Halloween at Universal

The Chucky Halloween Horror at Universtal Studio

Fall football in Death Valley

Fine dining sure thing! Perhaps some Pizza…Sure they had it on hand at the “Muster Cafe”… But the real horror might be getting the tab for a few slices of breaded tomato sauce and chicken wings would have been better spent at Tony Romo’s Steakhouse with a couple of friends… Or save by booking flight and renting a convertible for a lovely drive from Asheville down to Tryon’s famous “Side Street Pizza”… You can thank me later and save a bundle of booty to boot.

BTW However should you still feel the need for canned horror Universal style you”ll need to brush up on your Spanish as from the parking garage to the top of the ticket gate and everyone in line and in between spoke the Latino lingo…. Okay I know its Hispanic month but this is just crazy! Everyone was speaking Spanish… Really if they tried to deport the illegal immigrant population half of Florida would vanish over night.

Not saying that Fright Nights over at the Universal Studios is not something of a once in a lifetime experience, but never did it occur that one might be transported into a foreign country altogether. Still the 30 minute wait (unless you purchase their limited number of express tickets (39.00) (actually it ended up being 60 so if your time is limited or your night does not included an additional 50 hours for line time then its not a bad deal) but not nearly the ordeal offered up by Chuck. The walk around the Park was truly amazing and fun… Lovely stroll.

Chainsaw Charlie

Still there is the other theme in the parks and mountains that nature provides. Now really tore between that theme which nature provides in the mountain beauty… Autumn dressed in a blaze of fire and colour, The trees and cool breeze the scent of a woman’s Chanel No.5 upon the smoking leaves amber in the fresh mountain air.

Nothing to compare Fall from the Top of Piney

The perfect way to enjoy a beautiful fall day is a front row seat in convertible of your choice. (municipals and convertible bonds nice but not included in this mix). Add a little music throw in a tailgate a from a college football game… Add a few candles, choose from a little Italian menu (or maybe just select the finest pizza on this part of the planet and you’ve got the perfect romantic interlude. No ride is more thrilling or thoughts more horrific than in missing a moment of a majestic Carolina magic mountain spellbinder… Disney eat your heart out!

Looking out from Piney over to Melrose Mt

ONE STEP CLOSER…

The Senate Environment and Public Works Committee has passed a Democratic climate bill through the U.S. Senate on Thursday Nov.5

The bill was written by California senator Barbara Boxer and takes a Cap and Trade approach along with new emissions standards to cut down on greenhouse gases.

The legislation requires that American industry will reduce its carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse cases by 2020, from levels measured in 2005.

THE PUSH

Senate Democrats have started a self proclaimed aggressive new stage in passing legislation that will push President Obama’s agenda.

This emboldened approach to passing a comprehensive global warming bill is due to several factors. First, the two gubernatorial wins for Republicans in the special election this past Tuesday has shook up the Democratic Super Majority into taking stronger action.

Second, Obama will be attending talks on the climate crisis in Copenhagen next month and Senate Democrats want to give him legislation that he can talk about at the conference.

Lastly, Democrats faced a crushing defeat with a 2008 Senate climate change bill and this will be an attempt at a comeback from that setback.

The bottom line is that the Democrats are trying to effectively wield the majority that they have been given and climate change is one of the few avenues that they and the President want to head down.

KERRY COMPROMISE

Many analysts say that the Boxer bill will not pass a full Senate hearing and the newly senior senator from Massachusetts, John Kerry has been enlisted to rally moderates such as Arlen Spector and Joe Lieberman into supporting this bill.

Kerry was the co-author of the bill and he wishes to get Republicans to join him and Boxer in passing this new legislation that aims to reduce greenhouse gases, a goal that echoes the campaign promises of both his and the President’s campaigns.

Can Kerry motivate a very stubborn right into coming over to the left of the aisle? Obama, one of the most well received president elects in recent history has not been able to deliver that campaign promise so can Kerry, a man who lost the presidency in 2004 far better?

All he has to do is weal and deal the members of Congress which as an experienced Senator I have no doubt he can do, the problem is will the centrist and right wing senators wish to be seen co-sponsoring a Kerry Boxer climate bill?

IS BUSINESS ANTI ENVIRONMENTAL?

If the Democrats are going to want to play hard ball they have good opponents to play against, well maybe I shouldn’t say good, but at least a challenging set of naysayers and head shakers.

The Republican strategy has been to stress jobs and economics within the climate change debate going as far as having Karl Rove publish an article on the matter when Al Gore graced the cover of Newsweek recently.

Common contentions such as that of Senator James Inhofe, the senior Republican on the Environment and Public Works Committee, state that the strict regulation on industry will shrink the U.S. economy.

Some business leaders have responded to this common Republican talking point such as the former CEO of Paypal and current CEO of Tesla Motors, the sexy electric car company, and most vocally adventurer-billionaire Richard Branson. Here Branson and other CEOs talk about deforestation:

The video shows that even titans of industry regard things like the environment more important that corporate gains. We need to have clean air to even exchange money, let alone make it.

Branson and countries like France and Japan have shown that green technologies and infrastructures pay for themselves within a few years, with heavy investments in those technologies with profitable results. Even if you except that business only wants money than, going green should be an immediate goal of all industry.

KEEP THE HEAT ON

It is easy to want to forget about the environmental movement with the extreme hype and marketing that it received in 2007. The poor Live Aid and Live 8 clone, Live Earth was as awkward as it was long and each cable channel devoting blocks of its programming and advertising to “going green” felt opportunistic at the least and propaganda at the worst.

We need to take the climate change debate in a new direction where technology and innovation of industry is celebrated. The startup company Tesla has proven that one can be successful in creating alternative energy solutions while GE has improved its entire corporate image by building green technology.

The irony is that the energy and environmental crisis might be solved with the flick of a switch but only if we try, because then the earth may go into the dark.

Visit this link: http://liveearth.org/en/therunforwater

ABOUT THE RUN FOR WATER

The Dow Live Earth Run for Water – to take place April 18, 2010 – will consist of a series of 6 km run/walks (the average distance many women and children walk every day to secure water) taking place over the course of 24 hours in countries around the world, featuring concerts and water education activities aimed at igniting a tipping point to help solve the water crisis. Jessica Biel, Alexandra Cousteau, Pete Wentz, Angelique Kidjo and Jenny Fletcher will lend their names and their time in support of this important cause.

Anyone interested? It’s a 6km run / walk. So don’t worry about your physical limits  alphainventions.com

But if you wish to condition yourself for it. I’ll gladly do so with you. It’s all for a good cause! SO remember to register yourself for the run through the website, the event is held internationally and also in Singapore, so don’t worry.

The other night I had another “past” dream.

I was in my grandparents house on 160 East Street in New Britain Connecticut. I even went onto Google maps to see the house, and it isn’t there any more, I don’t know how recent the views were taken. It took me a while to find it because I had forgotten the address off the top of my head. But I did remember the name of the bar that was next door to where the house was. And that aided me in my search.

The Dairy store is still there and the package store and LaRosa’s Bar on East street. My grandparents house was right next door on an embankment with large trees in the front yard. Although there are no trees in the photo and there are two houses on the lot that (160) fits in between which must mean that the trees were cut down and the land razed – I remember that there were 2 trailer houses on the lot next door to the old house – and they are gone as well. Sad to see how things have changed over 40 years time.

It seems they paved the side parking lot farther across which would tell me that the land that the old house sits on was razed. I don’t recognize the house that is sitting in the spot where (160) used to sit. It is not my grandparents house. There are no trees – no garage – no gardens -no picture window out front – it has all been changed up.

So usually when I dream about my grandparents – I dream in black and white. When I go back in time, I only get a black and white picture, I cannot open any doors in the house nor can I walk around the house. I usually end up in one room and that is where the dream takes place. I’ve had several dreams like this where I visit the house.

This last dream about the house was in color. Unusual. I was able to move from room to room. And what was different about this dream was that there was a piano in the living room. And there were people there in the house and i was talking to a spirit. I called him “old man.” And I kept calling him and he would appear in the house and sit down at the piano and play in spirit form. And I could actually feel his energy as I stood there next to the piano. There was not enough room in the living room for a piano of any sort.

As of late, when I dream, I know I am dreaming and it feels like I am awake in my dream because I carry the dream out into waking hours and they stay with me a lot longer than usual.

**********

The other dream that stayed with me from the other night was a ship dream. I was in Alaska, there was a lot of snow, (go figure) … I was in a wet suit factory. It was all very strange because I am not sure how they make wet suits. But alas, there I was.

Then I was floating out of there and I was flying over the ground to some place and ended up on some airplane flying to our final destination. We landed and got on a bus and traveled to a pier where there were two ships/boats/crafts waiting for us. One side of the bus was to embark on one vessel and the other side of the bus was to embark on the other. It was all very science oriented, if I had to picture the ships they would have resembled a Wind Star cruiser. They have a mono-hull and sail masts. But each of the vessels were science vessels and had nominal defense systems on them. I am not sure what we were doing there but I remember speaking to the people on the bus telling them where to go and to what vessel to report to, and that is when I woke up.

Oh well, I guess that’s all from me at the moment…

More to come, stay tuned…

So that info on the amazing Plastiki led to more info about plastic and strange connections – as in big corporate polluting type organizations jumping on the enviro-bandwagon (LITERALLY) by partnering with Live Earth. The latest is Dow Chemical (makers/creators of more than 100,000 chemicals since the 1930s, some good, some, NOT SO MUCH) sponsoring a great cause – the need for clean water and accessible wells around the world.

