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Going Solar? 7 Misconceptions About Solar Panels Clouding Your Judgement

Bhok Thompson
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Going Solar? 7 Misconceptions About Solar Panels Clouding Your Judgement

solar energy new york

Switching to solar energy is a big decision, and clashing information about alternative energy can drag you in separate directions until you’re stretched thin. Although the change may sound daunting, solar-powered homes have become increasingly popular in the past few years. The growing demand for solar panels drives a competitive market, meaning manufacturers are producing higher-quality panels at lower prices.

Because of innovative panel solutions and installation methods, going solar is easier than ever. Once you’ve cleared the smog of solar panel misconceptions, you can rest easy knowing that investing in solar panel kits will charge up your home without draining your bank account.

High cost

Although a solar panel system’s initial cost is more than a monthly energy bill, the amount of money saved by forgoing power companies to run your home is worth the investment. Your house will run independently of traditional utility businesses, and you’ll ultimately avoid rising energy costs. There are also tax incentives for homeowners who choose to go solar, giving you even more savings in the future.

Not enough space

Solar panels have a lower power-density than fossil fuels or coal, which traditionally run your local power grid. Because of their decreased density, you need more solar panels to generate the same energy levels as a traditional power grid. You may not have enough space to power your entire home, but solar power isn’t all-or-nothing. You can still connect to your local power grid while saving money using solar panels for partial energy. Even one solar panel installed on your roof will help you save money on your monthly electricity bill.

The installation will cause damage

People against solar panels are often under the impression that installation will damage their roofs. However, when installed correctly by reputable alternative energy companies, your house will be safe, sound, and energy-efficient. Additionally, if your roof is under warranty, you’ll be protected from damages.

Solar panels don’t last

Although early solar panel models were finicky and prone to breaking, newer, high-tech models are durable and storm-resistant. Electrical components lay underneath layers of industrial-grade glass, protecting them from weather conditions like hail or severe rain. Not only are new solar panels long-lasting and tough, but most manufacturers also offer warranties protecting against damage within the first ten years of purchase.

Panels will tank resale value

One of the most widespread misconceptions about solar panels is that they decrease release value, turning off homebuyers when deciding to list. However, modern panels are sleek and clean in design and offer lowered energy costs across the board. Additionally, panels allow you increased control over your energy consumption, which is an incentive for potential buyers.

Solar panels only work during sunny days

Solar power is an “intermittent energy source,” meaning it isn’t always producing energy. While it’s true panels only collect energy when the sun is shining, they can still power your home after the sun has set. Solar power systems connect to batteries that store excess energy to use when the panels are no longer soaking in the rays. Another concern is cloudy days inhibiting streams of light. Although clouds may drop production slightly, your system will still produce energy on the dreariest of days.

Solar panels require a lot of maintenance

Many unknowing individuals believe panels require mass amounts of maintenance to keep them running smoothly. While alternative energy sources will require some upkeep, the workload is light and sparse. Routine maintenance isn’t more than wiping panels down and clearing collected roof debris.

Although keeping your solar panels clean and clear helps them last longer and run efficiently, insuring them under warranty is advised for extra TLC. If your system does require additional care, it’s best to call in the experts, allowing them to work out the kinks.

Final thoughts

While solar energy has drawbacks, like initial cost, space, and maintenance, the environmental and economic advantages are worth the investment. Solar power engineering is making strides in innovative approaches and increased recycling efforts. Lower the cost of your energy bill and environmental impact by going solar.

Eco concrete entrepreneur killed on electric scooter

Karin Kloosterman
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0
Eco concrete entrepreneur killed on electric scooter
Shimrit Perkol Finkel
Shimrit Perkol Finkel, founder of Econcrete

A study from London shows that women are more likely to get killed while cycling than men. Another blow to the marine environment: a marine hero I knew was killed on an electric scooter on the streets of Tel Aviv.

Eco-entrepreneur Shimrit Perkol-Finkel, 45 and a mother of 3 girls, was killed on the streets of Tel Aviv while riding an electric scooter and the truck that hit her had no idea that she was killed in his wake. The streets of Tel Aviv are dangerous and deadly for drivers and pedestrians. But compounding the problem is scooters and electric bikes themselves. 

Electric vehicles drive fast, often on the roads and the drivers are ill-equipped to handle traffic. They serve as no match to large trucks. 

Equipped with a helmet and driving on the right side of the road, she was sidelined by a heavy vehicle on the busy Hamisger Street going to pick her child up from pre-school. Some 24 people have been killed in the last year on mopeds in Tel Aviv, according to local news reports. The streets aren’t safe for those using them, especially because there is no designated lanes for electric bikes and mopeds in the city.

While only making up for a small percent of the traffic, heavy trucks in major cities are responsible for most of the fatalities. Large blindspots prohibit them from yielding to cyclists and now the omni-present mopeds and electric bikes which can speed out of almost nowhere.

In London, city officials estimate that 58 percent of cyclist deaths and more than a quarter of pedestrian deaths involve heavy trucks. Evidence suggests trucks pose an especially large risk to women cyclists.

Should we ban heavy vehicles in a city’s peak hours?

Electric mopeds also pose a challenge for pedestrians as a number of users threaten the elderly and children who aren’t able to avert them as they whizz by. But Shimrit was following the rules and lost her life for it. 

“This is gendered,” argued Sarah Wollaston, a Conservative MP for Totnes who has long campaigned for better cycling infrastructure and more funding in London after a famous British young scientist lost her life while cycling. She was commenting about the number of women who have lost their lives in London while cycling: “I’m not saying we ban [lorries] all day, but let’s not have them out there at peak times for cyclists.”

In one area of London there were 14 fatalities at the same intersection that year. All of them were women. 

She wanted to save the sea

I met Shimrit in a course run by Israel’s secretive computer coding army unit known as “8200” on how to bring an idea to a global market. We were able to tap into the networks and expertise that the group brought through their startup accelerator program. Later, I interviewed her.

Although Shimrit’s idea wasn’t “high tech” it had merit to run in the startup tech circles for making a broad impact on the marine environment. She had developed a novel “bio” way of developing and shaping concrete for ports, breakwalls and seashores, using specially produced and formed concrete, so that the built environment could be a refuge for marine life. Her company is called Econcrete. In 2019 they won a Time Magazine best 100 Invention of the Year Award.

Shimrit Perkol Finkel
Shimrit diving

Concrete is the world’s most consumed material after water and it is one of the world’s most polluting, releasing an estimated 10 to 15 percent of all global carbon emissions. This year our built mass outweighed the planet’s biomass. But Shimrit showed how concrete could be used for good. I was impressed by her ability to secure contracts around the world that wanted to incorporate her solution into harbours and ports. Instead of selling a brighter future, Shimrit’s idea could be implemented today. 

Shimrit Perkol-Finkel
Shimrit Perkol-Finkel

Normally, poured concrete in the built environment of seas and lakes repels the return of a healthy ecosystem. But with nooks and crannies and artificial intertidal pools built into its forms, Econcrete creates the ultimate new habitat for small sea-life to latch onto, such as barnacles, tube worms and oysters. These creatures move in and deposit calcium onto the concrete and then integrate into it creating a stronger break-wall or levee. This is important for cities such as new York City and New Orleans that face the threat of rising seas and flooding from climate change. And these are two cities where Econcrete is established.

She started the company with another Israeli, Ido Sella, who will be left to hold onto the business and new projects in the Port of San Diego and Staten Island. 

Shimrit had a PhD in marine biology, and was known by her peers to excel in all that she did. 

When I heard about the tragic accident my salty tears reminded me that we all came from the sea and that this life is too fragile to not rise up and stand for something big.  

Below, I copy an article I wrote about Perkel in 2015, where we spoke about her work in Brooklyn. 

New ‘eco’ concrete is tough, but soft on marine life

If you were a coral, oyster or crab and about to lay down foundations, where would you like build your next dream home?

This is the question that Econcrete founders from Israel asked themselves when they embarked on a mission to change the way we rebuild coastal environments. The company is creating a long-term solution for the Brooklyn Bridge Park, so marine life there will be healthy as the city works to protect coastal infrastructure – and its people.

econcrete new york

Econcrete creates a new kind of concrete – one that gives strength to the shoreline at risk for erosion and floods, and that is also built to sustain life.

Solutions like this are much sought after, especially when cities like New York face the threat of future floods, but which must rebuild with nature in mind. Consider the 2012 floods caused by Hurricane Sandy: The devastating damages made it the second most costly hurricane in U.S. history.

Current solutions meant to stabilize break walls and shorelines do not consider the ecological and habitat needs of the plants and animals that live in the water. These tend to get covered in the weedy species that don’t promote a healthy shoreline habitat, and become eroded.

Econcrete has a new way to “shore up” support for coastal regions by creating a home that marine animals love. In effect, the marine life, like barnacles, continues to build support around the infrastructure.

Econcrete is already giving structure and life to two projects in the Brooklyn Bridge Park in New York City. The company has built some small tidal pools, with nooks and crannies and a filtration system, and they are working to reinforce the rocky shore with their ecologically sound material.

Besides the fins and crab claws now clapping in New York, Econcrete has plenty of fans on shore as well, like Kate Orff from SCAPE Landscape Architecture in New York City, who is working on integrating Econcrete into her firm’s proposals for the city.

