From the monthly archives:

November 2005

by Juliette Smith on November 29, 2005 · 1 comment

in WATER

industrial supply
They spray. We pay

TV and papers emphasise what individuals can do about global warming — save energy by energy savings method, save water, walk to work.

But if industry would mend its profligate ways, we wouldn’t have an environmental problem in the first place. Government joins in the chorus, blaming voters but not themselves, and never once criticising industry.

The water industry is a case study of waste on a grand scale. All those rotten 19th century water pipes leak around 25% of household consumption every day in the UK, and similar amounts in other “advanced” economies. The electricity generation and distribution industry is no better, with 50% of all electric power supply lost in the system according to the London Sunday Times.

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Send us your favourite eco-resort

November 28, 2005
Send us your favourite eco-resortMore off-grid hideaways, pleaseWe are shortly launching our travel web site, specialising in eco-destinations, and ethical ways of getting there. We want to hear from YOU, dear readers, with any off-grid havens you can recommend to the rest of the Web. Today, Suenos Tulum on Tulum Beach Mexico, 90 miles south of Cancun at the end of a stretch of shoreline on the Caribbean Sea known as the Maya Riviera.

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LOST – an off-grid metaphor

November 21, 2005
LOST – an off-grid metaphorLost, and don’t want to be found

"Lost" is "Baywatch" for the new millennium.

And just as Baywatch embodied the values of the 80s, so Lost incorporates our current set of values – all our secret hopes and fears. It must do – that’s why its successful.

So what does the success of Lost tell us about ourselves? Fans talk about the suspenseful story lines and the sexy actors (see the unofficial LOST site). The great modern fear – death by aircraft, is too obvious to be mentioned. More subtly, the idea of being stranded somewhere and making the most of it, is of course, close to the off-grid life we espouse, and which the success of Lost suggests must be a great hidden theme in our technologically driven advertising- saturated lives. “Lost on paradise isle and never wanting to be rescued” shouts the London Daily Express in one article about the series.

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Borrow this book

November 21, 2005
Borrow this bookOi, Pikey!So you're a good MoneySaver? You live in the UK and you've Bagged a Cheap Flight or Bartered for a Bargain Beach Trip; you've found the Cheapest Travel Insurance, worked out the Cheapest way to Spend Overseas; you've got your special Cheap Roaming Mobile ready. Then you arrive at the airport and pants, you have nothing to read. So you go to the airport bookstore and what do you find? A copy of “Oi Pikey,” a pocket sized, self-styled guide to living on the cheap.

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Buying an off-grid property over the Web

November 17, 2005
Buying an off-grid property over the WebHow to buy the farm People might think good ol’ boy George Ure is just plumb crazy. He worries a lot about “racial riots” and the coming death of the American economy under a mountain of debt and Chinese imports. He runs his survivalist web site, www.urbansurvival.com, from his home up a dirt road in East Texas. And here’s the really crazy thing - he bought his home off the web without every visiting it. We’re interested in this because Off-Grid will shortly launch a realty section of its own, solely for off-grid properties. Well, maybe George is a bit crazy -- like a fox. But he sure got himself a bargain. This is his story, written by Mrs Ure:

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Spiritual retreat listing

November 17, 2005
Spiritual retreat listingCleanse the body, purify the soul Off-grid is a state of mind as much as, or more than, a way of getting your water and energy. The Northwest US has many destinations for spiritual retreats, and we have listed 40 of the best on the next page. We will build up a retreat directory for the whole of N America and Europe shortly, so please write to us with your recommendations. Click for list.

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Cameron Diaz ups her green cred

November 16, 2005
Cameron Diaz ups her green credDiaz and friendActress Cameron Diaz jolted awake an 8 a.m. Stanford University civil engineering class recently. She appeared with architect William McDonough to talk about building designs that protect the environment. Diaz is yet another champion of Prius power, except on the occasions when she has been photographed riding with her boyfriend Justin Timberlake in his 4 litre Jeep Wrangler. That has a slightly higher appetite for petrol -21.7mpg (combined cycle) to be precise. But its stars like Diaz and Daryll Hannah who are waking people up to things the politicians would rather they forget. Diaz's show for MTV - Trippin - was a brilliant way to cover the environment through watching her and some friends go off-grid in the forest. Her appearance at Stanford U last month came as part of taping for a new mtvU programme called Stand-In, in which celebrities teach a class.

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How to drive around America for free

November 14, 2005
How to drive around America for freeLand of the freebieEven if you never considered a career in auto transport, a car driveaway is a cheap way to get around and to save money. You contact a vehicle or car transport company in the place you are travelling to, or the place you are travelling from. I have done 'driveaways' across America twice, totalling over 10,000 miles. The main company is Auto Driveaway, 310 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, Illinois (www.autodriveaway.com). All you need to do is phone their nearest office (from a choice of 60) to find out where they have cars going to. It is without doubt the cheapest way to get around America, as it doesn’t cost anything but the gas rate. There are other Driveaway Agencies in the yellow pages.

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“Stars” of TV jungle trip announced

November 13, 2005
“Stars” of TV jungle trip announcedWe've never heard of themThe 10 names heading into the jungle for the fifth instalment of I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here! have been announced. The cast live seemingly off-grid in the rainforest, but one of the production crew alleged they have done secret deals to get luxury away-nights during the shoot. The company refused to confirm this. The totally third rate actors and "celebs" have been a suprise hit in previous series on British TV. Two former EastEnders actors Elaine Lordan, 39, and Sid Owen, 33, will join Kimberley Davies, 32, who played Annalise Hartman in Neighbours, and ex-Emmerdale star Sheree Murphy, 30 in the Australian jungle. Ex-Atomic Kitten singer Jenny Frost, 27,(pictured) and a wine expert Jilly Goolden, 48, are also taking the trip Down Under.

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