"This web map combines a few map services to illustrate some of the potential environmental impact of the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico."

"The dynamic nature of the BP oil spill has been a challenge for a range of communities - from hotel operators to fishermen to local community leaders. We know the American people have questions about how the federal government is responding to this crisis, and we are committed to providing the answers with clarity and transparency. The site you're viewing right now is a symbol of that commitment. "

RestoretheGulf.gov is the official federal portal for the Deepwater BP oil spill response and recovery. This site provides the public with information on the response, current operations, news and updates, how to file a claim and obtain other assistance, and links to federal, state and local partners.

Google Earth's blog

Great connection to "Bird's Eye View of Changing Landscapes." "China's Pearl River Delta has experienced massive urbanization since the early 1970s. Derived from Landsat imagery, this animation shows urban expansion between 1973 and 1999."

Worldchanging.com founder Alex Steffen argues that reducing humanity's ecological footprint is incredibly vital now, as the western consumer lifestyle spreads to developing countries.

Human growth has strained the Earth's resources, but as Johan Rockstrom reminds us, our advances also give us the science to recognize this and change behavior. His research has found nine "planetary boundaries" that can guide us in protecting our planet's many overlapping ecosystems.

By piecing together a complex ecological puzzle, biologist Willie Smits has found a way to re-grow clearcut rainforest in Borneo, saving local orangutans -- and creating a thrilling blueprint for restoring fragile ecosystems.

Convince just 100 key companies to go sustainable, and WWF's Jason Clay says global markets will shift to protect the planet our consumption has already outgrown. Hear how his extraordinary roundtables are getting big brand rivals to agree on green practices first -- before their products duke it out on store shelves.

Legendary ocean researcher Sylvia Earle shares astonishing images of the ocean -- and shocking stats about its rapid decline -- as she makes her TED Prize wish: that we will join her in protecting the vital blue heart of the planet.

As E.O. Wilson accepts his 2007 TED Prize, he makes a plea on behalf of all creatures that we learn more about our biosphere -- and build a networked encyclopedia of all the world's knowledge about life.

Life on Earth faces a crisis of historical and planetary proportions. Unsustainable consumption in many northern countries and crushing poverty in the tropics are destroying wild nature. Biodiversity is besieged.

Oil from the Deepwater Horizon spill in the Gulf of Mexico has begun to make landfall in Louisiana's Chandeleur Islands. Nancy Rabalais, director of the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium, says the spill's effects on the larger Gulf ecosystem could last for years.

Up next, 30,000 species under the sea. A few years ago, marine biologists working off the coast of Oregon collected samples of seawater from the very deepest parts of the ocean there at two sites near an active ocean floor volcano. And once the samples are brought to the surface, biologists on the other side of the country, in Massachusetts, analyzed the samples to find out what kinds of microbes were living at the bottom of the ocean. And what they found was astonishing. An amazing array of microbes, more than 30,000 species many, which were never - have never been seen before. They are new to science. The results of that analysis were published earlier this month in the journal Science.

Around the world, once-giant ecosystems have been cut up into tiny fragments. Islands of habitat have been left on the land that can be wiped by a single storm.

We live in the Global Location Age. "Where am I?" is being replaced by, "Where am I in relation to everything else?" The Geospatial Revolution Project is an integrated public service media and outreach initiative about the world of digital mapping and how it is changing the way we think, behave, and interact. Mission The mission of the Geospatial Revolution Project is to expand public knowledge about the history, applications, related privacy and legal issues, and the potential future of location-based technologies. Geospatial information influences nearly everything. Seamless layers of satellites, surveillance, and location-based technologies create a worldwide geographic knowledge base vital to solving myriad social and environmental problems in the interconnected global community. We count on these technologies to: * fight climate change * map populations across continents, countries, and communities * track disease * strengthen bonds between cultures * assist first responders in protecting safety * enable democracy * navigate our personal lives

"OpenStreetMap is a free editable map of the whole world. It is made by people like you. OpenStreetMap allows you to view, edit and use geographical data in a collaborative way from anywhere on Earth. "