How Hotels Can Manage Food Waste & Soap Recycling Schemes

Far below the stylish suites and luxury rooms of London’s five-star Mayfair landmark Athenaeum Hotel is a machine billed as a “mechanical stomach”, quietly processing food waste into, well, almost nothing. It has installed Europe’s first Eco-Safe Digester, already a hit in North America where over 300 are installed, which promises to eliminate food waste at the point of generation and stop the dumping of leftovers in landfill. Meanwhile, Hilton Worldwide won’t have a bar of soap waste and is working with the first non-profit soap recycling organisation in Asia to get hygienically recycled soap to vulnerable communities. Read More

‘Mechanical stomach’ could turn UK’s food waste mountain into a molehill

Eco-Safe Digester, capable of processing over a tonne of food a day, will eliminate costly dumping of leftovers in landfill, company claims

By Will Nichols, Business Green (16 January 2015):

Far below the stylish suites and luxury rooms of London’s five-star Athenaeum Hotel, a machine billed as a “mechanical stomach” is quietly processing food waste into, well, almost nothing.

The Mayfair landmark, famed for hosting Marlon Brando, Elizabeth Taylor, and Warren Beatty when shooting in the UK, has landed another notable guest by installing Europe’s first Eco-Safe Digester.

The machine, already a hit in North America where over 300 are installed, promises to eliminate food waste at the point of generation, effectively allowing hotels, restaurants, hospitals, prisons, and other sites that produce large quantities of food waste to stop dumping their leftovers in landfill.

“Sometimes it doesn’t make any economic sense to drive hundreds of miles to deliver some food waste to a digester,” explains Alex Giacchetti, chief operating officer at GreenComm Environmental, which has won European distribution rights for the machine.

The company believes the Eco-Safe Digester can help tackle the UK’s annual food waste bill, estimated at a massive £22bn. About 15 million tonnes of food is wasted in the UK every year, of which the hospitality sector alone creates about a fifth. WRAP, the government’s waste adviser, estimates businesses across the country would save £2bn a year by eliminating food waste to landfill by 2020.

Currently, around 40 per cent of hospitality sector food waste is transported to landfill sites before being dumped, a process that produces huge amounts of greenhouse gas emissions both through the transport and the eventual decomposition of the organic waste. Methane, produced as food rots, has a global warming potential 21 times greater than CO2.

Meanwhile, companies are increasingly under pressure to report on waste levels and the idea of banning food waste to landfill entirely has been floated in the UK. Giacchetti, a schoolboy contemporary of Tesla founder Elon Musk, explains over the noise of the Athenaeum’s kitchen that the machine can deal with almost any sort of food waste, with the exceptions of large bones, shells, and pineapples.

Kitchen staff pours in the waste, which is sprayed with water at about 40C and churned by agitators. Special enzymes get to work and break down the material, taking 24 hours to transform 360 kilograms of waste into what Giacchetti describes as “about a bath-load of water”. This can be emptied into a normal drain – or used for irrigation, flushing toilets and other ‘grey water’ applications.

The £20,000 machine uses about as much electricity as a fridge, emits no real odour and runs very quietly.

The largest Eco-Safe Digester model can process 1,130 kg in 24 hours, providing an opportunity for organizations to substantially reduce their waste costs and emissions – possibly by as much as £40,000 a year.

But Giacchetti adds that there are other benefits for businesses in terms of environmental reporting, improved purchasing decisions, and engagement with clients.

“Consumers are so much more educated now,” he says. “They not only want to know where you’re sourcing your produce from, they want to know what you’re doing with your waste and if you are acting responsibly.”

The Eco-Safe Digester comes with a “BioBrain” that tracks how much food is going in and can break that performance down by the hour. It can even automatically translate the emissions savings that are being delivered, providing regular updates on the level of emissions savings and the number of cars you would have to take off the road or trees you would have to plant to deliver equivalent savings. The tracking system also enables the machine to be monitored remotely so in the event of a fault, engineers can be sent immediately.

More importantly, businesses can also track when they create the most waste and take steps to reduce that. “One of the hotels we work with in New York looked at how much food they wasted at breakfast – and they had the data to support the argument to cancel the buffet, do ‘a la carte’ and hire an extra person in the kitchen,” Giacchetti says.

