Green Holidays

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I counted in 3 different locations for the bird count, my mum’s, my niece’s and in my own garden!

And I was quite intrigued by the results, as I live in a village next to a small nature reserve, my niece has a huge lawned garden in the suburbs and my mum has a tiny garden in a town filled with greenhouses, pots and bottles for her allotments!

So who saw the most species?

Well, the species in all 3 gardens contained some common elements, but my mum’s tiny garden saw the most individual species - and was the only one to see a tiny wren!

The Counts:
I chose to help with them all as I can better identify birds than my mum and my niece is only just getting interested in nature - so what better way to help her learn some of the most common garden birds?

All 3 counts were in the afternoon, mum’s from 1-2pm on the Saturday, followed by a quick drive to my niece’s for a 2.30-3.30 slot.  My garden count was on the Sunday afternoon - I was saving the best until last.  Or so I thought!

I get all sorts in my garden with small flocks of long-tail tits raiding the orchard for food, jays screaming through the woods and blue tits virtually over-running the feeders - but they weren’t about when I did my count! Neither were the partridges or pheasants that often cross the lawn!

And I forgot that birds flying overhead don’t count, so that ruled out the gulls, buzzards and red kites that regularly turn up here.  Only things that land on the ground counted - and they needed to show up in that hour! 

Both Saturday counts took place from upstairs windows with the Sunday count from outside on the step - but this kept attracting to cats to come over in the hope of a stroke - not so good for birds!

The Results:
Well, there were some species that we all saw and as expected they were blackbirds, magpies and wood pigeons - all very common everyday, but I was quite surprised that both the urban environments saw collared doves and blue tits when my garden saw none.  Where had they gone for the hour?

My nieces garden had only 1 species that wasn’t found in the other 2 gardens, and that was a group of 20 (that I counted) rooks all squawking away in a great big fir tree!   The other 6 species were all shared with at least one of the other locations.

My mum’s urban garden brought up some great species including 3 song thrushes, a wren, 5 house sparrows, 26+ starlings and pied wagtail!

Great stuff for such a small space and so close to so many other houses.  Maybe it was all the containers and buildings that had attracted insects and other delicious invertebrates that were irresistible to these types of birds.

My garden had some equally interesting species that included a great spotted woodpecker, a pair of bullfinches and some jackdaws. 

But I still thought that my mum’s garden had more life in it than I thought it would - and that’s what made the count so much fun!

Go to the RSPB website and send in your results, and you make a difference!  You might have seen all my ‘missing’ species!

The RGS are hosting a fantastic EcoFair on the 5th and 6th of December in London.

They are bringing together some fantastic international eco friendly companies and charities to fill your day with excitement and fill your bags with great goodies!

Stalls include some of the old favourites like the RSPB selling wildlife gifts, memberships and information for your gardens and great days out and the CO-OP will be promoting their eco friendly and fair trade clothing ranges.

There are also products available from around the world, with alpaca clothing from Peru, ethical accessories from Nepal, hand-made silks from Cambodia and Luxury fabrics from India.

There are also creations from the UK, including recycled household goods, hand-made bespoke jewelry, fair trade organic babywear and luxurious oils and soaps.

There is also a free puppet show being performed at the show just after lunch time - called the Forest of Fables, and is performed using Japanese style puppets (made from recycled materials) to African music depicting well known Greek fables!

In addition, there is even a puppet making session beforehand - so your children can make their own recycled pupet like those from the show and learn how the show is put together - including a sneak preview at some of the songs - and they get to keep their puppet!

The whole show is free entry to all - with free fairtrade wine for all RGS members and guests - see the RGS website for more details……..

This year - 2009 - will see the Worlds 3rd ever Earth Hour. This years attempt is planning to cover entire countries across the globe in swathes of darkness. This will put across the massive statement that there are thousands of people in all the countries - joined together to make a big difference.

Since it’s humble beginnings in Sydney, Australia in 2007 - the Earth Hour has been gaining ground and this years event is hoping to get over 1 billion people to sign up - saying that they agree with the very concept of the Earth Hour. It’s aim is to ’send a message to World Governments that they must take action to help avoid Climate Change’.

Why So Important?
At the end of 2009 in Copenhagen, the UN Climate Change Summit will take place, and WWF are hoping that this massive event will have an impact on topics raised and policies discussed by the heads of nations. This Summit is going to decide on future International Climate Policy - so really it is the planets ‘Moment of Truth’.

We are already seeing signs of that change across the world in the flooding and diseases affecting corners of the globe - freak weather, sea-level rises and warming temperatures are all impacting on peoples lives, and it will only get worse. 

And where ever on Earth you are taking your green holiday - you must join in - otherwise the very place you are visiting could suffer in the years to come!

What Can You Do?
If you plan to take part, make sure you register and get everyone you know to register too. Although just turning out your lights for the entire hour will show others you are involved, you will not count towards the actual recorded movement as the WWF will not know that you took part. There will be no written record of the part you played.

Last year 50 million people signed up, but many more joined in, but went uncounted. If this years Earth Hour is to reach 1 billion, you must sign up and be counted.

Wherever you are in the world you can make a difference, and every time zone has it’s moment on the global stage - it’s hour of darkness. Like a giant Mexican wave passing around the planet - at 8.30pm wherever you are - you will join others from the very north to the very south of Earth in blanking out the night skies for 60 minutes.

There are national and local events being organised if are not in your home town and want to get involved with the community where you are - or you might get to see a famous landmark plunged into darkness if you change your travel plans to be in a big city on the night! Imagine Sydney Harbour Bridge disappearing from the harbour side glow - or the Golden Gate Bridge on the other side of the world plunging into shadow!

Maybe you will be flying high over a country at the crucial time and you will get to see the stark contrast the Earth Hour has on the worlds surface as you cross from one time zone to the next - from bright to dark in a solid line across the horizon!

Next Step:
Go to the WWF Earth Hour web-page and get all the facts. Make sure you sign up to show your support and to get details of international events and how you can help.

Make sure you involve others in your plans - as the more people you can get to attend your events - the less people will be at home at 8.30pm with their lights on!
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Hello and welcome to this new, fantastic blog about green holidays and adventures. It will fill your hearts with joy at the wonders of green living and traveling.

Not only can you now take your green holidays in style, but you can also take them on whichever continent you wish and at a reasonable price. And we are here to help.

This blog hopes to cover all the greatest ‘green’ destinations, the most exciting eco adventures, tips on finding the best green holidays for you, and advice on planning and extending your adventures wherever you are and whatever you are doing!

Choices include underwater adventures, cultural community-living, wildlife-friendly safaris, reclusive rain-forest lodges, snow-covered mountain retreats or even just a great weekend away in your nearest National Park.

So, from here on in, there is nothing but great holiday ideas, tips for responsible tourism, helpful contacts and facts, facts, and more facts!