Going for the Green

By Justin DeMutiis

My photographic style for weddings and portraits has been called natural and organic, stemming from my background in nature photography, but also because of my use of natural light and natural posing. So it is only fitting that my product from start to finish reflect qualities of the natural and packaging that is as eco-friendly as possible.

In 2006, I was 1 of 10 students in North America awarded the College Scholarship award to attend NANPA’s annual Summit. My passion for nature, conservation, and photography were already evident, but to call that experience life altering would be an understatement.

Now I'm a full-time wedding and portrait photographer deeply rooted in my beginnings as a nature photographer and conservationist.

In Florida, being green is a hard sell. Yet, I’m not discouraged. Since college I have been passionate about creating recycling campaigns. It started by putting recycling bins in all the dorms at the University of South Florida. Through the years, I’ve participated in local coastal cleanups and river clean ups. Recently I had the chance to organize my own river clean up and beach cleanups. Today, I find myself making a difference by picking out recyclables out of the garbage on a nearby beach, almost on a weekly basis. Recently, I was contacted by Greener Corners, who specialize in creating public space recycling programs, after a blog posting about my efforts.

http://justindemutiisphotographyblog.com/?p=1379

From image creation to the final product, I want to create an experience for my clients that is memorable, long lasting, and eco-friendly. All my packaging and shipping material is 100% recycled, and many of my products are eco-friendly or sustainable. I have spent countless hours searching for products that are not only beautiful and timeless, but also contribute to a greener tomorrow. The minimal paper I use with for printing, envelopes, and packaging is 100% recycled kraft paper. I deliver my digital files in a tin-case, or a Loktah DVD case, which are both eco-friendly. I’m also excited to begin working with Cypress Albums, who create the most gorgeous and elegant albums while having strong green business practices as well as green products. Finally, I recycle everything I can, and all boxes and packaging material that comes in is repurposed or recycled.

One of the most effective ways I’ve been able to reduce paper waste is an amazing system called ShootQ. Not only have I improved my client experience, but now my pricing, details about sessions/products, questionnaires, and contracts are all online, so no paper waste!

I have made many efforts in my personal life to be “green”, but I always have new goals to make my business as eco-friendly as possible, here are just three:

1. Spread awareness of Greener Photography methods to at least 3 portrait/wedding photographers.

2. Create at least 2 campaigns/competitions to reward clients and friends for being green this year.

3. I will recycle 100% of my failed discs (Something I just recently became aware of).
http://www.cdrecyclingcenter.com/pages/suggested_programs

This is just a start! While I worked hard to make much of this happen, I didn’t anticipate how excited I would be to make a more eco-friendly business. There are more opportunities than ever to be green, so no excuses! Every little bit counts!

Some of the companies I have used:
Envelopes/Paper: http://www.envelopesexpress.com/products/view/E378
Eco-Friendly Packaging: http://www.nashvillewraps.com/eco-friendly-packaging/mc-051.html
Tin DVD Case: http://www.american-digital.com/prodsite/product.asp?p=2114
Natural Media Products: http://www.loktah.com/
Green Album of Choice: http://www.cypressalbums.com/

Links to more Green Products and Suppliers: http://www.greenerphotography.org/?q=content/green-guide

It's All About the Water

By Carl Galie



When we hear about mountaintop removal of coal, we visualize a devastated landscape, ravaged by what some call “strip mining on steroids”. We have seen the images of mountaintops reduced to rubble, but have we ever stopped to think of the real consequences of this mining practice?

Some view mountaintop removal as a regional problem only affecting a small group of people in the Appalachians and that it should be regulated by the states rather than the federal government. If you look at the larger picture though, you will soon come to realize that mountaintop removal is a national issue that is really all about the water.

The New River is a perfect example. The headwaters of the north fork begin as a small spring located on Snake Mountain near Boone, North Carolina and flows north through Virginia before merging with the Gauley River to form the Kanawha River in West Virginia. On its journey north it passes through some of the most beautiful and diverse ecosystems found in the Appalachians.

The Kanawha River begins in the heart of coal country where many of the headwater streams like the one I found on Snake Mountain have been buried by valley fills with the blessing of the federal government thanks to an executive order by the Bush administration in 2002. By simply changing the “fill rule” in the Clean Water Act by reclassifying mining debris from objectionable “waste” to legally acceptable “fill,” the mining industry was given free rein to dump mine waste and bury over 2,000 miles of headwater streams.


Documents obtained under the Freedom of Information Act revealed that Bush era appointee, J. Stephan Griles, who was the Deputy Secretary at the US Department of the Interior and a former lobbyist for the National Mining Association, placed pressure on scientists and staff to disregard extensive scientific findings conducted by five separate federal and state agencies over four years in preparation for an environmental impact statement for the Office of Surface Mining. He felt that the EIS should focus more on centralizing and stream-lining the permitting process rather than concentrate on the negative impact of MTR.

Many of the scientists involved felt this was a disservice to the public and the heart of the Clean Water Act. Besides being the Deputy Secretary of the Interior, Mr. Griles was also the highest Bush administration official sentenced in the Abramoff scandal for lying to congress.

When will we wake up and understand that political appointees are often given their positions as payback for their support and end up representing special interest groups rather than “we the people.” There is a lot of talk in coal country about how bureaucrats at the EPA are costing jobs, but I can’t help but wonder if the scientists at the EPA were allowed to write and enforce the environmental laws of the land without political interference if this wouldn’t actually create more jobs in the coal fields because coal companies would have to place worker and public safety over profits and hire more employees to comply.

The propaganda machine of the coal industry would lead you to believe that without coal West Virginia would be in worse economic shape than it already is, yet state statistics show that coal production is approximately 7% of West Virginia’s GDP. While the coal industry does provide around 20,000 jobs, many believe that the coal industry has held back West Virginia’s economic growth because of the political leverage it holds over politicians. As long as there is no real competition in the state, the coal industry will continue to enjoy political favors.

Clean water and public health should be above partisan politics. On March 4th, 2009, HR 1310 The Clean water Protection Act was introduced to congress to restore The Clean Water Act to its original intent. As of August 11th, 2010 this bill is still in the first step in the legislative process. Introduced bills and resolutions first go to committees that deliberate, investigate, and revise them before they go to general debate. The majority of bills and resolutions never make it out of committee. This bill and S 696 The Appalachian Restoration Act have been stuck in committee since March 2009, and the possibility exists that these bills may die in committee, especially with any major changes in Washington after the mid-term elections.

A few years ago, while working on a project in eastern North Carolina, there was a push for some industrial development along the lower Roanoke River. Environmentalists argued against the development because of the negative impact it would have on the river. Those in favor of the plant argued that because of the high volume of water flowing down the Roanoke and because water quality was well above minimum government standards there was “room to pollute.” I could not believe someone actually had the audacity to make that statement. For too long we have relied on technology to fix our mistakes. This is an arrogant, misguided line of thinking that we will all pay the price for in the end if we continue down this path.

Contrary to what corporate America would like us to believe “dilution is NOT the solution to pollution.”

Water is the life blood of this planet and clean water is a right we should all enjoy in this country. We should not be held hostage by corporate interests, especially if the laws and environmental impact studies were tainted by political pressure from appointees whose loyalties lie with large corporations. This is not about being conservative or liberal, Republican or Democrat. Clean water is necessary for our very existence, and we should all band together to demand passage of these 2 bills, regardless of what party is in power. The only thing our representatives in Washington have done collectively is destroy our trust. It is high time they get the message that they represent us too, not just corporate America.

For more information on:
HR1310http://www.ilovemountains.org/clean-water-protection
S 696http://www.ilovemountains.org/appalachia-restoration-act/




Carl Galie is a North Carolina photographer who left his home in the West Virginia coalfields in 1986 to follow a dream. For the last 15 years Carl has devoted his work to conservation issues. Working with organizations like Roanoke River Partners, The Roanoke River Basin Association, and The North Carolina Chapter of The Nature Conservancy, Carl’s photographs of the Roanoke River basin have helped protect and preserve that region since 1995.