Please let me know your thoughts on this because I’m trying to understand my own! WORLD WATER RUN
Also see this cool blog PLUCKFASTIC
And for more info TOXINS ARE US

Wallpaper High Quality 1280×1024

Check out Live Earth’s "Love, the Climate" campaign, a slightly different, and certainly more creative, approach to combating climate change.

* Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the New York Times and on Greenwire.com.

Kennedy testifies at the House Appropriations Committee Energy Hearings last December

ENVIROS ASK:

IS RFK JR PUTTING PROFIT ABOVE PRINCIPLES?

SAN FRANCISCO — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is no stranger to hardball politics.

The environmental attorney has confronted polluters of the Hudson River, been arrested in Puerto Rico for trying to block U.S. Navy training operations and scrapped with oil companies looking to drill in remote parts of Alaska.

Along the way, he has worked for environmental groups large and small, lending his famous name to a burgeoning movement fighting to bring attention to macro-issues like climate change while protecting local wildlife habitat. In 1999, he was named a Time magazine “Hero of the Planet” for his work with the advocacy group Riverkeeper.

But in California’s emerging battle over renewable energy development, Kennedy has gained new enemies: fellow environmentalists.

Kennedy, the son and namesake of the late Attorney General and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy (D-N.Y.), is at the center of a nasty dispute among environmental groups, energy developers and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) over the future of federal lands in the sun-soaked Mojave Desert.

The Mojave’s 22,000 square miles straddle California, Nevada, Arizona and Utah. Given its elevation, heat, aridity and proximity to population centers on the California coast, the region is viewed by many as the ideal venue in North America for building a new generation of large solar-thermal power plants, especially in a state where utilities are required to get 20 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2010 and likely 33 percent by 2020.

Among the leaders in a group of aggressive solar prospectors is an Oakland-based company called BrightSource Energy Inc., which has been making a splash lately for its plans to build 2.6 gigawatts of power for California’s investor-owned utilities, much of it to be located — on paper, at least — in the Mojave Desert.

But some California-based activists are worried that solar developers like BrightSource are getting a free pass in a headlong rush to build clean energy and capitalize on federal stimulus dollars now available for such projects. These activists have enlisted Feinstein to push for the declaration of a national monument in the desert and intend to unveil legislation with the senator in September that would apparently protect 1 million acres in the eastern Mojave to limit development.

Enter Kennedy, who calls the national monument, as it is likely to be drawn, a bad idea. To Kennedy, the instinct to protect local ecosystems has collided with the goals of a progressive national energy policy.

“I respect the belief that it’s all local,” Kennedy said in an interview. “But they’re putting the democratic process and sound scientific judgement on hold to jeopardize the energy future of our country.”

But here’s the rub: Kennedy has a stake in BrightSource through VantagePoint Venture Partners, a venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley that was instrumental in raising $160 million in financing for the solar startup. Other investors include Chevron Corp., Google.org and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

That Kennedy is a senior adviser at VantagePoint, and an open promoter of BrightSource in public speeches, is an irony not lost on David Myers, an activist who charges Kennedy with shilling for a company intent on using his political clout. To Myers, the lure of profit if BrightSource makes it big is why Kennedy, a cousin of California’s first lady, Maria Shriver, wants to stop the national monument before it ever gets off the ground.

“I’m getting pretty tired of BrightSource using their Kennedy connection,” said Myers, executive director of the Wildlands Conservancy. “BrightSource [is pursuing] the worst projects in the worst locations, but they have the best PR firm, because Robert Kennedy is involved.”

Feinstein’s monument

Next, enter Feinstein, a longtime advocate of desert conservation and lead appropriator for the Interior Department in Congress. Her office is working on a bill to be released this month that some sources said will cut off 1 million public acres in the desert — up from a previous estimate of 600,000 acres — to protect a threatened species of desert tortoise and preserve its habitat.

Feinstein, according to several sources who spoke anonymously, is livid about the pace of development on public lands and has bluntly told the solar developers not to challenge her on the national monument designation. Calls to several solar companies seeking comment seemed to bear this out, as none would take a position on the measure.

Myers has been instrumental in developing the boundaries of the monument, sparking rumors that he is cozy with Feinstein and is dictating the terms of the legislation. The boundaries would stretch from Joshua Tree National Park to Mojave National Preserve, including nearly 100,000 acres of National Park Service lands and 210,000 acres spread across 20 wilderness areas controlled by the Bureau of Land Management.

That area includes lands previously owned by Catellus Development Corp., a real estate subsidiary of the former Santa Fe and Southern Pacific Railroad. Myers insisted that the purchase was made years ago in the name of conservation, a promise that he says Feinstein takes seriously.

And though he would not release details of the bill, Myers said none of the land would come from the federal energy zones marked by the Interior Department for development. Nor does he believe solar companies will have trouble finding land to build on elsewhere in the region.

“The land in the monument is minuscule,” Myers said. “There are so many other places where solar is being proposed throughout the state.”

But Kennedy still disagrees with the national monument push. He points out that BrightSource and 18 other companies have petitioned BLM and the California Energy Commission (CEC) to build in areas that overlap the Catellus lands, which would likely be closed to development under the Feinstein bill. Those applications represent about 10,000 megawatts of power, or 30 large-scale solar power plants; and though much of that would never get built, Kennedy says closing down Broadwell is a significant blow to the companies that have invested there under the guidance of federal land managers.

“This area is probably one of the best solar areas in the world,” Kennedy said. “All that the solar industry has said is, ‘Look, let’s respect the robust process in place,’ a process that is among the most transparent in the world through the CEC and BLM.”

That process is still proceeding. BLM has received 66 applications for solar, totaling 577,000 acres, most of which would be located in the desert, an agency spokesman said. BLM is also processing 93 wind applications, representing 815,000 acres.

Yet the monument bill may have already produced a chilling effect. John White, a renewable-energy policy expert at the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies, says the proposal has cast a “shadow” over these projects just as they are vying for financing and federal stimulus dollars only available until 2010. To White, setting aside 1 million acres in the eastern Mojave would mean “less land for solar than for off-road vehicles … in the very best land that has the highest solar radiation.”

“I’m astonished that nobody’s said that,” said White, who refused to comment further on the political wrangling.

Myers countered that most of those 19 companies have agreed, in private discussions with Feinstein, to build elsewhere. Florida Power & Light Co., Cogentrix Energy LLC and Stirling Energy Systems Inc., among others, have informed Feinstein that they filed “shotgun applications” in the Broadwell area and are more than willing to drop those and find other areas, he said.

“They’re fine going outside the monument,” Myers said. “BrightSource is the laughingstock of the industry right now.”

Kennedy vs. Myers

For his part, Kennedy was unfazed by Myers’ allegations or his harsh take on BrightSource, calling the political heat familiar territory, given his family’s unique place in U.S. history. In the same breath, he urged Feinstein to take a step back before proceeding with the monument.

“I don’t think it does anybody any good to start making personal attacks,” Kennedy said. “Let’s argue this on the merits. I think if we argue this on the merits, I think BrightSource and 19 other companies are going to win the debate.”

Kennedy added that he has a “limited stake” in VantagePoint and denied asking for special treatment through Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) or anyone else in the state government.

“I don’t care enough about BrightSource to compromise my integrity or the national interest,” Kennedy said. “I’ve never talked to anyone about choosing BrightSource over anybody else. I’ve never asked for any favors from any politician or any regulator or any human being, ever.”

In the next breath, Kennedy went negative himself and questioned Myers’ relationship with a competitor to BrightSource, Pasadena-based eSolar Inc. Like BrightSource, eSolar is a solar-thermal outfit whose business model is built around reflecting radiation from mirrors into a large tower to convert steam into electricity. Unlike BrightSource, eSolar has no stake or planned projects in the Broadwell region.

Myers, Kennedy pointed out, has his own overlap issues with Silicon Valley money through eSolar. A major donor to the Wildlands Conservancy is the venture capitalist David Gelbaum, who has poured his own funds into eSolar and reportedly owns a fat stake in the company. eSolar would stand to benefit from the national monument, several sources said, because it is not involved in the Broadwell area.

Adding to the fire is Myers himself, who recently appeared at an eSolar press event in person to praise the company for siting projects on industrial lands near power lines in Lancaster, Calif. Yet Myers denies an inappropriate relationship and blamed Kennedy and BrightSource for stoking the rumors.

Gelbaum, Myers said, donated $45 million seven years ago to help acquire the Catellus lands. Myers said the donation and pledge to keep the lands off-limits took place well before BrightSource came into being.

Not stopping there, Myers slammed Kennedy for opposing a wind project off the coast of Nantucket, Mass., and questioned his recent environmental credentials. He said Kennedy is hiding behind the local versus national environmental debate when his real motivation is turning a profit through VantagePoint.

“Bobby Kennedy told us they did not want to see windmills in Cape Cod, that they had to put it all in the California desert,” Myers said. “The real story here is, Bobby Kennedy is on the side of major industrial development, and he’s against distributed generation.”

Kennedy responded in kind. “He is very focused on a narrow piece of land, which I respect,” he said of Myers. “All I’ve ever asked for is a rational process that is democratic, that is transparent, that is robust. That process is in place.”

View from the bleachers

Spectators on the sidelines were hesitant to comment on the flare-up between Kennedy and Myers or the shape of the monument designation. Most said they could not take a position on the forthcoming Feinstein bill until it is publicly available, which a spokeswoman said has not been finalized.

