I came across this blog...phonebloks.com.…interesting new project which seeks to find a simple solution to a huge problem…one of E waste. It claims that the largest source of E Waste is the short life of old cell phones and their components. The solution is nerdy and downright brilliant!The tagline reads Phonebloks…a phone worth keeping. Already garnering enough support for the movement, the project urges you to join the thunderclap and its 950,713 supporters.Ending on 29th of October, 10 am EDT the project and its details can be found below…join in…be the change….cause a ripple in the global conversation.

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Entering the Age of Unconventional Oil and Gas

Generally three ages of energy or three Carbon Era’s have been identified- The first carbon era began in the late 1800′ s, with the introduction of coal-powered steam engines and their widespread use in all the industrial enterprises. The Second Carbon Era is the age of Oil which got its start in 1859 when commercial production began in western Pennsylvania. This age only truly took off after World War II with the explosive growth of automobile manufacture and ownership.

Before the 1940, oil played an important role in illumination and lubrication, among other applications, but remained subordinate to coal; after the war, oil became the world’s principal source of energy. From 10 million barrels per day in 1950, global consumption soared to 77 million in 2000.



The third carbon era is the Age of Unconventional Oil and Gas which can be a result of the explosive growth of automotive and aviation travel, the suburbanization of significant parts of the planet, the mechanization of agriculture and warfare, the global supremacy of the United States, and the onset of climate change. These hallmarks of the exploitation of conventional petroleum have led to the Age of Unconventional Oil and Gas .

Conventional oil is disappearing. According to the IEA, the major fields that currently provide the lion’s share of global petroleum will lose two-thirds of their production over the next 25 years, with their net output plunging from 68 million barrels per day in 2009 to a mere 26 million barrels in 2035.

The IEA assures us that new oil will be found to replace those lost supplies, but most of this will be of an unconventional nature as the same is true for natural gas, the second most important source of world energy.

Yet most of us believe (or want to believe) that the second carbon era, the Age of Oil, will soon be superseded by the Age of Renewables, just as oil had long since superseded the Age of Coal.The truth is that the energy industry is not investing in any significant way in renewables. Instead, it is pouring its historic profits into new fossil-fuel projects, mainly involving the exploitation of what are called “unconventional” oil and gas reserves.

The result is in front of us : humanity is not entering a period that will be dominated by renewables. Instead, it is pioneering the third great carbon era, the Age of Unconventional Oil and Gas. With global demand for fossil fuels expected to rise by 26% between now and 2035, more and more of the world’s energy supply will have to be provided by unconventional fuels.

In such a world, one thing is guaranteed: global carbon emissions will soar far beyond our current worst-case assumptions leading to intense heat waves . The Planet Earth will be a harsher and more blistering place. The distinctive nature of unconventional fuels is their extreme impact on the environment. They require more energy to extract and be converted into usable materials and also produce more carbon dioxide emissions . Shale gas, hailed as a “clean” fossil fuel, is believed by many scientists to cause of methane release , a particularly potent greenhouse gas.

Water is required in vast amounts for fracking operations, to extract tar sands and extra-heavy oil leading to a growing threat of water contamination.

What can be done to cut short the third carbon era and avert the worst of these outcomes? Calling for greater investment in green energy is essential. To survive this era, humanity must become much smarter about this new kind of energy and then take the steps necessary to compress the third carbon era and hasten in the Age of Renewables before we burn ourselves off this planet