Believe it or not, some articles take several hours.

Da Otha Blogz


1. Tokyo Urban Permaculture
This is basically a website for my Tokyo regeneration project. It's primarily in Japanese, but I just added a English page, other pages, and pictures. Initially I was going to try a word.press website but it looked like a little more work than I was prepared to do.

2. Occupy Kasumigaseki Japan
I wanted to create a bilingual site to do outreach for the occupy kasumigaseki movement. It was also an opportunity to explore a new tool, tumblr. I was hoping to get more people involved but it hasn't happened yet. Like blogger, tumblr is really easy to use but quite a different format.

3. Eco Resources Library
I haven't mentioned this blog yet, but it exists. It's a personal data storage site. Sort of like bookmarks, but with more visual info.  I just come across an overwhelming amount of cool info and I've been having a hard time keeping track. Some of these resources stay in my inbox and add to the 1700 unopened emails, some become another unapplealing bookmark, and others disappear back into the info abyss. So, I decided to create a virtual data base to organize them quickly and not have to worry about them anymore. That way other people can also benefit. Its a diverse mix of great websites and associated ideas and resources. Many come from the only blog I got tricked into following:
http://makewealthhistory.org/  It's really well done, much better than anything I do.