Sunday, 24 March 2019

Rosy & Friends learn about Climate Change, Global Warming, Plastic Pollution & The Three R's

It"s been awhile since I have posted on this site... so after a period of almost two years I am back again, Yay Hippy Yay!!!

XL
Okay so today I start by sharing with you information about my new book that's been recently published. The title - "Rosy & Friends learn about Climate Change, Global Warming, Plastic Pollution & The Three R's.  Yes it is a rather long title but every issue mentioned in this title is worth mentioning.  There is an urgency going on and we need to all awaken and stand up together and help make the change.

About the Book - The Issue
Climate change is real and yes, it is affecting us in many ways that we can see and feel - heat waves, droughts, flooding, storms, decrease in crop yields, rising sea level, to list a few... Why are these things happening, and what can we do about it?
The Purpose 
This book will help the reader learn and understand the serious environmental issues we are facing such as global warming.  The reader will also learn about plastic pollution and how it adversely affects wildlife, wildlife habitat and humans.
And the Solution...
As a solution to help alleviate these global environmental issues, the reader will learn about and how-to-recycle, reduce and reuse.
The Aim
To help children become more aware of the current environmental issues we are facing globally.
The Design
The book was written in a story format rather than a text book style, to make this difficult topic more simple and easy to understand and follow.

Be the change...
Together we can make a difference!

How to get a copy?
The book is on Amazon - globally: 
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1091219443

If you live in South Africa, you could contact me on for a copy: 
kasthurie108@gmail.com
(Lower price)

That's all for today... oh one more thing... could you please share this with your friends. 
Thank you for visiting.

Wednesday, 1 February 2017

GMO - GENETICALLY MODIFIED ORGANISM

GMO - genetically modified organism is the result of a laboratory process where genes from the DNA of one species are extracted and artificially forced into the genes of an unrelated plant or animal.  The foreign genes may come from bacteria, viruses, insects, animals or even humans.
Because this involves the transfer of genes.  GMOs are also known as "transgenic"organisms.  This process may be called either Genetic Engineering (GE) or Genetic Modification (GM); they are one and the same.




How Is Genetic Engineering Done?
Because living organisms have natural barriers to protect themselves against the introduction of DNA from a different species, genetic engineers must force the DNA from one organism into another. Their methods include:

·        Using viruses or bacteria to “infect” animal or plant cells with the new DNA.
·        Coating DNA onto tiny metal pellets, and firing it with a special gun into the cells.
·        Injecting the new DNA into fertilized eggs with a very fine needle.
·        Using electric shocks to create holes in the membrane covering sperm, and then forcing the new DNA into the sperm through these holes.

But haven’t growers been grafting trees, breeding animals, and hybridizing seeds for years?
Genetic engineering is completely different from traditional breeding and carries unique risks.
Ø In traditional breeding it is possible to mate a pig with another pig to get a new variety, but is not possible to mate a pig with a potato or a mouse. Even when species that may seem to be closely related do succeed in breeding, the offspring are usually infertile—a horse, for example, can mate with a donkey, but the offspring (a mule) is sterile.
Ø With genetic engineering, scientists can breach species barriers set up by nature. For example, they have spliced fish genes into tomatoes. The results are plants (or animals) with traits that would be virtually impossible to obtain with natural processes, such as crossbreeding or grafting.


IN YOUR FOOD!  (may differ in different countries)
They were first introduced into the food supply around the mid 1990’s.  GMO’s are now in vast majority of processed foods around the world.
Although there have been attempts to increase nutritional benefits or productivity, the two main traits that have been added to date are:
·        Herbicide tolerance and
·        The ability of the plant to produce its own pesticide
These results have no health benefits, only economic benefit.

The Big Four: 
Soy, maize, cotton and rapeseed account for almost all commercial GMO production.  GM plants are grown mainly in North and South America, but increasingly also in India, China and South Africa.

What combinations have been tried?
It is now possible for plants to be engineered with genes taken from bacteria, viruses, insects, animals or even humans. Scientists have worked on some interesting combinations:
·        Spider genes were inserted into goat DNA, in hopes that the goat milk would contain spider web protein for use in bulletproof vests.
·        Cow genes turned pigskins into cowhides.
·        Jellyfish genes lit up pigs’ noses in the dark.
·        Arctic fish genes gave tomatoes and strawberries tolerance to frost.

