Archive for the ‘In Europe’ Category

#5 Paris, France: Great Bicycle City Photo Tour

From bicycle lovers to lovers on bikes, bike art to art on bikes, the largest bicycle sharing program in the world to some of the smallest bikers, enjoy this bicycle city photo tour of Paris, France!

Paris doesn’t have a long history as one of the best bicycle cities, but with the introduction of the largest bicycle sharing program in the world, bicycling in Paris has boomed and the city is becoming commonly associated with the bicycle now. Its whole culture is changing due to the bicycle’s increasing relevance in the city’s daily life.
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#6 Groningen, Netherlands: Great Bicycle City Photo Tour

Groningen would be number one on this list if we were looking at percentage of residents who bicycle for transportation purposes. About 57% of travel in Groningen is by bicycle!

The city has been named the world’s best bicycle city a couple of times (1993 and 2006). It is a university city which is part of the reason why it has so many people bicycling, but it has done amazing things to make the city more bicycle friendly as well. The bicycle facilities you can see on the following pages will probably blow your mind away.
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#7 Berlin, Germany: Great Bicycle City Photo Tour

Berlin is a great bicycle city! Full of bicyclists, bike art, bicycle infrastructure, and unique bikes for a variety of different purposes, Berlin is #7 on this “great bicycle cities” list.

If you go to Germany, you will probably hear some Germans saying how much they love their cars (i.e. Mercedes, BMW, Audi). However, you will probably be surprised to see how many people actually love their bikes. Berlin is perhaps the best example. You can see people from across the class spectrum using the bicycle for a wide range of purposes. Even the postal service and other delivery services use bicycles.

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#8 Barcelona, Spain: Great Bicycle City Photo Tour

Naked bicyclists, folding bikes, balloon bikes, and more — enjoy this bicycle photo tour of Barcelona.

The third B in a row, Barcelona is next on this list of great bicycle cities (right ahead of Basel, Switzerland and Bogota, Columbia). As a dense city with a wonderful climate, Barcelona is naturally a wonderful place for bicyclists. However, a lot has been done to make it more so. The biggest carrot encouraging bicycling, by far, is Barcelona’s relatively new bike sharing program — Bicing. This is perhaps the best or second best bike sharing program in the world. It is one of a new generation of sophisticated, smart bike sharing programs. Read more about it on page 2.

Beyond Bicing, the city is also working on creating new bicycling routes and bike parking and it hosts fun Bike Week celebrations every year in May. Also, it has been creating better infrastructure for bicyclists due to so many more people bicycling within the past few years. It is transforming itself into a truly world-leading bicycle city.

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UK’s First White Rhino Conceived By Artificial Insemination Born!

Rhino calf image for article about UK first artificial insemination rhino at Colchester Zoo

Britain’s first IVF white rhino calf has been born at the Colchester Zoo.

The history-making calf is named Zamba, and was welcomed into the world on October 3, following a 16-month pregnancy. His mother, 11-year-old Cynthia, was in labor for three hours and was able to deliver the calf on her own. Zamba’s father, Simba, had died in April at the age of 41.

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Hunt Nuts, Help Endangered Dormice

Hazel dormouse image for article about PTES Great Nut Hunt 2009

Once widespread in the U.K., the hazel dormouse population has declined by 39% since 1992, due to loss of hedgerows and fragmentation of woodland habitat. Now this tiny mammal is vulnerable to regional extinction.

To help locate hazel dormouse (Muscardinus avellanarius ) habitats and gather data about these elusive creatures, the People’s Trust for Endangered Species (PTES) has invited the public to participate in its third annual “Great Nut Hunt.”

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700 Naked People in France for Climate Change Action

700 people stripped naked in French vineyards this week. Why? To try to influence world leaders to do more regarding climate change.

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Bikes & Trains — New Initiative for England

England is working to combine two of the world’s cleanest methods of transportation through a new initiative.

A handful of strongly funded programs are geared to get more people bicycling to and from rail stations in England.
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Reintroducing the Iberian Lynx… on Olive Groves

The Iberian lynx, at risk of extinction, may be reintroduced into the wild on low-production olive groves soon.

A study by Spanish scientists says this may be the most appropriate place for the cat.
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From Dikes to Natural Flood Plains: The Netherlands Changes Approach to Flood Control

The Dutch have been fighting rising seas longer than any nation in the western world. Much of the country lies below sea level, including the capital city of Amsterdam. Traditionally, dikes and concrete barriers have been used to hold back the sea, but now the Netherlands is changing course in its flood control efforts due to climate change. The Dutch are embracing natural flood plains for rivers and mangrove swamps in lieu of levees. Read the rest of this entry »