The Athenaeum has also managed to get rid of a number of bins, freeing up much-needed space and reducing the risks associated with having food waste on site. The company has already placed an order for its sister hotel, which gives Giacchetti hope the Eco-Safe Digester’s early success can be replicated this side of the Atlantic. In the US, it has been installed in Veteran’s Hospitals, as well as malls, restaurants and prisons. Giacchetti is targeting similar markets in Europe, along with some more left-field sites such as island resorts, cruise ships, and motorway service stations. “And we’re looking at events too,” he adds. “It’s on wheels, so there’s no reason you couldn’t take it to something like Glastonbury.”

There has been interest from Dubai, where the water produced could be used for irrigation, while the NHS is said to be considering replacing its macerators before they are banned. The company is also in talks with a major unnamed supermarket to trial the machine in one of its stores.

Should the company receive enough orders it could start manufacturing the machines in the UK, Giacchetti adds, although this is a long way off at present.

It remains to be seen whether the Eco-Safe Digester will build on its early success. But there is no doubt that the inexorable rise of waste management costs and increasing focus on sustainability from corporates and customers ensures more and more businesses will have to investigate ways to tackle the food waste mountain.

Source: www.biohitech.com/pdf/news/2015-01-16-Business-Green.pdf

Hilton Worldwide, in partnership with Soap Cycling, DHL Global Forwarding, the United World College South East Asia (UWCSEA), announced its joint soap recycling initiative in Singapore.

On average, less than half a soap bar gets used by guests at the Hilton Singapore. In the meantime, thousands of underprivileged families in Asia – especially in South Asia – cannot afford to buy soap. Furthermore, almost 600,000 children in South Asia die before their fifth birthday, because of infections like diarrhoea and pneumonia1.

To ensure that vulnerable communities in Asia have access to soap – and to reduce unnecessary waste – Hilton Worldwide collaborated with Soap Cycling, Asia’s first soap recycling NGO; DHL Global Forwarding, leading provider of air, sea and road freight services in Europe and Asia; and a group of passionate students at the United World College to recycle its bars of soap.

Since June 2014, Hilton Singapore and Conrad Centennial Singapore have begun collecting used bars of soap from guest rooms. These soap bars are then picked up by DHL Global Forwarding, who transports them to Soap Cycling’s processing1 World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory (GHO) warehouse in Hong Kong. There, the soap is processed into new bars of soap. These are then transported by NGOs to vulnerable communities in the Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, and other countries across Asia.

As of September 2014, there are 16 Hilton Worldwide properties across Asia Pacific involved in soap recycling. Together they have collected more than 7,000 kg of used soap as of September 2014, and – with the support of committed, like-minded partners – created more than 175,000 new soap bars, which are delivered to vulnerable communities in the Philippines, Cambodia, Thailand, and other countries across Asia.

Travel with Purpose is Hilton Worldwide’ s corporate responsibility commitment to providing shared value to its business and communities in four areas – creating opportunities for individuals to reach their full potential; strengthening communities where Hilton Worldwide operates; celebrating cultures and the power of travel; and living sustainably through the measurement, analysis and improvement of the company’s use of natural resources.

About Soap Cycling

Established in 2012, Soap Cycling Limited is the first non-profit soap recycling organization in Asia. Headquartered in Hong Kong, and registered as a charity under s.88 of The Inland Revenue Ordinance, they have a three part mission: improving sanitation and hygiene, advocating green living and waste reduction, and providing university leadership education. The organization is largely operated by university student volunteers. For more information and updates, please visit http://www.soapcycling.org/ and https://www.facebook.com/SoapCycling.

About UWCSEA

UWC South East Asia (UWCSEA) is a member of the UWC Movement and a K-12 international school in Singapore. The College provides a challenging, holistic, values-based education to 5,400 students from 83 nationalities across two campuses.

Source: www.cr.hiltonworldwide.com

Event Sustainability Leadership by Singapore, Macau and Taiwan

It is two and half years since the London Olympics, which not only set world records in many sports but introduced the new international gold standard for sustainability for the events industry.  Is Asia now doing events more sustainably? Could do much better, says Ken Hickson, in the annual sustainability issue of CEI Magazine, the events industry leading publication.  “It is an ideal opportunity for the Asian tourism and business events industry to show real leadership — not just to make more money, but to do it better.” Read More

Singapore, Macau and Taiwan Showing Event Sustainability Leadership

By Ken Hickson in CEI Asia (December/January 2015)

Sustainability for the events industry in Asia is taking time to take hold.

A lot of events people have good intentions and while we are seeing signs of acceptance of the importance of sustainability, but as with many industry sectors, there’s a need for less talk and more action.