Field trials have included:
·        Corn engineered with human genes (Dow)
·        Sugarcane engineered with human genes (Hawaii Agriculture Research Center)
·        Corn engineered with jellyfish genes (Stanford University)
·        Tobacco engineered with lettuce genes (University of Hawaii)
·        Rice engineered with human genes (Applied Phytologics)
·        Corn engineered with hepatitis virus genes (Prodigene)
·        Potatoes that glowed in the dark when they needed watering.
·        Human genes were inserted into corn to produce spermicide.


Herbicide tolerance lets the farmers spray weed-killer directly on the crop without killing it.





Why should we care?
·        Did you know that over 70% of foods in your grocery store contain Genetically Modified (GM) ingredients?
·        The most common foods that are genetically modified, or engineered,” include corn, soy, canola, sugar beet, and cottonseed oil, which can be found as ingredients in almost all non-organic packaged foods, and even in the food in most restaurants.
·        Additionally, the vast majority of GM corn and soybeans are grown to feed livestock—meaning the GMOs are incorporated into animal tissue and ingested at a much higher rate by humans than if we ate the corn or soybeans directly.
·        So, unless you eat organic all the time, without food labelling, you will inevitably participate in the great Genetic Modification experiment being perpetuated on us all, whether we like it or not.

·        GMOs are banned in 27 and labelled in 61 countries. There must be a reason for this.
·        GMOs have been recently linked to cancer, leukaemia, autism, obesity, sterility and birth defects, and a ton of other health issues.
Do your research online.
·        Furthermore, GMOs have a very negative effect on the environment. The herbicides used by Monsanto and other similar companies to grow these crops, sometimes run off into neighbouring farms, streams and populated areas, which is poisoning our environment and us as well. They have been also linked to the recent bee colony collapse.

What can I do?


·         Avoid any products that contain GMOs.
·        Do your research and shop smart
·        Buy organic food that’s grown closest to you.

Spread and share the information...


Tuesday, 31 January 2017

ROUNDUP and GLYPHOSATE

Being a keen gardener myself, this is a worrying issue not only for myself but for so many out there.  (More on GMO to follow later)

Roundup is a broad spectrum systemic herbicide-(is a pesticide used to kill unwanted plants) which mean, it kills most plants that it come in contact with.  Roundup is also the most widely used herbicide in the world.  Roundup is the brand-name for this herbicide produced by Monsanto.  Its active ingredient ‘glyphosate’ was patented in the 1970s and first brought into the market in 1974.

Glyphosate is the active herbicidal ingredient in Roundup.  Many genetically modified food crops, such as corn and soybean, have been scientifically designed to be resistant to glyphosate.
Current glyphosate-resistant crops include soy, maize (corn), canola, alfalfa, sugar beets, and cotton, with wheat still under development.
In 2015, 89% of corn, 94% of soybeans, and 89% of cotton produced in the US were genetically modified to be herbicide-tolerant. 


Farmers spray Roundup on their fields and kill all the weeds, leaving only the food crop standing.  This greatly simplifies weed control, but it also means the food crops are literally covered with Roundup.  And so is any food you eat that’s made from these crops, like corn chips, bread, cereals, biscuits and other packaged food. 

Roundup Ready crops are crops genetically modified (GM) to be resistant to the herbicide Roundup. 

Monsanto also produces seeds which grow into plants genetically engineered (GE) to be tolerant to glyphosate. The genes contained in these seeds are patented. Such crops allow farmers to use glyphosate as a postemergence herbicide against most broadleaf and cereal weeds. Soy was the first glyphosate-resistant crop. 
In 2003 Monsanto patented the use of glyphosate as an antibiotic.

In South Africa Roundup is manufactured by ‘Efekto’- ® Registered trademark of Monsanto Company




Thursday, 26 May 2016

WHAT CAN BE RECYCLED

On the surface ‘Recycling’ seems clear and simple, however as you go deeper into the process you  realise that things can get a bit tricky, when you discover that some glass, paper and lots of plastic can’t be recycled.  Actually throwing out items into the recycling bin that you were convinced can be recycled, but actually can’t be, can worsen the environment…what a downer!

However since most people are aware of the importance of recycling and the benefits it can provide to the environment, please continue!


Also note: Recycling regulations vary depending on where you live and what kind of facilities are in your community.