“Our global water bodies are under threat from pollution, habitat loss and acidification and desperately need restoration,” said Orff: “At the same time, we need upgraded and protective infrastructure.

“Econcrete helps us design a future inclusive of the needs of both people and marine life,” she said. “Econcrete is important for coastal cities in that we need to find ways to make our edges more resilient to protect vulnerable residents and at the same time increase habitat for marine life.”

The technology behind Econcrete’s solution includes trade secrets in the formulation, texture and structure of the ecological concrete. They also know how to build a home that barnacles love. In a sense, the Econcrete comes alive when new animals cling to it.

You can already see this in action at the Brooklyn Bridge Park, where Econcrete is starting to “grow” its living projects. This waterfront site along Brooklyn’s East River edge has become one of the most popular areas in Brooklyn and New York City.

It has been a great pilot project for them, says Econcrete CEO Shimrit Perkol-Finkel, as the company gears up to lay sustainable foundations throughout America. They already have projects in Haifa, Israel, and Savannah, Georgia.

Shimrit Perkol-Finkel

Perkol-Finkel says that being in New York City is “a significant stepping stone for us.”

And that’s a significant stepping stone, too, for the crabs and barnacles that have come to live side-by-side with New Yorkers.

US Stock Index Futures Experience Falls Across the Board

Bhok Thompson
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0
US Stock Index Futures Experience Falls Across the Board

Early Thursday saw stock index futures in the US fall across the board, with fluctuations experienced as bond yields eased. The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield was previously at 1.4636 percent but rose to 1.49 percent on Wednesday before falling slightly. Investors were wary due to bond yield rises, and this resulted in significant losses during the regular trading session on Wednesday.

Futures that were linked to the Dow Jones Industrial Average saw losses of over 130 points at the open. In addition, losses were seen with Nasdaq 100 futures and S&P 500 futures. Initially, Dow futures fell by over 200 points, although they did experience an upward trend briefly.

What the Data Showed

The data showed that there was a 1.3 percent drop in S&P 500 futures, and a 0.38 percent drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which fell by 119 points. With a decline in tech names, the Nasdaq Composite fell by 2.7 percent.

This means that the index could experience its longest negative period since last September, as it is set to post its third negative week in a row. While the 10-year treasury yield experienced gains, it had already experienced what was described as a flash spike last week, when it rose to 1.6 percent.

Economic Growth Could be Positive for Stocks and Assets

When it comes to successful trading, many people look for the best forex brokers as shown in the article on btcmanager.com. However, the economy also has an impact, and one expert said that economic growth this year could be robust with a small increase in inflation.

He said that both inflation and growth were likely to start going back to normal levels as the global pandemic started to ease, and this would prove to be a positive step for stocks and risk assets.

Good News Stemming from Opening of the Economy

As the vaccination program continues to roll out and the impact of the pandemic eases, more sections of the economy will open up. This proved to be a huge positive for trading during the session on Wednesday.

As a result of the reopening of some parts of the economy, shares in companies such as cruise liners and airlines went up. This came after it was confirmed by President Biden that there will be adequate vaccines available for all adults in the United States by the end of May.

It is thought that a number of other stimulus plans could help to boost the market in the near future. This includes plans being considered by the Senate to provide $1.9 trillion in relief funding, a package that was passed by the House recently.

In the meantime, many investors were eagerly awaiting information about the number of new jobless claims, which is another indicator of economic recovery. A survey carried out by Dow Jones showed that economists were predicting around three-quarters of a million new claims for unemployment in the figures for the final week in February.

5 Ethical Trading Trends to Consider in 2021

Bhok Thompson
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0
5 Ethical Trading Trends to Consider in 2021

eco travel on a bike land in holland

Today’s financial investors and traders that seek long and short-term profits are increasingly aware of the carbon footprint of the companies they invest in. With climate change now widely acknowledged and businesses across all sectors ramping up their efforts to operate with a greater responsibility towards the wider environment, ethical trading has become an exciting opportunity for eco-conscious individuals.

It is said that up to €120 billion was invested in sustainable investment options during 2019. Much of that will have been invested in binary options trading, as more retail traders are looking to speculate on stocks with fixed risks and rewards, acting as an entry-level form of trading for beginners, thanks to the low minimum trade prices and the hundreds of assets available to trade with reputable brokers. If you are looking to redefine your investment portfolio and incorporate a more sustainable and ethical approach to investing in the future for you and the planet, read on as we recommend five ethical trading trends that are likely to be hot topics throughout 2021.

Capitalisation of shifting consumer ethics

In the UK alone, ethical consumer spending and finance in 2019 peaked at £98 billion. This shift in consumer attitudes towards ethical goods and services is fuelled by two key issues – climate change and public health. Retailers are working hard to improve their sustainability, while consumers are changing their approach to things like their diet in a bid to improve their physical and mental wellbeing. McDonald’s is a global fast-food giant with a keen eye on veganism. In fact, their proposed ‘McPlant’ food menu is due to drop in 2021 which could catapult the McDonald’s share price. Unilever is another stock worth monitoring given that they are supplying Burger King with their own plant-based fast-food menu in 2021.

The concept of green bonds

In a bid to accelerate the transition towards a low-carbon, sustainable global economy, many of the world’s biggest stock exchanges have introduced certified green bonds. The London Stock Exchange was one of the first to champion an exclusive Sustainable Bond Market (SBM). The proceeds of green bonds are used to finance major projects with green benefits. $200 billion worth of green bonds were issued last year, and the UK government is also set to issue its inaugural sovereign green bond in the coming months.

Renewables Vs coal

shipping freight at sea from above

The previous governor of the Bank of England, Mark Carney, once labelled the fight for a carbon-neutral world as the “greatest commercial opportunity” of our time. In the next four-to-five years, the International Energy Agency (IEA) forecasts that the majority of electricity supplies worldwide will be powered by renewables rather than coal. Oil powerhouses like Orsted transitioned towards a renewable future a decade ago, leaving giants like BP and Royal Dutch Shell trailing in their wake. It will be intriguing to see which opportunities present themselves in the renewables sector, including the electric vehicle (EV) industry and its bid for mainstream adoption. There are tell-tale signs when a business is developing a sustainable energy business model, not least internal efficiencies and new technologies.

Corporate diversity at boardroom level

Following the Parker Review in 2017, it was revealed that over half of the companies listed in the FTSE 100 index lacked directors from ethnic minorities. The review encouraged corporations to appoint one by the end of 2021, so the clock is ticking. Investing in forward-thinking, agile stocks that are embracing ethnic and gender diversity should be part of any ethical trading strategy in 2021. More than a third of members on the board of FTSE 100 companies are now female, with Citibank becoming the first leading global bank to appoint a woman as chief executive in Jane Fraser. Investors should also note that McKinsey’s survey of 1,000-plus corporations in over a dozen countries found that firms with gender and ethnic diversity on their boards are likely to experience above-average profitability in the coming years.

Impact investments

Last but by no means least, societal investing should also be considered as an ethical trading strategy. Investing in stocks and businesses with bold ambitions for positive societal change should be prioritised. These changes could include projects relating to health and social care and affordable housing. The size of the market for social impact investments in the UK alone is expected to be worth at least £10 billion in four years.

There is no doubt that climate change will reset the trading landscape in the decades ahead, as investors scramble to revise their portfolios in an opportunist fashion as opposed to a long-term threat to their returns.

How to Take Care of Your Mental Health During the Pandemic

Bhok Thompson
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0
How to Take Care of Your Mental Health During the Pandemic

woman sleeping in flowers

The pandemic has changed the lives of many – some lost their job, while some are on the brink of losing their minds. This is natural given the fact that, in some countries, people were under strict lockdown rules that prevented them from leaving the house.

Naturally, if you’re not cut for a solitary or indoor lifestyle, you’ll soon see the effects of a lockdown on your mental health. Obviously, mental health is not something to toy with.

As such, in the following lines, we’ll tell you some of the things you can do to take care of your mental health during the pandemic!

Watch Less News

Lockdown and quarantine come with one main thing – namely, increased anxiety, especially when related to pandemic-related news. This is why most specialists recommend taking a break from the news and/or watch channels that actually tell the news and not fake news.

Overall, limit the amount of stressful information you receive – the 5 am news should be just enough for a daily update.

Take Care of Your Body

Instead of falling into a slumber, it’s essential to take care of your physical health – because the mental one can’t operate properly without being guided by a healthy body.

As such, do your best to avoid junk and fast-food, keep your meals regular and healthy, sleep for at least 8 hours a night (looking for a new bed – try Avocado organic mattresses), engage in exercise, and, most importantly, don’t give in to alcohol or medication (antidepressants and so on). Look for some of the best nootropic choline supplements to regulate your internal balance. You can also monitor how well you are getting on in the night with a sleep calculator.  Though getting into nature and just digging into the soil might be the best natural medicine in the world.

Take Care of Your Mind

As mentioned above, stress and anxiety are two by-products of the pandemic and its restrictions. Luckily, thanks to this pandemic, a lot of companies/services with recreational purposes have significantly developed.

