Arup wins competition with design of Finland's first carbon neutral district

http://www.arup.com/News/2009-09-September/02-09-09-Arup_wins_competition_with_Finland_design.aspx

http://www.sitra.fi/en/

ties into the triple bottom line, the ecotown developments and futures like the charter cities stuff ive posted before and look out for.

"Augmented reality" and "life bits". Think about it!!

Beyond social computing, mobile service and "linked data" there are some truely mind bending applications that will impact peoples social, economic and environment behaviours, endulgances, alerts and vision and these two area's are key pointers:

http://mashable.com/2009/10/14/urbanspoon-augmented-reality/

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9139488/Q_A_Carrying_your_life_in_your_pocket?taxonomyId=16

more on todays augemented phone apps:

http://mashable.com/2009/10/02/wikitude/

http://www.qype.co.uk/

some of the immediate consequences focusing the minds are found in the business news today:

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/54a61cf4-bd06-11de-a7ec-00144feab49a.html

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/4496c768-bab4-11de-9dd7-00144feab49a.html

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/651ce676-b9eb-11de-a747-00144feab49a.html

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/3/3fa000ba-b9a8-11de-a747-00144feab49a.html

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/d776564e-ba36-11de-9dd7-00144feab49a.html

Google, nokia and Apple, and of course microsoft keep plugging away http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/en-us/default.mspx?WT.mc_id=MSCOM_NDGP with there current TV add, interesting to see it features the twitter logo but not much else other than office, which completely misses the point for joe public!!

Bill Gates shifts focus to fighting hunger

...“Helping the poorest smallholder farmers grow more crops and get them to market is the world’s single most powerful lever for reducing hunger,” Mr Gates said as he announced $120m in grants for agriculture research and development.

........Roy Steiner, who oversees the foundation’s agricultural projects, told the Financial Times the current political climate was a “defining moment for global food security”

In a consultation paper on the Global Hunger and Food Security Initiative released last month, the US state department gave warning that “the 2008 food price crisis illustrates the kinds of disruptions we could experience more often in the future”. The crisis saw the price of commodities such as wheat and rice rise to record highs, with food riots in countries from Haiti to Senegal.

...............Mr Gates said efforts to help small farmers were endangered by an ideological wedge between those supporters of a “technological approach that increases productivity”, such as the use of genetic modified organisms, and an environmental approach that promotes sustainability. “It’s a false choice,” he said. “The fact is we need both productivity and sustainability.”

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/21f71fae-b9b1-11de-a747-00144feab49a.html

Sustaining our environment - its a WRAP!

some interesting stuff on this site:

http://www.wrap.org.uk

"WRAP works with local authorities, business and households to prevent waste, increase recycling and develop markets for recycled and sustainable products. It is our aim to create the case for change, support change and deliver change."

Blog Actions Day - October 15th

http://www.blogactionday.org

WWW blog action day on the theme of climate change, get involved!

Obama wins Nobel Peace Prize

How great for the American people, How great for the world.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/290f4efe-b4b3-11de-8b17-00144feab49a.html

One person, well deserved!

One world, still deserving!

Parag Khanna maps the future of countries

http://www.ted.com/talks/parag_khanna_maps_the_future_of_countries.html

Well worth a 20minute coffee break watching! This is one heck of an interesting speech with some amazing facts, maps, history and sociology:

90% of world economy is in 40 night time dots seen from space
90% of people still live in the place they were born

1945 = 100 countries in the world
1989 = 150 countries 1989
2009 = 200 countries 2009

Russian population shrinking

Mongolia is MINEgolia a bit like Congo or MINEgo and the Chinese pays for a lot of it so the west can consume so much more.
"China isnt conquering russia or africa its just leasing it".

The asian free trade zone has more of those 40 night time dots "hubs" than any other region.

Israel and Palestine, infrastructure - a stake brings peace.

Thinking about boarders differently > State building day-by-day

Bringing down boarders - Europeans

Darfur and Sudan?
Artic circle race!

Inertia of boarders is as big a threat as some current conflicts.

Traditional text book "History" in the making is what we are experiencing!!



umm!? ps - he could and should have said more on africa starting from Conrans book "heart of darkness"



This like Chris Pattens book "what next" is a real eye opener!



This reminds me of an even longer term development journey http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/journey/

now can we, dare we project ahead? > http://www.longnow.org/

more stuff from/for my blog http://nickhorslen.blogspot.com