Photo Credit: Kalinga Seneviratne/IPS

Farming in the Sky in Singapore

What do you do when you have a population of five million people crammed onto a tiny landmass, and you're only able to grow 7% of your food locally? 

That's the situation in Singapore - and they're working on the problem by building rooftop gardens and vertical farms in order to feed their many residents. Here's how it's turning out. 

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Actor Jeremy Irons Talks Trash for New Environmental Documentary

Jeremy Irons, the Oscar-winning actor, has teamed up with the British filmmaker Candida Brady to produce a new feature-length documentary called Trashed. Unlike most documentaries, this one will be released in theaters. 

This interesting interview in The Guardian explains why he did it - and why this film is different. 

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"Earth as Art": Surprising Satellite Images

It’s easy to imagine these photos of Earth hanging in a modern art exhibition. Taken via satellite, these images are part of a series called Earth As Art from the U.S. Geological Survey and offer “fresh and inspiring glimpses of different parts of our planet’s complex surface.” 

They are deserts, islands, vineyards, and river deltas, rich with vibrant and unexpected colors that bring to light the weird shapes and uncanny patterns that make up Earth’s landscapes. 

See this article for more beautiful images taken around the world. 

Sierra de Velasco Mountains of northern Argentina in the province of La Rioja.

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Argentine Pediatricians Combine Environmental Work with Healthcare

Ten years ago, a group of Argentine pediatricians realized that environmental issues were an inextricable part of their patients' health, and began combining work on environmental protection and child health. The task is turning out to be increasingly challenging and complex.

Image: Flickr/Mariano Pernicone

“We were seeing a lot of illness connected to poor living conditions: respiratory diseases, gastroenteritis, skin infections … So we decided to give courses on the impact of environmental pollution on health, and we devised a project aimed at protecting the environment in order to provide better health care for children.” 

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A New Literary Trend: Bestselling Authors Build Plots Around Climate Change 

If you read fiction, authors Barbara Kingsolver, T.C. Boyle, and Ian McEwan will be familiar to you. What they have in common is that each has written a book in which climate change is a key factor in their plotlines. 

Read this story to find out what these books are about - and how these authors used climate issues to tell their stories. Or check out their books with the links below: 

• Flight Behavior by Barbara Kingsolver 
  
• A Friend of the Earth by T. C. Boyle 
  
• Solar by Ian McEwan

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