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Earth Day, part II
By philip | April 22, 2008
For those who didn’t get it, it’s not Mothers’ Day, it’s Earth Day…. our Big Mamma.
And I am so passionate about keeping Mamma happy, that I’m doubling down on my Blog for it. So here you go, part two….
There is little doubt in anyone’s mind that carbon emissions are contributing to global warming. And for those skeptics out there, I have taken an entire college course on global warming and sorry to say, it’s happening.
But seriously, that’s neither here nor there. We live here, and the best way to keep things green is to live lightly. So here is a short list of things I do (or try to do) that might inspire you to go a little greener.
- Eat vegetarian food. No kidding, this reduces your carbon footprint (the amount of carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide your lifestyle causes to be released into the atmosphere.) by a HUGE margin. Why, you ask? Cows. The raising of livestock contributes to almost ONE FIFTH of the carbon released by human activity into our ecosystems. Don’t believe me? Read it from the BBC. Eating vegetarian food therefore reduces your carbon footprint by about 18%….. chew on that! (It also lowers your cholesterol, decreases blood pressure, provides adequate protein, and adds good fiber to your diet. Rock on, tofu.)
- Support the Hemp market. Non psychotropic hemp - the stuff you can’t get high off of - has been around for as long as humans have. The constitution was printed on hemp paper. There was a “Hemp for Victory” campaign during WWII to provide enough rope and fiber to the troops. It’s patriotic.
It also takes ONE TENTH of the amount of land needed to grow cotton to produce the same amount of raw material. But hemp growing is illegal or legally impractical in the US due to current drug laws that lump industrial hemp in with psychotropic hemp. There IS a difference. You can read more about industrial hemp here.
Hemp is still available in product form from Canada and places in the EU. Try it out. It’s not as rough as it has been made out to be. I do Tae Kwon Do in hemp pants, and my favorite hoodie is made from hemp fiber. Man, it’s comfey. - I own no car. I skateboard to work or take a bus. This one is self explanatory and we all know we should cut down on transportation emissions. Ghandi said it best: “Live simply, so that others may simply live”. The less you commute, the less petrol you burn. (And instead, you burn calories…. BONUS!!!!)
- Buy local produce. Mexican tomatoes and corn from the Midwest you find at your local corporate run grocery store had to get there somehow. Food transportation is a big industry. If you buy local, you food has traveled far fewer miles, burning much less gasoline. And it probably tastes better too.
- RECYCLE!!!! Freakin DUH!!!! Do it. No excuses.
- PRECYCLE. Only buy food in packaging you know your municipality currently processes for recycling. It takes more effort at the grocery store, but come on… it’s totally worth it for your kids. And speaking of kids, my seventh and final save-the-earth suggestion is:
- Ask yourself if what you are doing at this VERY moment will leave a positive impact for your relatives seven generations down the line. If not, rethink it. If so, do it more often. We gotta take care of this place. If not for us, for our kids’ kids’ kids, etc.
There are a lot of other things you can do. Invest in mutual funds that only support green companies. Buy Carbon Credits to offset your unavoidable contributions to pollution. Talk to your coworkers and team mates and friends about what you are doing to promote a better and more environmentally sustainable lifestyle.
If not you, who?
If not now, when?
Happy Earth Day, everyone.
Topics: life, as it comes |
May 7th, 2008 at 10:53 pm
[…] Earth Day, part II […]
July 14th, 2008 at 9:01 am
I have only been a vegetarian since Jan. 24, of this year, but it is one thing I have remained committed to, amazing, yes? haha I know. I hope to add on to this in my continued effort to live more aware of my choices and my habits, how they affect me and others. Thank you for encouraging through action.