And the timing, if plans are given the nod, couldn't be better. The world's biggest environmental body, International Union for Conservation of Nature, recently said that they believe at least twenty percent of all mammals currently face extinction.



The proposed National Wildlife Conservation Park is set to be 136 acres and based just north of Bristol. The cramped cages of captivity will be non existent at this spa for wildlife consisting of open land, moats and ditches for animals to roam about in. Materials required to build the sanctuary's facilities will be locally sourced with the aim to be a sustainable development. It has also been said that food for the animals will be organic... they'd get it in the wild right.

There would be replicas of the Sumatran lowland rainforest, the Congo river, the Indian Ocean coral reef, Tanzanian savannah, Georgian wetlands, and a Costa Rican swamp.

But not everyone agrees with the idea. Animal activist Will Travers from the campaign group Born Free told the Independent last month that he believed the money would be better spent on actually conserving the wild rather than constructing a ‘tourist attraction'. He pointed out that ‘the Kenya Wildlife Service's budget is about 20 per cent of the figure proposed by Bristol, yet they have to protect 8 to 10 million acres.'

So Organic's founder Sam visited our local Women's Institute (WI) last month to talk about the benefits of switching to an organic lifestyle. We were delighted to find out that the WI has started creating eco teams across the country. But an activity that appears slightly more radical involves some members of WI hopping aboard Greenpeace's Rainbow Warrior II to deliver a message via the waterways, to the controversial Kingsnorth power station in Kent where most of the coal for a new power station will arrive. There aim: to ask the Government to offer cleaner, renewable energy options. The message will be clear - no more coal-fired power stations.

"It's about showing that groups not specifically set up to tackle climate change are determined to protect the environment. There's a huge coalition building against coal plants. Faith groups, development groups, politicians of all shades, scientists and thousands of ordinary people are standing up and saying no to new coal." Joss Garman, a Greenpeace spokesperson on the Rainbow Warrior, told the Independent last weekend.

Have a peek at the short film's (titled A World Without Jam) the WI have released and you'll see this 93 year old organisation is on to a good thing. Their aim is to Stop Climate Chaos by building a massive coalition to create a strong public mandate for political action to stop human-induced climate change. With over 200,000 members already they're off to a good start.

If you'd like to join your local Women's Institute visit their website.

The United Nations recently released a study which positively up's the benefits of organic farming in the face of a global food shortage and a starving Africa.

Achim Steiner, head of the UN's Environment Programme, told the Independent when the report was released that the UN's findings indicate ‘the potential contribution of organic farming to feeding the world maybe far higher than many had supposed' and it ‘could make a serious contribution to tackling poverty and food security.'

The environmental benefits of organic farming were also highlighted in the report. These include greater soil fertility and better water retention, which leads to greater resistance to drought. Plus farmers save money on pesticides that they can use to buy better seeds. Many studies have also found that organic farming can provide higher yields than industrialised farming.

The UN's report is good news for the organic movement and hopefully, with the support from more international organisations, governments and powers that be, it will lead to a healthier Africa - land and people.

Reefs are disappearing at twice the rate of rainforests, which is pretty horrific when you consider the rate at which we cull forests these days. Six hundred square miles of coral reef is dying every year and it's largely due to the effects of climate change, that is, higher temperatures leading to warming waters.A recent study funded by the National Science Foundation and the Environmental Protection Agency incorporated 6,000 surveys measuring coral reef life in the Indo-Pacific ocean region.

But it's not just rising sea temperatures that contribute to coral death it's also man made pollutants filtering into our oceans via waste systems, toxic dumping, fuel spillages, even that moisturising suntan lotion with the unnatural chemicals used to protect us from the intense UV rays of the sun. Who's protecting our corals?

Coral reefs only cover 1% of the ocean floor but they provide great economic benefits from tourism and fishing industries for many a coastal town around the world. Hopefully this new study will flare local authorities and governments to review policies that safeguard our ocean life and offset the damage caused by climate change.

The speed at which we are losing corals has come ten years earlier than many scientists expected. The uncertainty climate change brings means that even with all the predictive simulation technologies we can't be certain what will happen if things continue as they are.

With the credit crunch in full swing more of us are using price as a determining factor as to whether we choose organic over non-organic. Be it in your morning cuppa or on your cereal, milk is one daily staple in most of our diets worth writing on the organic side of the shopping list.

Cow's feed that is grown without pesticides will provide more nutrients for the cow, increasing the nutritional value of their milk that is ultimately passed on to us. Grass and clover fed organic cows (as opposed to grain fed, conventionally reared cows) have higher levels of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) alpha-linoleic acid (ALA), alpha-tocopherol (vitamin E) and three carotenoids (beta-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin), according to a study this year from Newcastle University. The fatty acid CLA was found to be 60% higher in organic milk and may protect against cancer and other health problems.

The university study also revealed that nutritionally desirable fatty acids and antioxidants were highest in milk produced during summer, when the cows are eating fresh grass and clover. Though some conventional farms allow their cows to forage for feed this is by far a more common practice of organic dairy farmers.

Organic cows are also not treated with bovine growth hormone (BGH), a hormone which is used to increase the amount of milk a cow produces. It is believed that these hormones could raise the risk of certain cancers. Organic dairy farmers also avoid antibiotics where possible. If a cow does fall ill it is separated from the herd for a period of time so as to avoid contamination of the whole milk supply.

It's comforting to know organic milk doesn't only taste better but is packed with more nutrients than conventional, non-organic milk. One supermarket sells organic milk for just 8p more than regular milk!