I got to be hip for a day - even if it was because of the swine flu (and no, I don't have it)

I've mentioned the More Hip than Hippie podcast on here before. The hosts Dori and Val are very funny and have a lot of the same attitude I have towards being green. Plus, they like beer and chocolate and the first time I ever listened to their podcast they had Rick Springfield introduce them. They had me at Rick Springfield. The beer and chocolate part is just a bonus.

I had the pleasure of being interviewed by them for an episode of their podcast that aired yesterday - Swine Flu and You. I've been keeping up with the news about this flu and doing some reporting on it for MNN so they asked me to come on and relay some of the information I've learned.

The swine flu is certainly something to take precautions against, but it's not something to panic about. It's a flu, and while any flu can lead to death in some people, overall people who have contracted it are reacting positively to already existing treatments. To find out more about how to take precautions you can listen to the podcast or go directly to the CDC website for up to date information. I highly recommend sticking with reputable sources for information like the CDC because there is a lot of misinformation floating around on websites and yes, even blogs.

One last thing, there's a possibility that this strain of flu originated with a factory hog farm down in Mexico that wasn't properly disposing of its waste - although there has been no official cause stated. The CDC says that you cannot get the swine flu from eating pork products, not even the products from that particular factory farm. Still, if this is the cause, it's one more piece of evidence that the way we mass produce meat is a huge health and environmental problem.

Around the country, farmers markets will be opening in the next few weeks if they haven't already. If you have a vendor at your market that sells free range meat from animals that were properly cared for and fed, I think it's time to really start supporting these farmers. Buy some pork products (or other meat if that's what you want) and show them that you you support their methods. And, if you have other sources of locally, properly raised meat, seek them out.

Meet 8 year old Ally

I've got an interview today with 8 year old Ally, a budding environmentalist. Last month, I ran the book fair at my boys' school. There was a book for kids about how to stop global warming, and Ally was the only kid I saw buy it.

My mom happened to be there that day (cause it doesn't matter how old you are, when you do something like run the entire book fair at the school, your mom shows up to spend a couple bucks and support you). She got into a conversation with Ally about the polar bears. Ally spoke very passionately about the polar bears so I asked if she would be interested in being interviewed for this blog. She agreed.

So everyone, meet Ally.

What are you most concerned about when it comes to the environment? Why?

I’m concerned about polar bears and trees so, so, so, so much. Polar bears can only live in one place, the Antarctic. If we don’t help them no one else will. I really don’t want polar bears to go extinct because they’re so cute and then there won’t be any bears left.

What can be done to help the polar bears?

People can use as less energy and water as possible. The energy goes up to the power plants and the more energy is used the more greenhouse gases come out. The more greenhouse gases come out the hotter the earth gets and the global warming melts the glaciers and the fish are going deeper than usual and the water level is rising and the bears can’t go down that deep to get the fish for their cubs.

What are things that you do in your house to help the polar bears and the environment in general?

I try to turn off electronics when I’m done using them and I try to use as less paper and water as possible.

Are there any other environmental problems you are concerned about? What are they?

I’m concerned about people cutting down too many trees.
What do you know that is good that people are doing to help the environment?

It’s good to know that some people are re-planting trees after they cut down other trees. We need trees because they clean the air by sucking in all the bad carbon dioxide and putting in good carbon dioxide. This keeps us breathing clean, healthy air.

\thank you for letting me say what I want to say about the environment. Ally

When I was talking to Ally, I asked what she wanted to be when she grew up. She told me she wanted to be an accountant because she's good with numbers and on the side she wanted to run environmental protests. Gotta love it!

Image: Just Being Myself

Altering the eco, one decision at a time

We're privileged to have Adam Shake from Twilight Earth guest posting for us today. Read more about Adam at the end of the post.

Until recently, and even today, the term “Altering the Ecology” of something has had negative connotations associated with it. But how do we alter the eco in a good way?

My philosophy is that environmentalism isn’t about saving the planet. Environmentalism is about saving us.

I’m reading an interesting book by Malcolm Gladwell entitled “Blink – The Power of Thinking Without Thinking,” and in it, he reaffirms some of the things that I’ve always thought. One of them is that some people place “representative feelings on things” and some don’t. You see, we as humans have an intrinsic relationship with nature. We are a part of it, and yes, we need to use it for our survival, but we over use it. It would make sense that we would want to take care of something that we depend on. After all, we take care of our cars, our tools, our homes, all the things that we use to survive. Why wouldn’t we take care of the planet? It’s the planet that provides these things to us!

