Climate activists arrested at Heathrow

by Anna Brones on

With all the talk of biofuels and climate change in the airline industry, environmental activists have taken to airports as their protesting grounds. Last week in Sweden activists dressed up as polar bears at a Stockholm airport. This week the site of protesting is Heathrow Airport, where today four Greenpeace activists, who climbed on top of an airplane, were arrested.

Part of a larger group that was gathering in Westminster to oppose plans to expand Heathrow, the Greenpeace protesters hung a banner that said “Climate Emergency – No Third Runway” on a British Airways Airbus A320.

Although the environmental group saw their actions as necessary, the BAA, the British airport company, called the act “unlawful and irresponsible.” I wonder if they’ll ever be allowed to fly British Airways again.

Outside magazine proclaims “best new eco-getaways”

by Jamie Rhein on

If the state of the environment concerns you, or if you’re looking for a good excuse to spend some money on an environmentally friendly, swanky place, March’s Outside magazine has some suggestions. Their ‘best new eco-getaways” in the United States are:

The Lodge at Sun Ranch in Cameron, Montana. There is a green tour of the ranch to see its sustainability practices. The magazine mentions its practice of planting 10 trees in the Amazon for every guest. I don’t think that means the owners run down to the Amazon each and every time, but pays another organization that plants trees to take care of some carbon footprints. Deirdre Wollarad summed up this place on Luxist. Luxury can be green.

The Proximity Hotel in Greensboro, North Carolina. One great thing about this place I can tell you already is that SkyBus heads here. You can get to green for cheap if you happen to live near a SkyBus airport with a flight to Greensboro. Solar panels heat 60% of the water, 7-ft. windows in each room invite in natural light, and you can find the first elevator in North America that recaptures electricity.

The Orchard Garden Hotel in San Francisco, California–Billed as the newest and greenest boutique hotels, this is the only hotel in California to be built within the standards of green buildings set by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). The hotel earned a “Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design” (LEED®) certification for the efforts. I like the fact that local artists’ work are part of the decor.

The Gaia Napa Valley Hotel and Spa in American Canyon, California. Not only is this hotel environmentally friendly, it has a package deals that may be a good reason to hang out in Napa Valley for awhile. Too bad February is almost over. If you stay three nights, you get the 4th for free. Part of the hotel’s aim to promote green hotels is to attract visitors by offering affordable deals. There’s a video on the Web site that tells just why this hotel has earned a gold certification with LEED. The owner is interviewed and explains his philosophy and the hotel’s practices. There’s also a tour that explains each green feature.

New York Philharmonic’s trip to North Korea

by Jamie Rhein on

Perhaps you’ve seen a news clip or read an article about New York Philharmonic’s trip to Asia this month. The trip to North Korea, also to perform, was added as an overture to goodwill. Back in December, I wrote a post about the visit. Yesterday I came across a short CNN clip about the significance of this artistic endeavor. The logistics of getting the orchestra to North Korea partly involved talking the South Korean American orchestra members into going there.

Within the clip, there’s footage of the war between the two Koreas and an explanation about what made the orchestra members initially not too thrilled with the trip. They did decide to go after all. As explained, trips like this one are not only about music, they are about diplomacy. The arts (and I’d add sports) are ways for countries to cross the barriers between them. I would agree that having an renowned orchestra play is certainly more appealing than threatening a war.

According to the clip, the North Koreans met all the conditions the New York Philharmonic called for in order to agree to come. The conditions were nothing like one hears rock stars wanting, ie, blue M&Ms only, or some such thing. Conditions had to do with the size of the concert hall, being able to perform what they wanted, and the safety of the Korean American orchestra members. Here’s a link to the clip, plus another link to a news conference clip. As the conductor says, “Music has the power to unite people.” The concert in North Korea is on the 26th.

There are photo essays that chronicle the trip through Asia on the New York Philharmonic’s Web site. It makes me sad I didn’t practice the flute more.

Lonely Planet’s Burma guide called unethical

by Anna Brones on

Traveling can be political, and as reported by the BBC last September, guidebooks even more so. The current political situation in Burma is so highly charged that Britain’s Trade Union Congress (TUC) is asking travelers to stop buying Lonely Planet’s guide to Burma in order to encourage the company to withdraw the book from the market.

The TUC along with Tourism Concern, Burma Campaign UK and the New Internationalist launched an online petition on Thursday calling for the immediate withdrawal of the Lonely Planet guidebook because “holidaying in Burma is one of the most unethical trips you could make, given the brutality of the current regime,” as New Internationalist co-editor Chris Brazier explained.

This brings into question what role tourism plays on the political scene. Both the Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi and Burmese unions have asked travelers not to visit their country as long as the military regime is in power. Lonely Planet however believes that travel choices should be left up to the tourists themselves and that publishing a guide on Burma “does not of itself represent support or otherwise for the current regime.”

What do you think? Should Lonely Planet withdraw its Burma guidebook?

World Heritage Site new “Tentative List”: Places to Love: Civil Rights Movement Sites

by Jamie Rhein on

For the Gadling series “World Heritage Site new “Tentative List”: Places to Love” we are covering the 14 sites that have been submitted for possible inclusion as an official World Heritage Site in the United States. The sites will not be posted in order of importance or in the order they appear on the list.

Number 1

Name of site: Civil Rights Movement Sites

Location: Birmingham and Montgomery, Alabama.

Reason for importance (in a nutshell): Three churches, Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church in Montgomery and the Bethel Baptist and 16th Street Baptist Churches in Birmingham, all historically African-American, played significant roles during the Civil Rights Movement.

Jamie’s Take: Of all the places on the new Tentative Sites list, these are perhaps the most humble and each hold enormous significance to American history. During Black History month, this is a fitting time to pay tribute. Here’s why:

Picture Martin Luther King Jr. standing at the simple pulpit of what was then called Dexter Avenue Baptist Church. From 1954 to1960, he was the pastor of this church, preaching his message that pulled people into a movement that changed history. The Montgomery Bus Boycott was organized from here. The church today looks similar to what it did back then–even the pulpit is still there.

In Birmingham on September 15, 1963, a bomb exploded at the 16th Street Baptist Church. Hatred killed four girls while they were putting on their choir robes. Members of the Klu Klux Klan were responsible. The bombing played a large role in the passage of the Civil Rights Act. The church, in the heart of the Civil Rights District of Birmingham, still operates as a church today. In 1873, when it was founded, it was the first African American church to in Birmingham.

From 1956-1961, the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights (ACMHR) was headquartered at the Bethel Baptist Church. The early Civil Rights movement efforts were organized here, including the Freedom Ride bus trip that helped lead to the desegregation of bus transportation. This church was bombed several times and is now a National Historic Landmark.