It is two and half years since the London Olympics which not only set world records in many sports but introduced the new international gold standard for sustainability for the events industry.

ISO 20121 – like any international standard – might seem like a very high bar to reach and achieve, but it is no doubt worth it as it speaks to your customers and all your stakeholders that you are as professional and as business-like as you can possibly be. That sustainability matters to the events industry.

Europe, America and Australia are a way ahead in the race for sustainability for events.

It goes beyond just offering “green meetings” to show that you are managing events in a totally sustainable fashion – managing energy and all related resources, reducing waste, improving accessibility, being ethical and responsible in all you do.

So who gets it and who’s accepted the challenge?

Singapore is adopting a sustainability mantra for MICE events, with the Tourist Board drawing up very useful guidelines and pointing to the value of international benchmarks and standards.

SACEOS (Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers) has followed this up by presenting sustainability workshops and is now working on developing a professional sustainable event certification process.

Marina Bay Sands has taken a MICE sustainability leadership position on its own, announcing in February 2014 that it became the first venue in South East Asia to be certified with the international sustainability standard ISO 20121.

Around the same time its sister resort in Macau – The Venetian – was also awarded the gold standard for sustainable event management.

The company’s certification process, audited by independent certification body BSI, was obviously aided by its sustainability efforts based on the Sands ECO360° global strategy designed by its parent company in the United States, the Las Vegas Sands.

For Marina Bay Sands and the Venetian, the initiatives include energy and water efficiency in building management, waste recycling in its resort operations, and sustainability outreach programmes. It also offers sustainable event planning services, which assist planners meet their ‘green’ meetings goals through tracking of energy usage in specific areas, sustainably choosing food and beverage menu and providing a post-event sustainability report.

Taiwan is certainly showing that its MICE industry is prepared to stay with the leaders in the sustainability game. With strong Government encouragement, the Taiwan External Trade Development Council announced in May that its premier event, EPIF 2014, became the nation’s first exhibition to pass ISO 20121 standards.

According to the independent external certification body SGS, this event was the first in Asia to be certified ISO 20121 compliant. Associated with that is the award of IS0 20121 to the Taipei consultancy Artecture covering the provision of event and exhibition operations until March 2016.

Let’s hope that the rest of the events industry in Asia gets the message and can see the value-add of sustainability standards and certification processes.

After all, besides environmental sustainability, we are also talking about economic sustainability.

And surely everyone wants that for now and the future.

Source: www.cei.asia

The future of sustainability

Asia’s environmental awareness slowly growing

By Garry Marchant in CEI Magazine (December/January 2015)

Green, sustainable, environmentally friendly, ecotourism. These terms are increasingly heard in recent years wherever the business events industry meets. Even conferences, such as the Inaugural Conference on Sustainable Tourism and Hospitality in Asia, held in Hiroshima, Japan in October, now focus on the topic.

Once considered a fringe form of travel trade, today sustainable business events and incentives are becoming more and more mainstream, practiced with varying degrees of success and enthusiasm region wide.

How seriously the industry takes sustainability depends on the sector, says Roger Simons, group sustainability manager of MCI, a global event company headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

“Hotel chains are quite mature on their approach to the environment and society, whereas many event agencies and other types of suppliers are only just starting on their journey to responsible business,” Singapore-based Simons adds.

Ken Hickson, chairman of Sustain Ability Showcase Asia, a Singapore sustainability consultancy business, says that many in the tourism and events industry take sustainability seriously. “But in terms of practically applying sustainability measures, there is still a long way to go,” he adds. “ISO 20121 is the Olympic standard for events, but very few have applied this in Asia.”

In the accommodation sector, there is much more to sustainability and being green than asking guests to reuse towels, turn off the lights and limit their air conditioning usage.

“Hotel chain upstarts like Alila have adopted an approach to ultra-luxurious, yet sustainable development,” says Simons. The Asian chain’s green efforts, which extend beyond the operational aspects of the resorts, affect the community economically, socially and culturally. This includes employing and training local people, using products and services from local suppliers and educating its guests on local culture and traditions.

Marina Bay Sands Singapore and its casino and business events venues actively promote green meetings, says Hickson. “There are many others in Singapore who have taken steps toward this, and the Singapore Tourism Board and SACEOS (Singapore Association of Convention and Exhibition Organisers and Suppliers) are actively encouraging it,” he says. “But it is baby steps on the sustainability journey. Much more is needed.”