If you visit a CBD clinic, you’ll see that now you can freely enjoy CBD products (depending on where you live) and let them help you have a clearer mind that is free of stress, potential depression, and anxiety.

cannabis oil woman

Talk to Other People

If you live alone, you must talk regularly to other people. Believe it or not, even small chitchat with a person you may not be that fond of can really help you eliminate bad thoughts and anxiety.

When you spend two, three, or more weeks locked up in your home without any sort of contact with another person, you slowly start to lose your mind. As such, go online, find a chat platform or forums, and engage in some healthy human-to-human conversations!

The Bottom Line

Mental health is basically what gets us going every single day. If we do not take care of it, we’ll soon experience behavioral changes and, before you know it, you’ll change your entire lifestyle.

All because you let the pandemic and its restrictions change your usual schedule too much. Keep in mind that, despite all the restrictions, there are still plenty of alternatives through which you can continue to have a close-to-normal lifestyle and a healthy body/mind!

The SEC launches ESG task force for catching climate misconduct in the financial world

Karin Kloosterman
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0
The SEC launches ESG task force for catching climate misconduct in the financial world

 

baby whale israel deal oil spill
Have you invested in a company that consistently pollutes? The SEC is looking for you. New whistleblower unit seeks to penalise polluters and corporations that deny climate change.

The UN has released a toolkit so bankers can invest in the sea. Good news because the banks who invest in burning the Amazon rainforest are reeling from the bad press. America’s most powerful banking institution, the Securities and Exchange Commission, announced the creation of a Climate and ESG Task Force in the Division of Enforcement. This is hot on the heels of a new UN toolkit which shows bankers how to invest in saving our seas. 

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (known as The SEC) is a large independent agency of the United States federal government that was created following the stock market crash in the 1920s to protect investors and the national banking system. The primary purpose of the SEC is to enforce the law against market manipulation. But now they are going to help save our planet.

The task force will be led by Kelly L. Gibson, the Acting Deputy Director of Enforcement pictured below, who will oversee a Division-wide effort, with 22 members drawn from the SEC’s headquarters, regional offices, and Enforcement specialized units.

Kelly L. Gibson

Consistent with increasing investor focus and reliance on climate and ESG-related disclosure and investment, the Climate and ESG Task Force will develop initiatives to proactively identify ESG-related misconduct. 

The task force will also coordinate the effective use of Division resources, including through the use of sophisticated data analysis to mine and assess information across registrants, to identify potential violations.

The initial focus will be to identify any material gaps or misstatements in issuers’ disclosure of climate risks under existing rules. The task force will also analyze disclosure and compliance issues relating to investment advisers’ and funds’ ESG strategies. Its work will complement the agency’s other initiatives in this area, including the recent appointment of Satyam Khanna as a Senior Policy Advisor for Climate and ESG. As an integral component of the agency’s efforts to address these risks to investors, the task force will work closely with other SEC Divisions and Offices, including the Divisions of Corporation Finance, Investment Management, and Examinations.

“Climate risks and sustainability are critical issues for the investing public and our capital markets,” said Acting Chair Allison Herren Lee. “The task force announced today will play an important role in enhancing and coordinating the efforts of the Division of Enforcement, the Office of the Whistleblower, and other parts of the agency to bolster the efforts of the Commission as a whole on these vital matters.”

“Proactively addressing emerging disclosure gaps that threaten investors and the market has always been core to the SEC’s mission,” said Acting Deputy Director of Enforcement Kelly L. Gibson, who will lead the task force. “This task force brings together a broad array of experience and expertise, which will allow us to better police the market, pursue misconduct, and protect investors.”

In addition, the Climate and ESG Task Force will evaluate and pursue tips, referrals, and whistleblower complaints on ESG-related issues, and provide expertise and insight to teams working on ESG-related matters across the Division. 

ESG related tips, referrals and whistleblower complaints can be submitted here.

Eco Wave Power tests pilot at Israeli seashore

Karin Kloosterman
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0
Eco Wave Power tests pilot at Israeli seashore

eco energy jaffa

We just supported the release of a UN report so bankers can invest in the sea and on top of the acing infrastructure in the shipping industry that needs updating, we can also support new endeavours that help the sea help us.

The Israeli company Eco Wave Power has started building energy collection floaters at the ancient port city of Jaffa, in Israel. 

Update 2024: Eco Wave opens its pilot full speed at the sea

The onsite work will includes clearing the top cement layer of the relevant sections of the sea wall, followed by adding steel rebars for reinforcement and finally the creation of a new cement layer, which shall provide the necessary support for the installation of the floaters.

In parallel, the company has started the production of ten floaters, which are expected to arrive to site in conjunction with the finalization of the works on the sea wall. 

Eco Wave Energy at the Jaffa Port
Eco Wave Energy at the Jaffa Port

“We have previously finalized the assembly of our conversion unit and now moving forward to the most exciting part of our project, which is the installation works. We cannot wait to finalize the floaters production and installation of the whole array, which will enable us to send clean electricity from sea waves to the Israeli national electrical grid for the very first time,” said Inna Braverman, Founder and CEO of Eco Wave Power.

The Jaffa energy project will include 10 floaters, connected to one conversion unit.  Due to the onshore nature of the Eco Wave Power technology, the works on the sea wall and floaters installation will be straightforward and will not involve any works performed from the seaside. The Eco Wave Power one project is executed in collaboration with EDF Renewables and co-funding from the Israeli Energy Ministry.

Eco Wave Power is an onshore wave energy technology company that developed a patented, smart and cost-efficient technology for turning ocean and sea waves into green electricity. Eco Wave Power’s mission is to assist in the fight against climate change by enabling commercial power production from ocean and sea waves.

Investing in wave power

Eco Wave Power’s project in Gibraltar has received funding from the European Union Regional Development Fund and from the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 framework program. The company has also received the “Climate Action Award” from the United Nations.

Eco Wave Power’s common shares (ECOWVE) are traded on Nasdaq First North Growth Market. 

Want to learn more about investing in the sea? This new UN report explores investment-worthy areas for bankers. 

 

 

How bankers can invest in the ocean, new UN guide

Karin Kloosterman
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0
How bankers can invest in the ocean, new UN guide
eu ambassadors clean Israeli beach Beit Yanai
EU Ambassadors clean up an oil spill in Israel. The sea is on everyone’s minds. Invest in it.

New guidance published by the UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI) provides a market-first, practical toolkit for financial institutions to take immediate action on their lending, investment and underwriting activities which negatively impact ocean health. In short, if you want to make sound investment decisions for your clients, consider the sea. You can get the toolkit here (links to PDF).

The ocean covers 70% of the earth’s surface, holding 97% of all water and 80% of all life forms. Major ocean sectors such as tourism, shipping, fishing, aquaculture and marine renewable energy collectively contribute to a ‘blue’ economy, estimated at a global gross value added of USD 1.5 trillion in 2010. This is projected to double in size to USD 3 trillion by 2030, with some ocean industries set to grow faster than the global economy (OECD, 2016).

We see how an oil spill in Israel can threaten the seafood industry and tourism but it’s a bigger problem than one country, one sea. 

French Polynesia coral reefs Khalid bin sultan
Coral reef, French Polynesia.

However, ocean health is under existential threat. Faced with the triple crises of pollution, nature loss and climate change, two-thirds of our oceans have been negatively altered by human activity; leaving industries, businesses and livelihoods exposed. With existing financing still largely directed towards unsustainable sectors and activities, it is critical that all sectors of the blue economy are rapidly transitioned towards sustainable pathways.

Invest in the sea

Banks, insurers and investors have a major role to play in financing this transition to a sustainable blue economy, helping to rebuild ocean prosperity and restore biodiversity to the ocean. Through their activities, and client relationships, financial institutions have a major impact on ocean health and hold the power to accelerate and mainstream the sustainable transformation of ocean-linked industries.

They thereby play essential roles in wider ocean governance, engaging in public-private partnerships, and propelling local-to-global actions for sustainability.  

“Momentum is building as more banks, insurers and investors wake up to the realisation that their financial activities can have a sizeable impact on ocean health, creating a negative feedback loop for key ocean industries such as shipping, fishing, tourism and marine renewables” said Eric Usher, Head of UN Environment Programme Finance Initiative (UNEP FI).

“A new sustainable pathway for the blue economy is thus both an environmental and economic necessity. This critical new guidance provides a practical toolkit for financial institutions to understand their impact and discover how a new sustainable finance approach can help them identify key risks and opportunities in ocean-linked sectors” he added.

Leveraging best practice based on input from more than 50 pioneering institutions and experts, this guidance sets out pathways to sustainable growth across five key ocean sectors, chosen for their established connection to private finance. It presents a detailed breakdown of which activities to seek out as best practice, which activities to challenge, and which activities to avoid financing completely due to their damaging nature.

Banks burning the Amazon?

See this story on bankers exposed in Brazil burning the Amazon implicating the agtech investor bank Robobank, which declined to comment. It goes to show that at any point in the near future banks will be exposed. Investing in the planet mitigates risk. 

“Decades of unsustainable consumption and production is leading to environmental risks and losses in natural capital, eroding the ocean’s resource base. Without engagement by financial institutions, we will not be able to change the course to sustain a healthy ocean and unlock its enormous potential. 1$ of sustainable ocean investments can yield 5x higher global benefits” said Leticia Carvalho, Head of the Marine and Freshwater Branch, UN Environment Programme.

