What in the wide world of sports do Freegans do all day while the rest of us are working?

They live for free, don’t earn money, so presumably once their basic needs are satisfied they sit around with their pals by day, and party by night, right?

Not so, says Mark Boyle from Bristol UK (pictured), self-styled chief of the tiny Freeconomist movement.

Here he outlines his typical 168 hours week - (our comments in brackets after each item):
>>Keep reading “A Freegan week (sounds like hell)”

A bee-keeper living in a cave in Sussex, UK, has been ordered to leave by his local council on the grounds he does not have a fire exit.

In a case of Health-and-Safety-gone-mad, Hilaire Purbrick (pictured), 45, has been told he must leave the seven-foot cave in Whitehawk Hill  he has inhabited for the past 16 years. Mr. Purbrick’s troubles started when he first came to national attention in 2003 after he calmed a swarm of angry bees using a feathery sex toy. His selfless act led the council to focus on his unconventional lifestyle.

He and four neighbours have lived and dined off the land with no ill effects, but after having the dwelling checked by the fire brigade, Brighton and Hove City Council decided it did not have enough exits and sought an injunction banning him from entering it.
>>Keep reading “Let him bee!”

Hidden costs of the Grid US utility companies are trying to cut the large amount of power wasted as it goes down the line to customers. They say they are acting because of looming limits on greenhouse-gas emissions in the US.

The greedy and slothful  companies are in fact motivated …
>>Keep reading “Smart Grid ploy to grab stimulus funds”

Addicted to money

(Updated 23 June - In the UK, RBS has announced a $15m package for its new CEO.) It was just a few short months ago that bankers were everybody’s favorite hate figure. Now the media circus has moved on. In the UK, Members of Parliament are being pilloried for stealing sums which total 1% of Goldman Sachs annual bonus pot. Many have already repaid the money.

>>Keep reading “Pay it back!”

Make money, save planet Show me the green We are always being told how to save money and save the planet - but here’s how to go a step further. With the right investments you can actually make money whil helping save the planet. As U.S. policymakers begin to consider the idea of building a “Smart Grid,” (where your fridge talks to the power company and will switch off for a few hours at peak demand) , companies already in that business stand to benefit from federal grants and growing demand. The idea of a smart grid may never work because the cost of implementing it could outweigh the savings made, but some companies will get rich trying. Comverge Inc. (COMV) and EnerNOC Inc. (ENOC) are two good examples (No off-grid staff have any pecuniary interest in either company).
>>Keep reading “Make money, save planet”

Dive, dive, dive Alex Barnard knows Dumpster diving.

He got about half his food digging through supermarket trash last summer while he was living in New York City.

All the furniture in his Princeton University dorm room came from things other folks threw away.

Even his favorite pair of jeans - Banana Republics - were scrounged up from somebody else’s garbage.
>>Keep reading “Dumpster diving”

If you want to engage in a traditional Christmas, but you are concerned about the environment, what gifts should you give, to whom should you give them and should you give at all?

A burgeoning industry of retailers, manufacturers and PR consultants is attempting to “green” the Christmas gift market. An Eco Gift Festival brought together “more than 15,000 consumers and 200 environmentally conscious vendors” at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium for an orgy of consumerism.  This writer received a copy of the “Green Christmas” guide. The pocket sized book ($7.95 in the US) arrived in a box big enough for 24 copies, and was delivered on a large truck.

Other companies offered similarly inappropriate recommendations under a green banner:
>>Keep reading “Green Gifts? Try Freecycle”

Its easy if you try If you live on the grid and want to reduce your energy consumption, there are plenty of simple ways of helping prevent the building of any more power stations.  Here are some tips.

But first, if you want advice about the very best renewable energy set-up for your home, whether you are off-grid or connected to the grid, then we offer impartial advice in our home consultancy service (email: consult@off-grid.net).
>>Keep reading “Simple ways of saving energy”

Freeconomist without a cent Today is ‘Buy Nothing Day’, a chance for the wealthy to ease the pressure on their conscience - but pretty galling for anyone in genuine poverty.

We are all encouraged to take a “global holiday from consumerism” and have a 24-hour break from any kind of shopping. It certainly has an added resonance in the credit crunch.

It’s quite another thing to go without spending any money for a whole year.

That’s what Mark Boyle (29) says he planning to do. Starting today Boyle,
>>Keep reading “Buy Nothing Year”