Officials at BrightSource, who contacted Kennedy for an interview after receiving a call for this article, said the focus had been placed unfairly on their company when the future of the entire solar industry is at stake.

“The debate over renewable development and desert protection is not adversarial,” said Keely Wachs, a spokesman at BrightSource. “We all have the same end goal of protecting the environment.”

White, whose organization is meant to bridge industry and environmental groups, said “a little bit of land rush” followed the stimulus frenzy and perhaps led to tense feelings on both sides. He urged the players to learn from the experience, even as he cautioned that the political process has yet to play out.

“It’s one thing to introduce a bill and another thing to get it through both houses,” White said. “I think that this really is the beginning of a long conversation about where and how to put solar in the desert.”

Elden Hughes, a former chairman of the Sierra Club’s California-Nevada Desert Committee, blamed BLM for promoting lands bought from Catellus years ago and said officials there should have respected a promise that those lands be conserved. He said BLM has only recently changed its tune.

Calling BLM officials “two-faced SOBs,” Hughes said, “For some months, they were telling us they were protecting the land, while at the same time they were taking developers out there.”

BLM spokesman John Dearing would only say that the agency’s job is to process applications. BLM has no right to block any entity from seeking a right of way on the Catellus lands, he said, adding that the agency will pursue “high-level reviews” for any proposed impacts to lands meant for conservation.

“They might want to steer away from that area,” Dearing said of the developers. “But they’re not prohibited from making an application.”

Copyright 2009 E&E Publishing. For more news on energy and the environment, visit www.greenwire.com.

* Editor’s note: This article originally appeared in the New York Times and on Greenwire.com.

ENVIROS ASK:

IS RFK JR PUTTING PROFIT ABOVE PRINCIPLES?

SAN FRANCISCO — Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is no stranger to hardball politics.

The environmental attorney has confronted polluters of the Hudson River, been arrested in Puerto Rico for trying to block U.S. Navy training operations and scrapped with oil companies looking to drill in remote parts of Alaska.

Along the way, he has worked for environmental groups large and small, lending his famous name to a burgeoning movement fighting to bring attention to macro-issues like climate change while protecting local wildlife habitat. In 1999, he was named a Time magazine “Hero of the Planet” for his work with the advocacy group Riverkeeper.

But in California’s emerging battle over renewable energy development, Kennedy has gained new enemies: fellow environmentalists.

Kennedy, the son and namesake of the late Attorney General and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy (D-N.Y.), is at the center of a nasty dispute among environmental groups, energy developers and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) over the future of federal lands in the sun-soaked Mojave Desert.

The Mojave’s 22,000 square miles straddle California, Nevada, Arizona and Utah. Given its elevation, heat, aridity and proximity to population centers on the California coast, the region is viewed by many as the ideal venue in North America for building a new generation of large solar-thermal power plants, especially in a state where utilities are required to get 20 percent of their power from renewable sources by 2010 and likely 33 percent by 2020.

Among the leaders in a group of aggressive solar prospectors is an Oakland-based company called BrightSource Energy Inc., which has been making a splash lately for its plans to build 2.6 gigawatts of power for California’s investor-owned utilities, much of it to be located — on paper, at least — in the Mojave Desert.

But some California-based activists are worried that solar developers like BrightSource are getting a free pass in a headlong rush to build clean energy and capitalize on federal stimulus dollars now available for such projects. These activists have enlisted Feinstein to push for the declaration of a national monument in the desert and intend to unveil legislation with the senator in September that would apparently protect 1 million acres in the eastern Mojave to limit development.

Enter Kennedy, who calls the national monument, as it is likely to be drawn, a bad idea. To Kennedy, the instinct to protect local ecosystems has collided with the goals of a progressive national energy policy.

“I respect the belief that it’s all local,” Kennedy said in an interview. “But they’re putting the democratic process and sound scientific judgement on hold to jeopardize the energy future of our country.”

But here’s the rub: Kennedy has a stake in BrightSource through VantagePoint Venture Partners, a venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley that was instrumental in raising $160 million in financing for the solar startup. Other investors include Chevron Corp., Google.org and JPMorgan Chase & Co.

That Kennedy is a senior adviser at VantagePoint, and an open promoter of BrightSource in public speeches, is an irony not lost on David Myers, an activist who charges Kennedy with shilling for a company intent on using his political clout. To Myers, the lure of profit if BrightSource makes it big is why Kennedy, a cousin of California’s first lady, Maria Shriver, wants to stop the national monument before it ever gets off the ground.

“I’m getting pretty tired of BrightSource using their Kennedy connection,” said Myers, executive director of the Wildlands Conservancy. “BrightSource [is pursuing] the worst projects in the worst locations, but they have the best PR firm, because Robert Kennedy is involved.”

Feinstein’s monument

Next, enter Feinstein, a longtime advocate of desert conservation and lead appropriator for the Interior Department in Congress. Her office is working on a bill to be released this month that some sources said will cut off 1 million public acres in the desert — up from a previous estimate of 600,000 acres — to protect a threatened species of desert tortoise and preserve its habitat.

Feinstein, according to several sources who spoke anonymously, is livid about the pace of development on public lands and has bluntly told the solar developers not to challenge her on the national monument designation. Calls to several solar companies seeking comment seemed to bear this out, as none would take a position on the measure.

Myers has been instrumental in developing the boundaries of the monument, sparking rumors that he is cozy with Feinstein and is dictating the terms of the legislation. The boundaries would stretch from Joshua Tree National Park to Mojave National Preserve, including nearly 100,000 acres of National Park Service lands and 210,000 acres spread across 20 wilderness areas controlled by the Bureau of Land Management.

That area includes lands previously owned by Catellus Development Corp., a real estate subsidiary of the former Santa Fe and Southern Pacific Railroad. Myers insisted that the purchase was made years ago in the name of conservation, a promise that he says Feinstein takes seriously.

And though he would not release details of the bill, Myers said none of the land would come from the federal energy zones marked by the Interior Department for development. Nor does he believe solar companies will have trouble finding land to build on elsewhere in the region.

“The land in the monument is minuscule,” Myers said. “There are so many other places where solar is being proposed throughout the state.”

But Kennedy still disagrees with the national monument push. He points out that BrightSource and 18 other companies have petitioned BLM and the California Energy Commission (CEC) to build in areas that overlap the Catellus lands, which would likely be closed to development under the Feinstein bill. Those applications represent about 10,000 megawatts of power, or 30 large-scale solar power plants; and though much of that would never get built, Kennedy says closing down Broadwell is a significant blow to the companies that have invested there under the guidance of federal land managers.

“This area is probably one of the best solar areas in the world,” Kennedy said. “All that the solar industry has said is, ‘Look, let’s respect the robust process in place,’ a process that is among the most transparent in the world through the CEC and BLM.”

That process is still proceeding. BLM has received 66 applications for solar, totaling 577,000 acres, most of which would be located in the desert, an agency spokesman said. BLM is also processing 93 wind applications, representing 815,000 acres.

Yet the monument bill may have already produced a chilling effect. John White, a renewable-energy policy expert at the Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies, says the proposal has cast a “shadow” over these projects just as they are vying for financing and federal stimulus dollars only available until 2010. To White, setting aside 1 million acres in the eastern Mojave would mean “less land for solar than for off-road vehicles … in the very best land that has the highest solar radiation.”

“I’m astonished that nobody’s said that,” said White, who refused to comment further on the political wrangling.

Myers countered that most of those 19 companies have agreed, in private discussions with Feinstein, to build elsewhere. Florida Power & Light Co., Cogentrix Energy LLC and Stirling Energy Systems Inc., among others, have informed Feinstein that they filed “shotgun applications” in the Broadwell area and are more than willing to drop those and find other areas, he said.

“They’re fine going outside the monument,” Myers said. “BrightSource is the laughingstock of the industry right now.”

Kennedy vs. Myers

For his part, Kennedy was unfazed by Myers’ allegations or his harsh take on BrightSource, calling the political heat familiar territory, given his family’s unique place in U.S. history. In the same breath, he urged Feinstein to take a step back before proceeding with the monument.

“I don’t think it does anybody any good to start making personal attacks,” Kennedy said. “Let’s argue this on the merits. I think if we argue this on the merits, I think BrightSource and 19 other companies are going to win the debate.”

Kennedy added that he has a “limited stake” in VantagePoint and denied asking for special treatment through Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) or anyone else in the state government.

“I don’t care enough about BrightSource to compromise my integrity or the national interest,” Kennedy said. “I’ve never talked to anyone about choosing BrightSource over anybody else. I’ve never asked for any favors from any politician or any regulator or any human being, ever.”

In the next breath, Kennedy went negative himself and questioned Myers’ relationship with a competitor to BrightSource, Pasadena-based eSolar Inc. Like BrightSource, eSolar is a solar-thermal outfit whose business model is built around reflecting radiation from mirrors into a large tower to convert steam into electricity. Unlike BrightSource, eSolar has no stake or planned projects in the Broadwell region.

Myers, Kennedy pointed out, has his own overlap issues with Silicon Valley money through eSolar. A major donor to the Wildlands Conservancy is the venture capitalist David Gelbaum, who has poured his own funds into eSolar and reportedly owns a fat stake in the company. eSolar would stand to benefit from the national monument, several sources said, because it is not involved in the Broadwell area.

