Hi, I’m Sarah. Today I was on Urban Outfitters.com online shopping. I was thinking of ordering something, and i thought, “Well, i can just go to the store and get it there.” But then i thought about the environmental affects that would have; driving all the way to the store, getting the wrapping of the item and going home and maybe recycling it. So, i figured, i might as well just order it online. But then I thought, “Could the environmental effects be greater and more negative to purchase it online?” Thinking about the excessive wrapping of the item in a box, the shipping of the box by plane or car and the CO2 emission there, and then it finally arriving at my house. What would have a greater effect on the environment? Anyone have any ideas?

Hi! I am from Hong Kong. In such a busy city, no one has taken considerable time to think about CO2. Even now it is Autum, there is still many people having their air conditioners on… at home, at school, at work… Everyone would like to spend longer time stay awake to do their business. There is no room for them to think about the environment.

Eat less meat to prevent climate disaster, study warns…

Fertilisers used in growing feed crops for cattle produce the most potent of the greenhouse gases causing climate change

A study published in Environmental Research Letters warns that drastic changes in food production and at the dinner table are needed by 2050 in order to prevent catastrophic global warming.

It’s arguably the most difficult challenge in dealing with climate change: how to reduce emissions from food production while still producing enough to feed a global population projected to reach 9 billion by the middle of this century.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/apr/13/less-meat-prevent-climate-change

More on the impact of food prodction on climate change below…

Indians protest billion dollar Chinese mining project to save Ecuadorian Amazon:

Food Choices Leading Cause of Environmental Damage in Australia:

Australians are eating themselves to death and food choices are one of the nation’s leading causes of environmental damage, according to a new report released by the Public Health Association of Australia.

“There is growing evidence that in Australia a poor diet contributes more to people being sick than any other single risk factor including tobacco and alcohol,” Moore said. “Australians need to eat less and eat differently to address the sky-high rates of preventable diet-related disease. The current food system is skewed towards energy dense foods that are high in fat, sugar and salt. We need to make healthy food choices the easiest and most affordable option for all Australians.”

The PHAA also believes that while the phenomenon of diet-related disease is grabbing headlines and what is not recognized is the significant impact of our food choices on carbon emissions. The association pointed out that more than 30 percent of Australia’s carbon footprint is related to food production.

http://eponline.com/articles/2012/02/16/food-choices-leading-cause-of-environmental-damage-in-australia.aspx

The Environmental Crisis Is in Fact a Crisis in Democracy:

Stephen Leahy interviews writer and environmentalist FRANCES MOORE LAPPÉ

Q: There is a feeling amongst many environmentally-aware people that it is already too late and there is too much to be overcome.

A: Thinking it’s too late is another thought trap. It may be too late to avoid significant impacts that could have been avoided if action had been taken two decades ago. It is not too late for life. My book is filled with examples of people taking charge and turning things around.

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=106674

What makes people think it’s too late is that they feel alone and powerless. People feel that way because of the thought traps, the false beliefs about scarcity and of human nature as greedy and selfish. Those beliefs and a privately-held government have led to feelings of powerlessness.

In Paris this week. Very impressed with the new eco-friendly light rail tram system that they’ve recently built. It services the southern part of the city superbly. Very impressive!

Pepperdine program certifies ‘green MBAs’ and expands its values

As corporations take a public beating for perceived greed and disruption to the world’s economy, Patagonia’s former CEO is working with Pepperdine University to change the way people do business.

http://www.vcstar.com/news/2011/dec/04/pepperdine-program-certifies-green-mbas/

Michael Crooke, who oversaw Patagonia from 1999 to 2005, has teamed up with Pepperdine University to encourage M.B.A. students to think about doing things differently after they graduate.

The university has launched a “Socially, Environmentally and Ethically Responsible (SEER) program.” More academic institutions need to follow suit.

Okay so I know that one of the things about helping the environment that is really stressed is recycling and just about every school that I’ve been to has advertised how great it is to recycle. But how much does it actually help for us to recycle? Doesn’t it still require energy to convert the materials that we have already used into something that we can use as something new?
But another thing, even though at the school that I go too which seriously encourages recycling, there are still hundreds of people out there who don’t eve bat an eye as they throw away paper, or an empty plastic bottle, or an empty cardboard box, all of which could be recycled. So what else could we do so that more people recycle?

Carbon emissions divide ‘can be bridged: The new report, Bridging the Emissions Gap, by The United Nations Environment Programme (Unep), says that if sectors such as energy, farming, forestry and transport all cut emissions by feasible amounts, global warming can be kept below 2C. But countries’ current pledges are not enough to meet the 2C target.

Nothing revolutionary is needed, they conclude, if every sector makes its appropriate cuts. And the cost would be small. So, there is hope. Now, there must be the will to do it.