April 22 is designated as Earth Day, and if you use Google, you would have noticed that today, with their peculiar logo do-up. In the spirit of Earth Day, I just want to share a little known resource, which I think not many people are even aware exists, and that is none other than Google.org. That’s Google with an .org extension.
Google has been quietly building this site as a platform to further its own initiatives in researching things like climate change and disease, all of which (potentially), have VERY far reaching impacts. So, although this post might not fit in with most of the other stuff on this blog, I think it’s still appropriate just to highlight Earth Day today (in my own small way).
Things like bird flu might seem far removed from all our daily cares, but these things really have a way of rapidly affecting our lives (if they really happened) regardless of what we do. I think Google made a good choice in appointing a guy like Dr Larry Brilliant as director of Google.org a couple of years ago. Here’s a link to an inspirational video on TED featuring Brilliant as the speaker. I saw it, and found it eye opening and inspirational.
Closer to home, why not explore the world with a tool like Google Earth? Although it’s far from complete (with many areas yet to be mapped in detail), I still find it AWESOME to be able to zoom in to view remote places thousands of miles away within seconds. For those who want to hover right smack over the Amazon rainforest canopy hundreds of miles from civilization but lack the means, Google Earth is probably the next best thing available. Here are some new tips on using Google Earth, (and getting to know the world a little better in the process).
If you’ve always wanted to start living a more “green” life, why not start taking a few steps today? It doesn’t take much to start, but it is small changes that add up.
Here’s to a Happy Earth day to all.