Adding to the fire is Myers himself, who recently appeared at an eSolar press event in person to praise the company for siting projects on industrial lands near power lines in Lancaster, Calif. Yet Myers denies an inappropriate relationship and blamed Kennedy and BrightSource for stoking the rumors.

Gelbaum, Myers said, donated $45 million seven years ago to help acquire the Catellus lands. Myers said the donation and pledge to keep the lands off-limits took place well before BrightSource came into being.

Not stopping there, Myers slammed Kennedy for opposing a wind project off the coast of Nantucket, Mass., and questioned his recent environmental credentials. He said Kennedy is hiding behind the local versus national environmental debate when his real motivation is turning a profit through VantagePoint.

“Bobby Kennedy told us they did not want to see windmills in Cape Cod, that they had to put it all in the California desert,” Myers said. “The real story here is, Bobby Kennedy is on the side of major industrial development, and he’s against distributed generation.”

Kennedy responded in kind. “He is very focused on a narrow piece of land, which I respect,” he said of Myers. “All I’ve ever asked for is a rational process that is democratic, that is transparent, that is robust. That process is in place.”

View from the bleachers

Spectators on the sidelines were hesitant to comment on the flare-up between Kennedy and Myers or the shape of the monument designation. Most said they could not take a position on the forthcoming Feinstein bill until it is publicly available, which a spokeswoman said has not been finalized.

Officials at BrightSource, who contacted Kennedy for an interview after receiving a call for this article, said the focus had been placed unfairly on their company when the future of the entire solar industry is at stake.

“The debate over renewable development and desert protection is not adversarial,” said Keely Wachs, a spokesman at BrightSource. “We all have the same end goal of protecting the environment.”

White, whose organization is meant to bridge industry and environmental groups, said “a little bit of land rush” followed the stimulus frenzy and perhaps led to tense feelings on both sides. He urged the players to learn from the experience, even as he cautioned that the political process has yet to play out.

“It’s one thing to introduce a bill and another thing to get it through both houses,” White said. “I think that this really is the beginning of a long conversation about where and how to put solar in the desert.”

Elden Hughes, a former chairman of the Sierra Club’s California-Nevada Desert Committee, blamed BLM for promoting lands bought from Catellus years ago and said officials there should have respected a promise that those lands be conserved. He said BLM has only recently changed its tune.

Calling BLM officials “two-faced SOBs,” Hughes said, “For some months, they were telling us they were protecting the land, while at the same time they were taking developers out there.”

BLM spokesman John Dearing would only say that the agency’s job is to process applications. BLM has no right to block any entity from seeking a right of way on the Catellus lands, he said, adding that the agency will pursue “high-level reviews” for any proposed impacts to lands meant for conservation.

“They might want to steer away from that area,” Dearing said of the developers. “But they’re not prohibited from making an application.”

Copyright 2009 E&E Publishing. For more news on energy and the environment, visit www.greenwire.com.

THE 10:10 campaign is asking us to reduce our CO2 emissions by 10 per cent in 2010. Can voluntary carbon abstinence make a difference?

For the last couple of years it has become fashionable to do one’s bit to tackle climate change. Individuals have voluntarily decided to abstain from certain activities such as flying, using the car or eating meat in order to reduce their carbon footprint.

In September 2009 the 10:10 campaign was launched as an ambitious project to unite every sector of British society behind the simple idea: that by working together as a nation we can achieve a 10% cut in the UK’s carbon emissions in 2010.

The motivation for the campaign was that politicians have so far failed to do what needs to be done. The campaign believes it is time for ordinary people to show that they are ready to defend our children’s futures.

The 10:10 campaign follows similar campaigns to reduce personal carbon emissions such as Earth Hour, Act on CO2 and Stop Climate Chaos. It builds upon a recent history of collective action and awareness raising such has the 1985 Live Aid concert, 2005 Make Poverty History campaign and more recently the 2007 Live Earth event.

These events create a critical mass of public support and awareness. People join in herds to be part of something that is big and trendy and often backed by key celebrities.

There is no doubt that such big events create a tsunami of awareness that galvanises the public to take action. However, once the razzmatazz is over and the publicity has faded away does such events leave any lasting impression? More importantly will the change in behaviour or pledged action such as carbon abstinence continue?

There is a public willingness to be greener, individuals are often waiting for an enabling and supportive structural framework to collectively facilitate desired behaviour. They often look to others such as the government and business to take the lead, i.e. the notion of “I will if you will”.

While regulation and enforcement are key elements in reducing carbon emissions, they have yet to deliver the fundamental shift required in our level of consumption. Structural and psychological issues can limit and influence our lifestyle choices and behaviour.

Voluntary carbon abstinence can be effective approach to achieving sustained greener beahviour. However, the messsage has to be communicatd in the right way and a supportive institutional/ social, infrastructural and fiscal framework needs to be available.

A report by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) suggests that an approach based on saving public money, and giving the public greater control over energy bills and independence from suppliers would be more effective to engage people in adopting a low carbon lifestyle.

The report suggests that a reduction in carbons emission requires convincing consumers that in adopting lower-carbon lifestyles they can save money and have control in a chaotic world, and they can do the right thing and look good without being an environmentalist.

Individuals who participate in voluntary initiatives are acting as environmental citizens and voluntarily internalise externalities of their current lifestyle for the sake of the common good, i.e. averting the global climate crisis.

Reducing our carbon footprint requires moving from environmental awareness and concerns to collective action. Voluntary carbon abstinence is one way of empowering, educating and achieving attitudinal change in individuals.

Campaigns such as 10:10 provide the vehicle to do this. However, maintaining the mometum once the campaign is over is essential. This requires campaigning groups to keep the issue alive in the public consciousness.

Morely importantly, it will require government and business to provide the incentives and infrastructure to make a low carbon lifestyle the easy, affordable and enjoyable and natural option for everyone.

© Gary Haq 2009

The name for my blog came from a verse in a song by anna nalick called breathe (2am). I have liked the song for some time now but I guess the lyrics just never hit me the way they did today. I was listening to what my Pandora calls “norah jones radio” when the song came on. The verse goes something like this, “yeah we walk through the door, so accusing their eyes, like they have any right at all to criticize, hypocrites, you’re all here for the very same reason.” I guess part of me pictures an AA meting from the movie Fight Club, but today another part of me pictured a bible study group or a church. Some how the people who are supposed to be following the teachings of Jesus have come to think of themselves as exclusive rather than inclusive. We all need God’s love and mercy, we are all searching for the way. Not that there can’t be a standard or that we the “church” should be expectational-less. The church I am a part of recently hosted a few speakers from out of town. I think that what one of them said embodies what I am trying to express. He said (and I won’t quote cause I am not sure of the word for word), if you feel safe leaving your purse on your seat than you aren’t inviting the right kind of people to your church, if there isn’t an element of theft in your church your not working hard enough. I like that idea. I probably wouldn’t like it as much if it were my wallet stolen but I like the idea of having people that need coming to my church. Although, I would hope it wasn’t the people who had been coming for 15 years that were stealing. I just want to see the followers of God (and the words of Jesus) be a group that is viewed as people that live and love to the fullest. The fact that most people would say that Bono cares more for people than Jesus’ people do is sad. I hope I see the day when churches are working with (RED) and Live Earth and Amnesty International, not competing with them. When they see humanitarians as an asset, not a liability.

Twelve Girls Band covers Western songs with Chinese instruments

Twelve is a significant number in Chinese culture. There are, as any restaurant placemat will tell you, 12 animals in the zodiac. There are 12 golden hairpins, or jinchai, that represent womanhood. Twelve “Earthly Branches” follow the planets’ orbits to determine months, seasons and hours. The lunar calendar is split into 12-year cycles. And Twelve Girls Band has—you know it—12 girls in it.

The classically-trained members Twelve Girls Band all hail  from China’s top music conservatories. Chosen from 4,000 auditions, they play classical instruments such as the erhu, a two-stringed fiddle; the guzheng, a zither dating back to the Qin Dynasty; and the yangqin, a hammered dulcimer originating from ancient Persia. With these they inject some drama into traditional Chinese melodies as well as modern Western pieces—like Coldplay’s Grammy-Award-winning hit “Clocks:”

While they faithfully replicate Chris Martin’s stirring, minimalist piano riff, they also give it the distinctive voice and solo of otherwise-forgotten instruments that peaked in the lavish court ensembles of ancient Chinese royalty. The result is a stunning blend of the familiar—Western ears will recognize the opening notes at a Pavlovian level, while those from the People’s Republic will spot the dizi (a Western-style flute) solo in place of the vocals from a mile away—and the unheard-of, combining into something beautiful that proves to be greater than the sum of its parts.

Twelve Girls Band has toured America in 2004 and 2005, promoting two of their six studio albums. They’ve played Live Earth as well as striking it huge in Japan—and there should be no surprise to their popularity with songs like these.

– Blake Rong, Features Editor

Feeling the stress of everyday life? At Jennyspeaks, we aim to provide you with a sanctuary where you can throw off the shit of your everyday life (at least for a while) and laugh evilly.

Here’s Part 1 of our detox program. Directions: Take before and after meals, preferably with alcohol.

Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman say their split was an amicable one. They want everyone to know that after their divorce is final, their two adopted children will be returned to the prop department at Universal Studios. – Tina Fey

Live Earth is committed to being the first carbon neutral music event. Hybrid cars will for transport, food will be served in biodegradable plastic, and the stage will be illuminated by the divine light that shines out of Bono’s arse. – Jeremy Clarkson

Mick Jagger is now at the awkward age of being a stone and passing one. – Jay Leno

(of Bee Gees’ 1988 album ESP) Few people know that the CIA is planning to cripple Iran by playing this album on loudspeakers secretly parachuted into the country.

