Is boxed water better for the planet? This peculiarly named company—“Boxed Water is Better”—says it is. Similarly to milk boxes, the box produced by the company is 90% made from trees harvested from managed areas. Unlike regular plastic bottles, which come from petroleum.

The boxes are manufactured in a folded and flat shape, which reduces in 80% the carbon footprint of the packaging and distribution process, in comparison to plastic bottles.

Another nice thing is that twenty percent of the profits go back to “nature”. Ten percent go to foundations for the preservation of water springs and reservoirs, and the other 10 percent go to reforestation foundations.

Regarding this package, tetrapack has elaborated a guide (pdf file) explaining how it differs from plastic bottles.

… by simply adopting rational water use. I thought that the amount they saved was so huge—even though I don’t know their total monthly consumption—and they did it by practicing actions so basic that everyone should do the same that I decided to post it.

The Fundação Parque Zoológico de São Paulo is the newest partner in the PURA Program (Program for the Rational use of Water) develop by Sabesp, the state water company. According to the institution, PURA targets the water demand by public and private establishments in the state of Sao Paulo.

The establishment adopts technological and awareness raising measures to deal with the scarcity of hydric resources. In the Zoo’s facilities, for instance, toilet bowls, faucets and drinking fountains have been replaced with devices that shut off the water automatically, so that no water is wasted. In addition, they carry out inspections to detect any water leaks—which is the least they can do!

Read this post at the Xis-Xis Blog: Zoo saves one million, three hundred litres in one month…

Read this post at the Guindaste blog: The jungle

On February 12, Thursday, we have a date in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. It’s Twestival, a worldwide live event that will happen in over 100 cities around the world. In addition, we are going to raise funds for the Charity:Water, an NGO that works to bring drinkable water to people in developing countries.

Did you know that 1.1 billion people on this Planet go thirsty?

The organization is managed by @fernandosouza, from TwitterBrasil, in Sao Paulo and by @lesilva in Rio de Janeiro.

In the beginning there was London…
In September of 2008, a group of Twitterers from London decided to organize an event where the local Twitter community could meet offline, see the faces behind the avatars, have fun, and above all, raise funds for a charitable institution that takes care of the homeless. Organized within two weeks, Twestival gathered 300 people (and there was a waiting list) and allowed whoever was necessary to collaborate.

Of course, the media was interested and there was a new event in London. The organizers decide to hold one event every three months—and they were also curious to find out if this concept could be translated to other cities around the world. Gathering twitterers from all over the globe in events held on the same day on behalf of institutions is something that shows another facet of this tool.

Charity:water
Charity:water is a non-profit organization that brings drinkable, clean and safe water to people in developing nations. One hundred per cent of the funds raised go straight to projects, financing sustainable drinking water solutions, where potable water is most needed. They also work to increase awareness of the water crisis through events, fund raising exhibitions, and other awareness raising campaigns. Many communities in developing countries oftentimes have an abundant stock of clean and drinkable water, right below the surface of the ground, but are unable to use it. This is where charity:water and its partner organizations come in. Drilling a well can cost from US$4,000 to US$12,000, and people who live with less than US$1 per day cannot bear this expense even with the involvement of the entire community.

How to Donate.
Anyone and everyone can make a donation through the Twestival page, on the charitywater website. There are no predefined amounts, so feel free. To make a donation, select the city it will be related to, which can be either Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro. Here in Sampa, the meeting will be at Espaço PIX/Gafanhoto (Av. Rebouças, 3181 - Pinheiros), which is very well known by the gang—we know how to squeeze ourselves in there, don’t we? Make your donation and keep an eye on the official websites to find out what’s going on.

Update: Hey guys? Let’s start donating? Twestival has received only US$263 so far…

Read this post at the Ladybug Brasil blog: Tweetfestival Brasil