A person with Autism has trouble creating attachments with other people. Often times, people with autism will look at your shoulder or your hand or at a light switch when you talk to them, because they do not have the ability to see outside themselves and recognize other people as having an intrinsic relationship with them on a human level. To some severe autistics, other people are nothing more than objects.

As a human species, we’ve become autistic to nature. It holds no intrinsic “value” to us, other than what we can take from it. We alter the ecology of the rivers by buying soda, we alter the ecology of trees by overhunting wolves, and we change the frequency and intensity of storm systems by utilizing fossil fuels, resulting in millions of deaths each year. We have altered the ecology of the Wolf and Moose predator / prey cycle on Isle Royal in Lake Superior because Climate Change has increased the number of ticks on the island. The Moose are dying from the ticks and the Wolves are being affected. These are just a few of the hundreds of things that occur when we think of our planet as being “outside of ourselves.”

When we don’t value our planet, we don’t value ourselves. Everything that we do has an effect on our environment, albeit a small one, and it is the accumulation of those billions of effects, that have an effect on us as individuals.

Often times, the negative effects that the environment places on us as a result of our actions, are felt the least by those who are the greatest contributors to environmental damage.

The gold jewelry and diamonds we buy in 1st world counties are mined in 3rd world countries using heavy metals that poison the earth and the people who mine them. The amount of HFCS that we consume in the United States effects the global price of grain, affecting three quarters of the world’s populations whose staple diet is grain and rice. These are just a few of the examples of transitioning global effects of individual consumer decisions. The high amount of CO2 in the atmosphere can not be transferred back to oxygen by the world’s oceans, so the oceans are becoming acidified. That acid is killing the coral around the world and as the coral dies, tidal swells and flooding are occurring more frequently on shorelines around the ocean. But we are not thinking about someone’s fishing village being devastated when we buy that S.U.V.

How do we Alter the Eco? We Alter the Eco by keeping things simple.

• Home grown food (1 process) is better than farmer’s market food. (2 processes) Farmer’s market food is better than store bought natural food. (3 processes) Store bought natural foods are better than store bought processed foods. (4 processes)
  
• Tap water is better than bottled water, bottled water is better than soda and soda is just down right silly.

If we try to keep things as natural as possible and keep the production processes for those things as low as possible, then we are Altering the Eco.

We need to realize that we are involved with the planet. We have a relationship with it, and whether we are held accountable by our society or even our God, we are accountable to ourselves and our children.

Environmentalism is not about saving the planet, it’s about saving ourselves.

As always, keep up the good fight, and Alter the Eco! (In a good way!)

--------------------------------------

Adam Shake is the founder of Twilight Earth, a blog that brings news and excellent commentary on what is going on with the environment worldwide that we need to care about. Whether he's educating about the environmental impact of things like coal or simply sharing his breathtaking photos of nature, I always learn something at his site. Visit Twilight Earth and look around (and check out my guest post on his site later today). 

On his blog he says "I’m about sharing with you what I know, what I’m learning, and what I’m ignorant about in reference to this huge subject that we call the environment." That's what we appreciate around here. 

Image: petra

The Green Irony of Wall-E at the Movie Theaters

I got a chance to see Wall-E for the second time yesterday when my kids' summer rec program went on a field trip to the movies. We saw the movie when it first came out. I resisted the urge to find all the green messages in it because I just wanted to enjoy a movie with my kids. But this time, my kids were sitting with their friends, and I saw things in the second viewing that I did not see in the first.

If you don't know anything about the movie - here's the premise. Earth has been abandoned for 700 years because it has become nothing but a toxic trash dump. There was an effort to clean it up with robots, but eventually that effort was deemed pointless. The robots that were built to do the cleaning were all (I assume) turned off, and the last humans took off for space. But one robot survived - Wall-E. For 700 hundred years he has been building skyscrapers out of blocks of garbage.

Sounds gruesome and not so much like a kids' movie, but it's actually done very well with humor and charm. The very opening scene, however, is a bit chilling from an environmental perspective. The camera pans in on what can be taken as NYC with its tall buildings and even taller trash sckyscrapers. As it is panning in, it passes by wind turbines that are barely moving and shut down nuclear power plants. Garbage is all around them.

There is a strong sense of failure. The wind turbines didn't save the earth. Nuclear power didn't save the earth. Why? Because humans couldn't stop consuming and generating so much trash that it eventually took over the world. At least this is the message that I took away.