Challenges involve changing the mindset of those in the industry, Hickson adds. “Beyond transportation, it is vital to measure and manage the footprint of guests and organisers, and to everything from food and beverage, waste management, energy efficiency, paper and printing.”

Simons points out that waste is a huge problem in the events industry, both with food and traditional waste created from meetings and business events.

“At the high end of the scale, customers want to know that their hard-earned money is being spent responsibly, giving back to the community and supporting, rather than destroying the environment,” he says. “At the same time, we’re seeing a massive boom in local, organic and foraged foods in the food and beverage industry. Any restaurant worth its salt is flogging its local credentials from ‘market garden’ through to ‘farm to table’.”

Environmental awareness in the industry has led to some high profile, concrete results. For example, sales of shark fin have fallen from 50 to 70 per cent, according to a report by WildAid, a US-based organisation focusing on reducing demand for wildlife products. A number of large hotel chains have stopped serving shark fin soup and more than 20 airlines have agreed not to transport it, partly as a result of pressure from the travel and events industry.

However, things have not all been positive.

“I would have hoped we’ve learned the lesson of the early travel boom to places like the Costa del Sol, Spain in the 1960s. But it appears not,” says Simons. “Unscrupulous development is rife across Asia, with places like Phuket being overdeveloped. And it can often be foreign investment corrupting the situation, and creating infrastructure designed to please the incoming low-end visitor in a very unsustainable way.”

Simons believes that it is important for local governments to regulate and control the industry, only permitting projects that meet codes of sustainable development.

Some Asian companies/countries are more environmentally conscious than others, he says. “Likewise, many organisations across Asia may not have the MBA approach to sustainability, issuing reports and creating departments focused on corporate social responsibility.

“However, the Buddhist philosophy of harmony can still be core to their business, and drive the same impact.”

Sustainability for tourism and events involves the four ‘Es’ — Environment, Energy, Economy and Ethics, says Hickson. “We cannot have one without the others. Energy and money can be saved if we are smart, so it makes business’ sense to operate sustainably.”

Citing the London Olympics as setting the gold standard for sustainable events, Hickson says we should be seeing the equivalent in Asia. “Events might not be sustainable per se, but we could be better managing events by taking sustainability into account,” he adds. “It is possible to have major events that contribute positively.”

While the Western world is generally environmentally conscious, Asia is waking up to the problem and the opportunities, say industry leaders.

“It is an ideal opportunity for the Asian tourism and business events industry to show real leadership — not just to make more money, but to do it better,” Hickson adds. “Asia is where the growth is. Let’s grow sustainably.”

Source: www.cei-asia.newspaperdirect.com

Earth Day Promises First International Conference on Business Sustainability, Race for Sustainability and all that Jazz

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia will be the most happening place on Earth Day this year – 22 April – as the Blue Asia Group launches its Blue Economy project plans, staging its first International Conference on Business Sustainability, plus for the first time in Asia a “Race for Sustainability”, as well as a Jazz concert, “Tribute to the Earth”. The event will continue into a second day with workshops on the Blue Economy and a forum on sustainability for academics. Read More

Event Preview by Ken Hickson, Chairman and CEO of Sustain Ability Showcase Asia (SASA) – one of the supporting organisations of the Earth Day event – and Singapore based Director of Blue Asia Group.

Earth Day 2015 Heralds the First International Conference of Business Sustainability

By ken Hickson (26 January 2015):

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia will be the most happening place on the planet  this Earth Day – 22 April – as the Blue Asia Group launches its Blue Economy project plans, staging its first International Conference on Business Sustainability, plus for the first time in Asia a “Race for Sustainability”, as well as Jazz concert, “Tribute to the Earth”.  The event will continue into a second day with workshops on the Blue Economy and a forum on sustainability for academics.

The theme of the conference is “Going Beyond Green to Blue to Transform the Economy for Sustainable Growth” and the event is organised by Blue Asia Group, Candide Consulting and University of Malaya.

It already has the support of the Malaysian Association of Risks and Insurance Managers (MARIM), Sustainable Consumption and Production Malaysia (SCP), Malaysian Insurance Institute (MII) and Sustain Ability Showcase Asia (SASA).  More to come.

While many speakers from around the world and the Asia Pacific region will be featured, including Government representatives, business leaders, international, regional and local NGOs, full details of the programme will be released soon.

We can confirm there will be speakers from the Malaysian Government, the world’s leading sustainable business, Interface, as well as Malaysia’s leading international corporation YTL, plus the Clinton Foundation.

About the Conference

As opportunities for growth are clearly set out in the policies and frameworks for sustainable development, we are now seeing how sustainability can be integrated into mainstream business strategies and the operations of leading companies. No longer is growth seen as incompatible with protecting the environment and moving to a low carbon future.

The Conference addresses the challenges, opportunities, competitive strategies and actions as companies face the realities of sustainability in the ways they compete and conduct their businesses.

The Conference will present the environmental, social and economic key issues, trends, developments, opportunities and challenges which are greatly impacting businesses.

Presented by international and local experts, sustainability leaders and decisions makers; this conference specifically will:

• highlight the mega trends, directions, challenge of transformation and the impact on business
• Give an overview of the convergence of global crises  and risks  involving the Economy, Energy, Ethics and the Environment
• focus on the policy and frameworks of sustainable consumption and production in Malaysia and internationally
• share experiences of successful leadership practices and business solutions to deliver the social and economic needs in a low emission/low carbon economy
• discuss the new consumerism based on the values of sustainability and inclusiveness
• highlight growth opportunities and re- thinking of strategies under extreme environmental , economic and social challenges
• highlight investment, finance, business opportunities and incentives in priorities sectors of Green Growth, Clean Energy, Zero Waste exemplified by the Blue Economy
• discuss how to transform your business, manage risks and sustain performance – increase operational efficiencies energy , waste, green supply chain, new markets, new products and services
• introduce current thinking, emerging strategies, innovations, knowledge competencies to put your organizations on the path to progress and sustainability

Objectives

• To prepare your organization to among the leaders in the race for sustainability and the new blue economy
• To highlight the opportunities in the era of economic transformation where growth is forceful and at the same time socially and environmentally sustainable.
• To provide a platform for discussion, networking and collaboration for the future of business in an era of sustainable growth

Who Should Attend?

• Policymakers, Leaders, Decision Makers, Managers and professionals from public and private sectors , developmental organizations / agencies;
• Enlightened businesses and organizations, Entrepreneurs, SMEs
• All Industries, trade, commerce and services sectors: energy, tourism, agriculture and services industry sectors: banking, investment, insurance, risk management, advertising/ branding, marketing, legal, transportation, waste management etc.
• Entrepreneurs , business owners from SME sectors
• Academic research and innovation institutions and community
• Concerned consumers , NGOs and individuals
• Those involved in CSR, resource efficiency and green and blue projects

Here’s some relevant quotes:

Conference Secretariat, Registration & Enquiries:

Maizon Omar    Candide Consulting

+60 3-5637 7742  or  5637 1539

maizon@klinternationaljazz.com

More information will be posted on a number of websites, including www.candideconsulting.com; www.blueasiagroup.com and www.sustain-ability-showcase.com

Last Word: The Magazine Writer

I always wanted to be a magazine writer. And I’ve had my wish granted many times over. I’ve even been the launch editor of two magazines and contributed to hundreds more. But of late I’ve been invited to write for quite a number of online and print publications – some like CEI Asia and Foreign Investors on India are shared above. Others are still to come, so look out for Storm Magazine, the UK’s Environment Industry Magazine and Japan’s Environmental Business/Kankyo Business Global. Then there’s the magazine produced for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs - Experience Singapore - which wrote about me and my writing. I regularly read, support and write for Eco.business.com and like what is being produced now - Eco-Business Magazine - as an e-magazine. I’ve also contributed to the online video magazine U Brain TV where there are a few interviews by me and with me. Needless to say, I’m a fan of magazines – I love “Monocle”, which I think is one of the very best magazines in the world – and I will continue to read and write for them, whether they be print, online or both. I will also share my work, and other good articles which come to my attention, through LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Of course those social media outlets were not around when I first ventured into writing and reporting more than 50 years ago. Times change, as do media and methods of communicating. But there’ll always be a place for magazines. Here’s one article to share with you – Famous Last Words from the Environment Industry Magazine, written by none other than Sir David Attenborough, who’s been through many media changes as well as environmental impacts over the years. Read More

From Environment Industry Magazine (Issue 24)

Population

By Sir David Attenborough

All we seem to hear about these days is climate change, the ice caps melting – the fluctuating weather patterns that result. In short, the uncertain future we face. But the more serious problem – so serious in fact that most governments seem reluctant to even address it – is the issue of global population growth.

By 2050 there will be 15 billion people wandering around on the planet. Population numbers are exploding at an astounding rate.