Mary Kate Olsen admitted to being angry with Paris Hilton for sleeping with her ex boyfriend. After hearing this, Paris said, “She’s going to to have to be a lot more specific.”—Conan O Brien

Now that Martha Stewart is out of jail, she is going back to Writing a monthly column for her magzine. This month’s issue explains how to hot-glue seashells to your electronic ankle bracelet. — Conan O Brien

(of Truman Capote’s death) It was a good career move. – Gore Vidal

Kittens today I am about to do something I never thought was possible or that I was even remotely capable of. I am going to defend politicians.

(Oh sweet jesus tap dancing christ Big Daddy!!!!!)

I know, I know Kittens. I actually just had to mop four gallons of vomit on the floor when I realized I had to admit it, but before we all go bald with terror at the thought, I can only defend them on one crucial point. They don’t listen to this guy.

(Hide your roast beef)

Al is in the news again my Kittens, and as usual sounding more and more like the delusional twat that he is. Check it out;

HEADLINE

“‘Battle against climate change is like fighting the Nazis’: Al Gore urges world leaders to unite

Former U.S. vice president Al Gore has likened the battle against climate change to fighting the Nazis during World War Two.
Speaking at the World Forum on Enterprise and the Environment in Oxford, the one-time presidential candidate called on the global community to approach the climate change crisis with ‘a sense of joy’.
He also reminded delegates of Sir Winston Churchill rallying troops to save civilisation in World War Two.

‘Winston Churchill aroused this nation in heroic fashion to save civilisation in World War Two,’ Mr Gore said.
‘We have everything we need except political will but political will is a renewable resource.’
Mr Gore, who won the Nobel Peace Prize for the climate change film An Inconvenient Truth, said the greatest challenge would be to convince people that the threat from climate change was as urgent as the threat from Nazi Germany.
‘It can happen. It will happen. We have everything we need except political will, and political will is a renewable resource.
Hero: Sir Winston Churchill pictured in his white coat and beret during the war
‘We can berate politicians for not doing enough, and compromising too much, and not being bold and addressing this existential threat to civilisation.
‘But the reason they don’t is that the level of concern among populations has still not risen to cross the threshold to make the political leaders feel they must address it.’
Mr Gore said all countries needed to take action, adding: ‘We have to have a global agreement, and the way which we can get one is if politicians in each country act, and the only way that can happen in turn is if awareness rises to the level to make them feel that it is a necessity.’
Young people would be at the forefront of pushing for such change, in the way that those who worked to achieve President John F.Kennedy’s goal of getting a man on the moon 40 years ago were those in their twenties, he said.
He admitted it was easy for people to feel discouraged when ‘you look at how rapidly we are moving towards this catastrophe, when you look at the lethargy of so many elected officials’.
However, he added that he had spent the past two years holding discussions with scientists and engineers about how to solve the problem of climate change.
‘I come away from that journey absolutely convinced that we have the tools to solve three climate crises. We only have to solve one.’
Professor Sir David King, the Government’s chief scientific adviser, also stressed the importance of engaging political leaders.
Sir David, director of the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment at Oxford University, which organised the three-day forum, said he was ‘disappointed’ by the poor turnout from members of the Government.
He said he had hoped ministers, including the Prime Minister, would attend.
‘That did not transpire. We need to work much harder with the Government.’
More than 200 people, including politicians, business leaders and academics, attended the forum, the first of what is to be an annual event.
Other speakers included former London Mayor Ken Livingstone and president of Rwanda Paul Kagame.”

(Just be thankful that the flames came out of this hole, and not the other one….you know…..down there)

Al has decided he is just like Winston Churchill who beat back the Nazis when the French were too busy sashaying around to put up a fight and that his new job as spokesman for a pile of orbiting dirt and humans is a battle against evil. Oh, he also thinks that Churchill had nothing better to do than to defend the world against evil and tyranny so just like Al he did it “with a sense of joy.”

Al is also sad that although he is just like Churchill, that politicians and governments aren’t talking to him so now he is fighting mad and ready to battle Nazis although the Nazis aren’t really Nazis but more like weather and no politicians really care any more.

(Seal burgers anyone?)

To prove his point that Al is just lie Churchill and how he is fighting the weather Nazis, he flew to England in a private jet, stayed in a big expensive hotel, probably ate an entire gazelle for a nice snack, so he could talk a little bit about how he is a Nazi slayer to Ken Livingstone, the guy who was in charge with the 7/7 London bombings occurred, and Paul Kagame, the President of a country that sells Russia and China oil and allows genocide to continue on a daily basis.

(Al and his entourage slaying Nazis)

Al and other celebrities think that they know what is best for the planet talking to a few people who turned up at a conference for a free lunch and some drink tickets and touring around the world singing a few songs and reminding the people who paid to see them what filthy polluters they all are.

(This is Al Gores actual carbon footprint)

Al isn’t a politician anymore. He’s a celebrity and therefor needs to make a living. He can’t sing or dance (he’s white) and he can’t juggle so he needed to come up with a new gig that would make him a shitload of money while keeping him half a planet away from Tipper at all times.

Every insanely rich celebrity has a cause. Usually they say it is because “they care deeply about it” so they fly, tour and broadcast their thoughts (VERY loose use of the word thoughts) to the world and people pay to see them do it. Al makes a lot of money fighting the Nazi weather and it affords him a lovely lifestyle.

Al is a fairly smart guy Kittens. Let’s not confuse him with the average retarded celebrity.

(Please, please, please, shut up and go away)

Al is a Harvard graduate who began his education majoring in English then switch and eventually graduated with degrees in political science and government. We can make fun of Al for man things, but his intelligence and ability to convince people aren’t some of them, and nor should they be taken lightly. Kittens, Al deserves our respect.

EXCEPT.

If people trot around the globe, not practicing what they preach (in the case of Al, he reckons were all doomed. Sounds a bit too Catholic or any churchy to me) and leaving a carbon footprint thanks to his jets, 10 tonne limousines, massive diet, immense wealth and investments, entourage, secret service detachment and the implausibly large vacuum that is his ego that earns him millions of dollars per year.

Al isn’t a crusader Kittens, he has a job now, and his job is scaring the shit out of you. People pay to hear him talk, watch his Power Point movie and slay Nazi weather. Al is an industry now, just like many other people who don’t do very much except pretend to have an opinion about something that thankfully many people in government office aren’t listening to anymore.

(Two great minds hard at work congratulating each other)

We all know this guy. He’s Bono. You forgot his last name, possibly due to the fact that he just won’t stop singing or talking and give us all a much needed rest from his sickening piety.

(No reports of child abuse……yet)

U2 is fairly famous. They may even be the biggest band in the world. Blackberry likes them so much they are sending them out on tour again for free so people can pay a great deal of money to hear them in massive coliseums. They will give U2 at least $100 per ticket, buy some beer sold in plastic cups, a handful of hamburgers sold in polystyrene packages, bottles of water, some drugs so they can tolerate U2 and drive to the gig and back in large cars.

U2 and Bono also care about the environment.

They prove it just like Al buy sending fleets of tour buses to use tonnes of gasoline, megawatts of power for their concerts and jillions or energy for their staff to live comfortably while on the road in comfy expensive hotels.

I’ve done my time on the road Kittens, so trust me I know. The only thing that gets recycled when you are in a band is the groupies.

(Oooooops…..wrong groupie)

(Third class isn’t just for the mail)

Celebrities have made a nice tidy living out of being “activist.” It helps their career and generates and audience of worshippers that might otherwise not be able to tolerate their music or presence.

(Paula Yates was eaten during this shoot, that is why he is smiling)

This Kittens, is Bob Geldof. You all know him. He was in a band once and then wrote a nice song.

That’s it.

Oh, he also thought that poor black people should eat more, so he staged a concert or two called Live Aid, and then Live Aid the sequel Electric Boogaloo or something.

Thanks to Bob, all poverty everywhere has been wiped out and once poor African kids are free to roam and graze without the fear of Madonna kidnapping them.

Hmm….that doesn’t accurate does it? Madonna can still buy African kids, and tey are still hungry. Maybe Bob was wrong.

One thing Bob wasn’t wrong about though, is that Bob got fucking rich, and people thought he was just fucking dandy.

(These guys knew what they were talking about)

Nobody really cared about the band Bob was in once upon a time. He became famous for being Bob, and being Bob meant that he was solving large problems like starving African kids. Bob forgot one thing though, he didn’t save any of them. They are still there, Ethiopia is still a third world hell hole resembling America but without the drive thu windows and fat people.

Bob discovered a way to make a living without having to be bothered with writing a good song again, and for a while people enjoyed him. That was until he unleashed his children upon the world and now they are famous for having a famous father who is famous for making money to feed starving African kids, yet forgetting to feed them.

(Peaches Geldof. She enjoys starving Africans as well…..oh wait, no she doesn’t)

It would be nice if Bob wrote a song again and didn’t bother not taking money for not saving starving African kids anymore. I’m sure many people would enjoy hearing it.

(Needs no explanation)

As we all know Kittens, this is Prince Charles. His mother didn’t want him, we don’t want him and frankly, his equally famous for nothing housewife with a good charity didn’t want him either.

He wants the word to be greener as well.

