We get a lot of sun in Edmonton. In fact, I've heard that we have as many sunny hours as Miami. Moving into the uncertain future, that's an asset.

On May 6, I decided to leverage that asset into a sun-cooked potato salad.

Solar Ovens

The concept of a solar oven is very simple: a black, insulated box with glazing (plastic or glass) is aimed towards the sun. It's amazing how the simplest concepts can be so powerful. It's a cinch to get my solar oven up to 200 degrees Fahrenheit, and during the hottest months it will hit 300 degrees.  read more... »

Believe it or not, you can drastically reduce your carbon emissions this summer without having to afford a several hundred dollar appliance purchase. These 8 carbon-cutting actions offer fun and easy choices you can make to fight climate change.

1. Grow something tastier than grass

According to calorie-count.com, one hour of gardening will take care of 280 calories - about one grande Starbucks whole milk latte. Plus, New Brunswick’s Fallsbrook Centre tells us that the average meal travels 2400 Km to reach our plates. That’s roughly the distance between Montreal and Winnipeg - every meal!  read more... »

There's been a lot of moaning about gasoline prices lately. People are outraged that their poor choices about where to live and what car to drive are coming back to haunt them. I guess it's easy to make poor choices when 99% of the people around you are making the same ones.

The fact of the matter - the cold, hard, indisputable fact - is that oil is a finite resource. I smile when I hear an expert on TV say "we're not running out or anything". Uh, actually, we've been running out since we burned the very first drop. They're not making anymore of the stuff.  read more... »