“This new guidance can help financial institutions invest in good ocean governance at local, regional and global levels. In a nutshell, making sustainable blue economy opportunities too hard to resist” she added.

Consider new initiatives like the Ocean Cleanup. Young people are looking for real world solutions that invest in cleaning the seas. 

ocean cleanup boyan slat

This guidance provides decision-makers across banking, insurance and investment with a science-based and actionable toolkit, giving easy-to-follow recommendations on how to approach financial activity related to:

  • Seafood, including both fisheries and aquaculture as well as their supply chains;
  • Ports;
  • Maritime transportation;
  • Marine renewable energy, notably offshore wind; and
  • Coastal and marine tourism, including cruising.

It builds on the foundation of the Sustainable Blue Economy Finance Principles – a keystone for financing activities in the blue economy, supported by a community of over 50 institutions worldwide with a collective total asset size of over USD 6trn.

We think the United Nations has a lot of potential to transform the world for good and we support more initiatives like this, less on costly meetings and conferences which have more or less been eradicated since Covid times. 

 You can download the guide here or click the image below. Links to PDF.

un banker report invest in oceans

 

 

 

Mediterranean oil spill cleaned by EU ambassadors

Karin Kloosterman
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0
Mediterranean oil spill cleaned by EU ambassadors

eu ambassadors clean Israeli beach Beit Yanai

EU Ambassador to Israel Emanuele Giaufret was joined Friday morning by more than two dozen envoys from EU member states, including 10 ambassadors, at a large-scale beach clean-up operation at the Beit Yanai National Park near Netanya, Israel. 

A suspicious and deadly bitumen oil spill appeared washing up on the Israeli and Lebanese coast a few weeks ago. Iran is suspected of eco-terrorism and purposefully dumping the oil, meanwhile the public has rallied to pull globs of tar from the seashore. You can read our first report of of the Israeli oil spill here. 

And the UN banking sector has just released a guide on how bankers can invest in the ocean. Timely.

Sea turtles are being remediated with mayonnaise treats that melts the oil in their stomachs and gives them nutrients and meanwhile the ambassadors from EU countries pitched in among the more than 12,000 people who have been cleaning the seashore by hand. They only worked for an hour and a photo op, but it lends support in an oil spill that could escalate if Iran is indeed found the culprit of eco terrorism.

Clad in blue EU t-shirts and wearing plastic bags on their shoes, the EU diplomats to Israel spent more than an hour removing tar from stones along the coastline.

beit yanai eu ambassadors

They were greeted at the beach by Galit Shaul, the head of the Emek Hefer Regional Council. The EU delegation in Tel Aviv initiated the activity, conducted in cooperation with the Zalul environmental organization, which it supports financially, after learning about the massive contamination of Israel’s beaches following a huge oil spill.

“As soon as we saw the terrible images of black tar washed up on beaches along the coastline, we decided that we had to do something to help. Every summer our delegation organizes a massive beach cleanup, but this disaster calls for immediate action,” Ambassador Giaufret said.

“There’s still a lot of work to do, but every effort helps. We’re grateful to our partners from Zalul for the important work they’re doing.”

Youval Arbel, sea campaigns manager at Zalul, said: “The massive tar contamination in our beaches is one of the most severe ecological disasters we have ever seen. Hundreds of volunteers are working every day to remove the tar from the rocks before its toxic materials will be swept into the sea and hurt more animals.

Zalul has been working with the NGO EcoOcean among others to clean the oil. EcoOcean’s founder Andreas Weil had the foresight two years ago to start training the public on how to be prepared for an emergency cleanup. His Swedish background might come into play in his NGOs success, he told Green Prophet.

andreas weil, founder of ecoocean marine Israel sweden
EcoOcean founder Andreas Weil

Protecting the environment is one of the EU’s top priorities. The EU puts a strong emphasis in its activities around the world, including in Israel, on preserving and cleaning beaches from waste, and the severe incident that has contaminated Israel’s beaches in recent days is another, especially painful, reminder of the importance of these efforts.

Iran accused of eco-terrorism as oil coats the Mediterranean Sea shore

Karin Kloosterman
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Iran accused of eco-terrorism as oil coats the Mediterranean Sea shore
beached whale israel
Dead fin whale washed up on a beach in Nitzanim Reserve, Israel, Friday, Feb. 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Two weeks ago one of the largest oil spills in the Mediterranean Sea washed up globs of carcinogenic bitumen tar known as dilbit onto the Israeli and Lebanese coasts. A gag order on the tanker’s identity confused the public, as over 10,000 people went out to the shores to collect the tar from rocks, turtles, and sand. 

At first the Israeli Environment Ministry targeted a Greece tanker and met it as it docked at port in Greece some days later. We spoke with the company that owned the ship, Minerva Marine, and they denied any link to the spill. 

But in the latest turn of events Israel has put its attention to its arch-enemy Iran announcing that a tanker flying under a Libyan flagged, but doing eco-terrorism for Iran, tanker dumped its bitumen on purpose to cover the entire Israeli coastline. 

Environmental Protection Minister Gila Gamliel said in a news conference that investigators from her ministry had traced the spill to an unregistered Libyan tanker.

The ship had called on an Iranian port before approaching the Israeli coast. It turned off its tracking transponder and then dumped its crude oil into the Mediterranean Sea, Gamliel said.

Analyses of satellite images and models run by researchers show that the ship smuggled crude oil from Iran into Syria. The tanker was “dark” when it left the Iranian region, meaning her AIS (automatic identification system) was turned off. Before reaching the Suez Canal, the tanker’s equipment was turned on, and it crossed the canal in Egyptian territory. Then, it went dark again before entering Israel’s economic waters.

Black Blood on their hands

“The operator of the ship has black blood on their hands,” she said. This comes after a two-week investigation with strong “circumstantial evidence” according to Gamliel that the ship was the source of the spill and its behavior deliberate.

She also said the government would pursue payment for damages through an international oil pollution compensation program and the ship’s insurance.

She released this statement: “This is a crude oil tanker called Emerald, owned and operated by a Libyan company. It was illegally carrying cargo from Iran to Syria. The ship was flying Panama’s flag. Iran is waging terrorism not only by trying to arm itself with nuclear weapons or trying to establish a basis near our borders. Iran is waging terrorism by harming the environment,” said Gamliel.

“Our battle on behalf of nature and animals must be a cross-border one. Together, we will bring to justice those responsible for the environmental terrorism, those who committed this crime against humanity. We will continue to rehabilitate the damaged beaches and the animals that were harmed. Together, we will win, and we’ll remove the pollution from our country’s shores.”

According to Lloyd‘s, a maritime intelligence report, the of Emerald was named as Oryx Shipping Ltd, according to a spokesman from the prior owner, Libya’s state-owned General National Maritime Transport Co.

Emerald tanker syria israel iran oil spill

Oryx Shipping Ltd is traced to a Piraeus-based company (Greece) with Syrian links, said to be owned by Luay Mallah. An Indian ship management company Frontline manages most of Oryx’s purported fleet of Supramax and general cargo vessels. Lloyd’s said the maximum payout after pollution blamed on Iran will come in at less than $300m.

What Syria and Iran’s money can’t buy

Our voice of reason, Andreas Weil, founder of the environmental marine education and action NGO EcoOcean, which led the cleanup efforts, tells Green Prophet: “If the oil was targeted directly at Israel then it’s sensational news.”

But, with Swedish common sense he explains as much as he or anyone knows: “Well, what can you say. Who knows if they released it on purpose? Who knows if they had an accident?  It’s crazy. I don’t know what to say anymore.

“If it’s on purpose then it would make me quite upset. But let’s wait and see what happens,” Weil tells Green Prophet.

Weil wants us to know that dumping the bilge of an oil tanker is a common occurrence in the oil industry, usually without any retribution: “Most importantly,” he say “some ships just release their old tar from their tanks and they don’t give a shit about the Mediterranean or the environment,” Weil explains. “Did they think about this or did they plan it?” 

The public was stunned to see a black plague along its coastline starting about two weeks ago. The Prime Minister of Lebanon blamed Israel. Israel blamed Greece and now it’s blaming Iran. The mud-slinging continues until more clues are brought forth.

Meanwhile the Israeli government are calling the spill an act of “environmental terrorism.”

The sticky tar has appeared on about 120 miles of Israel’s coastline. It is estimated that 1,000 tonnes, according to The Washington Post, were spilled and thousands of volunteers are still racing against the clock to rescue birds, turtles and small mammals from the sludge. A 55-foot baby whale died from poisoning, and there is a ban on the sale of local seafood.

The spill ignited Greenpeace’s fire. They were aghast that Lebanon had voiced no cleanup plan or response after the spill.  Stinky black tar at sea knows no borders. Endangered loggerhead and green sea turtles nesting at the Tyre Coast Nature Reserve in Lebanon are at risk and this local tragedy should be an international concern.

Israelis from the government said that the biggest patches of bitumen have been scrubbed from the coast but a remediation and cleanup will take years, and about $14 million USD. 

Oceanographic agencies in the United States and Europe estimate that the spill occurred in early February taking two weeks to wash ashore.

