Some compare the smell to a filthy toilet, others to rotting meat; but everyone agrees that the stench comes from behind the gates of the New York Organic Fertilizer Company. The company’s Hunts Point plant processes sludge from 14 of the city’s sewage plants, amounting to nearly half of the city’s waste, and converts it into high-grade fertilizer pellets.

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has now formally recognized the e-Stewards® Recycler Certification and associated e-Stewards® Standard for the Responsible Recycling and Reuse of Electronic Equipment.

By majority, the ministers of the first chamber of the Supreme Court of the Nation declared the freedom of the 12 detainees since May 2006 events in San Salvador Atenco, Mexico State.

New Leaders Council (NLC) just announced the 2010 winners of its annual 40 Under 40 Awards, and we are proud to share that our own Executive Director, Erin Switalski, is one of the winners! Every year, NLC honors the work of 40 leaders under age 40 to celebrate the spirit of progressive political entrepreneurship and leadership in advocacy, media and politics. NLC has given awards to trailblazers including Congressman Tim Ryan, Womensphere Interactive Network CEO Analisa Balares, Los Angeles City Council President Eric Garcetti, Ad Village CEO Marissa Louie and former Assistant Secretary of Defense for Detainee Affairs Phil Carter. Along with Erin, the 2010 winners include such powerhouse leaders in environmental movement as Liz Butler of 1Sky and Michael Brune of Sierra Club.

Thankfully, we've seen a rush of states adding new e-waste regulations and laws to their books, most recently with New York and hot on the heals of that news comes word that Connecticut will be the 24th US state to put enact an electronics recycling law, starting this fall.

Logging to Stop Immediately on Area the Size of Montana In a historic agreement, 20 major timber companies and 9 environmental groups agreed on a plan to protect 170 million acres of boreal forest in Canada.

As far as college towns go, Chapel Hill in North Carolina has a fair few things going for it. From being the birthplace of crop mob, through free buses, to the admittedly controversial Greenbridge high-end eco-condos, there are plenty of folks in this town who are pushing innovative models for more sustainable communities.

A factory in the Dominican Republic has begun production on sweatfree goods for delivery to university bookstores starting this fall or earlier. It is a breakthrough for a new strategy pioneered by the United Students against Sweatshops (USAS) and its partner, the Worker Rights Consortium (WRC).

The Coalition of Immokalee Workers [CIW] has scored another victory... Food service giant Aramark agreed to pay extra for Florida tomatoes produced under a strict code of conduct...

Two human genes associated with breast and ovarian cancers cannot be patented because they are a product of nature, a federal judge ruled on Monday.

On March 26, 2010, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) officially designated waters off North American coasts as an area in which stringent international emission standards will apply to ships. These standards will dramatically reduce air pollution from ships and deliver substantial air quality and public health benefits that extend hundreds of miles inland.

As we enter a new year, ILRF is already riding on a wave of exciting successes from the end of 2009. Here are some highlights of recent victories in our campaigns:

…Hungary’s parliamentarians voted with a virtually unprecedented majority to ban all metal processing based on cyanide…

Two coal-burning energy companies are withdrawing plans to build a multi-billion dollar transmission line from Appalachia to East Coast cities -- the Potomac Appalachian Transmission Highline, or PATH line.

Awards recognize victories and significant achievements in corporate reform

HSUS made history for animals in 2008. Watch some of the major victories The Humane Society of the United States achieved over the year.

At the annual Conference of the Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC) held in Des Moines, Iowa, October 10th to 13th, La Via Campesina received the 2009 Food Sovereignty Prize for its relentless struggle for Food Sovereignty for people of the world and against the disastrous neoliberal system of industrial agriculture.

After two years of delay, farmworkers in Florida will finally start getting a penny more per pound for tomatoes they pick.

Sister Pat Daly is the recipient of the 2009 Individual Achievement Award. Pat will be honored at the BENNY Reception and Awards at the 2009 BEN Conference on October 13 in Berkeley, CA and Washington, D.C.

Every year since 2006, Ethecon, the Foundation for Ethics and Economics, in co-operation with Otto Piene, the international famous ZERO-artist, has awarded two international prizes: