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Searching for Shangri La: Conscientious Villagers and Our Duty
The Greenpeace Expedition to the Haba Snow Mountain had a mission to determine whether human activities leave their traces in even the most unspoiled and untouched areas of the world. We were searching for the unseeable, the invisible traces of human presence in the desolate beauty above the snow line. On our way, however, we…
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Searching for Shangri-la: Rules for surviving 5,000m above sea level
When we set out on our mission to the Haba Snow Mountain, I had no idea how tough the conditions we were about to endure would be. At an altitude of 4000m above sea level, we practically had to relearn how to walk and even crawl as we battled powerful gale force winds and altitude…
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Falling Fast: It wasn’t just stock prices that dropped in China recently
As stocks in China’s bull market suddenly slipped last month, another downward trend gives us slightly more cause for optimism.
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Searching for Shangri-la: Return to Haba Snow Mountain
In 1999, Zhong Yu became the first woman to reach the summit of the Haba Snow Mountain in Yunnan Province. 16 years later, she retraced her steps on another mission: to discover what we leave behind when we walk in nature.
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“Probably carcinogenic”: How glyphosate is entering our supermarkets and our homes
Monsanto and their ‘Round Up’ formula are infamous. Producers of Agent Orange, Monsanto, have long claimed that their globally used weed killer is harmless (even safe enough to drink).…
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How we took bearing witness to new heights…
At Greenpeace, we try hard to stay ahead of the curve and keep an eye out for new technologies that will help spread our message. Here in Mainland China, typical Greenpeace large-scale stunts are out of bounds, so we have to think of imaginative ways to bring public attention to environmental issues. UAVs (or drones…
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Seeds of change: on the frontlines of the fight against cadmium rice
I remember when I first visited the Hengdong Industrial Zone in early 2014. There was something eerie and deeply unsettling about the lush rice fields sitting adjacent to the openly polluting factories, whose seven giant stacks poured out toxic clouds day and night. These clouds contain the poisonous element cadmium, which filter deep into the…
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Bad to worse: ranking 74 Chinese cities by air pollution
We’ve mined the data and produced a ranking of 74 Chinese cities by levels of PM2.5 air pollution. The figures were taken from official data published by the Ministry of…
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The effect of Steve Jobs on the lives of impoverished workers in China
In the week that has passed since Steve Jobs’ passing, much has been said about his legacy. The outpouring has ranged from near religious idolatry, to more sober reminders of some…