“They’re not just hurting Israel,” Gamliel said. “Nature and animals don’t just belong to one nation. This is a battle that crosses borders.”

Weil who founded EcoOcean 15 years ago to help clean up the Mediterranean Sea is flabbergasted by the turn of events. He heard that perhaps it was 100 tonnes of bitumen that was dumped, but when The Washington Post suggested up to 1,000 tonnes this implies something much more sinister than a bilge oil dump.

Andreas Weil, founder of EcoOcean
Andreas Weil, founder of EcoOcean

Weill ponders, “Then that’s about as much oil as the whole boat can carry. Why would they dump it on purpose as it’s valued at millions of dollars?

“It’s impossible to know because most of it became heavy lumps that sank directly. No one will know how much the boat had before it left port. It will be floating up on the sea for many yeas to come,” Weil laments. “If it’s 1,000 tonnes then it’s not only cleaning out its tanks. 

Iran’s Environment Ministry news page in English hasn’t been updated since 2016. Its Twitter since 2018. We reached out for a comment and so far, it’s bleak. Probably like most of the environmental problems in Iran. The destruction of Lake Urmia. Unbearable air pollution in Tehran. Water pollution. And a government that makes environmentalists and activists disappear. It’s no wonder why so many good Iranians have immigrated out to Canada. 

We’ve had dissenting voices from Iran reach out to us in the past. On the strict condition that no one’s identity will be given. Ever. This Iranian blogger I interviewed (Hossein Derakhshan) in 2006 disappeared not long after the interview. He came back, subdued, many years later retracting everything that he said. It’s amazing what torture and prison can do to you. 

Iran is further distancing itself every day from its neighbors in the region. This oil spill, if indeed it’s sent from them, will be the last straw. 

Meanwhile in Lebanon there has been no response to the oil spill. Whether it’s the general neglect to the country’s state of affairs – remember the massive explosion in Beirut this past summer that killed hundreds – or an alliance with Iran and Syria, is anyone’s guess. 

Greenpeace sent me this statement: “Almost two weeks have passed since the oil spill occurred on the Lebanese coast, and to this day we have not heard any statement from the Ministry of Environment. The ministry is supposed to be the most responsive to such a catastrophic accident.

“Therefore, Greenpeace Middle East and North Africa asks where is the Ministry of Environment? What is your national disaster management plan? What is the scale of the disaster and its repercussions on marine life? Where are the directions on how to remove oil tar and how to treat and dispose of it? Where are the safety tips that you should publish in order to ensure the safety of citizens?

“Noting that a number of associations, organizations and volunteers try their best to organize and help, but the responsibility rests with the concerned authorities first and foremost.”

Want to take action in cleaning up the sea? The UN has a new investment guide for bankers. We learned that banks are supporting the burning of the Amazon, whether or not investors at the bank are aware. Be one step ahead and invest in the sea, with this handy toolkit and guide you can download here. 

Digging into chickpea family for less pesticides in the United States

Karin Kloosterman
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Digging into chickpea family for less pesticides in the United States

In recent years, hummus has become a pop culture food phenomenon, drawing praises from dieticians for the health benefits and chefs for the flavor.

However, the core ingredient, the chickpea, has had its production threatened. The chickpea has played a significant role in the vegetarian diet for thousands of years. It is high in protein and rich in important carbohydrates and minerals. And vegans love it. 

Grown in the Pacific Northwest and Northern Plains of the United States, the chickpea has an integral role in the agriculture systems of these regions. Recently this role has been threatened by a soil-born water mold, Pythium ultimum. 

George Vandemark and his team have worked to improve chickpea varieties and develop new ways to control disease in legumes. Their research was recently shared in Crop Science, a publication of the Crop Science Society of America.

“For over 30 years, common pathogens in chickpeas and other legumes have been controlled by fungicides,” says Vandemark. “We discovered this approach was not working effectively when one of my coworkers visited a field where seedlings had not emerged.”

The planted seeds died shortly after they started to germinate. As the seed grew to the top of the soil, the disease attacked the plant and killed it.

To identify the cause, researchers isolated the chickpea seeds in the soil. They discovered that the pathogen P. ultimum developed resistance to fungicide. This resistance allowed the mold to infect the plant.

chickpea snack

“Our approach looked at two different types of chickpeas – kabuli and desi,” says Vandemark. “The kabuli chickpea is almost exclusively grown in the United States because of the large export market.”

Time to start planting small Desi chickpeas

Kabuli chickpeas are larger, have a clear or light beige seed coat, and are typically canned and used to make hummus. Desi, believed to have originated in Turkey, is smaller, has a colored seed coat, and is used for making stews.

If you ask around famous hummus chefs in Israel, for instance, they will tell you to use only the smaller Desi variety. Get the ultimate hummus recipe here. Or scroll down to the bottom of the post for it. 

The researchers examined different lines of the chickpea to identify natural sources of resistance to P. ultimum.

The most popular varieties of chickpea grown in the United States were susceptible to the disease. The team did discover other chickpea varieties that showed resistance to the soil-born mold.

“We identified many desi chickpeas that were resistant to the pathogen,” said Vandemark. “Luckily, several kabuli also displayed intermediate levels of resistance.”

These resistant chickpea varieties excited the researchers because they produce chickpeas that look similar to what consumers are used to.

“These traits are not ones we want to lose,” said Vandemark. “Consumers expect the kabuli type chickpea to come from the United States. The lines we identified with resistance to the disease have the shape and seed color that are desirable.”

With this discovery, the research team is using the resistant plants to breed new kabuli varieties. The resistance chickpeas are crossed with current commercial varieties. This will develop a type that is more resistant to the disease.

“Moving forward, this will lead to new chickpea varieties with improved resistance to P. ultimum,” explains Vandemark. “This research will also lead to new methods for controlling diseases that rely less on fungicides and more on genetic resistance.”

From this research, scientists can gain a better understanding of disease and disease resistance. This will push researchers to use plant breeding as a means to combat diseases, rather than synthetic chemicals.

“P. ultimum has a broad range of hosts,” says Vandemark. “While we looked at chickpeas, it can affect small grains like wheat and other legumes like soybeans. The chickpea has a small genome size, making it easier to examine.”

Future researchers can build upon this research to examine potential disease resistance to P. ultimum in other crops. Naturally controlling the disease using genetics and breeding can lead to a more sustainable production system.  

George Vandemark is a researcher for the United States Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service. This work was supported by the United States Department of Agriculture and the USA Dry Pea and Lentil Council.

___

Maxim’s Hummus Recipe

Ingredients
• 6.5 pounds of small-sized dried chickpeas (Desi chickpeas)
• 1 tablespoon baking soda
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 2 tablespoons of salt
• 2 tablespoons of lemon salt
• Half measure of tehina (Amount of tehina equals half the volume of    cooked chickpeas)
• Water
• Olive oil to garnish

Take 6.5 pounds of dried chickpeas and soak them overnight in cold water, along with baking soda and baking powder. The next morning clean the chickpeas in running water. Drain the water and remove any small stones.

Adding cold water to cover the chickpeas and then a double amount, vigorously boil the chickpeas in a large pot. After reaching boiling point, turn down heat, and simmer for 3 hours with a lid, until the chickpeas are soft.

When done, strain the chickpeas, and set aside until cold. When cold, put into a food processor, adding raw tehina – about half the volume of the cooked chickpeas. Add in salt, lemon salt, and enough tablespoons of cold water to achieve a thick, but smooth consistency. Spread the hummus on a plate, and garnish with olive oil.

“That’s it. Now you will have lovely hummus”, says Tony.

And a lot of it. Divide the recipe in half if you want a lot less.

Organic date syrup via Israel and Dubai show fruits of peace

Larry Luxner
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Organic date syrup via Israel and Dubai show fruits of peace
PHOTO BY MUBARAK TAJ: From left: D’vash co-founders David Czinn and Brian Finkel; Al Barakah founder Mohamed Saleem; managing director Yousuf Salem, and Abdulkarim Salem, at Al Barakah’s Dubai headquarters in December 2020.
PHOTO BY MUBARAK TAJ: From left: D’vash co-founders David Czinn and Brian Finkel; Al Barakah founder Mohamed Saleem; managing director Yousuf Salem, and Abdulkarim Salem, at Al Barakah’s Dubai headquarters in December 2020.

The ink was barely dry on Washington’s newly announced Abraham Accords late last year when Brian Finkel hopped on one of the very first direct flights from Tel Aviv to Dubai.

His mission: to pave the way for a joint venture between his company, D’vash Organics, and Al Barakah Dates Factory—one of the world’s largest manufacturers and suppliers of date products.

The deal, finalized Feb. 24, is a milestone for the Chicago-born Finkel, whose company has built its reputation on producing Biblically inspired date syrup for the U.S. organic foods market.

“With our new partnership, we will sell Al Barakah’s line of date products under the D’vash  Organics brand name all over the world,” Finkel told Green Prophet last week. “The deal gives us access to Al Barakah’s unparalleled manufacturing capabilities, pricing and supply. In return, it provides Al Barakah with access to US and other Western retail and wholesale markets under the D’vash Organics name.”

organic date syrup
PHOTO BY MUBARAK TAJ. Organic date syrup sold in the US.

