The US economy shed 263,000 jobs in September, more than anticipated, and the unemployment rate reached 9.8 percent, its highest rate since 1983, the US Labor Department announced today 2 October. The news raises questions as to whether any recovery in the US economy can be sustainable. Employers have been cutting jobs every month since January 2007, and the number of jobs lost in this recession has reached 7.2 million, adding to the 15.1 million now unemployed in the US. Bloomberg, CNN, New York Times
Swiss windmill, Valais
Morges, Vaud and Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Romande Energie, which serves electricity to much of French-speaking Switzerland and ewz, the energy company of the city of Zurich, are joining force to create a consortium that will build the country’s largest wind generating station if the project is approved. The two groups presented their plans Wednesday morning 17 June, for a project to build windmills in three Vaud villages in the Jura, Provence, Romairon, Fantanezier and the village of Val-de-Travers in canton Neuchatel.
FSC certified furniture (image ©Eric Goethals, FSC)
Zurich, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - WWF Switzerland is urging that furniture manufacturers be obliged to declare the source of wood used in their products as rapidly as possible. A survey by WWF of the 68 largest manufacturers in Germany, Austria and Switzerland shows that 87 percent of them do not know where the wood they use comes from.
The Swiss parliament has passed a law mandating that manufacturers state the information and the economic ministry is currently reviewing the legislation. The date when it will go into effect has not been announced.
