globalbriefs
Eco-Libation
Boxed Wine Beats Bottled Boxed, instead of bottled, wine is becoming au courant. Choosing to sip boxed varietals saves half the shipping weight, avoids the environmental impact of glass manufacturing and keeps the product fresher longer (typically six weeks in the fridge after the seal is broken). It’s why more wineries leading the way with organic vino are packaging it in a plastic, vacuum-sealed bag inside a recyclable cardboard box.
According to wine writer Tyler Colman, Ph.D., who blogs at DrVino.com, upwards of 90 percent of American wine is produced on the West Coast, and then shipped to the East Coast, where the majority of wine consumers live. He notes that almost half the weight of an ordinary case of wine is from the bottles, whereas 95 percent of the weight of a case of boxed wine is the liquid. Colman concludes that switching to wine in a box for the 97 percent of wines that are made to be consumed within a year would reduce associated greenhouse gas emissions by about 2 million tons, the equivalent of removing 400,000 cars from our roads.
Sources: Emagazine.com; BetterWinesBetterWorld.com (lists bag-in-box brands).
Donated Dollars
Charity Navigator Guides Intelligent Giving
’Tis always the season for lending a helping hand, and it’s vital that we place our hard-earned financial support with worthy causes who use our dollars wisely. Charity Navigator is a good first stop. It’s the nation’s largest and most popular guide to the objective evaluation of more than 5,300 American charities. At CharityNavigator.org, we’ll find user-friendly assessments of an organization’s financial health, insightful articles on industry trends, and tips for effective giving. Their findings clearly signal who is doing a good job and who is not.
The researchers have done a good chunk of our homework for us; they even verify each charity’s commitment to keeping donors’ personal information confidential, to help them avoid becoming victims of mailing list appeals. Check out their “Top 10 Best Practices of Savvy Donors.” The site is easily navigable by charity name, location or type of activity.
Integrated Medicine & Nutrition Brings Concierge Practice to NYC
Dr. Michael B. Wald and Dr. Nilay Shah of Integrated Medicine of Mount Kisco have additionally brought their practice to New York City with the opening of new offices at 48 West 68th Street. Integrated Medicine & Nutrition offers Concierge Medicine to their patients. Concierge Service is relatively new in the U.S. and offers unique services to patients. Dr. Wald and Dr. Shah appreciate the balance of traditional medical and complimentary medical approaches for the prevention and treatment of all varieties of health issues.
Their mission is to be their patients’ trusted source for wellness. To accomplish this goal, they see fewer patients, maximizing time spent with each person. Individualized attention is an extremely rare commodity in health care today and the Integrated Medicine & Nutrition Physicians ensure each patient has enough time to fully express health concerns and goals. They also provide lifestyle education in a practical and individualized style, always with the goal of teaching their patients how to get and stay healthy.
As Director of Nutritional Services, Dr. Michael B. Wald provides detailed and highly specific consultations and recommends appropriate tests to assess nutritional needs. Dr. Wald’s training allows him to incorporate medical health history, nutritional tests and dietary recommendations into a holistic, comprehensive program that addresses each person’s health concerns. Dr. Nilay Shah, Director of Medical Services, combines traditional medical training with a ‘nutritional and holistic spin,’ ensuring his patients receive a wide range of health care options – including those from both natural and conventional medicine.
Appreciating the diverse needs and schedules of New Yorkers, Integrated Medicine & Nutrition has 24-hour accessibility for scheduling and rescheduling and can arrange special appointments on off-hours or weekends and will even come to your home, for an additional fee. Dr. Shah and Dr. Wald look forward to becoming New Yorker’s gateway for internal medicine, neurologic and nutrition expertise.
To celebrate their NYC launch, Integrated Medicine & Nutrition is offering complimentary 15-minute consultations. For more information about services or appointments call 914-242-8844 or visit their website: intmedny.com.
Santa’s Reindeer
Vast Antlered Herds are Fast Growing Thin
Disruptions in climate and its consequences in diminishing food sources and rising pest populations are believed to be behind precipitous drops of caribou herds circling the planet’s arctic rooftop from Alaska and Canada to Siberia.
A global survey by researchers at the University of Alberta, published in Global Change Biology, reports that 34 of 43 monitored herds have declined an average 57 percent from maximum numbers of recent decades. Human populations who rely on the migrating animals as a primary food source are also in jeopardy.
This year, the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society launched a public video campaign to fight logging and road-building that is further threatening woodland caribou in Quebec, Manitoba and Ontario.
Canadian citizens are making their voices heard via a companion letter campaign at CaribouAndYou.ca.
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