ClimaSOS

Fears and desires

2009-12-15T09:32:00.000-08:00

I am watching the news streaming onto my screen, into my room and into my mind from Copenhagen. I cannot help being affected - stirred and moved by the countless campaigns, publicity spots, debates, demonstrations, and the common desire expressed by millions, to achieve something together - at last!

It is high time to get rid of our selfishness and egocentric attitudes on every level. Globalisation is real in every single term - no individual citizen, no individual country or economy can escape a global ecological, economic and political crisis created by the thoughtless exploitation of our resources and by the inability of governments to understand one another, to accept the reasoning of one another. No escape, unless ... unless a global attitude change towards the Earth is achieved.

Yes, it is high time for the wealthy world to remember that they had a long period in the past to develop as they wished and could - and at a price that the others had to pay. It is time to give something back of what has been taken.

..............

This past summer the Hungarian students of the ClimaSOS project visited their friends in Cyprus. They could gain first hand experience on a beautiful an livable country and rich culture. As I see these happy smiles, I can only hope for a future for them when they can meet again without having to fear from losing nature's beauties but being able to show their children what they inherited from the decision makers of today.

It's OPEN: United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen

2009-12-07T06:51:00.000-08:00

Copenhagen is the host to 192 nations from the 7th to the 18th of December, 2009, to discuss the climate changes.

The United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen opens with this video “Please help the world”:

(YouTube in >>>>>)

We can see the development the Climate Change Conference in the sites:

- COP15 - Copenhagen
- UNFCCC

What do the Himalayan glaciers say?

2009-12-02T13:33:00.000-08:00

The discussion about global warming is on the agenda. See the recent article from the BBC - Himalayan glaciers' 'mixed picture' .

Image in Clubenebosa

CLIMATEGATE: what is the true?

2009-11-30T08:30:00.000-08:00

In science is very important to listen, read, interpret and discuss the different scenarios that arise on a subject.
What scientists say about climate change? There are the alarmists, the moderates and those with ideas contrary to the majority. Who is right? We don’t know!
Here's some links so we can reflect on these issues:

The great climate change science scandal
Media Missing the Plot on ‘Climate Gate’: It’s the Fraud, Stupid!
Mitos Climáticos
O escândalo do 'Climategate' e a Conferência de Copenhaga
RealClimate
(Information about this subject it’s a courtesy of Professor Renato Henriques from University of Minho, Braga, Portugal)

One thing is TRUE: it is essential that all citizens of the world have a positive attitude towards the planet ... you need to save resources ... we have to make a house habitable for future generations ... SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT IS INDISPENSABLE.

Earth Song by Michael Jackson

2009-11-20T10:54:00.000-08:00

Vídeo in YouTube

Spectacular World Map

2009-05-27T07:58:00.000-07:00

In the website "Breathing Earth" you will be able to access to very interesting data from all the world, such as the CO2 emissions and the birth and dead rates.

For that, you just need to put the mouse over the different countries. In this way, you can see what is the reality of your own country and also the other's.

Go to http://www.breathingearth.net/

National eTwinning competition

2009-05-25T01:58:00.000-07:00

On May 22, 2009 13 members of the Hungarian ClimaSOS team travelled to Budapest. Each participating team had 30 minutes to report on their project. Among other things, we spoke about the Calendar, the Dictionary, "From Pillow to Pillow", the ClimaSOS website, the publicity spots, the Twinspace, our blog and the ClimaWeek in March 2009. And of course we mentioned the visits and project meetings.

Eventually, in the secondary school category Kölcsey Gimnázium became first.

I consider this as the recognition of the two-year work, and I think of this prize as the recognition of each participating school.

CLIMA SOS ALERT

2009-05-03T13:35:00.000-07:00

To talk about environmental change is to talk about water too...

Earth Water...the water that we all should drink...

In Portugal, started this week a solidarity project called Earth Water.

Earth Water is the only product in the world recognised by the High-Comissioner of the United Nations to the Refugies (ACNUR), reverting its profits to a program that helps the ones that have no water.
This bottle only costs 59 cents and it can be read in the label that it offers 100% of its world profits to the ACNUR's project, presenting in the end the slogan:
"The Water that worths Water".