Now, here comes the irony. The amount of trash that is generated during a single viewing of any movie at a theater is great. Soda cups, popcorn bags, and candy boxes are routinely tossed into a trashcan at the back of the theater and by the end of the day, a theater has collected bags upon bags of trash.

At the end of the movie, one of the college aged chaperones stood up and yelled to the kids - "okay kids now go out and save the world." That was followed by another chaperone saying, "Pick up all your trash and make sure it gets put in the trashcan." As the kids all filed out of the theater throwing out their trash, I couldn't help but wish I had had this example way back when I was teaching irony to my high school English students. This was a perfect example of situational irony!

My family loves going to the movies. We're frequently there on opening day for something the kids have been excited to see. But over the past few months, I've become increasingly uneasy with the whole trash problem of the going to the theater.

What's the solution? We don't want to stop going to the movies. Should we sneak in our own beverages in reusable bottles and snacks in durable containers? Theaters are very clear that they don't want you to bring in your own food. And for years I've respected that and bought my snacks from the ridiculously priced concession stand.

But now it's not a money thing - it's an environmental thing.

Here's what I would like to see. I would like to see some company create durable, resusable cups with lids for fountain style sodas that are clearly marked with the amount they can hold. Find the common sizes that fountain softdrinks are offered in at movie theaters (and convenience stores), and create a line of cups based off of that. Do the same with some sort of container to hold popcorn, too.

Then I would like to see the movie theaters allow their customers to bring these in to be filled for their drinks and snacks instead of putting them in disposables.

I don't know how to solve the candy problem, but much of the candy comes in boxes that can be recycled. People could just resolve to take their candy boxes home with them and put them in their own personal recycling.

This would be such a small change but have such a huge effect. It would save tons of trash. It would also save the theaters money, too.

What do you think? Do you think theaters would go for the idea? Do you think people would come on board? Would you?

Off Shore Drilling, 45 More Nuclear Reactors - What Can We Do?

Yesterday was not a warm and fuzzy news day. The Mississippi is rising. The Taliban is wreaking more havoc than usual. President Bush wants to drill off shore. Senator McCain wants to build 45 more nuclear reactors in the next 20 years. 

I expect the last two news items to be discussed on most environmental/green blogs over the next few days. Both of these men will be blasted for their proposals. And there is definitely some reason to do so.

But here's the thing. They are trying to appease a nation that has become addicted to energy. The news will talk about our oil addiction, but aren't we really addicted to anything that makes and uses energy. If we can't have all the fuel for our cars, electricity for our homes, and strawberries in February that we want, we get pissy. 

These men are just giving us what we have proven time and time again what we want - quick, cheap and seemingly endless sources of energy. Perhaps, if we want to really send a message to them and all politicians, in addition to letters to our congressmen and an infinite number of columnists and bloggers complaining and analyzing and blaming, we should USE LESS ENERGY.

Here are some ways I plan on using less energy today:

• Making sure all lights, tv's and radios are turned off when a room is left. With the boys home from school now, lights are being left on, but I've already talked to them this morning about changing that. 
  
• Plan the errands that I have to run today so that I drive the shortest distance while still getting everything done.
  
• Ride our bikes to the pool and take all our own snacks for trashless snacks and drinks.
  
• Car pool to a dinner that I have tonight.
  
• Remember to power down everything in my office when I'm going to be out of it for more than a half hour.

Like I told my boys this morning, if we didn't use so much energy, the politicians wouldn't be scrambling to find out how to make more energy. If we want them to make responsible choices about creating energy then we need to make responsible choices about using it.

How are you going to be more responsible today with your energy choices?

Thoughts from Affluenza are Consuming Me

I think I've mentioned this before on here, but it bears repeating. Economics is not my thing. I hated the one economics class I was required to take in college, and I've paid little attention to how our economy really works ever since.

So now I'm reading Affluenza. I know it seems to be taking me a while to get through it. There is so much information to take in that is taking me a while. I frequently have to stop and reread passages. Sometimes I have to stop reading altogether because what I've just read is making my head spin.

Such was the case yesterday when the book got me seriously thinking about the Gross National Product. Not just thinking about it, but taking an interest in it. I spent the better part of yesterday, thinking about the GNP (that was of course after I spent the morning shoveling compost). 

Here's the concept I read about yesterday that really grabbed my attention.  In our country the marker of progress is the making of stuff. When we hear the news anchors talking about our Gross National Product, they are talking about the health of our country. 

Here is what I wrote in the margins of my book (I never read nonfiction without a pen and a highlighter). "I have never thought about this before. How dangerous and counterintuitive (if you take the time to listen to your intuition) this seems. We always have to produce more whether or not we need it or our country will fall apart economically. If a majority of the people were to embrace to live simply, it would cause havoc."

