Posted inMedia Review

Meat the Future, a solution for humane and climate conscious animal agriculture

Liz Marshall (Liz Mars) and Bullfrog Films As someone who chooses plant-based foods in order to lessen the climate and environmental impacts from conventional meat production, I am encouraged by Meat the Future, directed by Liz Marshall. This documentary highlights a hopeful advancement in food science and a possible solution for inhumane greenhouse gas producing large-scale […]

Posted inCityCrafting Solutions Blog

Reflections on Regenerative Urban Park Development

Last month, I was invited to participate in a panel discussion related to the development of  Parque Intraurbano Jurica in Querétaro, Mexico. It was an honor to join my colleagues Drs. Javier Carillo (The World Capital Institute), Cathy Garner (University of Lancster), and Patrizia Ingallina (University of the Sarbonne) to share reflections on harmonizing ecology and […]

Posted inPerspectives

Investing in Nature to Transform the Post COVID-19 Economy. A 10-point Action Plan to create a circular bioeconomy devoted to sustainable wellbeing

Introduction In the last 50 years, the biosphere, upon which humanity depends, has been altered to an unparalleled degree[i]. The current fossil-based economy is putting at risk not only life on our planet, but also the world’s economy. The coronavirus pandemic is yet another wake-up call to stop exceeding the planetary boundaries. After all, deforestation, […]

Posted inEditorial

Complaining Can Shrink Your Brain

Everyone either knows a complainer or is a complainer.  With the pressing issues facing our society, it’s easy to fall into complaining. However, complaining is not as innocent as it appears. In fact, according to a study from Stanford[1], complaining actually shrinks your brain! Complaining for 30 minutes or listening to someone else complain for that amount […]

Posted inFeature

Living Machines as a Possible Treatment for Ibuprofen in Wastewater

Historically, wastewater treatment has focused on disinfection and reducing nutrient concentrations, but there is now growing concern over the increased concentrations of pharmaceutical compounds in agricultural and human wastewater. More comprehensive conventional wastewater treatment, however, leads to increased resource and energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions. Living Machines are alternative, decentralized ecological wastewater systems that have been successful at disinfecting and reducing nutrient loads in wastewater with lower capital and operating costs and improved energy efficiency. We conducted preliminary experiments using small-scale Living Machines to test their effectiveness at reducing a common pharmaceutical, ibuprofen, which is increasingly used in the agricultural sector and for human health. We found that these Living Machines were efficient and effective in reducing concentrations of ibuprofen in wastewater, even at input levels much higher than reported in the literature, and hence show promise for a range of possible applications.