Currently, there are 6 thousand people in the world per day that die because of the lack of water. With 4 cents the ACNUR can give water to a refugie for one day...

Get more information in: http://earth-water.org

Earth´s breath

2009-04-01T03:38:00.000-07:00

Greenpeace made this video that reflects the cyclic evolution of Earth.

You can see how our ocean's level soffer modifications during the years.
But one thing is certain: half of the oxigen we breath comes from our oceans!

ClimaSOS in Denmark

2009-03-31T02:35:00.000-07:00

The professor Gabriel Ferreira da Escola Secundária da Póvoa de Lanhoso participated in an eTwinning workshop about Professional Development (PDW) in Denmark from 26 to 28 of March.

He presented the work developed by ClimaSOS project.

Here you have some pictures of this event and the link for farther informations [ http://www.emu.dk/gsk/internationalt/etwinning/pdw/pdw-roskilde-resume.html]

Global Warming - Links

2009-03-28T04:33:00.000-07:00

Here you have some links related to the Global Warming

http://www.ijis.iarc.uaf.edu/en/home/seaice_extent.htm

JAXA’s site (japonese spacial agencie) with data from satellites related to the extension of the sea’s ice in the Artic. The grafic allows us the comparation with the recent years.

http://arctic.atmos.uiuc.edu/cryosphere/

University of Illinois’s site. It has NASA’s data resulting from the monitorization of the extension of the sea’s ice in the poles. In this site there are animations related to the last 30 days of the monitorization. You can also download movies of the changes of the ice.

http://data.giss.nasa.gov/gistemp/2008/

GISS’s data refering to the monitorization of the global temperatures of the atmosphere.

http://discover.itsc.uah.edu/amsutemps/

This is the link to the site of university of Alabama in Huntsville (responsible for analizing the temperatures of the atmosphere monitorized by NASA’s satellites).

http://sohowww.nascom.nasa.gov/data/realtime/

Solar and Heliospheric Observatory- SOHO’s web site. In this site you can check out the solar activity. In the option “movie theater” you can create animations of the son for a period of time specified by you.

Good researches!

This links were given by the Professor Renato Henriques, from the University of Minho.

Day against Global Warming

2009-03-28T04:17:00.000-07:00

In the 23rd of March, the Portuguese students from the Secundary school of Póvoa de Lanhoso celebrated the Day against Global Warming.

For that, the clima SOS students organized a conference with the presence of students, teachers and important guests. There where about 70 people in the classroom.

The students discussed environmental issues, having the colaboration of the Concillour of the environment and also of a Professor from the University of Minho.
In this activity the students had the oportunity to make a video-conference with Cyprius and to think about what we can do to Reduce Global Warming!

Climate Week in Hungary

2009-03-27T14:15:00.000-07:00

KLÍMA 7
The ClimaSOS team of Kölcsey Gimnázium, Zalaegerszeg has organised a whole week devoted to the environment between 23rd and 28th March. The program has included various activities, e.g. poster and photo exhibitions and a video conferencing (Mon), building from waste materials (Tue), waste collection competition (Tue), a quiz for 15 teams (Thur), and even a hiking tour (coming tomorrow, Sat). The main topics are climate change, pollution and waste, and a healthy way of life. There were ppt presentations made by the ClimaSOS team in the long break every day. We also showed environment related utube videos, including our own song. Go and listen to it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NmrF9OkpAU

Many of the 800 students have taken part in the program. The picture shows our Principal in the opening, and the team members wearing the ClimaSOS shirts. Some more pictures of other programs: videoconference with Llerena, building from waste

ClimaSOS is an eTwinning project

2009-03-01T08:14:00.000-08:00

ClimaSOS students made a video to promote the eTwinning.

