Researchers measuring nearly 30 glaciers across the world found that on average the ice masses shrank by 1.4 metres in 2006, up from half a metre in 2005.

“The latest figures are part of what appears to be an accelerating trend with no apparent end in sight,” WGMS director Wilfred Haeberli said in a statement.

UNEP warned that the thaw could disrupt future water supplies. “Millions if not billions of people depend directly or indirectly on these natural water storage facilities for drinking water, agriculture, industry and power generation during key parts of the year.” explains UNEP’s executive director Achim Steiner.

Examples of areas that could be affected by dramatic results for water supplies include India, where rivers are fed by Himalayan glaciers & the west coast of North America,  where water is sourced from glaciers in the Rockies mountains and the Sierra Nevada.

“There are many canaries emerging in the climate change coal mine,” UNEP’s executive director Achim Steiner stated. “The glaciers are perhaps among those making the most noise and it is absolutely essential that everyone sits up and takes notice.”

On average, the glaciers shrank by 4.9 feet in 2006, the most recent year for which data are available. The most severe loss was recorded at Norway’s Breidalblikkbrea glacier, which shrank 10.2 feet in 2006. Between the years 2004 and 2006 the average rate of melting & thinning of the galciers measured more than doubled.

Achim Steiner stressed the need for governments to agree emission reductions at the international conference at Copenhagen, next year. “Otherwise, and like the glaciers, our room for manoeuvre and the opportunity to act may simply melt away,” he added.

Recent research by the UK-IPO shows the UK is among the world’s leading nations for eco-friendly inventions, ranking in the top six for the number of energy saving inventions. The table is headed by Japan followed by China, America, Germany and Korea.

The competition targets young inventors to keep Britain in top league of green inventors

The UK-IPO is committed to encouraging green innovation and is using the Cracking Ideas 2008 competition as a focus for the launch of its flagship education project for primary school aged children.

Cracking Ideas offers teachers resources and activities for the classroom through their website, the resources link to a nationwide competition to find the inventors of tomorrow. Children aged 9-11 will be encouraged to come up with a new invention - with the emphasis on something eco friendly.

The campaign is backed by Oscar® winners Wallace & Gromit and uses inspiration from their new film A Matter of Loaf and Death and features their own green inventions. Prizes for the winning schools include a special screening of the new film.

Minister for Intellectual Property Baroness Delyth Morgan said it was an important initiative to get children thinking about innovation at an early age.

“Cracking Ideas is fantastic for encouraging primary school aged children to innovate. It’s great that this year we are getting children to think about green innovations.

The UK is proud of its innovating tradition and our work on energy saving devices. Cracking Ideas keeps us at the forefront of this vital field.

We are very fortunate that Wallace and Gromit and Aardman Animations have played a part in bringing this exciting project to life in our schools, and I would like to thank them for their support,” she said.

Trevor Baylis, one of Britain’s most famous inventors, has also recently launched the innovative Eco Media Player. The inventor of the Wind-up Radio has brought the idea to a modern media player which stores 500 songs and comes with a radio and torch. It plays music for 20 hours before it needs to be charged - and this is done by cranking a fold-up handle at the rear rather than plugging it in. More…

The UK Intellectual Property Office (UK-IPO) is the government body responsible for the establishment and maintenance of the national framework of intellectual property rights (IPRs) (patents, designs, trade marks and copyright) and the granting and management of rights within that framework. UK-IPO leads and promotes UK interests in European and international efforts to harmonise and simplify IP law.

By requiring companies to pay sustainable prices (which mustn’t fall lower than the market price), Fairtrade addresses the injustices of conventional trade, which traditionally discriminates against the poorest, weakest producers.

Fairtrade enables producers to improve their position and have more control over their lives.

Commuters passing through some of the UK’s biggest railway stations will be able to join in an array of exciting activities to highlight this year’s Fairtrade Fortnight. The two-week annual campaign (25 Feb – 9 March) celebrating Fairtrade products will see action-packed events taking place around the countryFairtrade has never been an easier choice for commuters, with Virgin Trains, Virgin Atlantic, Ryan Air, Midland Mainline, and cafes and restaurants in stations and airports across the UK serving Fairtrade drinks and snacks.  Sales of Fairtrade products in the foodservice sector are now growing faster than within retail.  Sales of roast and ground coffee alone grew by 98% in 2006.  Demand for greater availability of Fairtrade products outside supermarkets and shops is rising significantly. In a recent OC&C online consumer survey, 65%of respondents said Fairtrade products should be more available out of home, not just on shop shelvesCheck out our fair trade categories and explore a number of merchants that are celebrating fairtrade fortnight with special offers. Find Fairtrade Home & Garden products here & here - Find Fairtrade Clothing & Accessories here - Fairtrade Gifts here , Fairtrade Jewellery here & Fairtrade Toys here

Simply Fair is a shop that offers only fairtrade products

Browse some Fair Trade Productshere - Please wait while window opens

Other Shops stocking Fair trade products include: Nigel’s Ecostore / Ethical Superstore

Read more here

The Virgin Climate Change Fund managers identifiy the best stocks from an economic returns point of view, in all industries, and then ‘cherry pick’ the best from each industry from an environmental standpoint. This ‘all sectors’ approach offers the chance to not only outperform most other ‘green’ funds, but other traditional non-environmental methods of stock picking too.

