Posts by Neena Bhandari

From Byron to the world

0 Comments read Business and Trade

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 13.09.2010 (The Sydney Morning Herald): From its modest beginnings on an old farmhouse stove in 1990, the Byron Bay Cookie Company has become an international brand, exporting to 20 countries and employing 100 people in Australia and another 100 indirectly through its distribution partners in the UK.

The home-grown cookies, originally baked by Maggi Miles and Gary Lines on their farmhouse stove for the local market in the coastal town of Byron Bay under the name of Pickles, Pies and Petticoats, soon became a staple at local cafes. As their popularity grew, the cookies made their way on the shelves of prestigious national and international stores such as David Jones, and Selfridges and Harrods in the UK.

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Moving to a Safer World with a Million Pleas Campaign

0 Comments read Nuclear Disarmament

By Neena Bhandari

Sydney, 01.09.2010 (InDepth News Analysis – IDN): As the threat of nuclear annihilation becomes more real than ever before, the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons(ICAN) Australia has launched a `Million Pleas’ campaign, emphasising the urgency to rid the world of these weapons.

“The Million Pleas campaign gives a face and a voice to the issue of Nuclear weapons and the urgency for total disarmament and abolition of these weapons. People do want to see a complete abolition of N-weapons, but they don’t necessarily have a way of getting the message across to world leaders. Through this initiative, they can”, says ICAN Australia’s Campaign Director and Executive Officer, Dimity Hawkins.

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Pelican ponchos and penguin sweaters make animal rescues fashionable

0 Comments read Environment & Development

By Neena Bhandari

Phillip Island (Australia), 25.08.2010 (Christian Science Monitor, USA): As oil spills at sea threaten bird life, hand-knitted sweaters provide hope. At Phillip Island Nature Parks’ wildlife hospital in Victoria, Australia, Little Blue Penguins caught in oil spills and other contaminants are made to wear custom-made sweaters to prevent them from preening and ingesting oil and to keep them warm until they regain their strength.

Sweaters are ideal for penguins as they can be slipped over their small flippers relatively easily. Unlike many other seabirds, penguins don’t have long wingspans.

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