Others productions can be seen in:
- YouTube (this video was presented in Annual Conference eTwinning in Prague - 13 - 15 February 2009).
and
- Secondary School of Póvoa de Lanhoso Blog

A little Christmas present for planet Earth

2009-01-15T11:23:00.000-08:00

Inês Barros, 12ºB

Christmas is the time of joy, peace and friendship. It’s the moment of reunion with family and jubilation…but it can also be considered a month of waste! And I’m not talking about the time that we spend in the supermarket or in the counters where there are ladies that try to waste the largest quantity of paper they can. I’m now referring to the waste of fantasy paper, cardboard boxes and even electrical tools.
So, at Christmas don’t forget to give a little present to our beloved planet Earth, by protecting it.
For that, you only need to have some imagination and originality to transform your Christmas into an environmental friendly celebration.

Here there are some tips:

You can make your own packages using day-by-day materials, such as magazines, newspapers, etc. If you are original, you can make real works of art!
Try not to damage the fantasy paper too much, in order to re-use it in the next year.
If you have a fireplace, you can re-use the paper that resulted from Christmas presents to help the wood burning. If you don’t, recycle.
You should recycle, just as you do in the rest of the year.
Your old electronic stuff can already be collected or you can put them in a specific container that exists in certain malls.
As you can see in the picture you can make a beautiful decoration with used materials (see the original in http://www1.phillyburbs.com/christmas/greenchristmas.shtml)

Did you follow these examples of good practices? NO?!
Think a bit and try to apply these advices next year…soon Easter will come and, if you usually give presents at this time of the year, don’t forget our Planet!
Thank you.

Animals Save the Planet

2008-12-18T09:18:00.001-08:00

Everyone involved in this project knows how important it is to take a good care of the Earth.
Not just because it is the place where we live, but also because it is the home of an enormous variety of animals.

We can't only think about us; we must protect the animals!

Take a look to http://www.animalssavetheplanet.com/ and you will see that they are doing our job!

Video: a simple bottle

2008-12-08T14:11:00.000-08:00

WWF and IUCN made an interesting video about the consequences that our actions have in the environment.

Next time you do something, just make shore it doesn't damage our planet!

You can see the original video in http://www.youtube.com/

Climate Change Conference in Poznań, 1-12 December 2008

2008-12-01T08:15:00.001-08:00

The United Nations is promoting a meeting in Poznan, Poland, between 1 - 12 December 2008, to discuss the Protocol of Kyoto and ways to reduce the emissions of gas with greenhouse effect.
We hope that nations understand the importance of our behaviour to help our HOME – the earth.
We can follow the meeting in the official site >>>>>

Global warming – 6 questions to 6 short answers

2008-11-25T06:12:00.000-08:00

During the meeting of the “Clima SOS” Project, in Hungary, on October, we asked some students the following questions.

After this we select one survey of each country.

Say a cause for the global warming?
Do you recycle?
Say a consequence of the global warming?
What do you do to minimize the consequences of global warming?
Do you consider the air of your Country healthy?
Do you think we have to protect your planet? Why?

Name: Vivi Lovas

Age: 16 years old

Nationnality: Hungarian

The gases resulting from industrialization.
Yes.
The ice sheet melting and rising of the sea level.
I use public transport and I walk.
Yes, because if we don’t take care of our planet it won’t have conditions to survive.

Name: Ioanna Liatsou

Age: 16 anos

Nationnality: Cypriot

The CFC’s.
Yes.
The acid rain.
I try to plant trees.
No.
Yes, because we have to protect our planet or we will not be able to live in it in the future.

Name: Clara

Age: 16 years old

Nationnality:Spanish

1. The contaminations caused by the factories.

2. Yes.

3. The atmosphere contamination.

4. I use less particular transport and more the public ones.

5. Yes, but I think it is getting better.

6.Yes, because we live here and we need to save our planet.

Name: Valentina

Age: 18 anos

Nationnality: Italian

Pollution.
Yes.
Rising of the temperature.
I recycle and I use the public transports.
Yes.
Yes, because the Earth gives us life and we have to take care of it.

Name: Helena

Age: 17 Years

Nationnality: Portuguese.

Pollution.
No, but I should
Rising of the temperature.
I try to save energy.
Yes.
Yes, because it’s the only home we have.