Speculation is that his ears prevented several botched abortion attempts and he survived only to inflict his royal opinion on the world.

He is an environmentalist and wants the world to be a better place. Just like Al, Bono, and whatshisname he proves this by flying around quite a bit with his massive security detachment when he isn’t at home in a castle hunting foxes for fun and being ignored by his Mommy.

He did however do something Al, Bono and that other guy didn’t manage to pull off, he actually did something for the planet by marrying a sack of rotting compost then dragging her around with him as proof.

(Rich people with a cause)

Since Charles and his saddle bag need to make a living as well, he became interested in the environment. He makes a hefty bag of loot as well, just like Al, Bono and that hippie.

(The guy on the right doesn’t know Chuck put it on his bar tab)

The greenwashing industry id full of celebrities. they love to say how they deeply care about the planet. Some sing songs about it and charge hundreds of your dollars so you can hear them sing a catchy tune about a koala bear. some people charge a great deal of money just so you can hear them talk about the planet. no song, just them telling you that they are Nazi slayers, and then put on massive carbon footprint concerts to prove it. Their banks and bellies get fatter, and so doest their horrifying sense of self esteem and accomplishment.

Normally my Kittens, we should be all for it except for one small tiny overlooked detail.

These rich fucks haven’t solved a fucking thing, and you paid for them to not do it.

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Di Balik Panggung

rinny noor

Di balik gemerlap panggung musik, ada kesederhanaan ia dalam membuat semua mimpi artis menjadi nyata

“Dia menunjukkan padaku sebuah peta dunia dan membukanya di atas meja. Lalu ia bertanya, ‘Nah, Rinny, sekarang tunjukkan padaku, di mana letak Indonesia.’”

Rinny Noor tersenyum. Sebuah kenangan indah bersama Bill Graham kembali mengusik pikirannya. Alunan musik terompet dan hawa dingin yang merasuki ruang privat Restoran Seribu Rasa, Jakarta, kian menghanyutkannya. Ia menikmati suasana itu, bersamaan dengan kepulan asap rokoknya yang terus menerus dihisapnya, mengenang sebuah kisah sangat berkesan ketika menginjakkan kakinya di kantor Bill di San Fransisco, 22 tahun lalu. Bill adalah legenda promotor tur musik rock dunia yang pernah membawa Santana dan Rolling Stone dari Eropa menuju Amerika. Pertemuan bersejarah itu tak hanya membuat mimpi bertemu sang idola menjadi nyata, namun juga mengarahkan biduk kehidupannya di kemudian hari menjadi seorang promotor musik yang sukses.

Kini, ia dikenal sebagai promotor wanita pertama di dunia yang mempromotori artis kelas dunia, yakni Mick Jagger, pada tahun 1989. Di dunia promotor dunia (Eropa Barat, Amerika, Jepang dan Australia), apabila seorang promotor sudah pernah menyelenggarakan show Mick Jagger atau Rolling Stones, ia dianggap bisa jadi promotor bagi artis selevelnya. Hal ini terjadi karena Mick Jagger dan Rolling Stones merupakan artis dengan tuntutan paling tinggi, dan merekalah yang  pertama kali menciptakan Technical Rider (persyaratan/permintaan artis yang jumlahnya mencapai 40 halaman, sejak 40 tahun lalu). Beberapa nama besar yang  pernah dipromotori Rinny di Indonesia mengalami sukses besar. Di antaranya Duran-Duran, Beyonce, Richard Marx, Linkin Park, Alicia Keys, Craig David dan Hanson. Rinny pula yang meletakkan standar tur musik internasional di Indonesia.

Sebentar lagi, Anda akan menyaksikan pertunjukan Britney Spears atas kerja kerasnya. Berbeda dengan kegiatannya yang selama ini untuk kepentingan komersial, acara terakhir ini adalah awal dari kegiatannya bergabung dengan Live Earth, sebuah komunitas galangan Kevin Wall dan Al Gore yang percaya bahwa entertainmen memiliki kekuatan untuk mengubah bumi menjadi lebih baik. “Saya pikir, apa yang saya cari selama ini sudah saya dapat. Artis sebesar apapun saya bisa. Jadi saya ingin memanfaatkan wadah saya untuk kepentingan masyarakat banyak,” ungkap Rinny yang juga mempromotori World Tour Orchestra pimpinan Dwiki Darmawan dalam kampanye komodo. “Mungkin ada hubungannya dengan masalah umur juga ya..,”ia tertawa sambil menunjukkan kartu namanya, Rinny Noor Presents (RNP), menggantikan label Nepatya yang digunakan sebelumnya.

Keberhasilan ini tidak datang dari langit. Meski anak seorang diplomat, dan pernah tinggal di Kopenhagen, Brussel, dan Belanda, ia menapak selangkah demi selangkah karir selanjutnya, yang ternyata semua diikat oleh satu kata: cinta. Cinta pada musik, satu kesukaan yang tak jauh dari keluarganya. Kecuali sang ayah, Rusli Noor, seluruh saudara dari pihak ayahnya bisa memainkan musik. Kakaknya, Ida Noor, salah satu personel Noor Bersaudara, grup vokal yang cukup tersohor di tahun 1970-an. Meski tak suka menyanyi, ia senang mendengarkan musik. Beruntunglah ia banyak tinggal di negara Eropa sehingga memiliki referensi musik yang lebih progresif. “Uang saku habis untuk  beli majalah musik, terutama yang ada cerita mengenai Beatles dan Led Zeppelin,  dan piringan hitam.”

Di dunia musik, Rinny memulai karir sebagai make up artist dan stylist untuk penyanyi Indonesia seperti  Euis Darliah, Berlian Hutahuruk, Chrisye, Anggun C. Sasmi, Hetty Koes Endang, Camelia Malik dan Godbless. “Pendidikan saya hanya sampai SMA, lalu kawin. Semua hal yang kini saya dapat, saya pelajari dengan otodidak,” Rinny sempat menikah dengan Donny Fatah, musisi Godbless. Ia lalu belajar make up sendiri serta belajar menjahit dari ibunya. “Saya pernah punya label baju, Ono namanya, khusus untuk busana pentas artis.”katanya. “Setelah saya pikir ternyata saya bukanlah orang yang suka berada di atas panggung. Saya tak suka kelihatan menonjol. Yang penting kerja. Kepuasan itu terasa ketika kerja keras saya dapat hasil yang maksimal.”

Meski ia sudah meraih apa yang dia inginkan, ada ruang kosong dalam dirinya yang terus mencari apakah sisi lain dari musik yang bisa dieksplorasi. Pertanyaan ini terjawab ketika ia berada di Kopenhagen, menanti kelahiran anak keduanya, Iman Fatah. “Waktu itu ada serial sejarah musik yang diproduksi televisi Jerman. Di sana ada cerita mengenai promotor musik Bill Graham. Sejak saat itu, saya merasa, itulah yang saya inginkan,” ia mengisahkan sebuah peristiwa di tahun 1977. Sejak itu, ia habis-habisan berburu buku-buku musik dan managemen lalu memelajarinya sendiri. “Karena tak pernah sekolah tinggi, saya menjadi merasa kurang manajemen. Jadi saya belajar. Setiap ke Amerika, pasti sekoper penuh isinya hanya buku. Saya tahu, persaingan di dunia ini sangat keras,”akunya.

Kerja kerasnya terbayar sepuluh tahun kemudian ketika ia membuat pertunjukan pertamanya, Google V vs Gaban. “Ini kerja keras. Internet belum ada. Saya “ngulik” dari berbagai tempat untuk mengetahui Google V. Dan saya akhirnya dibantu oleh Kamar Dagang Jepang,”ucapnya berbinar. Sesuatu yang diinspirasikan dari kesukaan anak lelakinya itu sukses berat. “Saya lalu ada alasan untuk menulis surat pada Bill Graham,”ia kembali mengingatkan.”Saya bilang bahwa saya sudah pernah menyelenggarakan pertunjukan. Sekarang saya ingin disupervisi dan konsultasi mengenai tur musik. Waktu itu Bill kaget, loh kok surat dari Indonesia, tempat yang asing buatnya. Dia membalas surat melalui fax, dan dijanjikan bertemu,” ia terkekeh. Pertanyaan di awal artikel ini adalah hal pertama yang ditanyakan Bill. Setelah ia berhasil meyakinkan segala sesuatunya, Bill akhirnya setuju memasukkan Indonesia sebagai salah satu tujuan tur Mick Jagger.

Pertunjukan ini hampir saja tak berlangsung mulus. Beberapa jam sebelum mulai, terjadi bakar-bakaran mobil di luar stadion. Sekitar 200  penonton tanpa tiket mendesak ingin memasuki lapangan. Segala sesuatu yang sudah dirapatkan berbulan-bulan seakan sia-sia mendapati kenyataan keamanan di lapangan jauh lebih rumit dari yang dipikirkan. Meski pihak keamanan Indonesia memaksa untuk membuka pintu karena situasi memanas, Bill bersikeras tidak melakukannya. “Dari pengalaman ini, saya jadi belajar. Mending saya berdarah-darah daripada membuka pintu, karena itu artinya tidak mendidik masyarakat. Ini soal kultur masyarakat yang tak menghargai, dan merasa bangga bila bisa nonton pertunjukan dengan gratis,” ujar Rinny. Penonton yang membuat keributan tersebut, akhirnya bisa diamankan petugas. Pertunjukan pun berjalan sukses, tepat pada ulang tahunnya yang ke-33, dengan bayinya yang berusia 3 bulan.