Now, not being someone who is particularly schooled on US economic theory, in the past I would have read this and thought "hmmm. I wonder if this is true?" and then forgot about it in the next chapter. 

But my times, they are a changin', and I now think. And I started to connect some economic dots that made me realize that this could be true. Right now our country is in a "recessionary climate" (as opposed to an actual recession, huh?), and our government is not telling us to tighten our belts and wait it out. They aren't scolding us like a good government should and telling us that we lived beyond our means, we made our beds, now lie in them. Instead, they are giving us money, in the form of economic stimulus checks, and telling us to spend more! 

What's going to get out us out this mess? Buying more stuff that we don't really need. Raising our GNP. If we can do that, then we'll appear healthy. 

Perhaps its time we rethought what the indicator of health in the United States is. Because this current indicator seems to be an indicator of insanity. We have more than we could ever need in this country. Sure, I understand that it is not distributed evenly, but the "haves" consuming more and more is never going to fix that. That's a different problem that needs to be fixed. 

To produce more, to consume more, only to keep us "economically healthy" is a never ending vicious cycle that will cause people to always feel the need to work more so they can make more money so they can buy more things. When they've spent all their money on things, they'll have to start working even more to get more. And all of these things that we must buy are contributing to our environmental problems. Insanity.

These are simply my first thoughts on this subject, but I wanted to share them and see if you have any thoughts or words of wisdom. If you do, please share them.

Report on the EPA's Questionable Decisions

Ah - The EPA. A year ago, I knew little about them. Assumed they were the good guys. But the more and more I read about them and what they allow, the more I wonder who this protection agency is really protecting. 

I haven't had the time to write up my intended post today yet, but until I do if you're looking for something to read, check this out. The Lohasian has a post titled Chemicals Endangering Children While EPA Plays Nice with Chemical Companies. Be prepared to have your blood boil.

World Water Day Walk for Water

A few days ago I blogged about the prescription drugs that are contaminating the water in the U.S. It certainly is a problem that needs to be addressed. But compared to the water that many people in developing nations need to use every day for drinking, bathing, cooking and sanitation, the water available to me and my family in the U.S. is fabulous. 

On Saturday, March 22nd, I (and the rest if of my family if I can talk them into it) will be participating in the World Water Day Walk for Water with others from my church. It's estimated that women in many developing countries have to walk an average of 1.5 miles a day just to get water for their families, and the water that they do get is often of very poor quality. 

What does this have to do with being green? Lots.

This water crisis is due in part to the changing global climate. Whether you believe that the reasons behind the changing climate have to do with global warming or not, the fact is that things are changing. 

The water crisis is causing a health crisis. It kills as many as 5000 children a day. The people faced with this crisis spend much of their time seeking out water. Girls often have to forgo an education just to collect water for their families to survive. All of this focus on water leaves these people with little time to devote to the other environmental problems that their countries face. It's not their fault. They need water to live. 

But even if this had nothing to do with being green, it's something I would do. I believe in being green for two reasons. One is because I want the environment to be a nurturing place for my children and their children. The other is because I believe in creation care. God created this planet and expects us to care for it. But he also created people and expects us to care for them whether they live in our neighborhood or half way around the world. This is one way I can help care for those half way around the world. 

The money raised from this walk will be donated to WaterAid, an organization which does great things to help people in developing nations get clean, safe water and maintain their sources of water. If you're interested in sponsoring me on my walk, please e-mail me.

Associated Press Investigation: Drugs in the Drinking Water

A friend of mine sent me this link last night to an AP article about the levels of pharmaceutical drugs in the drinking water. It's very eye opening.  Basically, drugs are getting into our water because our bodies don't absorb all of them when they are taken. Some of the drugs pass through our bodies and back out into the water system. 

But it's not just the drugs that humans are taking. The steroids that are being given to cattle to make them bigger to get more meat from them are turning up in water systems, too. According to the study "Water sampled downstream of a Nebraska feedlot had steroid levels four times as high as the water taken upstream. Male fathead minnows living in that downstream area had low testosterone levels and small heads." Now here's another great argument for all natural, organic meat and dairy products. If the cattle aren't given the steroids in the first place, they can't leech into the drinking water.

I'm not a scientist, and I don't have any answers to the problems that this report exposes. The report says that even home water filtration systems may not be of any help in this instance and bottled water is usually no better than tap. But I wanted to bring the study to everyone's attention today just to help spread the information.