The Virgin Climate Change Fund has a minimum opening investment of £500 & investors can pay in lump sums of £100 or regular monthly savings of £50 or more. No notice is required to get your money out so you can access you savings straight away.

As Virgin put it: “No investor wants to trade performance for a pat on the back. Yet no one can ignore the impact of climate change on the world our children will inherit. The Virgin Climate Change Fund offers the perfect solution, providing the opportunity to make investment capital out of helping the planet.”

Get more information on the Virgin Climate Change Fund here

An internet network offers facilities to encourage investment in environmental technologies and services to help British entrepreneurs, inventors & companies find finace to help them solve various environmental challenges, such as climate change, water pollution and waste.

 ‘The Environmental Investment Network’ brings together private and corporate investors with organisations looking for funding to support green projects, such as the development of low carbon technologies, eco-friendly waste management systems and advanced water treatment methods.

Set up by leading environmental law firm Clarkslegal, & The Environmental Industries Commission (EIC), and sponsored by Lloyds TSB and intellectual property specialists Mathys & Squire, the Environmental Investment Network (EIN) aims to play a part in helping to meet the significant challenges and opportunities identified in the Stern Review.

By facilitating the raising of finance (equity and debt) and providing support, information and networking opportunities to investors seeking investment opportunities and to companies, social enterprises and academic institutions seeking investment.

The EIN enables organisations to submit proposals for funding, where they can be viewed by investor members on a secure website.

Simon Thorne, of Clarkslegal, explains: “The Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change calls for immediate action to be taken to invest in low carbon technologies in order to reduce the effects of climate change.  It also emphasises that significant business opportunities will be created from the development of new markets in environmental technologies and that the investment that takes place in the next 10 - 20 years will have a profound effect on the climate. It is predicting that new low carbon energy markets could grow to be worth hundreds of billions of pounds each year, so now is the time to invest in the environment.

“Securing funding however is often a major hurdle for those wishing to develop environmental technologies.  Venture capital funds and institutional investors tend to focus on large companies preparing for listing on the Alternative Investment Market or projects in excess of five million pounds. Support for smaller and medium size businesses, social enterprises and educational institutions is urgently required.”

Adrian Wilkes, Chairman of The EIC, adds: “This is a vital new service for the UK’s environmental industry, which is dominated by SMEs who often have problems raising growth finance – it will help them seize the huge new business opportunities in the fast-growing worldwide environmental markets and so boost the UK’s international competitiveness.

“As Gordon Brown recently predicted the environmental industry would become ‘as big as the successful aerospace or pharmaceuticals sector’. But there is a real need amongst young environmental technology firms to have more interaction with the financial sector. This initiative will help improve the quality of deal flow. This is a unique service for the UK’s environmental industry, nothing else like this exists.”

For investors, the opportunity to invest in early-stage ventures is only one of the benefits received as a member. Not only will investor members be able to view high-quality funding proposals and engage in face-to-face meetings with those who have submitted proposals, but also have the opportunity to secure introductions to like-minded investors wishing to form syndicate groups. 

Those who submit proposals will also have the opportunity to present their proposals to investors at regularly held investment meetings and receive, prior to the investment meetings, presentation training, IP advice and support from the network sponsors. Additional benefits include access to the network’s knowledge bank and the opportunity to attend seminars and training events.

Stephen Pegge, head of communications, Lloyds TSB Business, said: “The demand for environmentally friendly products and services is set to increase dramatically and the financial potential for investors is significant based on the initial market estimate for low-carbon energy products of at least $500 billion dollars by 2050.

“We want to support our small and medium sized businesses in developing environmental projects through access to risk capital alongside commercial finance from us. In supporting the Environmental Investment Network, not only do we get a forum for bringing green projects and investors together but it also provides a support network to both parties.”

http://www.environmentalinvest.com/

A new design of turbine offers the possibility of getting much more energy from the wind. The FloDesign Wind Turbine used advanced aerospace technology to increase efficiency. This unique, state of the art wind power machine is called the Mixer Ejector Wind Turbine. (MEWT)

Designers suggest the new turbine is more efficient, safer and cheaper than current designs.

The turbine design is significantly smaller than the conventional design we are all used to and has more blades than a conventional HAWT system. The unique design produces low pressure on the  inside surface which sucks in more wind flow into the turbine.

The smaller, shrouded rotor blades of the MEWT are cheaper and less intrusive, have low inertia and spin faster and provide more energy extraction at all wind speeds. The designers claim the shrouded blades and higher rotor speeds also reduce gear box complexity and result in quieter, safer wind turbines.

The designers claim: “A stator-rotor turbine cascade design is used to more effectively extract energy from the flow. For a given wind velocity, a MEWT having a maximum diameter 50% smaller than an existing 3-Bladed HAWT can potentially generate over 50% more power, and can potentially cost 25-35% less than the same HAWT.”

In additon they suggest the MEWT system could even be used at severe sites where wind gusts and variability make current HAWT installations impractical.

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