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With all the new information we now have, one must wonder at the motivation behind an increase in deforestation in the Amazon. The Guardian reports that satellite imaging has revealed a 190% increase in land clearance in August and September of this year, in contrast with last year’s findings. The cause of these actions is individual farmers and logging companies are able to exploit loopholes in protective regulations for their own personal benefit.

The Bonn climate change conference  is currently underway, a crucial opener for the Lima talks, which will in turn affect the outcomes made in Paris in 2015. This conference is a real opportunity for delegates to discuss the legalities behind the pact, and the details of how it will be enforced. Decision-makers will also have the opportunity to address the best way to share the responsibility for reducing greenhouse gas emissions now before future options are foreclosed.

Lord Stern's New Climate Economy report argues we can tackle climate change without harming the economy. Seven key lessons emerge from the report, according to a recent article in the Guardian. 1. Greener cities would be cheaper to build. 2. Repair farmland. 3. Renewables could supply half of our new electricity supplies. 4. Ditch fossil fuel subsidies. 5. Use green bonds to fund the transition to a low carbon world. 6.

Following up on my earlier blog on the decision by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund to divest their holdings in fossil fuels to renewables, this is part of a strategy developed at the UN during Climate Week, when more than 70 foundations in collaboration with individuals, universities, faith-based groups, schools, hospitals and cities from around the world—representing $50 billion—announced they would divest from fossil fuels and invest in new energy solutions.

Wouldn't it be wonderful to dine beside a totally self-sustaining garden, in an urban environment? One where the outer walls are covered in plant life, in a building that has no permanent footprint? Such was the vision of Dutch-born florist, artist, builder and environmentalist Joost Bakker. He recruited Chef Matt Stone, and they founded the Greenhouse in Perth, Western Australia. It is an innovative restaurant design, described in their own words as "completely waste free from the ground up".

Northern Affairs and its pull towards renewable energies including solar has become a focus in recent years. The communities of the northern Hudson Bay villages have implemented technologies including "solar walls" and solar panel distribution to heat and power many facilities to great success.

In spite of some of the dire reports in the press, there are many individuals, researchers, artists and business leaders working hard  for change. Two examples are Gregory Kloehn, an artist from Oakland, California and researchers from Ryerson University. Kloen had a life changing interaction with a member of the homeless community, which led him to start turning unwanted building materials into micro-homes for those in need of shelter.

In an earlier blog, I talked about naturalists, birders, researchers and gardeners networking to reverse the species decline just announced by the WWF. Similarly, this artists collaboration, Pathways to Paris, was just announced at a climate change concert in New York, featuring Patti Smith, Rebecca Foon, Thurston Moore, to name only a few. Bill McKibbon opened the concert and framed the science of climate change for the audience.

In his address to the United Nations, Leonardo DiCaprio, states the top two actions that all governments should implementt now for changing our climate change impacts.

Last week, the  Rockefeller Brothers Fund, who made their fortune in the oil business, announced their intention to pull out of the traditional energy sector, and invest their capital in renewable energy initiatives. They are beginning by walking away from their investments in companies that rely on the most carbon intensive of fuels, such as coal and the oil sands. They are one of many individuals and institutions to make this substantial decision in recent the months,  leading up to the climate change summit at the UN in New York City.