Cuba's 2009 Concert for Peace

Over 1 million people decended into central Havanna, this weekend for the largest open-air concert since the 1959 revolution to send a message of “peace without boarders”.  The concert held in Revolution Square featured some of Latin America’s best known stars.  The concert was organized by Colombian singer Juanes.  I don’t know about you but when 1 million people get together, it sends a very clear message.  In the end, maybe there will be a fresh new perspective will sail in and bring people back together.

Hasta la Vista baby, in a move back in June of this year, the government of Cuba delcared that it was moving off of the Microsoft Windows Operating system and to Open Source Software (OSS).  Cuba unveiled its own version of the Linux operating system called Nova Baire – developed at the University of Information Sciences of Havana (UCI) – at the Informática International Convention and Fair held in the Cuban capital in February 2009. The Cuban government hopes to implement Nova Baire in 50 percent of its computers in the next five years, thus moving away from Microsoft Windows.

But Microsoft is not going without a fight, in August it took steps to ban access to it’s Instant Messaging product Windows Live Messenger.  Citing requests from the US government to compy with Export Control laws, other US Software vendors such as Google and AOL quickly followed suit.  Earlier this month, Microsoft admitted that it’s market share had dipped below 90% worlwide.  This may be a sign that Open Source is gaining traction.

He brought the world Jamaican culture, Trevor Rhone, the award-winning Jamaican playwright, director and actor dies at 69. It was his 1972 film “The Harder They Come” that brought him fame.

Shot in the gritty streets of Kingston, the movie starred reggae singer Jimmy Cliff as Ivan, a boy from the country who comes to the city with dreams of making it big as a singer but doesn’t quiete reach is goal as he dies in the end. It became an international cult classic and introduced reggae music to the world before Bob Marley became a household name. But outside of that Trevor Rhone, made a mark, a very clear mark. Mr. Rhone’s pays such as “Smile Orange” and “Old Story Time” help to pioneer Jamaica’s local theatre scene.   A pioneer of the arts and dedicated to sustaining Jamaica’s important indiginous theatre, Mr. Rhone will be missed.  Trevor Rhone dead at 69.

Peter Island, BVI has announced plans to purchase and install of two 250 kW wind turbines on a southeast facing ridge of the island. Peter Island is located five miles south of Tortola.   It is anticipated two turbines will provide in excess of 60% of the peak load energy requirements on the island.   The proposed installation date is January 2010.

The Peter Island Wind Project, the first commercial wind turbine installation in the British territory, will save more than 100,000 gallons of diesel fuel per year or approximately $250,000 annually.

Tim Currey, RA, NCARB, Director of Special Projects, URS Corporation states, “The Peter Island Wind Turbine Project will be a shining example of sustainability in the Caribbean environment. The project is a ‘win-win’ for all; The environment, Peter Island, the Resort and the entire BVI community. We are thrilled to be a part of this process.”

The wind turbine model selected is a WES30 Mk1 Hybrid from Netherlands-based, Wind Energy Solutions (WES). The turbine installation will be coordinated by Wolverine Power Solutions of Zeeland, MI and Kraus-Manning, Inc. (KMI) – Tortola will handle the Construction Management scheduling and services. Additional connectivity and controls design will be coordinated by Atlantic Controls based out of Fort Lauderdale, FL.

A massive amount of fish was found dead in Black River, St. Elizabeth this month. Up to 10 miles upstream dead fish were being found. Jamaica’s National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA) was slow to act and has now admitted that its slow response may have prevented it from identifying the culprit(s) responsible for the environmental mess.

In a statement following the September 1 incident, NEPA said that it suspected that there was a release of dunder. Dunder is the yeast-rich foam leftovers from one batch of rum that is used to start the yeast culture of a second batch. It is the traditional yeast source in Jamaican rum and is known to be a critical step in achieving an authentic rum flavor. The dark-coloured leftover smells like stale sugar and is toxic to fish. Many people who live in the area claim that is an annual event and are concerned about the agency’s lack of power to stop or investigate it. (more…)

The Meso American Reef Surrounds Cozumel

In addition to global warming an increasing amount of the gas is making the waters of the Caribbean sea more acidic and warmer than ever.  Warmer water disrupts coral growth; acidic water affects coral’s abilities to secrete new skeletons which make them brittle and vunerable to breakage. 

All this and a hurricane battered coastline is dealing a deadly blow for the Meso-American reef (Spanish acronym, SAM , Sistema Arrecifal Mesoamericano) the world’s second biggest barrier reef, which stretches down the coast of southern Mexico past Belize and into Honduras.  Bad news for the reef as it seems all the oposing forces are against it. 

But is it too late for our reef?  Organisations like the WWF warn that the reef – home to thousands of marine species – faces obliteration in the near future.  It is said that Australia’s Great Barrier Reef may follow not long afterwards.

By Abeng NewsPublished: March 13, 2009

The Bahamas government is moving to put measures in place to help the extremely vulnerable islands adjust to what one government official calls a possible ‘death sentence for small islands.’

Mr. Phillip Weech, Director of the Bahamas Environmental Science and Technology Commission, said that the government was working on an energy policy, exploring alternative sources of energy as well as more sustainable tourism options in a bid to prepare the over 700 islands for the possible effects of climate change.

“Bahamas has no national energy policy….. we have prepared it and are doing public consultations to take it forward,” said Weech, who was addressing a workshop put on by the UN Economic Commission on Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) to discuss the feasibility of doing a review on the Economics of Climate Change in the Caribbean. (more…)