So I ask you, where are we all going to go? Where are we going to live?

The pace of population growth is of detriment to our planet, and it’s undoubtedly our biggest concern. No matter what we do now, no matter what measures are put in place, there are going to be a billion more of us within the next decade.

We all want to feed ourselves, have homes, have cars and enjoy pleasant lives, but we’re staring into the abyss because the planet cannot sustain such gargantuan growth. This is the biggest danger. And actually, in the Western world, we show relative restraint and responsibility. The same cannot be said for Africa and Asia, where population is out of control. Can the technological world offer education in these areas? We can only hope it does.

For the time being though, it has been swept under the rug for another day, because economic matters are deemed more important. But, at some point, the conversation will need to happen. It’s interesting, because the Chancellor of the Exchequer talks about growth and so on, but you can’t grow indefinitely, infinitely. Our world cannot sustain such growth.

The bottom line is the planet is finite and we are heading for disaster. And there seems to be this belief that we can’t do much about it. In the last century, the population has never collectively got together and said ‘this is what we will do for this issue’. It must be possible.

If we don’t think there are going to be global problems, we’re deceiving ourselves. It’s impossible to tell how bad the disasters will be.

In my opinion, all countries should develop a population policy. A total of 70 countries are currently employing such a policy in one form or another. The defining common denominator is to make family planning and other reproductive health services freely available to everyone, empowering and encouraging their use, although without any kind of coercion.

I have seen how increasing numbers of elephants can devastate their environment until one year when the rains fail on the already over-grazed land, they die in their hundreds. But we are human beings and because of our intelligence and our ever-expanding skills and sophisticated technologies, we can avoid such brutalities. We have medicines that prevent our children from dying of disease. We have developed ways of growing increasing amounts of food. So now our destiny is in our hands.

To aid the situation, we have to break the taboo on the subject. Until it is broken there is no hope of the action we need. Wherever and whenever we speak of the environment, we should add a few words to ensure that the population element is not ignored. If you are a member of a relevant NGO, invite them to acknowledge it.

Climate change

On a separate issue, climate change obviously remains a huge problem for the planet. The Earth is getting warmer year on year, considerably so, although it’s not a uniform increase either, which can complicate the issue somewhat. In the Arctic, the increases in temperature are happening very fast, but in the Antarctic places are getting much colder and this, I imagine, gives something for certain lobbyists to cling to. That way they can tell everyone there’s nothing to worry about.

The world is a big place – there are no uniform characteristics, so there are quirks and contradictions everywhere. But overall, the planet is getting much warmer, very quickly.

I have seen huge ice flows and icebergs dramatically decrease in size. We’ve lost several ice shelves from the poles; the evidence is there for all to see. And there is definitely more extreme weather about.

We are steaming towards disaster, at a faster rate than was ever anticipated. I hope some sort of paralleling solution can be found before long. And hopefully there will be one, as we have many talented, worthy, diligent individuals out there striving to make a difference, and I salute them all.

And there are real differences being made by people. One of the most startling, for me, has been the increase in numbers of the mountain gorillas of Rwanda. There are far more now than when we were first visiting the region a couple of decades ago. This sort of success is incredibly heart-warming, and it provokes others to believe they can do likewise, but we need more action, more focus on the planet, not the economy. That attitude needs to change if we’re to witness any drastic improvement.

Lost species

If I’m allowed to say dream and bring a species back from extinction, it would have to be the dinosaur, from the Jurassic era. I’m not sure which one I’d choose – maybe a great Brontosaur would be a good choice; certainly one of the big sauropods.

The Brontosaur was a huge land animal; not as big as a blue whale, but undoubtedly one of the biggest animals ever recorded on land. It would be pretty incredible to see one coming around the corner!

An environment free of human life

If I could erase humans permanently from an ecosystem, I would take them away from the Great Barrier Reef. It is an awe-inspiring place, and every time I’ve gone back, it has offered something bigger and better than the previous occasion. Apart from its fantastic appearance, the Great Barrier Reef is able to move in three dimensions, which is unlike any other similar species.

The sheer variety, the sheer beauty and abundance of the reef, was a massive personal revelation. It’s a wonder that simply cannot be missed.

But it’s incredibly fragile and already mass bleaching is showing us the effect the human population is having on it. So keeping humans away from the Great Barrier Reef would be my choice – I would isolate it completely and lock it within Mother Nature’s grasp.

Source: www.environmentmagazine.co.uk/?p=3505