He added: “They wanted access to the US market, because they don’t have much presence outside the Middle East. For them, this is a conduit into the US and Western retail markets. They really are a behind-the-scenes manufacturer, and now they’ll have a piece of the action.”

Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed, though D’vash Organics expects to see revenues of $2 to 3 million in fiscal 2021.

Finkel, an Orthodox Jew who lives in the West Bank settlement of Yakir, made aliyah [immigrated to Israel] in July 2013. Soon after, the Wharton School and financial consultant discovered silan, or date syrup.

“My mother-in-law uses it in desserts. It’s ubiquitous here and it’s such a versatile product,” he said. “One day, I had this ‘eureka’ moment. I called David Czinn, my friend and business partner in California, and asked him if this is a thing in America. He said, ‘no, but it should be.’ Because he’s in the food industry, he was able to leverage his connections.”

That led to a deal to source the product from organic dates grown in California’s Coachila Valley. Finkel and Czinn thought about exporting the product from Israel but said shipping costs would have been prohibitive.

But eventually, they discovered Dubai in the United Arab Emirates—which not only boasts 44 million date trees but also offers substantially cheaper shipping rates than either Israel or California.

organic date packing dubai
PHOTO BY LARRY LUXNER: Date-packing and processing operation in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

“At that time, there were no diplomatic relations between Israel and the UAE. They never asked where I was located, and I never volunteered that information, so it never became an issue,” he said. “The only time anything related to Israel ever came up was when we wanted to put a hecksher [kosher stamp] from the London Beit Din on the product. They told us we’d have to edit our label because according to local law at the time, nothing could be exported from the UAE if it referenced Israel, had Hebrew writing or said ‘kosher.’”

Yet once Finkel’s religion and country of residence became known, it wasn’t a problem at all. In fact, he said, “when we met at the factory in Dubai, we had two days of marathon negotiations, and we talked very openly and fondly about the similarities between our two cultures. They bent over backwards to make sure I had kosher food.”

finkel date syrup d'vash
PHOTO BY LARRY LUXNER: Brian Finkel, co-founder and CEO of D’vash Organics, holds up a bottle of organic date syrup.

Interestingly, the word “Israel” appears nowhere on the label—and that’s no accident.

“Our product is inspired by Israel,” Finkel said. “It has roots in the Bible and originates from the land of milk and honey, but this has broader appeal than just Jewish or Israeli.”

In fact, most date syrup—if it doesn’t originate in either California or Israel—comes from an Arab country, generally Iraq, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia or Algeria. 

“Date honey is lower on the glycemic index than bee honey,” he said. “For people watching their sugar, dates are a healthy source of anti-oxidants and fiber. My father, for example, can eat date products but not table sugar. Unlike bee honey, it’s safe for babies—and it’s vegan.”

Finkel said he has worked with Tunisian and Algerian date producers, through third parties of course, but that “ever since we made the decision to move away from California because it was price-prohibitive, we were basically looking for someone who could make quality product at the right price. The Dubai guys are the best. Not only are they the easiest to work with, they also do everything A to Z—all the bottling, on-site packaging and even printing.”

Finkel said D’Vash products are currently sold in 6,500 stores across the United States. But now he’s starting to sell to Canada, and is also launching a test run with Costco outlets in San Diego, Texas and the southeastern US.

“We typically have sold only syrups, but we’re now starting to get into new products,” he said. “If the Costco test runs go well, we could easily break into the high seven figures in the next year or two, because they order in such massive quantities.”

Dubai’s dead plastic camels

Karin Kloosterman
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Dubai’s dead plastic camels

One of the most jarring scenes I remember from my trip through Syria is the sea of plastic that rolled along the shore of a stretch of desert highway that linked Aleppo to Damascus. This was 20 years ago and the problem with plastic in the throwaway Middle East where boys want a plastic bag for a can of Red Bull is just getting worse. Let’s look to Dubai where the camels are dying from starvation. Their bellies full of plastics and ropes that starve them to death. 

stomach contents camels dying from plastics dubai

A new scientific study showing that desert camels are dying from mistaking plastic bags for food has lead pioneering plastic pollution researchers and others to call for a radical shift in how we discuss the problem that’s harming life in all environments on Earth–on land, not just in the sea. 

One researcher covering the problem found 2000 plastic bags in the stomach of one camel.

stomach contents camels dying from plastics dubai

Marcus Eriksen, the study’s lead author and co-founder of the 5 Gyres Institute, is one of a handful of researchers to have personally sailed through all of the Earth’s five subtropical gyres,  where plastics accumulate. He has researched plastic pollution in the global oceans since 2008. This scourge, however, is far from limited to the “garbage patches,” he notes, but exists “in every body of water on the planet.” 

Furthermore, the study Eriksen and his team published, finding a 1% mortality rate among dromedary camels ingesting plastic outside of the city of Dubai–on top of similar deaths and suffering he and others have observed in animals from elephants to reindeer, plastic fragments found in farmland, even evidence that humans are ingesting plastic trash–has convinced him that we must begin to loudly sound a different alarm.

“As a civilization, we have to stop talking about plastic pollution as if it were confined to our oceans and start talking about global plastic pollution harming life everywhere,” Eriksen says. “We have a plastic pollution pandemic from the tops of mountains to the bottom of the sea. A limited view limits our ability to solve the problem.” 

stomach contents camels dying from plastics dubai

Study co-author, Ulrich Wernery, director of the Central Veterinary Research Laboratory in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, has been observing plastic waste in over 300 camels in the desert region near Dubai since 2008, as published in the Journal of Arid Environments. He and Eriksen found tightly packed, suitcase-size masses of plastic bags, ropes and other litter trapped in the animals’ stomachs and digestive tracts. 

When ingesting this trash, the camels can feel a false sense of satiation and refuse to eat further, which leads to dehydration, malnourishment and death, they report. The indigestible materials also create gut blockages, ulcers and lacerations or deadly sepsis from abundant bacteria caught in the bags’ folds. 

Eriksen, director of science and innovation at 5 Gyres, found some of the animal remains in the desert himself, noting that bags are carried for miles by high winds. “We pulled one of these masses out of a camel skeleton that had over 2,000 bags in it. I cut this open and it was plastic bags through and through.”

Many countries have independently banned single-use plastic items, but Eriksen and the 5 Gyres Institute urge world leaders–including the Biden-Harris Administration, which has been silent on this growing crisis–to take bold, swift action by joining an international legally binding agreement to tackle plastic pollution under discussion this week at the UN Environmental Assembly (UNEA). The world’s top environmental decision-making body, UNEA notes that “the planet is in crisis and nature must be at the heart of global efforts to build back better” after the coronavirus pandemic. 

Oceanographer Charles J. Moore, credited with discovering and bringing the garbage patch concept to mainstream attention, echoes Eriksen’s call. 

“Today it is widely acknowledged that vagrant plastic waste is polluting oceans, rivers, soil, food, the water we consume, and even the air we breathe,” Moore says. “We have to wake up and accept that this problem is much bigger than we’ve previously imagined. It’s time to talk about this like the planetary emergency it is and take action.” 

Jane Patton, an environmental health policy advocate with the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), agrees. 

“This new study comes on the heels of others examining plastic in fish and birds and provides one more example of how the prevalence of plastic is having untold consequences on flora and fauna across the globe,” said Patton, CIEL senior campaigner. “Now we know this crisis is not just about human health, but the health of all beings. To confront the plastic crisis, it is critical that the world community adopt a new global agreement, addressing the entire plastic lifecycle.” 

The 5 Gyres Institute is inviting all to join their efforts to protect camels by signing a petition urging the Biden Administration to join the binding international treaty on plastic pollution under discussion at UNEA this week. 

A Complete Guide To Marketing Your Fitness Studio — Post-Covid

Bhok Thompson
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A Complete Guide To Marketing Your Fitness Studio — Post-Covid

It’s challenging to grasp just how much the world has changed from COVID-19 — Zoom happy hours, takeout instead of dining in, working from home, and squeezing in virtual workouts. To say we’ve reached a new frontier is an understatement, and small businesses in the fitness industry have had to pivot operations to stay open.

But there’s a glimmer from the chaos: An industry once contingent upon physical attendance is now finding footing online. That said, the transition hasn’t been easy.

Now, as lockdowns ease and we endeavor outside again, it’s time for another massive pivot in your marketing strategy. How can you promote your fitness studio post-covid? Starting a newsletter, has been proven hands down, the best way to keep your customers engaged. Among our services we use Cactus Mailing: Direct Mail Experts. 

It’s going to take hard work, but you’ve got this. In this comprehensive guide, we’ve outlined the best strategies for promoting your fitness studio after COVID. 

Ready to reboot? Let’s get moving.

Narrow Your Focus and Niche Down

There’s no need to be an expert at every form of fitness. Plus, there are already mega fitness chains like Planet Fitness occupying that catch-all space. Since 86% of consumers base their purchases on brand authenticity, your best bet is to niche down on your specialty. 

If you’re a yoga instructor, niche down on a type of yoga, breathwork, or technique you’ve mastered. Niching down shapes your marketing strategy to attract your ideal clientele.

Who has mastered this flawlessly?

