A STAG IN THE INSECTS WORLD

Date: June 2009
Place: Bahmut, Moldova



This dangerous-looking fellow is a common stag beetle (Lucanus cervus) from the Lucanidae family that takes part in the most diverse order of known species on the planet – the beetles, or “sheathed winged” (Coleoptera). It inhabits old trees and dead trunks in forests and feeds on nectar and tree sap.
The large threaten-looking mandibles are the privilege of the stag beetle male; female has far smaller ones. However, this male’s “dignity” is too weak to do any harm to large creatures. Still, the mandibles turn to be an excellent weapon in the ritual fight for female’s attention: the beetle uses them to grasp the body of its opponent and turn him on his back. And while the loser lies with his belly towards the blue sky and helplessly jerks his feet in the air, the winner claims his deserved prize – a date with the female stag beetle… if it is still around after the battle.


Another interesting feature of stag beetle is related to its larva – a “C”-shaped cream-coloured creature with six orange legs and a large orange blind head. It also lives in old trees and trunks and prefers rotten wood as meal. The larva can communicate with its siblings by rubbing together the combs in its legs and producing specific sound. This phenomenon is called “stridulation”.
Due to intense deforestation, the stag beetle became quite rare and is considered to be one of the globally threatened species. Lucanus cervus is included in the Bern Convention of the Conservation of the European Wildlife and Natural Habitats (1982), the Habitats Directive (1992) of the European Union and the Red Book of the Russian Federation.

VOTE FOR THE CURE!

Do you have a message about climate change and wish to display it?
Then join the climate message competition HERE!
Also, please see my own proposal of a slogan / logo and evaluate it. Thank you in advance!


Altogether we can be heard!

DO NOT BE STUPID!

Imagine yourself meeting a person from the year 2055. He attentively looks in your eyes, sighs and says:
“Why are you so stupid?”
It is needless to ask about your reaction to such words. Insult and anger blind your logic that would probably inquire why he said that. Perhaps there is a piece of truth in his words… perhaps you have done something wrong… and perhaps it is going to have terrible consequences for the future…

This is the primary purpose of the new movie “Age of Stupid”: to inform the modern society about its negative influence on the planet Earth, the global climate change as one of its consequences and the disastrous outcome it might bring to our future generations.


The Global Premiere of the movie will be launched on 21/22.09.2009 (the eve of the UN General Assembly’s climate session) in more than 50 countries.
You can watch the “Age of Stupid” trailer HERE.

I recommend you to watch the movie and think about this:
Would you like the period of our generation to be called the Age of Stupid? If not, what could and should we do about this issue?

SEE ONCE, THINK TWICE, DO THREE TIMES MORE!

Recently I have found this very interesting article – “50 Creative WWF Campaigns That Make You Think Twice”. It represents the gallery of the most creative, powerful, and eye-catching advertising posters created and released by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), previously known as the World Wildlife Fund.


WWF is an international NGO working on issues of conservation, research and restoration of the environment. It is considered to be the world’s largest independent conservation organization that operates in more than 90 countries.


The advertisements presented in the article are aimed to raise awareness of the global environmental issues and promote sustainable approach to living on the planet Earth and using its resources. The variety of issues displayed on the posters is quite large: global warming, energy efficiency, conservation and protection of wildlife, recycling, deforestation, toxic waste, and others.
Here is an example of such posters advertising the event “Earth Hour” and energy efficiency:


More advertisements can be found in the article “50 Creative WWF Campaigns That Make You Think Twice”.

NO MORE AMBITION... TIME FOR ACTION!

Recently July 29th has become one of the significant dates in my calendar. It is on this date this year the first off-line presentation of my major idea related to the environment protection – the BioSciences Research Centre (BSRC) – took place.


The event happened in the city of Craiova (Romania), where I had been in my internship as a trainer within the ecological project “Learn to Change the Future 2009” (more information about the internship experience can be found on the blog “The X Worlds 3D”). The audience consisted of about 20 project participants – last year pupils from the schools and lyceums in Craiova, some organizing committee members, and a representative of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in Romania.
However, during my stay in the neighbouring Romania I had not limited to a single presentation. On August 1st another one took place in Timisoara, the city I had visited in order to deliver sessions on “Earth Degradation” and “Urbanization” for the AIESEC Timisoara members and other interested persons.


