Indonesian Digital News Archive

Later this year the producers of the amazing (yet haunting!) The Cove, will release a new film that takes a hard look at climate change and the way our planet is being undeniably altered. Those changes are evident most specifically in the polar ice caps and glaciers of the planet, which are vanishing at an alarming rate. The new film is entitled Chasing Ice and tells the story of National Geographic photographer James Balog, a climate change skeptic who went on assignment to the Arctic in 2005 and  returned with a completely different view. Since then, Balog has made it his mission to chronicle the vanishing ice on our planet and spread the word to others.

The trailer for the new film can be found below and it looks like it is going to be a real eye opener for those who are still on the fence as to whether or not climate change exists and what effect it is having on our world. There are some incredibly powerful images in the trailer itself and I'm looking forward to seeing the full film down the line.

A few months back I wrote a piece about the Himalayan Stove Project, a fantastic non-proft organization that is dedicated to providing clean cookstoves to the people living in the Himalaya. At that time the organization was still ramping up their efforts for the first round of distribution, but this past spring they made their first visit to Nepal, where they gave out over 1500 stoves, dramatically changing lives in the process.

Traditional Himalayan cook stoves are incredibly inefficient and require a lot of fuel just to prepare a simple meal. That fuel, which typically consists of wood and yak dung, can be quite scarce in many areas of the Trans-Himalayan region where the gathering of kindling has led to deforestation. Additionally, the new stoves are far healthier for the people using them as they vent noxious smoke and fumes outside of the living space. In the past it wasn't even possible for families to eat their meals together indoors as their homes were too filled with smoke to make the experience an enjoyable one. Thanks to these new stoves however, that is already changing.

The team behind the project has set an ambitious goal of distributing 10,000 stoves in five years. Their efforts this past spring served as a pilot for the program and by all accounts it was a smashing success. They now believe that it is possible to distribute as many as 3000-4000 stoves each year and with the proper support and backing, the realization of their goal is more than within reach. I'm told that the organization has secured some high profile backers that will assist moving forward, but this is a great project that can still use more help.

The video below, which was shot in Nepal this past spring, clearly shows how the project is having an immediate impact on the lives of those that it touches. It is evident that this grass-roots effort is both good for the environment and the health of those living in the Himalaya, and it's not often that you see an organization make such a profound change on people's lives in such a short amount of time.

For more information on the Himalayan Stove Project, be sure to visit their website.

I've mentioned the Arctic Row team on a couple of occasions in the past as the four man crew planned and prepared for their attempt to row across the Arctic Ocean. It seems their big day is finally here however and as I write this the boys are preparing to start their adventure.

For those who haven't been keeping up on this expedition it is an attempt by a Paul Ridley, Collin West, Neal Mueller and Scott Mortensen to row from Inuvik, Canada to Provideniya, Russia in approximately 30 days. During that time, the crew will be rowing non-stop, 24 hours per day, in two-hour, two-man shifts. They'll cover approximately 2100km (1300 miles) through the ice waters of the Arctic along the way.

You'll be able to follow the team's progress on their blog, Facebook page and Twitter feeds. At the moment there isn't a lot of activity on either of those sites, but that should change once they get underway. The announcement of their departure should come at any time.

I know that there has been some debate in certain circles about whether or not this is a true "ocean crossing" since the Arctic Row crew isn't exactly going directly through the heart of the ocean but are instead skirting about the edge. But put those strict definitions aside for a moment and you realize that this is a truly challenging undertaking. It should be interesting to see how they fare out on the open water, where they'll also be conducting research on the health of the Arctic Ocean's ecosystem.

Check out the great coverage the expedition received from Al Jazeera a few days back in the video below.

Good luck guys!

I came across this video a few days ago and thought it was worth sharing. The Arctic is one of those places that inspires thoughts of adventure, but the way things are going, it may not be around for much longer. Global climate change is having a direct impact on the polar ice caps and as a result, our world is changing dramatically. In the video, a displaced polar bear wanders the streets of London, giving us some striking images that are incredibly sad.

The ad was inspired by the Save The Arctic organization, which is an offshoot of Greenpeace.

Way back in November of last year I wrote about a team of rowers who were gearing up to challenge the Arctic Ocean this spring. At the time, they were still looking to add a fourth member to their crew and the expedition was still taking shape. Fast forward a eight months and now they are in the final stages of preparation before setting out in July.

The aptly titled Arctic Row 2012 will put paul Ridley, Collin West, Neal Mueller and Scott Mortensen out on the Arctic Ocean for as much as 30 days. The plan is for the team to set off from Inuvik, Canada and cross the ocean into Providenya, Russia. The route will cover approximately 1300 miles (2092 km) of water that will, at times, be chocked with ice.

In order to cover that distance within a four week time span, the team will be rowing non-stop, 24-hours a day. They'll take two hour shifts with two men rowing at all times while the other two rest. In order to maintain that pace, the crew will eat in excess of 5000 calories per day while onboard desalinators convert up to 400-pounds of salt water into drinking water on a daily basis as well.

The expedition isn't just about making the first crossing of the Arctic Ocean in a row boat, although that is a worthy goal in and of itself. While they're out on the water the team will be making observations about the health of the Arctic ecosystem and will be collecting samples of plankton throughout the region. Those tiny fish are a crucial food supply for the whales that migrate through the area and the health of the plankton population can offer insights into how the entire ecosystem is faring.

Good luck guys!