'Dying for climate leadership' - is the message 23 Greenpeace activists, from Canada, France, Germany and Brazil, took to the heart of Canada’s deadly tar sands development today. Blockading a bridge between an open pit mine and a vast processing plant, they renewed the call for the Tar Sands to be abandoned - in the interest of the climate and the health of the local people.

Our 13th Guide to Greener Electronics rewards Hewlett Packard for putting a PC on the market that is virtually free of PVC and brominated flame retardants (BFRs). Meanwhile Apple just released their own green stats, and Newsweek published an environmental guide of 500 top US firms, many of them in the tech industry.

The average American produces three times the amount of CO2 emissions as a person in France. A U.S. journalist now living in Europe explains how she learned to love her clothesline and sweating in summer. BY ELISABETH ROSENTHAL

For some people, evaluating the way to use a home’s space can be tricky. Rather than looking at how we can improve what we have, we jump right to remodeling or buying new stuff as the only solution. Increased space may be one answer, but there are other options to consider first — rearranging, reorganizing, adding natural light and decorating in an easy, practical way.

No need to wait for the spring season to declutter your home — have a fall cleaning event instead. Here are a few first steps to try…

• Pass along things you and your family no longer need or use. Donate them to thrift or consignment stores or have a good, old-fashioned garage sale (and make some extra money).

• Reorganize cluttered storage spaces — your closets, under-stair areas and kitchen cabinets. Bonus: you might discover things you’ve long forgotten and get good use out of them.

• If your home or apartment lacks storage, create places for commonly used items such as a coat rack or shoe storage and keep those things contained there (no bleeding out into other spaces).

• When choosing furniture, pick versatile pieces that double as storage spaces — maybe a coffee table that opens up into a trunk or a bed frame that’s high enough to slide natural baskets under. Add small, decorative cabinets to living areas or create a fun storage center in the kids’ room (like the one shown made with reused cans).

Dark rooms are sometimes uninviting and appear smaller than they actually are. Adding natural light will make your space feel expansive. Here are a few ways to brighten up a room that won’t cost a fortune:

• Remove part or a whole wall.

• Add windows, glass doors or a simple skylight or solar tube, which will bring in natural sunlight.

• Repaint in a lighter shade.

Robyn Griggs Lawrence is the editor in chief of Natural Home. Read her eco musings every week in her blog Natural Home Living or in the magazine’s latest issue.
[Editor's Note: You can find more info about making that recycled can organizer at HGTV.com.]

The Earth has nine biophysical thresholds beyond which it cannot be pushed without disastrous consequences, the authors of a new paper in the journal Nature report. Ominously, these scientists say, we have already moved past three of these tipping points. BY CARL ZIMMER

The natural landscape of South Korea has been largely re-engineered, with nearly every river damned or forced into concrete channels. Now the government is reviving plans for a mammoth water project that would dredge and develop hundreds more miles of waterways and put added stress on the country's remaining wildlife. BY JAMES CARD