In spite of the fact that few people expressed their interest in BSRC, I still consider both presentations to be successful. It is because their purpose was for me to practice presenting the idea of the Centre and gain self-assurance and persuasion skills – the support I will require for the presentation of BSRC to potential investors in the nearby future. Nevertheless, several contacts have been obtained, indicating the start of the networking element of the BSRC establishment process.


From now on there is no way back!
No more hesitation, no more fear, no more ambition…
It is time for ACTION!


If you are interested in the idea and establishment progress of BSRC, you can view the above-mentioned presentation HERE.

Also I welcome you to visit the Facebook page, subscribe to the Twitter posts, and write me to the following e-mail address: bsrcentre@gmail.com.
I am open to cooperate with YOU!

ARE WE THE VIRUS?

Virus (in Latin means “poison”) – a microscopic infectious agent that is able to reproduce only in a cell of other organism. When it infiltrates into the host cell, the virus uses its resources and mechanisms to construct new virus particles (virions) that spread onto other cells. Viruses are not capricious in choosing their victims: they infect all types of living beings, including bacteria, plants, animals, and, of course, humans. And they feel themselves quite good everywhere – you can find these unseen assassins in almost every ecosystem on the Earth.


Pretty nasty guys, aren’t they?

Well, there is a theory that the way of life, behavior and impact on the environment of viruses is similar to the ones of another living being on this planet. Although the latter is a multicellular highly-developed creature that is usually drawn at the top of the evolution ladder, it also cannot develop without the “host cell” (in this case, the planet) and its resources, causing constant degradation of its “home”.
You should have guessed that it is we, humans, that are compared with the deadly viruses.

This rather strange and unexpected theory has even been reflected in some world-famous movies, including the science fiction trilogy “The Matrix”.
Here is a short video from this film with a character stating the above-mentioned point:



So, here is some spicy food for thought:
Are we really the virus? If yes, what is the cure?

And most importantly:
Do YOU want to be considered the DISEASE or the CURE?

SHADOW-TAILED

Date: April 2007
Place: Vadul-lui-Voda, Moldova


Certainly you recognize the cute mammal displayed on these photos taken at one of the annual conferences of the non-government organization “AIESEC Moldova” in spring 2007. At that time I was a member of the organization and went to this event called “Local Training Seminar” to learn more about AIESEC. The conference took place at the summer camp, where we had managed to take photos of this well-known rodent.
The common or Eurasian red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) is a widespread small or medium-sized mammal representing the Sciuridae family from the Rodentia order. Its English name “squirrel” and Latin “sciurus” have Greek origins and mean “shadow-tailed”, underlining their most eye-catching body part – the big fluffy tail shading the whole body.


Squirrels have quite rich diet: their standard meal includes seeds, nuts, fruits, fungi, and certain plants, but the menu may be enriched with insects, eggs, small birds, reptiles and other rodents. This means the cute little beasts are able to prey on other animals and consume their meat.
Certain members of Sciuridae stay close to humans, for example, in city parks and summer camps. They have learned that these tailless two-legged creatures are usually a rich source of food. Squirrels can be also kept as pets and taught to do tricks – some people state they are similar to dogs in their ability to learn behavioral models. In some countries, like certain regions of the USA and the United Kingdom, squirrels are hunted for food – their meat is considered a favoured one there.
As you see, these widely-spread furry rodents have some interesting facts to reveal. And there are still much more of them hidden in the shadow of their tails.

WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY… MAKE IT EVERY DAY!

Each year June 5th is celebrated as the World Environment Day (WED). It was established in 1972 by the United Nations General Assembly and is hosted every year by a different city and country. In the same year the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) was created and since then it has used WED to inform the global society about its threat towards the Nature and significant (even vital) importance of the environment protection.


WED 2009 has the topic: “Your Planet Needs YOU! – UNite to Combat Climate Change”. It reflects the urgency for nations to agree on a new deal at the crucial climate convention meeting in Copenhagen some 180 days later in the year, and the links with overcoming poverty and improved management of forests. This year the host city is chosen to be Mexico City in Mexico, which symbolizes the growing role of the Latin American country in striving against climate change, including its growing participation in the carbon markets.
Watch a short video about WED 2009 HERE.