He is currently documenting the vanishing beauty of coal country, focusing his attention on the devastating affect mountaintop removal of coal is having on our nation’s water resources. http://www.carlgaliephotography.com/

* Text and photos copyright Carl Galie

Condor Conservation in The Andes

by Shyamala Rao

I stood at the edge of the northern shore of the beautiful Nahuel Haupi Lake in the Andes and watched the sunbeams light up the ripples over the sparkling blue water and soaked in the glorious landscape of this enormous lake ringed by Andean peaks. I saw a large bird gliding in circles over the lake. The bird was flying without so much a flap of the wings. “What is that, a hawk?” I asked. The guide said “It is an Andean Condor.” I stared at the huge bird in wonder.

This was my first glimpse of a condor in the wild, completely free and unfettered.I watched as the bird flew in circles, higher, ever higher and eventually was out of sight. Clearly this bird was not in search of food, he was flying into the heavens for sheer joy and perchance to commune with the gods. Small wonder that the Incas believed the condors were God’s messengers and that condors fetched the sun and got it to rise every morning.

We set off in the travel coach and as we turned the corner there were tall and forbidding cliffs to the left and the shimmering lake to the right. The guide said these mountains housed the nests of the condors and pointed out to a couple high up on the mountainside, where we thought we saw the birds crouching and peering into nooks, presumably occupied with feeding offspring.

The cliffs were steel grey, dotted with pink, ochre and umber. There was no vegetation anywhere in sight. The bleakness and the immense height of these nesting grounds made me shudder. Wingless and without flight as I am, the very notion of a little chick high up in a nook or cranny on the side of these mountains made me feel faint with the myriad possibilities of danger and mishaps.

The nesting grounds are between 9800 feet to 15000 feet above sea level. I was informed that the female condor lays just one egg in a recess in the cliffs. The male and female birds guard the egg tirelessly until it hatches after 54 days of incubation. Both parents share the duty of feeding the chick. In the second year the chick is taught to fly. This goes on for another year. Only then does the chick fly away to start on its own life. Mating pairs have one chick every other year.

Condors are part of the scavenger family of birds. These birds are the ‘clean up crew.’ They eat carrion which means they find dead animals and consume them. If the scavengers didn’t do this, then the carcasses would rot and fester. The smells would be overpowering. Flies and other insects would be attracted to the decaying matter and would multiply and spread diseases galore. The decomposing material would contaminate the water source and poison everyone. For some reason the scavenger birds have been associated with death in the minds of humans. This is akin to blaming the undertaker for human death. So over the centuries hunting, poisoning and killing these birds has been engaged in with utter abandon.

Andean Condors are the largest of the flying birds on the planet weighing up to 33 pounds, standing 4 feet tall with a wing span of 10 feet. Their habitat is the Andes Mountain range. They have a wattle on the forehead called a caruncle. They often fly 200 miles a day in search of food. After a good meal they can go for a week or two without food and water. This huge bird flies on warm air currents called thermals and can fly to heights of 28,000 feet. When the bird is circling it is riding the columns of thermal currents. On cloudy days when there are no thermals the condors stay grounded.

On January 19, 2010 a formal partnership was signed between the Directors of the US National Park Service and the Argentinian Administracion de Parque Nacionales. The goal is to have these majestic birds soar the skies of North and South America. These birds have an important role in the folklore of the native population in both continents. They are a symbol of power, liberty and strength. They are believed to carry the wisdom of the gods from the heavens to our earthly realm. The plan is to raise the chicks in captivity for a year and then release them into the wild in Argentina. Many more of these glorious birds will soon be gliding in the pristine skies of the Andean Mountains.

Shyamala Rao is a guest blogger on Art for Conservation. She is a wildlife artist living and working in San Antonio, Texas where she is a practicing psychiatrist. Her interest in wildlife was stimulated by a visit to the Serengeti in 2007 and since then she has been putting her feelings about animals onto canvas. She has just begun writing about conservation issues and hopes that by writing and painting she can do her part in helping conserve the glorious diversity of species on this planet.


This post was excerpted from the full article which can be found on her
website: http://www.shyamalarao.com/
Her art can be purchased at www.artforconservation.org/artists/shyamalarao

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