Kayla Itsines, the fitness influencer who basically wrote the (e)book on how to niche down and own your expertise. Kayla created Bikini Body Guides (BBG), 28-minute workouts designed for women to yield maximum results with short sessions.

eco fitness studioThe fitness guru took the method she used for her own fitness and monetized it into a multi-million dollar business. By niching down to address bodyweight strength training, Kayla attracted a massive following — and wealth. 

What’s standing in the way of you achieving the same success? A pandemic? Not anymore.

How to niche down:

  • Don’t aim to be a jack of all trades fitness studio, be a master of one. Choose the niche you’re passionate about and could teach all day, every day.
  • Start brainstorming workouts within your niche. Cover the basics in your niche, and zoom in to discover sub-niches.
  • For every piece of content you create, add your unique spin. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel, but you do want to be original and recognizable.

Tell Your Story to Motivate and Relate

The pandemic has made us a little more skeptical, a tad wiser, and pickier about which businesses we support. A HavasGroup report found that 77% of consumers choose brands that share similar values. To gain trust, be transparent and vocal about your personal fitness story. 

Have you been passionate about fitness since you were a kid and learned to box in your uncle’s garage? Maybe you have a weight-loss story or live, breathe, and eat health and fitness. Your story doesn’t have to be groundbreaking or sensationalized, but it has to be honest to make an impact.

Sharing the why behind your business motivates people who’ve had similar experiences to join the movement. When you stand for something bigger than just one workout, you start a conversation.

Just ask Tally Rye, a London-based fitness instructor and health coach. Tally shares non-diet, weight-inclusive fitness programs that inspire people to “train happy.” The underlying message across all of Tally’s content is her story: ditching diet culture to find a happy way to train and love your body.

eco fitness studio

The message is clear, consistent, and honest. And that’s why over 100k people follow along!

How to tell your story:

Take pen to paper and write out the crucial moments in your story that led you to a career in fitness.

  • If you’re not a writer, no sweat! Find freelancers on sites like Upwork or ClearVoice and outsource the task to a pro. 
  • Share your story on every channel, including your website pages, social profile descriptions, offerings, products, and captions. 
  • Keep it simple, be honest. Open up about the difficult circumstances or adversities you overcame to get where you are now. If that doesn’t apply, share the path that led you here. 

eco fitness studio

People don’t just buy products and services; they buy stories they can relate to, so don’t be afraid to share yours.

Create a Library of On-Demand Video Lessons

Creating an on-demand video library sets you up to reach the broadest audience within your niche. The more diverse the library, the broader an audience you’ll reach. 

Stay within your niche, but diversify lessons to reach every fitness level. There’s no use attracting a beginner if you’re only posting advanced cardio classes. If your studio focuses on HIIT workouts, create an advanced series of 60-minute lessons and a beginner’s series of 30-minute lessons demonstrating each move.

Also, share videos that tackle sub-niches. If you’re a yoga instructor, create playlists targeting abs, upper body, and lower body. While you’re at it, why not offer a 10-minute wellness series featuring sessions for meditation, breathwork, and anti-anxiety poses? 

Head over to the Popsugar Fitness YouTube channel, where 5.48 million Youtube subscribers have free access to a rich library of on-demand video workouts. 

Covering everything from hip-hop to HIIT to targeted muscle training sessions, Popsugar has something for everyone while staying true to the integrity of their niche: fun, fresh, vibrant workouts.

How to make a fitness video library:

  • Record fitness videos in bulk sessions. Block out 1-2 days a week to batch content until you’ve got a sizable stockpile.
  • Create playlists for each video category so that viewers can explore specific areas of your YouTube channel.
  • Optimize your channel and videos. Use a free keyword tool like KW Finder and include them naturally in the title, description, and tags.
  • Have fun with it! The more engaged you are in your video and content, the more likely people will show up to your channel.

Pitch Your Offerings to Local Media Outlets 

Press coverage builds social proof and establishes your fitness studio as an industry leader. Plus, 92% of consumers trust organic media coverage more than paid ads. You’ll gain their trust by earning organic publicity, which also broadens your exposure.

Are you launching a new video series or offering virtual memberships? Write up a press release and send it to regional news outlets that feature local businesses, like this segment on KSBY News in California.

Tips for approaching news outlets:

  • Use a free press distribution network like PR Newswire to find quality media leads known to feature small businesses.
  • News outlets frequently lift copy directly from a press release and use it in their coverage, so make sure your press release clearly states what you’re offering.
  • Include crucial details about your event or promotion, including date, website links, price, and why it’s worthy of publicity. 
  • Share a little insight about your business (refer back to your unique story); that way, if you’re featured in a multi-business segment, your studio stands out.

fake news

Leverage Live Video on Social

There’s nothing like a personal training session to motivate your clients and build a connection. Well, in this post-COVID landscape, you can still do that with live videos.

Live video lets you knock down the screen to interact directly with your attendees. Encourage them to ask you questions and keep the communication active by addressing your viewers by name.

As you build attendance, create a daily 2-minute tutorial or weekly sweat session they can mark on their calendars. Live video is the closest we can get to a personal training session, and your viewers will show up pumped and ready to get moving.

Just ask Massy Arias, a fitness influencer with nearly 3 million followers on Instagram. Massy often engages her audience with Live workouts for all fitness levels. Viewers can join in for free beginner sessions, mobility and yoga flows, strength training, and warm-ups.

eco fitness studio

Toward the end of the video, she gives a call to action to guide viewers towards her paid 60-day strength and yoga program. 

How to Leverage Live for Your Fitness Studio

  • Don’t be shy to jump on Live and start training with your viewers. Chances are, they’ll embrace the opportunity to get to know you better and join in.
  • Leading up to your Live workout, tease the event on Instagram Stories, Facebook, and any social channels where you hang out. Promote it like an in-person event by leaving hints about the workout to get your audience pumped.
  • Before you record, outline your routine and find an open, attractive space that sets the right tone for the workout, i.e., a lush indoor space for yoga or a bright room for cardio.
  • While you’re recording, engage with your audience by asking them questions and interacting as if they’re working out beside you.
  • As you conclude the workout, share the product or program you want to promote. Tell viewers about your fitness studio, a 30-day challenge, or a meal program. Whatever you’re promoting, you have viewers tuned in, so while they’re here, promote your services.

woman running in black body suit on a track

Monetize Behind The Curtain Content

Your business needs revenue to stay open, and fortunately, you don’t need a physical space to do that anymore. You can monetize exclusive content with apps like Patreon. The key is to incentivize your viewers to support you. How will you do that? By providing exclusive content that’s only available to your Patreon subscribers.

How to Monetize with Patreon

  • Offer 2-3 subscriptions, and make each higher tear a more expensive investment. 
  • Share snippets of exclusive Patreon content on your social channels to encourage your audience to subscribe.
  • For a middle-tier subscription, offer bonuses like a 30-day meal plan or insider tips you don’t share in free content. Then up the ante for the premium subscription by offering monthly 1-1 coaching sessions to focus on each customer’s specific goals. 

By monetizing these higher subscription tiers, you’ll accrue revenue without any enormous overhead costs.

There are three membership levels, each under $10 a month, to make fitness accessible to all.

The lowest tier gives supporters access to the community page. The middle option offers monthly calendars, early access to programs and contests, and Live workouts. Lastly, the highest membership offers exclusive Q&A’s, plus all the perks of the lower tiers.

The beauty of this strategy is that you make the rules. Adopt this framework and apply it to your niche. The more you offer, the higher the subscription. 

Create a Referral Program

Before Coronavirus, digital marketing trends favored the new and unconventional. Now? We’re reverting to what has always worked: word of mouth. 

The 2018 Chatter Matters Word of Mouth report found that 83% of Americans offer word of mouth recommendations to their friends and family. How can you get existing clients to recommend your fitness studio?

Referral programs capitalize on the clientele you’ve already established. And when you make those clients happy? They’ll likely tell their friends about your fitness studio. Nudge them toward sharing by offering incentives for recruits.

You can easily implement a referral program for your existing members by offering rewards like 24 Hour Fitness. When members invite a friend to use a 3-day gym pass, they’re rewarded with a training session or in-store coupon.

But you don’t have to be a national gym chain to make this work because referrals work for businesses small and large.

There are a few ways to do this, but whatever method you choose, don’t skimp here because referrals will comprise much of your post-COVID fitness members. And if you want to expand with minimal investments that bring in sizable returns, let’s get people talking about you.

Referral program strategies:

  • Offer a free 1:1 personal training session to existing members who recruit a new member. 
  • Consider offering a free trial to your recruits, and while you have them, promote your Facebook group and online community that’s rich with free resources and exclusive access to new content.
  • Launch a review campaign. Reviews are instant social proof. Incentivize them to leave a review by offering exclusive access to a private workout series or meal plan that gets them invested and singing your praises! 

While reviews aren’t a form of direct word of mouth, they work in the same way because 95% of customers read reviews before buying. 

When you combine referrals, reviews, and rewards, you create a word of mouth trifecta that builds revenue.

Repurpose Content Across Platforms

There’s no disputing the importance of content for business growth, but creating a steady stream of high-value content takes time. Repurposing content is kind of like juggling but way easier. It’s an effective way to stretch the existing content you’ve already created. 

