Denise Young's Blog

Fight cellphone anxiety with a CMO device

Denise Young — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 14:54:53 GMT

Worried about potential health risks of cellphones? Check out the latest CMO devices. I just bought one from Natures et Découvertes and stuck it on the back of my cellphone for peace of mind.
CMO (Compensatory Magnetic Oscillator) Technology works on the assumption that electromagnetic attacks from machines such as computers and cellphones produce stress information [...]

Geothermal electricity project in France gets underway

Denise Young — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 07:06:28 GMT

France inaugurated an ambitious pilot project last month to produce electricity at a commercial scale using geothermal energy in Soultz-sous-Forets in Alsace.
The project – a Franco-German joint venture – is the world’s most advanced project of its type for the mass production of geothermal energy. If successful, it will be followed by an industrial prototype of 20 [...]

Organic beachwear

Denise Young — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 03:43:42 GMT

This organic bikini from Machja comes in chocolate and green tea and is simple, elegant and stretchy.

Tudo Bom’s version comes in green and red. Take your pick. Both available online and now on sale!

Green board games for the whole family

Denise Young — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 02:24:54 GMT

Le Negocio is a board game which takes fair trade coffee as its theme. Each player assumes the role of a coffee entrepreneur, and has to manage all aspects of a fair trade coffee business from fund raising, inventory, sales to the social and environmental impacts of the business.

Néoeco is a broader take on the [...]

New hope for seed biodiversity in France

Denise Young — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 19:56:51 GMT

2008 did not get off to a good start for seed biodiversity in France. In February, Kokopelli was fined in two court cases for the crime of selling traditional and ancient seed varieties which were not listed on an “official”, government-approved list. Kokopelli is a non-profit French group set up in 1999 to safeguard endangered seed [...]

Paris gets new electric motor-taxi service

Denise Young — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 18:18:13 GMT

Citybird has as just launched the first motorized taxi service using 100 pct electric vehicles, dubbed Electri-city. The electric maxi-scooters are manufactured by Vectrix. Citybird, created in 2003 by three friends, already has a fleet of low CO2 emission scooters operating in Paris - which suffers from a dearth of taxis - and hopes to [...]

Summer reading list

Denise Young — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 06:51:40 GMT

Bastille Day signals the start of summer in France, and, as if by magic, the weather has gone from grey and chilly to picture perfect for the national holiday. Here’s my list of books to read for the summer. What’s on yours?
“Une mer sans poissons” by Philippe Cury and Yves Miserey
“Resilience Thinking” by Brian Walker [...]

Aviation deathwatch: Latest links

Denise Young — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:43:30 GMT

courtesy of queenie13 via Flickr
Air France mulls tie-up with Veolia to cut fuel costs by shifting some routes to high-speed rail.
European Union approves deal to make airlines pay for CO2 emissions.

Summer dilemma: Are nano sunscreens safe?

Denise Young — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 21:31:36 GMT

Last week I went to my trusty Biocoop store and purchased what looked like a perfectly safe sunscreen for the family: German organic brand Lavera’s “Sun” range for children, with 25 IP/SPF. No parabens, no synthetic sunblockers - what’s more the product claims that it is effective immediately as well as water resistant. But guess [...]

Paris tests commuter ferry service

Denise Young — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 21:23:53 GMT

courtesy of tofz4u via Flickr
Continuing in a riverine vein, Paris has inaugurated a commuter ferry service along the Seine called Voguéo, which links Gare de l’Austerlitz to Maisons-Alfort in the east of Paris. Fully integrated into the RATP Parisian public transportation network, the service provides a six-stop, half-hour journey with departures every 20 minutes during rush [...]