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TASTY RIDE
Looks and drives like a chopper, smells like french fries
Here's a problem more people should have: Several years ago, Dave Conz took his one-ton biodiesel converted van for emissions inspection and was told the van was too clean to pass. Turns out you have to produce a certain minimum amount of polluted air to register on the inspection station instruments. So Conz, now an ASU assistant research professor, figured out he needed to add a dose of petroleum-based diesel to the van's tank to dirty things up enough to pass the test. These days his personal fleet includes an unusual 1966 custom Yamaha chopper (pictured) that gets up to 150 miles per gallon on biodiesel, which Conz home-brews from waste vegetable oil for only about $1 per gallon. "It's like a giant light bulb went off when I found out you could make it yourself," Conz says. He's been cooking up the stuff for about seven years, long enough to write a dissertation and earn his doctorate as an expert on the history and sociology of the biodiesel home-brew movement. Read his short article [PDF], or learn how to get involved locally through the Desert Biofuels Initiative.
 WILL WORK FOR DATES
Volunteer pickers and packers support ASU's Arboretum, satisfy sweet tooth
Looking for a sweet date today? You're in luck. ASU is home to the largest date palm collection of any public garden in the country. Even better, the harvest from these magnificent fruit trees has just been finished. You can get a free taste of fresh dates today between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. at the colorful shade tent on Cady Mall, west of the MU, where ASU Arboretum volunteers will be packing dates for sale through the ASU Bookstore. While you're there, you can also roll up your sleeves and join the packing party to earn more free tastes. Contact Deborah Thirkill to become an Arboretum volunteer or sign up for the next date-packing parties scheduled for Nov. 12 and Nov. 19. Proceeds from date sales benefit the Arboretum Foundation.
WHAT HAVE YOU DONE FOR MOTHER EARTH LATELY?
Celebrate 50 years of environmental research and practice at ASU's Homecoming Block Party on Nov. 15
Fifty years ago, ASU became the first U.S. institution of higher education to be granted university status by ballot initiative. That unique makeover from a teachers college to a full-fledged university opened the door for ASU to embark on a long-term program of academic study and research that has produced a wide range of environmental benefits for the state over the years, particularly in the areas of solar energy, urban ecology, riparian management, policymaking, and sustainability education. On Nov. 15, join with thousands to celebrate ASU's 50th anniversary at the 2008 Homecoming Block Party, which will transform Alumni Lawn and surrounding areas into one of the biggest parties of the year. Be sure to stop by the Global Institute of Sustainability tent on University Drive in front of the Health Services building, where you'll find interactive exhibits, healthy snacks, and samples of green cleaning supplies provided by Whole Foods Market in Tempe. For more information on current ASU sustainability initiatives, check out this podcast interview with Bonny Bentzin, ASU's manager of university sustainability practices, by ASU students Kari Utley and Sean Briggs.
THREE LITTLE WORDS
When students compete for people, prosperity, and the planet, everybody wins
People, prosperity, and the planet -- these three words pretty much sum up the primary arenas for tackling sustainability. They also form the inspiration behind the Environmental Protection Agency's "P3" design competition, which offers grants for student projects that simultaneously benefit each of the three P's. All manner of ideas are eligible to become winners, from sustainable clothing designs and bicycle commuting programs to biodiesel reactors and technologies for creating plastic from wastewater. First-year awards run up to $10,000 with subsequent-year awards available for up to $75,000 to help move successful projects to implementation or the marketplace. Watch videos of the 2008 winners, and apply by Dec. 23 to become a winner yourself.
» The above content is provided by ASU's Global Institute of Sustainability
 Eat Local, Improve Your Love Life
The surprising benefits of seasonal eating
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Want to find romance this holiday season? Grist food columnist Lou Bendrick explains how fresh, local food can help. Seasonal supping can also lead you to better breath and more money, says Lou -- get all the details.
new in Gristmill: Eat Local, Improve Your Love Life
 We Could Totally Quit If We Wanted To
World could be fossil-fuel free by 2090, study says
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The world could wean itself off fossil fuels entirely by 2090 with trillions of dollars worth of investments in renewable energy and a concerted worldwide push, according to a study by Greenpeace and the European Renewable Energy Council.
source: Reuters
Whatever Gets You Hot
Feds boost geothermal energy development
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Here's some steamy action: The U.S. Department of Interior has announced plans to open 97 million acres of public land in 12 states to geothermal energy development. The plan could more than quadruple the U.S.'s current output of underground-heat power, potentially generating enough electricity to power 5.5 million homes by 2015 and 12 million by 2025.
sources: U.S. Department of the Interior, Reuters, Associated Press, Deseret News
 We Will No Longer Do Your Bidding
eBay to ban sales of ivory on its website
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Online auction giant eBay announced last month that it will ban sales of ivory via its website starting next year due to concerns that it is helping to fuel poaching of endangered elephants. A report by the International Fund for Animal Welfare concluded that eBay is the venue of choice for most online endangered-wildlife sales. According to IFAW, over 20,000 elephants are poached for ivory each year in Africa and Asia.
sources: The New York Times, CNN, Associated Press, Reuters
 I Know You Are, But What Am I?
Umbra on deflecting eco-insults
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Q. Dear Umbra,
Whenever I pick up a piece of trash a friend has thrown on the ground, or ask them where their recycling bin is, they call me a dirty tree-hugging hippie. I want a comeback, but wit seems to escape me. What I should say?
Thanks,
Dirty Tree-Hugging Hippie
A. Dearest Dirty,
In what way do these persons qualify as "friends"? They insult you, you wish to insult them ... it doesn't seem so very friendly to me. Perhaps you have left out some loving details, but if not, please first consider that there may be, nearby, some people who would treat you respectfully and perhaps share some of your interests. In the meantime ...
Read the rest of Umbra's answer.
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