The Green Song

2008-11-25T06:00:00.000-08:00

"MTV Switch - The Green Song!"

MTV made an amazing video about the importance of helping the environment.
BE GREEN!!!

Whatch it in:

http://www.youtube.com

ClimaSOS in eTwinning

2008-11-18T05:30:00.000-08:00

See our work in eTwinning Space, specially our calendar to 2008 / 2009.

Critical thinking - important, isn't it?

2008-11-18T05:19:00.000-08:00

See the article writen by Kornéla Kiss from Kölcsey Ferenc Gimnázium, Zalaegerszeg, Hungary, in Young Reporters for the Environment.

Meeting in Hungary: the beginning

2008-11-18T04:16:00.000-08:00

For more words I could use, I couldn’t tell you how this trip was fruitful.
Visiting Hungary was witnessing the great landmarks of Budapest, was learning new habits and new ways of thinking, was discovering the unknown and finding that we identify ourselves with the spirit of the city.
We also met Zalaegerzeg, a town on the border of Hungary with Austria, where we spent an amazing week at the Kolcsey Ferenc Gymnázium school.
During these days, we had the opportunity to discover several places of historic importance and natural beauty near the city. At school, each team decorated a placard to promote its own country and made a presentation about its culture. The Portuguese Team pleased everyone with the Fernando Pessoa´s poetry, Maria João Pires’ music and folklore dances.
We also had the possibility to learn a little more about the culture of Hungary, Italy, Cyprus, Spain and Sweden (e.g.: gastronomy, popular dances, songs and mother tongue).

Although, I think the most rewarding thing was getting to know with teachers and students from other countries, with whom we developed great friendships! Of course that I could not forget the host families who received us at their house with open arms, wishing, in the end, our return!
The farewell was difficult. It costs to admit that, in that moment, each person is going to its own country. But I know that this "Clima SOS" meeting in Hungary can be summarized in one simple phrase:
"This is not the end. This is the beginning!"

Inês Barros, Portuguese Team

Meeting in Zalaegerzeg, Hungary

2008-11-18T03:58:00.000-08:00

The ClimaSOS team met in Kölcsey Ferenc Gimnázium - Zalaegerzeg, Hungary (13 - 18th October).

We were invited by the media to speak about our project (see interview with Project co-ordinator on the Hungarian Zalaegerszeg TV channel - click in “Adásban volt: 2008. október 15 - Letöltés: A Híradó letöltéséhez kattintson ide.” (interview starts at about minute four).

Meeting in Sweden

2008-05-08T02:22:00.001-07:00

Hello, everybody...

We were in a ClimaSOS meeting in Sandviken, Sweden, with students and teachers from Portugal, Hungary, Italy, Spain and Cyprus (5 to 10th May). During our study visit and work meeting, we visited places of historical, cultural and environmental importance.

In the project meeting, we presented our schools and towns; and we evaluated the activities and mobilities for the first year of the project.

Teachers meeting and colaborative work

Opinion by Luisa Peluso e Roberta Bonalume (italian teachers)

Our journey to Sweden allowed us to experience first-hand what we had learnt about through our work on the net. We found it very interesting to see the different approaches each team adopted while working on common topics, as well as the various peculiarities of each country in terms of customs, history and school systems.It was exciting, and to a certain extent, illuminating, for us to plunge into a culture that is so different from ours, especially as far as environmental awareness is concerned. We will treasure our experience and we will do our best to pass it on to our young generations of students.

Global warming in Portugal

2008-04-23T00:40:00.000-07:00

The viability of the planet is at stake, which translates into economic costs and damage to nature over the last few decades. This scenario brings disaster which is not good news for Portugal, one of the European countries most affected by global warming. Against this background, we have , on the one hand, the issue of energy inefficiency and, secondly, the degradation of natural resources and biodiversity as the major problems and challenges of the country. The solutions are identified and drawn but there is a long delay in putting them into practice.