The initiative of WED is an awesome and extremely important one. But the question is: “Is it enough?” And the answer: “Of course, not”.
As the German writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe said: “Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do”. So, in order to produce notable impact we must not only acknowledge the necessity of the environment protection – we must act. And not in just one day in a year, but EVERY DAY and EACH YEAR! And not only by a small group of Nature-loving activists, but by EVERY SINGLE HUMAN BEING on the planet! Because if one day the consequences of the Mankind’s negative impact reveal themselves, they will hit all of us and will do it very hard and painfully.
“Impossible…” – you may think about this. Well, everything is possible, the “impossible” just takes a little longer and, that is quite a paradox, does not require difficult actions. It is simple – anyone can do it. And the ways are multiple – you can choose the ones that suit your lifestyle and everyday activity the best.

Here is an example of my own. Each weekend I visit one of the city parks to have a walk or a small picnic. In such cases people usually take with them and leave there plenty of trash – one can see cigarettes, paper scraps, plastic bags and other stuff almost everywhere he / she puts an eye on. On the contrary, during my walks in the parks I not only leave zero litter, but also take some with me and throw it in the nearest trash / recycle cans. The same with picnics: after them I take with me not only my own litter, but also collect the one nearby and leave it all in the trash cans. Involving family and friends in such small campaign is even better – it produces three benefits at once:
1) You spend some wonderful hours in a good company;
2) You improve your health by breathing fresh air cleaned for you by the surrounding trees;
3) You contribute to making a piece of our beautiful World a cleaner and better place.

Definitely, one person cannot make significant positive impact at once. But he / she is able to do it constantly and involve others in these simple environment-caring activities. And there is always room for innovations: an idea in this area cannot be bad, bad is to hide it from the others.


Therefore, think about this message, your lifestyle, and how can you adapt it to make you contribute to the environmental protection in your park, city, country, continent, planet.
Make the “impossible”!
And let’s celebrate the World Environment Day… EVERY DAY!

“HOME” – MEET THE PLANET!

As the mankind’s negative impact on the planet Earth escalates, so does the number of people wishing to reduce and even stop it. Mr. Yann Arthus-Bertrand seems to be a good example of such planet supporters. The movie “HOME” is his contribution to make the human population of the Earth aware of the beauty of their home world, the threat they represent to it, and the ways of changing it into the “opportunity to prosper in harmony”.


The movie will be released on 05.06.2009 (World Environment Day) in more than 50 countries at once. It is said to be available on every format: at cinemas, on TV, DVDs, and Internet.
You can watch the “HOME” trailer HERE.

Press conference with the author of the movie “HOME” is available HERE:

So…

On June 5th I have a date with the Planet.
What about YOU?

THE BEAUTIFUL GIANT

Date: June 2008
Place: Chisinau, Moldova




The beautiful giant displayed on the photos is named the Giant Scolia (Scolia maculata). This is a 40 – 60 mm wasp with membership in the Scoliidae family from the order Hymenoptera. There are approximately 450 species in this family that live mostly in the tropical and subtropical climatic zones.
Scoliidae are usually large black insects with hairy body, several yellow or orange marks on abdomen, and distinctively corrugated wing tips. Male wasps are a bit more slender, elongate and have longer antennas than their girl-friends. Scolia maculata is the largest representative of the family.


Despite the relatively big size, Scolia is not harmful to large animals and humans. Its sting is thin and smooth – the master uses it not for killing or causing pain, but as an accurate surgical instrument for paralyzing its prey – the larva of the rhino beetle (Oryctes nasicornis). After detecting the presence of the larva the female wasp immediately clasps it and stings in the belly nervous centre that controls all movements of the organism. Thus the larva remains living, but becomes fully paralyzed – a perfect method for keeping it fresh during the whole period of the Scolia larva development. The female wasp lays one egg on the belly of the paralyzed victim, and the hatched larva devours it gradually, starting from the less important organs and finishing with the vital nervous and blood circulatory systems.
This way the Scoliid wasp larvae serve as the important biocontrol agents that maintain the population and distribution of pest beetles at moderate level.
Scolia maculata is considered to be endangered specie and is included in the Red Book of the Russian Federation and the Red Data List of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN).