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Farming in Detroit: Schools of chard knocks
Avram Rodgers, 6, says he and I are secret agents. He takes my hand and pulls me to the rabbit pens in the back of a fenced-in, grassy area at […]
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The Return of the Bicycle
The bicycle has many attractions as a form of personal transportation. It alleviates congestion, lowers air pollution, reduces obesity, increases physical fitness, does not emit climate-disrupting carbon dioxide, and is […]
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Philly’s Greensgrow farm: An unconventional hybrid that works
Mary Seton Corboy sweating in her bee suit on the living roof of the Greensgrow farm’s storage trailer.(Photos ©Michael Hanson) It’s sunny and 94 degrees, and the pavement’s steaming after […]
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Friday music blogging: Sarah Harmer
In 1999, I jumped ship from a PhD program in philosophy and moved to Seattle to live with a girl I’d been seeing on and off for years. Having no […]
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Delegation from oil-afflicted Amazon visits Louisiana tribes hit by BP disaster
A delegation of indigenous and community leaders from Ecuador is visiting Louisiana this week at the invitation of the United Houma Nation, a tribe in coastal Lafourche and Terrebone parishes […]
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Friday music blogging: Phosphorescent again [UNFORTUNATE UPDATE]
UPDATE: I’m bumping this old FMB back to the top because this excellent band just ran into some truly cruddy circumstances. After the very first show on a planned six-week […]
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Ask Umbra’s Book Club: Dive into the big blue
Greetings readers, As you all know, I am a bookworm of the highest order. In fact, I’m such a bookworm that my compost worms have their own library. I think […]
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Raising water productivity to increase food security
Drip irrigation is a simple and easy way to reduce water use.Photo courtesy of photofarmer via flickr With water shortages constraining food production growth, the world needs an effort to […]
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Big Oil Shakes Down US Taxpayers
Last week, oil company executives testified to Congress about energy policy in the wake of BP’s ongoing disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. A casual observer may have thought we […]
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World Cup open thread
I'm enjoying the World Cup, blind refs, vuvuzelas, flops and all. But my friend Matthew -- who actually plays the game -- not so much. He argues that the game needs updating. He's got a point. Sports constantly change and innovate to increase dynamism and broaden appeal. Basketball, for example, adopted the 3-point line; football, the forward pass; baseball, steroids. Why not soccer, indeed?