“Kunci buat seorang promotor adalah servis yang baik. Kita harus benar-benar menaati Technical Reader dengan sangat ketat. Harus jujur. Kalau tak bisa, bilang di awal. Jangan sampai kita hanya janji-janji, itu sangat berbahaya,” katanya arif. Artis gemar membanding-bandingkan pelayanan dari satu negara ke negara lain. Kesan yang baik akan memudahkan jalan masa depan karirnya. Agar semua berjalan sesuai kontrol, ia perlu turun sendiri saat menjemput artis. “Ini adalah hal yang paling krusial karena kita belum kenal sehingga tak tahu mood-nya. Saya selalu memastikan bahwa sejak turun dari pesawat hingga tiba di kamar hotel semua harus lancar,”katanya tegas. “Bila di bandara sudah macet, wah, pasti shownya ikut kacau. Jemputan itu paling penting. Makanya saya paling deg-degan kalau lagi menjemput mereka,” ia lalu menceritakan beberapa kisah unik para artis, misalnya saja Craig David yang tiba-tiba tak mau show gara-gara chef-nya salah memasakkan telur sesuai resep dari ibunya. Ia juga panik ketika Alicia Keys hampir batal datang karena isyu rokok. Yang terakhir ini merupakan bagian dari persaingan yang luar biasa dalam dunia promotor.

Karena tekanan pekerjaan yang luar biasa sulitnya membuat Bill Graham sempat terkaget-kaget melihat sosoknya yang mungil, berani mengambil tantangan sebagai promotor musik yang di tahun 1970-an dikenal sangat dekat dengan drugs, hell angels, keributan, dan dianggap tidak cocok dengan perempuan. Tapi itulah ia, keinginan menyimpul menjadi energi yang luar biasa. “Soal kerja capai, itu tak ada apa-apanya, bila dibandingkan dengan kepuasannya yang tak terhitung. Saya seneng karena ada tantangannya. Selain dengan agen artis, saya kan harus meeting sama polisi, tentara, wah rasanya gimanaa gitu. Semua ini dilakukan demi show yang berlangsung hanya dua jam, tapi dalam waktu dua jam itulah 1001 masalah terjadi bersamaan. Tugas saya hanyalah bagaimana memberikan kepuasan bagi penonton, bagi musisi yang datang, dan nama baik Indonesia.”

“Menjadi promotor itu seperti PR (Publik Relation),” ia lalu bercerita bagaimana citra Indonesia langsung berubah di mata para anggota Linkin Park. “Mereka benar-benar kaget. Yang berdiri di depan justru wanita-wanita berjilbab yang hafal syair-syairnya. Padahal awalnya mereka khawatir karena salah satu personilnya Yahudi. Kejadian ini direkam oleh anggota mereka dan dipamerkan ke mana-mana. Ternyata Islam di Indonesia tidak seperti bayangan mereka.”

Namun tiba-tiba ia diam, seolah ada sesuatu yang mengganjal. “Meski kami ini seperti PR, kami masih mengalami kesulitan. Pajak tontonan 15%, sebelumnya  25% bahkan 30% di Surabaya. Di Amerika tak lebih dari 6-7%. Kedua, soal perijinan yang harus melewati banyak pintu dan mahal sekali,”ia lalu menjelaskan bahwa di Singapura masalah keamanan dijamin oleh pemerintah setempat, sementara di sini masalah ini menduduki bugdet tertinggi. Padahal risiko harus ditanggung sendiri. “Waktu reformasi, saya dua tahun tak bikin show. Artis tak mau datang, tak ada yang bisa menjamin keamanan. Saya membatalkan Ricky Martin. Akhirnya, kerjaan saya bagi-bagi sembako dengan Adrie, ” ia menyebut nama Adrie Subono, karibnya sejak SMP. Ia sendiri pernah bergabung dengan Adrie di Java Musikindo.

Lalu ia kembali tertawa. “Nah, bila dulu saya PR untuk Indonesia, kali ini saya ingin yang lebih besar lagi,”yang dimaksud di sini tentunya keterlibatan ia dalam pertunjukan Live Earth yang bakal berlangsung serentak pada 12 September  2009 di 192 negara. “Sebenarnya target saya Madonna untuk tahun ini. Tapi dia masih berpikir karena belum pernah show di wilayah ini. Produksinya terlalu besar,”kata Rinny yang kemudian mengajak Britney Spears. “Saya sedang berjuang supaya Indonesia bisa jadi tuan rumah event Live Earth. Apa yang saya lakukan sekarang adalah sebuah strategi jangka panjang,” ujarnya. Memang diperlukan situasi politik, keamanan dan kepercayaan bahwa Indonesia mampu untuk meyakinkan artis-artis dunia datang ke Indonesia. “Untunglah referensi artis saya bagus-bagus, sehingga mereka lebih terbuka.”

Ia tampak menikmati hidupnya kini.“Selama kita dedicated sama satu hal, kita harus kejar terus sampai dapat. Yang penting adalah kejujuran. Itu yang membuat saya survive sampai sekarang,”ia memberikan nasihat. Tiba-tiba, dia terdiam.”Tapi, dari segi waktu, saya tak merekomendasikan pekerjaan promotor untuk seorang wanita. Terlalu menyita waktu. Apalagi kalau sudah menikah, sebaiknya jangan terjun di bidang ini,” ia kemudian “mengistirahatkan” anak perempuan sulungnya, Cindy Fatah yang selama ini membantunya, demi fokus pada cucu pertamanya. “Bahayanya di sini, kalau sukses satu, pasti ingin terus,” ia tertawa menyebutkan alasannya. Dunia ini membutuhkan pengorbanan teramat banyak. Artis sangat demanding. Karena perbedaan waktu dengan Indonesia, kontak komunikasi dilakukan di malam hari, sementara pekerjaan hariannya dilakukan pada jam kerja. Promotor juga harus bermental baja menghadapi kerasnya persaingan. “Kalau disebut pengorbanan, itu adalah kegagalan pernikahan pertama saya,”ia kini menikah dengan Rizali Noor, pengusaha kayu, yang memberikan satu putra, Rachman Noor.

“Sebenarnya, saya ingin sekali reuni Led Zeppelin,” katanya tiba-tiba. Idola masa remajanya ini rupanya masih menyisa di pikirannya.  ”Itulah. Saya tak bisa pindah hati selain memikirkan musik,” ucapnya. Mungkin benar kata Shakespeare, bila musik adalah makanan cinta, maka mainkanlah. Rinny percaya, ia akan terus menggali cinta hingga terus terbakar api cinta, pada dunia musiknya, apapun bentuknya. (Rustika Herlambang)

Pengarah Gaya: Dany David, Foto: Steven Wahyu, Busana: SPOUS by Priyo Oktaviano for Fashion First @ Senayan City, Tata rias wajah dan rambut: Aries Irianto ,Lokasi: Seribu Rasa

Hello Friends:

A most remarkable thing happened on May 11, 2009.

On that day, in The Alive with Clive TV Show MagEzine, I announced that I would be presenting The First Alive with Clive Top 20 Concert at Waltz-Astoria featuring three musical performers in The Alive with Clive Top 20.

The purpose of this concert is to continue to raise awareness about The Alive with Clive Top 20 and my goal to raise at least a billion dollars, for people suffering from AIDS in South Africa, from the sale of the Alive with Clive compilation CD (or a downloadable version) featuring a song from each musician who ends up in The Alive with Clive Top 20 on the day voting ends.

To see The Alive with Clive TV Show MagEzine dated May 11, 2009, click here.   And to see the Press Release announcing this concert, click here.

Through a remarkable coincidence, in a Press Release dated May 11, 2009, too, (RED) and Live Nation, the largest producer of live concerts in the world, announced that they are collaborating to link acclaimed artists, including Santigold, Gomez, O.A.R., Fall Out Boy, Lisa Hannigan, The Veronicas and The All-American Rejects, with their fans through the creation of (RED)NIGHTS, a series of 26 live concerts at select Live Nation clubs and theaters in the U.S. to raise money and awareness for the ultimate goal of eliminating AIDS in Africa.

As noted in their Press Release:

Bringing the (RED) experience to life in a new way, (RED)NIGHTS and the community of participating artists will come together to use great live music to raise awareness of (RED)’s primary objective – to help eliminate AIDS in Africa.  With each live show, (RED)NIGHTS hopes to inspire fans to participate in (RED)’s mission, highlight the many ways to get involved beyond the concert and encourage people to share the message and experience with others.  Ultimately, it is the goal of (RED)NIGHTS to build a community – of artists, concertgoers and music fans everywhere – that is passionate about helping to save lives in Africa.  A portion of the proceeds of each (RED)NIGHTS concert goes directly to the Global Fund (theglobalfund.org).

To see the entire Press Release in a pdf document, click here.

Skeptics may doubt that 26 concerts will do much good, but in my opinion this announcement by RED and Live Nation, which produces over 22,000 concerts for 1,600 artists in 33 countries a year, and sold over 50 million concert tickets and drove over 70 million unique visitors to LiveNation.com during 2008, represents a GIANT step in the fight to eliminate AIDS in Africa.

Here’s why:

When you look around and see the kinds of people who are able to generate massive support for different causes, you’ll realize that musicians who are famous have the power to create a major impact in a short amount of time.

Look back at major concert events in history:  Live Aid in 1985, Live 8 in 2005 and Live Earth in 2007, for example, were all made possible by the immense popularity of the musicians involved.