Say you filmed a weight training video targeting specific muscle groups. You can create bite-sized content from one video for newsletters, Instagram Stories, Facebook posts, and more. 

Repurposing content saves you time and reaches your customers on various platforms. That’s especially beneficial if they happened to miss the original fitness video but caught your Instagram carousel post while scrolling the app after work. 

Need a tool to make repurposing your fitness content quick and painless? Try PosterMyWall, a free graphic design tool offering customizable templates for creating social media images, videos, and marketing graphics.  

eco fitness studio

Tips for repurposing fitness content:

  • Review your existing video content. Think about how you can break down fitness videos into small, digestible pieces.
  • Start with one video and branch off smaller content pieces for social media posts, infographics, or tweets.
  • Rather than writing content from scratch, use an affordable transcription service like REV to transcribe your video’s audio into written text. Now you can use the text to formulate a blog post and social media captions.
  • Cut short snippets from the full-length and share them on Instagram. Tell people to head to the link in your bio to see the full video.
  • Snap screenshots of the video and post them to Twitter and Facebook.

Did you just create a dozen pieces of content from one video? You sure did! 

Cultivate an Engaged Community

With your business operating virtually, it makes sense to build a community for your members to interact with you and one another. One of the best ways to do this is by starting a private, members-only Facebook group.

The best part about this strategy is that it requires zero investment. There’s nothing to lose and everything to gain. If you’re tight on marketing funds, this is a great place to start. 

Offer exclusive access to your studio members and stimulate conversations by sharing new workouts, your favorite recipes, and tips for balancing healthy living at home. Take the time to interact personally with your members and show them that you’re a real human who cares about their progress and pain points. 

The goal is to make a fun, interactive, engaging space to grow your community like 305 Fitness, a dance cardio studio. The 305 At Home Facebook group is a private group where members chat about fitness goals, upcoming dance parties and motivate each other.

Tips for starting a Facebook group for your fitness studio:

  • Encourage members to join your Facebook group. Tease them with exclusive content, real discussions, and exciting news.
  • Ask new group members to introduce themselves in a post and share their goals and pain points.
  • Post daily, respond to comments, and interact directly with your community to keep the conversations going.
  • When you have an exciting product to promote, give your Facebook group members first-access — this will incentivize non-group members to join!

Choose a Monthly Theme for At-Home Fitness

You’re in a competitive industry, but there are ways to stand out. Rather than simply posting your content and recording fitness videos, personalize your program to keep it fun and lighthearted. 

Create monthly themes to engage your members and keep them interested in your content. Play around with themes like 30 days of crunches or Fit February. This strategy is another way to roll out new challenges that keep your clients motivated and participating year-round.

Because if you don’t, they might slip away or try another program. Adding that motivation boost will bring people back to participate and engage with the community.

Promote the monthly theme on your social profiles to encourage people to join your program, Facebook group, and jump in on the challenge.

Take it a step farther and ask members to take selfies of themselves participating in the monthly challenge and post it with a hashtag. This is a great way to build awareness about your fitness studio and recruit new members.

Fitness Themes in Action

A fitness theme can be as simple as targeting a specific area for one month or as dynamic as this Go The Distance challenge from iFit. For October, members participated in distance goals to reach major miles by running, cycling, or rowing. On October 31, members who completed the challenge received an exclusive reward.

eco fitness studio

Get the creative juices flowing and have fun trying different themes. Follow the format from iFit and reward members with free merch. When you get people involved, they’ll come back for more.

Offer Gift Certificates and Pre-Packaged Deals 

No one’s in the dark about how the pandemic has hit small businesses, and people are eager to help. Loyal clients will likely jump at the opportunity to purchase packages, gift certificates, and pre-paid memberships because they’re invested in your business.

There are several ways this can work, and you don’t have to do them all. Instead, try one and see how it goes. If it works well, keep at it. If not, try another strategy.

  • Roll out pre-packaged personal training deals to use after the pandemic or when restrictions lift in your area. If you offer these sessions at discounted rates, people are more likely to buy them and cash in when they can meet up with you for a 1:1 session.
  • Offer gift certificates for your clients to buy for friends and family, like the ClassPass gift card; a redeemable cash value people can apply to future membership plans.
  • Discount your membership fees. It’s not an ideal solution, but it will help to keep your business afloat in the interim. 

Host a Fitness Workshop 

Regardless of fitness level, people always have questions that only pros like you can answer. There are probably several questions you regularly hear, right? 

How many calories should I eat every day? 

Am I breathing right during cardio? 

What’s the proper running form? 

Think about the repetitive questions you get and compile them into a workshop for your members. 

A workshop isn’t much different from a video series or fitness regime — you’re still instructing people. The difference is that you’re providing a comprehensive overview of a specific issue or problem in a workshop.

Workshops provide value that you can charge for or offer for free to your members. If non-members want to sign up, by all means, charge a fee for the workshop, and they might end up paying for a membership to your fitness studio.

Let’s look at a great example from Yoga with Adriene. 

In her free 30 Day Yoga Journey, Adriene instructs attendees on how to breathe consciously. On the sign-up page, she offers access to her free community platform and a downloadable calendar corresponding to the 30 days of breathwork students will learn.

The program is hyper-focused on one area of yoga that’ll benefit an attendee’s yoga technique. By offering this workshop, Adriene will likely garner new followers and subscribers to her online yoga studio.

Apply the technique:

  1. Design your free workshop. You can choose to post a video series on your website, YouTube, or a third-party portal like Skillshare or Udemy.
  2. Create an opt-in page with sales copy that illuminates the benefits of attending the workshop (including access to your private Facebook group).
  3. Promote the workshop on your website and social media channels to build hype and encourage sign-ups.
  4. Direct attendees to a higher sales funnel like training sessions or membership to your fitness studio.

Get Moving On Your New Marketing Strategy

The writing is on the wall: this pandemic changed the fitness industry. Brick and mortar gyms have had to migrate to virtual offerings to accommodate their members and maintain revenue. 

In this sink or swim era, fitness studios have found new life online and shown what can be achieved in dire straights.

As you pivot your marketing strategy and maneuver this new digital frontier, focus on reaching people on a more personal level. Share high-quality content across all platforms to promote your fitness studio and increase brand awareness. 

Most importantly, make fitness accessible, relatable, and convenient for your members, and you’ll experience a new type of digital business that’s pandemic-proof. Now go grind out your new strategy!

6 Tips to Establishing a New Business from Scratch

Bhok Thompson
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"solar panel roof"
Looking to start a DIY solar energy business and want to know how to build it sustainably from the inside and out? 

The idea of starting your own business comes across our minds quite often. However, we tend to abandon the thought because we think that it is something that involves a lot of risks. It is true that starting your own business comes with a lot of risks and hard work. However, if you know what you are doing and you keep some golden rules of starting your own business in your mind, then you can change your fate in no time. From having a proper business plan to IT consulting, there are many things that you have to take care of.

If you don’t know what these golden rules are, then worry no more. This blog is going to cover everything you need to know. I’ve narrowed some very important tips that will help you in establishing your business like a pro. 

Here’s everything you need to know about it:

First Thing First – Work on Your Business Idea 

 Having a business plan is more than just selling your products or establishing someplace as your office. If you want to make sure that your business becomes a success, then you have to make sure that you are planning everything in a composed and well-researched manner. You need to analyze the market, the viability of your business plan, etc. 

More often than not, businesses suffer collapse because people become over-ambitious with their business ideas. Therefore, if you want to make your business a success, you need to sit down and take every single detail about your business plan into account.

Get All Kinds of Business Consulting – It’s Important

If you haven’t done any kind of business in the past and are going to start from scratch, you must understand the importance of getting business counseling. It is important because there are many things about business that only experts can guide you with. So, make sure that you get the right kind of business counseling if you want to make your business a success.

Develop a Sustainable Business Plan 

At the starting of any business, there are many difficulties that you could face. It is very likely that you might have to invest in your business from your pocket rather than earning profits. Therefore, you must make sure that you have a sustainability plan for your business so that it can at least survive the tough few months of the start. For example, you can start small projects that are sufficient to provide for the expenses of your main business.

Solview solar energy calculator

Don’t Forget to Make Your Business Official 

More often than not, people are so busy establishing their business and making efforts about it that they forget some very important stuff like getting your business registered. If your business is not registered with the relevant authorities, then it can end up in a lot of trouble, and you definitely don’t want it to happen. Therefore, you must get your business registered as the first order of business so that you can avoid any kind of problem and focus on your business with your undivided attention.

Critically Review Your Financial Situation 

Even in the world of start-up culture, you need to make sure that you have enough finances to hold your business on grounds if things go unplanned for a month or two. Therefore, you need to have a critical look at your finances so that you and your business can survive on that money. If you don’t have that kind of money, then the rule is simple. You just cut some budget from the overall investment of your business and use that money as your secret stash in times of trouble.

Learn What Your Targeted Audience is looking for

Lastly, doing any business success is all about understanding the requirements of your targeted audience. You must make sure that you are studying the market and analyzing the needs of your potential customers. It’ll help to provide them with the services that they are looking for right from the start of your business. For example, if you are launching a product, then you just need to make your product one step better than your competitors, and just like that, your clients will be attracted to your product.

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