What needs to be done:

· Stop the destruction of nature
Natural resources are the basis of ecological sustainability and without it there is no economic and social sustainability. Their dissipation will cause the destruction of the systems that support life: water, soil, forest, energy sources, creating irreversible situations. Without them, the hydrological cycles and the balance of ecosystems are not guaranteed.The loss of the ecosystems balance has serious consequences. The examples are quite obvious. When the buildings occupy protected areas and natural spaces, beds of rivers or the coast, the ground ceases to be permeable, to be fertile, to regenerate. Floods, forest fires, droughts or falls of land are obvious consequences which have already begun to be felt. When these problems are associated with cases of pollution, the situation may become irreversible. Warehouse of water contaminated or salinized, degraded soils where not even a grass grows, ashes of the fires that remain and are dragged slope below for reservation of fundamental water, as the dam of Castelo do Bode.

· Avoid the erosion of the coastline
On the coast there is a combination of explosive problems, because that is where all the threats are combined, from the likely increase in erosion and rising sea level due to climate change, to the pressure on soil protected both by the Ecological Reserve as by the Agricultural Reserve within and outside protected areas. And what is at stake here is not only the loss of biodiversity but the capacity of agricultural production. Together with the wrong planning of the territory that inhabits not only the coastline is the uncontrolled growth of metropolitan areas, which produces a hand-full of problems: more noise and air pollution, more energy consumption, more problems of sanitation and waste treatment, among others.

· Investing in energy efficiency In Portugal, as in the rest of the world, the solution lies in reducing the emission of polluting gases, which is only possible to ensure if we reduce our dependence on fossil fuels. We must fight the battle in two fronts: on one hand, it is urgent to reverse energy inefficiency of a country that spends far more than necessary and with a dependence on energy from abroad to more than 85%, on the other hand, we should make a great investment in sources of renewable energy that reduce our dependence on oil. Portugal is studying the possibility of using the sea as a source of energy, because it is one of the countries with the best conditions for this purpose.

· Individual measures / actions

A hybrid car is a car that has more than one engine, where each uses a type of energy for its operation. As an example, we have a car that combines the explosion engine and electric engine: one uses energy from the burning of fuel and the second uses electricity. Although the hybrid car pollutes less than cars only with the explosion engine, its costs are high when compared to the difference in emission of pollutants.

The battery electric vehicles consist mainly on vehicles equipped with a set of batteries, charged by the network electrical energy which is supplied to an electric motor, which transforms electrical energy into mechanical energy, moving the car. Its advantages: reduction of noise, lower consumption, effective at any speed, smooth start and dispensing box and clutch for change. However, it also has disadvantages, such as limited autonomy between 90 and 150 km and limited speed (less than 120 km / h).

Apparently, the energy efficient bulbs have a huge advantage compared with the incandescent lamps as they allow a considerable energy saving. Indeed, the energy efficient bulbs can only be a great alternative to incandescent lamps when they are on for long periods of time. This means that it’s not worth to put these lamps in areas of the house where they will be switched on and off frequently, such as in the corridors. Moreover, as the manufacturing requires a greater consumption of energy and the use of toxic materials, such as mercury-vapour, its advantage in ecological terms will also be compromised.

Margarida e Ana

From the Kyoto Protocol to the Roadmap in Bali

2008-02-21T01:28:00.001-08:00

The global warming of the planet results mainly from human activities which have increased since the Industrial Revolution (19th century).
If we don’t immediately reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), the effects of global warming will be dramatic, especially in the under developed countries which have no resources and infrastructure to face/ deal with this environmental nightmare.
In 1997, in the 3rd Conference of the Parts of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP3), was signed the Kyoto Protocol, a major international instrument to attack global warming, whose main objective is the reduction of GHGs emissions. However, the document only entered into force in February 2005, after the ratification by the Russian Federation. Here, 35 developed countries committed themselves to reduce GHGs emissions to 5.2% below the levels of 1990, in the period of 2008-2012.
The Kyoto Protocol has not been ratified by the USA (country responsible for a third of global emissions of GHG) nor by Australia (one of the greatest polluters).
Over the years several Conferences of the Parts on Climate Change have taken place, as well as Reports by the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change).
In 2007 took place the 4th IPCC Report and the 13th COP, which was held in Bali, Indonesia, whose main objective was to open negotiations to the extension of the Kyoto Protocol after 2012. In this conference, Australia and the United States surprised the world, as Australia ratified the Kyoto Protocol and the US pledged to reduce the emissions of greenhouse gases, but without mandatory values. The COP-13 ended with the approval of the "Roadmap in Bali", a document that stipulates the time of the negotiations, as well as policies to be implemented in order to give continuity to the Kyoto Protocol. This document should be finished by 2009, the year in which a new protocol with renewed goals, more ambitious and involving all nations, shall be fixed and approved in Copenhagen.

Margarida Fonseca

New important climate proposals!!

2008-02-16T05:58:00.000-08:00

I'm a member of a environmentalist association, called WWF ( the former World Wide Foundation). I subscribed (for free) and now I receive an email every time they want me to take action. I can do this in many ways. I can send an email to the government that I think is acting well or badly or I can sign an online petition...
Today, I received an email that made me extremely happy. They informed me that the Scottish Government has been publishing proposals to change the climate legislation. There proposal is to reduce by 80%, the greenhouse emissions until 2050. This legislation still hasn't been approved, but if we make enough pressure it will!!
I will leave here the site were you can take action:
Please, remember: this is something we can all do, something that may help the world!!

By: Ana Joana Gorjão

A new insight on Quioto's Protocol

2008-02-07T09:23:00.000-08:00

As you know the Quioto protocol was signed by all countries ( except the USA and Australia) with the purpose of reducing the CO2 emissions.
But not everything that glitters is gold!
The developed countries are buying cotes from the subdeveloped ones. This means that they continue to emite big amounts of CO2 to the atmosphere and are not reducing or making an efford to reduce this emissions as they should.
As this is a countinues fact the atmosphere gets more damaged and we are all suffering the consequences.
Ironically the USA is one of the countries that are suffering more. Tornados, flouds, hurricanes and other of the sort keep destruing the country, but still the USA does not sign.
This is one of the moments in witch we have to pressuere our governements so they know this isn't the right thing to do!

Ana Joana e Inês Barros

Each of us has a duty to contribute!

2008-01-28T08:26:00.000-08:00

Global warming is a serious and urgent problem. We should not be stopped waiting that the rulers solve this problem. Each of us can be a help to adopt a lifestyle more responsible, starting in small behaviors in our daily.
I propose that we take this space to give some environmental friendly tips and I take already to start.

Turn off the lights when you leave a room.
Replace a light bulb with a fluorescent save 60% of energy.
Turn off your computer or the TV when you’re not using it, don´t let it on stand-by.
Choose products with little packaging and buy refills whenever possible.

Margarida Fonseca

Project meeting in Póvoa de Lanhoso

2007-12-17T11:19:00.000-08:00

Teachers from the five partners schools met in Portugal between November 25 and December 01 to plan the first project year of ClimaSOS. The students and teachers of the Póvoa de Lanhoso secondary school were great hosts, and the week that we spent together was really eventful. If you want to see pictures of the program, visit http://picasaweb.google.com/fehoka/Fehoka?authkey=uvfdipmgtRQ

What is the ClimaSOS project?

2007-11-25T10:01:00.000-08:00

In the focus of the ClimaSOS project is the changing climate. This truly international team of teachers, students, and local communities has joined to investigate the causes and consequences of the climatic changes. We are also planning to take a critical look at present practices at various levels, involving people who are ready to change their minds and habits and develop a wiser approach to their environment.

We believe that something must be done now, and we hope that we can reach people, communities and organisations. The students will have the opportunity to compare what is going on in their localities with other realities at a European and global level in order to confront opinions, find out different ways to solve the problems, suggest solutions and act locally in a European citizen’s perspective.ClimaSOS project work will be heavily based on the use of ICT tools and the project will be registered as an eTwinning partnership and it will also appear on the YRE site. The results will be published in local and school newspapers, broadcast on local radio stations, and they will be seen on the official website of the project and in the events of the partner schools.