Happy birthday Mum! (you too Brother in Black)

Mum and Brother in Black's birthdays are one day after the other, though decades apart. In the spirit of celebrating environmentalism, I'd like to congratulate mum and Brother in Black for walking, biking, jogging and carpooling to get to places these years. They would score favorably in the League of Conservation Voters. Hooray! At least mum would. Now that both of them have driver's liscences, we'll see how this celebration will fair out. [Disclaimer: I have nothing against people with cars. I love the automobiles. It's just that if you think your car is your santuary, then you're, uhh, doomed (?).]

In other news, congratulations to these grassroots winners.

A Liberian man who uncovered evidence that warlord Charles Taylor raped forests to finance civil war was among six grassroots environmentalist "heroes" honored in San Francisco on Monday.
Silas KpananAyoung Siakor was awarded the Goldman Environmental Prize along with Tarcisio Feitosa da Silva of Brazil, Yu Xiaogang of China, Anne Kajir of Papua New Guinea, Olya Melen of the Ukraine, and Craig Williams of the United States. [...]

Anne Kajir, 32, was praised for uncovering "widespread corruption and complicity" by the Papua New Guinea government that has allowed illegal logging of tropical forest, the statement said.

A Ukrainian, Olya Melen, 26, was awarded the prize for her legal battle against construction of a massive canal cutting through the Danube Delta. Melen secured a temporary halt to completion of the dam but her legal campaign continues.

Craig Williams of the United States received the award for persuading the Pentagon to stop plans to incinerate old chemical weapons.