Choosing the best fish to eat

Anchovies - top of the list in terms of ecological sustainability

I am sure many of you enjoy eating fish for dinner and some of you may even go fishing from time to time.  Many of you will also be aware that there are ecological risks associated with various fishing methods and that many of the fish that we see in shops are species that are critically endangered from overfishing or habitat destruction.

It is important to be aware of the best fish to buy in order to minimise the ecological impact of fishing and to support healthy fish populations. To help us achieve this, the Best Fish Guide is a handy chart that provides easy interpretation of the best fish to purchase, and ones to definitely avoid. At this same link you can download a Best Fish Guide 12-13 mobile app too which is handy to have when out shopping.



Yellow fin tuna - the best tuna choice, but still well down the list the list

Relax

My colleague, Jennifer Hamlin has shared a couple of links with me over the last few weeks which are complimentary to my previous post on Optimising your productivity.  The link below provides further evidence of changing how you do things can make your more productive whilst having more time to do other things.  All those things you are always saying you are too busy to do.  Here is the link: Relax, you'll be more productive

What does this have to do with this future-focused blog?  Well, many of us are so busy we have little time to to look after ourselves or do things that are really meaningful in our lives, this in its self is not sustainable. Finding more time for important things is sometimes a matter of thinking creatively and carefully managing the time that you do have.

I know many of you find your email in boxes completely overwhelming and checking emails can take up a lot of time each day......maybe this innovative email management system is a solution for you: Sanebox

BTW - if you are an Otago Polytechnic student using Moodle for your studies - don't forget to set the forum posts digest to one email a day! That in itself could reduce your email count by 50!  Click on your name and then select 'edit profile' then follow your nose. 

Don't forget to share your thoughts!

Have a great week.

Mapping our Future

The video below is 20 min presentation by Sir Paul Callaghan, delivered in March 2011. It does take some time to get to the bits that are relevant to this blog, but in getting there it paints an important picture about the importance of maintaining a livable environment.

We can argue whether the ideas proposed in this video are truly sustainable but the overall message is important - why does government set our direction, and would a different way of doing things be a better way to a sustainable future?


Strategy New Zealand - Mapping our Future

If you have trouble viewing the video above, you can also click the link here.

I look forward to your comments.

Riparian Strips

In the launch issue of the new magazine, Green Ideas; there was an article titled From Muck to Money telling the story of a farmer and his family who boosted milk production in his dairy herd and slashed fertliser costs for his paddocks by rescuing two lakes on his property. 

He did this by engaging with DOC and the local regional council who helped share the costs of removing willows which were choking the lakes. Willows are not good at absorbing nutrients from the farm runoff and they blocked growth of natives that act as better absorbers of excess nutrients.  Once the willows were removed, a planting effort took place to build up a 10m wide strip on either side of waterway system all throughout the property. Fonterra also played a role sponsoring volunteers to help with planting. The farmer also engaged help to reduce the amount of nutrients he was putting on the pastures and developed a plan with consultant Alison Dewes from Headlands Consulting to maximise outputs while minimising the eco-footprint. This new native riparian strip created a significant effect on wetland regeneration and greatly promoted effective waterway restoration.

This is a really awesome story and one that could be used as an example and repeated nationwide.  As the farmer quite rightly said: "If we have to put up signs saying 'You can't swim in this water' then something has gone wrong somewhere".  This does of course not address the question of just how much dairying we can sustain if we treat the environment better because developing a mono-culture of farming must be detrimental  in the long term; however, if we can manage what we currently have with less run-off and less inputs, that has to be good for everyone.

Read more about riparian strips on:
1. Lifestyle block website
2. NIWA website

The Department of Conservation (DOC) website has this useful practical guide for environmental restoration projects

Replanting a riparian strip