IN THIS ISSUE

SPECIAL OFFER - JULY 2002

EVENTS

Vol 1 (Issue 2) - July 2002

Dear Reader, 

Welcome to the second edition of our newsletter. In this issue we have some good news stories to balance all the gloom and doom. 

We hope that you enjoy EcoNews and find it helpful. We welcome your thoughts, ideas and feedback on how we can expand and improve our newsletter. Email us with your feedback, suggestions or items for inclusion in the next issue (deadline for contributions is 31st July).

Feel free to pass EcoNews onto your friends or colleagues - check below for our Website referrers promotion giveaway including double movie passes and a $3,000 holiday for 2.  

Story #1: Ecological Home Loans Saves the Day!  

Home Loan Help is Just a Phone Call Away!

Sue and Graeme Mossman recently decided to build their dream home using straw bale technology, an age-old building technique that is gaining widespread interest due to its tremendous insulation qualities (10 times the insulation factor of a double-brick cavity wall) leading to substantial savings in gas, electricity and heating bills. (Click here for info on the first International Straw Bale Building Conference).

After approaching 10 different lenders for an owner-builder loan, they were on the verge of giving up when they gave Ecological Home Loans a call. We were able to quickly organise finance for Sue and Graeme and solve their dilemma. A beautiful new straw bale home will soon be constructed as a result.     

This is just another example of how we are able to help people experiencing problems with their bank in securing home loan finance. We can also help if you have been refused finance for a variety of other reasons such as:

• self employed with limited or no documents
• retrenched, or temporarily unemployed
• receiving a pension or an allowance
• single parent
• CRAA defaulter
• recent bankrupt
• person with a deposit but no savings history
• high income earner without a deposit (105% finance)
• owner builder using alternative building technologies.

Home loan help is just a phone call away - call our Loans Manager Lewis Hiley on 9500 7499 or 0418 259 838 or email Lewis at lhiley@ecologicalhomes.com.au     Back to top

Story #2: Australians Support Greenhouse Gas Reductions

Prime Minister Howard out of step with
the Australian people on Greenhouse

According to a survey commissioned recently by Greenpeace, only 17% of Australians support Prime Minister Howard's refusal to sign the Kyoto Protocol while 71% of those polled believe it would be in Australia's interest to ratify the international treaty on climate change.

Greenpeace climate campaigner Dr Frances MacGuire hailed the results as a victory for common-sense over rhetoric. "Mr Howard's statement in Parliament on World Environment Day that it would not be in Australia's interest to ratify the Kyoto Protocol was clearly out of step with public opinion. The Australian public do not believe Mr Howard's rhetoric and want to see real action on climate change."

Significantly, the poll also backs up the results of a paper released recently by the Australian EcoGeneration Association that argues that being part of the international regime would bring economic benefits to Australia, not costs and job-losses. 62% of respondents to the survey believed that ratifying the Kyoto Protocol would have either a positive effect or no effect on the economy. Only 22% believed there would be a negative economic impact. (full story)   Back to top

Story #3: Mother of 2 Decides to Act on Greenhouse?

Amanda Williams is a young mother of 2 living in Sydney's Eastern Suburbs. As an Energy Australia customer, she now gets information provided on her bill indicating the amount of Greenhouse gas emitted by Energy Australia's coal burning power stations to produce the electricity consumed by her family. She was horrified to learn that in three months her family had contributed nearly 2 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions.  

A friend of Amanda's had recently forwarded the June edition of EcoNews to her and she decided to have a look at our Website. She placed an order the very next day for our Ecological Starters Pack (AAA rated shower head, Amaze all purpose environmental household cleaner and toilet flush water saver). 

The William's household now has a AAA rated showerhead installed. This will reduce their total energy use by a about third, resulting in a saving of on her energy bill of about $400 a year and will save about 180,000 litres of water giving her further savings on her water bill. The toilet flusher water saver will save 40,000 litres of water a year (based on 10,000 litres per person per annum). The Amaze cleaner has replaced cleaning products that would normally cost her more than $50 plus is much better on the environment (and it won't harm her children). All this for an investment of only $130 plus postage ($6 if in NSW)! (Click here to order a Starter Pack and start saving)     Back to top

Story #4: World Food Crisis Looms In Africa

Africa Needs Your help to 
Avoid a Humanitarian Disaster

The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) has launched a US$ 507 million appeal to provide relief food to six countries in southern Africa, where millions risk starvation. With Southern Africa facing its worst food crisis in a decade, WFP has launched a massive regional appeal to feed millions of hungry people in six countries. 

The Agency needs US$507 million to feed some 10.2 million people at risk of starvation in Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Lesotho, Zambia and Zimbabwe until the main harvest in March 2003. The operation will target the most vulnerable families: HIV/AIDS victims and families headed by women, children and the elderly. 

Major donations are needed now!  WFP estimates that seven million people require food immediately with this figure rising to just over 11 million from September to November and peaking at 12.8 million from December to March 2003. 

Ecological Homes donates a proportion of all commissions we earn on home loans to humanitarian efforts aimed at combating world hunger. (Click here for details on how to make a donation to the World Food Program)  Back to top

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© Copyright 2002 Ecological Homes Pty Ltd (ABN 71 002 980 047)