Uncategorized - Live More Lightly

Environmentally Friendly CD?

Now I am getting closer to producing the book, I have to try to find the most environmentally friendly CD production process. All CDs and DVDs are made of virgin plastic because recycled plastic always has too much risk of impurities. Any impurity in the disk plastic will result in the laser skipping over that part or returning an error to the reader.

I was unable to find any company that is using a different process to manufacture disks so far, but packaging has come a long way since the plastic jewel case. Many CD/DVD duplication companies have taken the lead in reducing their environmental impact. I am listing my top picks for now and will continue to research until I have to finalize production.

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THE MMS CORPORATE ENVIRONMENTAL COMMITMENT

MMS is committed to reducing its environmental footprint.When you have your CD manufactured by MMS, you are purchasing products and services from a company that is doing its utmost to reduce its environmental impact.

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Oasis Disk Manufacturing is probably the best known manufacturer of independent music projects in the US. They have a great reputation in the industry and were one of the first to supply cardboard sleeves instead of jewel cases.

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Is Human Impact on the Earth Over Rated?

A friend sent me this link and I have to consider that the scientists may have a point. We know that the world was very much warmer climatically during the era of the dinosaurs and very much colder during ice ages, without any human intervention.

http://www.rense.com/general79/d3m.htm

However, at this point in my life, I have to question the source of funding for these scientists before I attach much weight to their findings.

Wikipedia Global Warming states,

“The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) concludes “most of the observed increase in globally averaged temperatures since the mid-twentieth century is very likely due to the observed increase in anthropogenic (man-made) greenhouse gas concentrations”^[1] via the greenhouse effect.”

My project is about the impact of humanity on the earth. I believe that we can reduce our impact without seriously reducing our living standard if we do it in a thoughtful, directed way. Eventually, we can change society enough that we will be able to minimize our impact on the planet. It is happening now, and will continue to grow and spread because it make sense in a practical way.

No one is going to convince me that it is better to throw stuff in a landfill than re-use or recycle it.
This is an attempt to maintain the status quo. Buy things, break them and throw them away. Things are made more breakable and less fixable to speed up the consumerism process.

Check this out http://www.storyofstuff.com/

Watch the film.

I don’t want to live to buy.

As far as the global warming problem — certainly geology and the earth have natural cycles, but anyone who argues against using a motorcycle instead of a car, or a gasoline van instead of a propane van should be put in a closed garage with one running for a while and see how long it takes before someone has to drag them out.

The earth is a closed system — we have to consider that.

The poisons that would kill you when concentrated in a closed space, such as a garage, are still being released by all the millions of cars on the road. We are still breathing toxins in a diluted form and the increased carbon in the atmosphere is having an effect on the life on our planet and on the climate of the planet itself.

Arrangement and Sheet Music Production

I have just met with Eric Hominick to start production work on the “Live More Lightly Songbook” and we put in a very productive session in the studio. We are working on producing sheet music for three arrangements of the song.

The basic version: very accessible -contains sheet music for the melody, a simple piano accompaniment, guitar chords and the lyrics.
The intermediate version: Suitable for school and community choirs, vocal groups and facilitated workshops – builds on the above by adding vocal harmony and part singing.
The challenge version: For a trained choir or vocal group – includes more advanced piano accompaniment and part singing.

All the versions will be published in one book, with only the basic version printed out in full. Sample pages of the other printed arrangements will be included in the book so that choral directors can assess the suitability for their group. Parts for versions 2 + 3 will be included on CD for the group to print out.

Directions for the workshop will be included so that people can do the entire process without me. A list of environmentally friendly suggestions will be included to help people develop their personal commitment to living more lightly.

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Equipment utilized: Disklavier piano => MIDI to USB by MOTU => Logic Pro Audio on G4 notebook OSX3.9

The Power of Women

Part of the purpose of the Live More Lightly Project is to encourage people who are already acting to save the planet. During many of my face-to-face conversations with people they ask me questions in a way that is actively discouraging. I plan to start a FAQ section to respond in bulk, but the point I want to make here is to note the general response. The general reaction to taking the initiative to try to do something about the condition of our planet is that is a waste of time and it will not make any difference.

I believe that one person can make a difference.

Especially if that one voice is joined by other voices.

My song is designed to encourage people to make a change in the environment by pledging to do one small thing. I think it’s a start and if a person has to think about the one thing they are going to do — then they might think about doing more things. It is about making a start.

I have always thought that in this consumer culture, the only way to get companies to go greener and change their ways is to refuse to buy wasteful and polluting products. I have noticed that even large supermarket chains are carrying organic food now because they have been steadily loosing customers to organic grocery stores. One woman who agrees with this idea is Diane MacEachern who believes in using women’s spending power to change the world. Her sites Big Green Purse and The World Women Want tell us that “The power is in your purse”. Diane has written books and toured the US to bring her message to the women who are searching for ways to make greener choices.

The Ditty Bops, who are also women musicians, did their tour by bicycle! This is a link to their blog about the tour. A friend of mine told me about them after I talked about being inspired by a person I met this summer who was riding his bike from the prairies to the west coast and back.

There are many women’s stories and I have found a lot of inspiration on the internet. Even CNN has started a list of tips on how to live a greener lifestyle, so someone is making a difference!

Working on Administrative Tasks

The blog should be better organized now as I have provided a site map page (see under Pages at Left). What do you think of the green background? I am trying to do some new things in wordpress. My video pop plug-in still is not working, but the link to my song for Womens Day plays in Quicktime. I am trying to find some sponsorship and working on contacting venues that might want to host a workshop or performance. It is a lot of detailed work, but this is my environmental initiative and I want to do the best job I can.

I also have started a page called “Sources of Inspiration” because my Blogroll was getting kind of crowded. I am listing others who inspire me with their work and businesses that I find useful. I will put a little bit about each one and will put a link to my relevant page if there is more info there.

I am hoping to get some dates confirmed soon and I am working on doing a couple of local presentations in Vancouver so I can make a video clip. It would be nice to stream it for an example, but I am waiting until after the MacWorld Expo to buy a new notebook. There are many rumours about new features and I am going to wait until the end of January. Mike has informed me that he has managed to install Ubuntu on my 1.5 Ghz Intel computer, and I plan to pick it up on Tuesday. This will be my first Linus OS computer, so I expect a learning curve.

I did buy a Kaos Pad to develop my electronic music show a bit more. Sound files will be uploaded soon, but I do miss my G4 notebook for music production.

I hope the new site map helps with navigation and I hope to have some confirmed dates and project news soon. See you on-line.