So, when you become aware of the forces involved here, it quickly becomes apparent that musicians more than any other group have the capacity to cause major enhancements in living conditions all over the world – if their power is harnessed in the right way.

I am therefore pleased to see the announcement about the (RED)NIGHTS concerts because it represents a manifestation that influential executives in the entertainment industry and philanthropic circles are beginning to deploy this power possessed by musicians to make a sustained and powerful difference in the world systematically and synergistically.

Here is the Press Release I have just issued about the (RED)NIGHTS series of concerts:

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                   

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, CONTACT:  CLIVE SWERSKY  (914) 274-8280

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Alive with Clive’s Clive Believes (RED)NIGHTS Live Nation Concerts Are A GIANT Step To Combat AIDS!

In a recent announcement, (RED) and Live Nation announced that 26 upcoming concerts will go (RED) to help combat AIDS in Africa.  Skeptics might be wondering how much good it will do to have 26 concerts go (RED).  But Clive Swersky, host and producer of Alive with Clive and creator of The Alive with Clive Top 20 believes that the announcement to have these concerts go (RED) represents a GIANT step on the road to the elimination of AIDS in Africa.

Last year, Clive announced his intention to raise at least a billion dollars for people suffering from AIDS in South Africa from the sale of a compilation CD (or a downloadable version) featuring songs of musicians he has interviewed on Alive with Clive who end up in The Alive with Clive Top 20 on the date voting ends, so he has been paying close attention to actions being taken by (RED) to eliminate AIDS in Africa.

“I commend the executives at (RED) for the innovative steps they are implementing — first with the creation of (RED)WIRE, their online digital music service, and now (RED)NIGHTS — to raise funds for the Global Fund To Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria,” says Clive, “and I look forward to collaborating with them soon to realize my goal of raising at least a billion dollars for the Global Fund from the sale of the Alive with Clive compilation CD.”

Coincidentally, on May 11, 2009, the same day (RED) and Live Nation made their announcement about the (RED)NIGHTS series of concerts, Clive also announced that The First Alive with Clive Top 20 Concert – to raise awareness about The Alive with Clive Top 20 and his goal to raise at least a billion dollars from the sale of the Alive with Clive Top 20 compilation CD for people suffering from AIDS in South Africa — will take place at Waltz-Astoria on May 30, 2009, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m.  

This concert will feature three musical performers from The Alive with Clive Top 20:  Anthony Melillo and The Melillo Brothers, Serotenen, and Jessica Labus.  Anthony Melillo, who recently released his debut CD, Just Gettin’ Started, has been at the top of The Alive with Clive Top 20 since it’s inception.  Serotonen is currently in sixth place and Jessica Labus is 11th.

More than 40 video clips of songs performed on Alive with Clive are available for viewing on The Alive with Clive TV Channel on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/high5clive.  In addition, video clips of musicians who are currently in The Alive with Clive Top 20 can be seen on Clive Swersky’s Blog at http://cliveswersky.wordpress.com. 

Visitors to www.alivewithclive.tv who choose to subscribe to Clive’s Alive with Clive TV Show MagEzine or vote for their favorite musician or band to be in The Alive with Clive Top 20 are given instantaneous access to over ten of the most life-enriching bonuses available on the internet today, including The Science of Getting Rich by Wallace D. Wattles (the inspiration for The Secret); a four-part E-course and article by John Assaraf, co-author of The Answer and one of the commentators in The Secret; and Give To Live — The Real Secret To Manifesting Life’s Rewards, by Dr. Rick Barrett, which incorporates The Greatest Money Making Secret In History by Dr. Joe Vitale, another one of the commentators in The Secret.  

To see the most recently published Alive with Clive Top 20 Chart, go to http://alivewithclive.tv/inthetop20now.html.  And to vote for your favorite musician or band to be in The Alive with Clive Top 20, go to http://alivewithclive.tv/awctop20.html. 

Clive has published his thoughts about the (RED)NIGHTS Live Nation series of concerts in a recent blog post entitled “(RED)NIGHTS:  A Remarkable Coincidence!” at http://cliveswersky.wordpress.com.

To purchase tickets for The First Alive with Clive Top 20 Concert on May 30, 2009, at Waltz-Astoria, go to http://alivewithclive.tv/amsjlconcertposter.htm.

For more information about Alive with Clive, which is known as The TV Show That Inspires You To Multiply Your Magnificence! go to www.alivewithclive.tv.

# # #

To see this Press Release online, click here.

Like (RED), the (RED)NIGHTS concerts also represent another dynamic example of synergistic philanthrocapitalism^TM in action. 

For those of you who are not yet familiar with the term, synergistic philanthrocapitalism^TM, which I regard as “The exciting new way to do business so that everybody wins,” visit www.synergisticphilanthrocapitalism.com, the Web site I established where I explain the events leading up to the creation of this term.  I have also outlined my plan there to raise at least a billion dollars from the sale of the Alive with Clive compilation CD, which I submitted to Google as part of my application to win funding through Google’s Project 10¹⁰⁰.

If I were a musician in contention for a slot in The Alive with Clive Top 20, I’d be doing whatever I can to generate as many votes as possible on a daily basis because it’s highly likely that, due to these recent developments in efforts to combat AIDS in Africa, much more attention will be paid by music fans to musicians in contention for a slot in The Alive with Clive Top 20 in the weeks ahead.  And if you are a fan of any of the musicians in contention for a slot in The Alive with Clive Top 20 and you want to see the musician or band you support benefit from the increased attention that is likely to be bestowed on musicians in contention for a slot in The Alive with Clive Top 20, it would be a good idea to rally support among your friends for the musician or band you are supporting and organize votes to be cast on a daily basis for the musician or band.

Additional interest in musicians in contention for a slot in The Alive with Clive Top 20 will also be generated when the upcoming contest to find The Most Inspiring Song Sung On Alive with Clive So Far! gets underway soon.  Over the past few weeks, several of the songs that will be in this contest have been posted on this Blog and can all be found in one place in the archives on this Blog for “Inspiring Song Contest” under Categories.

To see the most recent published Alive with Clive Top 20 Chart, click here.

To vote for your favorite musician or band to be in The Alive with Clive Top 20, click here. 

To purchase tickets for The First Alive with Clive Top 20 Concert at Waltz-Astoria on May 30, 2009, click here.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Items 4U2 Multiply Your Magnificence!

Each one of the following links will give you access to a product, a service or information that has the potential to cause a dramatic boost to your income, your career, your business or your life:

http://tinyurl.com/dkqhaj

http://tinyurl.com/cf2kwz

http://tinyurl.com/oymptr

http://tinyurl.com/rdnztz

http://tinyurl.com/ohv5bx

http://tinyurl.com/cdc872

Why not click on all of them to allow your curiosity to be satisfied!

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Best regards.

Clive

(914) 274-8280

www.multiplyyourmagnificence.com

The world wants to experience the genius within you NOW!

www.alivewithclive.tv

The TV Show That Inspires You To Multiply Your Magnificence!

www.synergisticphilanthrocapitalism.com

The exciting new way to do business so that everybody wins!

http://www.youtube.com/high5clive

The Alive with Clive TV Channel on YouTube

http://www.twitter.com/high5clive

To follow Clive Swersky on Twitter

Madonna in Live Earth London

It’s here! The “Hey you” chords sheet is up and ready for you to download it! As usual, check our Guitar Tabs & Chords page! Madonna and Pharell co-wrote this song especially for the Live Earth Concerts back in 2007!

Note: Monte Pittman performed “Hey you” with a special Gibson J-45 custom acoustic guitar, for which you can find more info here!

From Making Waves

In 2007, Aussie musician Missy Higgins and her band toured the US in a Prius, participated in Live Earth and helped PETA campaign against animal abuse. That same year, KT Tunstall also jumped on the green bandwagon, touring in a biodiesel-fuelled bus and supporting the “carbon diet” campaign by Global Cool. And Moby is currently participating in the Play4Climate campaign co-created by the EU and MTV to educate people about climate change with a musical backdrop.

In today’s Irish Times, Jim Carroll takes a look at 10 green musicians and their eco-friendly ways, asking the question, “how green is your rock star?”
Among the eco-minded stars on his list are artists like Jack Johnson, Neil Young, Feist, Radiohead, and Damien Rice.

Carroll mentions that Hawaiian-born singer-songwriter Jack Johnson is “surely the world’s most eco-friendly pop star” as all releases on his Brushfire label are recorded using solar energy. And, even better, the CD’s are then packaged with 100 per cent post-consumer recycled paper!
And when on the road, Johnson not only uses biodiesel-powered tour buses, he even produces a report on the offsets of any remaining C02 emissions of his tours.

Radiohead are “one of the more diligent acts when it comes to reducing their impact on the environment,” Carroll reports. “They’ve promoted the idea of city-based gigs over festivals such as Glastonbury to ensure audiences can use available public transport. They also maintain separate equipment for European and US tours to lessen transport emissions and used a LED lighting system on the road to reduce their power needs.”

And when he’s not campaigning for peace in Burma, the Irish musician Damien Rice cares about trees. In 2006, he “curated the Big Tree stage at 2006’s Electric Picnic, after which 20 native trees were planted by the Native Woodland Trust for every act that performed on the stage. He has also worked and fund-raised for the Global Green movement advocating green buildings and cities.”

Read the article for the entire list of musicians and their green deeds.

Anne-Marije