Reaching 8 Billion

Yesterday (Tuesday, November 15th, 2022) was the Day of 8 Billion. It was the day we, as a planet, reached the global milestone of 8 billion (with a "B") people. This feat took only 12 years to go from 7 billion (in 2010) to 8 billion.

Ever since yesterday when I heard the news of it being 8 Billion Day, I've periodically checked in on WorldOMeter's website. It shows the current population numbers in live time, with numbers changing by the second. It's amazing to see the incredible jump from this time today versus the same time yesterday!

Watching the trajectory historically as we gain each additional billion is fascinating. The graph below--as well as the data in the chart I made--were from Population Education's website and their post by Marian Starkey [July 6, 2022] entitled "8 Billion and Growing: World Population Milestones Throughout History." Both data visualizations are eye-opening and jaw-dropping when you think of how that rate has increased over time. The startling point too is how flat the line on the graph was for population growth from year 0 to 1800 (which you can see on the graph shown here).

While it's looking like United Nation projections don't have us hitting 9 million until 2037 (15 years, a bit of a bigger jump than what we just saw between 7 and 8 billion), there clearly are ramifications across almost every field of study and interest. Of course, there are the environmental impacts of an ever-crowding planet. Technology and medicine have made it possible to have fuller, richer, healthier, and longer lives. Growing population means we need to have the resources available for us to live here on our planet as well as to provide us with food for all of these growing people. 

To learn more about the Day of 8 Billion and how 8 billion people impact our planet, check out these sites:

• Overview from the United Nations

• "How Big Is a Billion" benchmarks from Population Education so you can begin to wrap your head around just how big IS 8 billion??!

• Click this GTG archived link from back in February of 2015 (way back when there were only 7.3 billion people) to see Population Education's 7 minute map-animated video of population over time from 0 to current day and projected to 2050

• Also from February 2015 and my "Framing Education Around Population" post about Population Education, find the map of what countries would look like if their land mass matched their population.

• Population education's "Day of 8 Billion – 9 Interesting Population Questions and Answers"

• Pam Wasserman's August 2022 Population Education blog post entitled "8 Billion People on the Planet by November… and 13 Other Takeaways from the 2022 UN World Population Prospects"

• Population Education's "Teaching in a World of 8 Billion" for class simulations, lesson plans, and other resources.

• Population Riddles you can use in class with to get your students math minds bending around these really big numbers.

• Counting Populations: Millions & Billions, a population unit for K-5 students.

Intro image from https://thelatch.com.au/current-world-population/, Population graph from https://populationconnection.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/1800-2100.png; chart created from data on https://populationconnection.org/blog/world-population-milestones-throughout-history/, video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vL1_kCX6qg

Earth Hour 2022 Tonight: Sat., March 26th 8:30-9:30 pm

With #ShapeOurFuture as the 2022 theme, Earth Hour is tonight. By tuning off lights along with other nonessential lights from 8:30-9:30 pm tonight [Saturday, March 26th], you can take part of sharing with the collective, community vision of unifying for the planet.

For ideas of what to do during your hour of "lights out," check out EarthHour.org's "1 Special Hour, 7 Meaningful Ways to Spend It" (there are some GREAT activities listed here) as well as these past GTG posts: 

• 
  Earth Hour 2022: March 26th @ 8:30pm
  
• Earth Hour Tonight & "You're The Voice"
  
• Earth Hour 2018
  

Additionally, you can browse Earth Hour events over at earthhour.org.

Looking for more ways to take part beyond the 60 minutes? Check out go EarthHour.org's "Going Beyond the Hour."

Hashtags to follow on social media: 

• #ShapeOur Future    
• #Connect2Earth    
• #EarthHour    
• #EarthHour2022     
• #OnlyOneEarth

What are you doing tonight to turn off your lights and take part?

Image from https://www.conserve-energy-future.com/earth-hour-and-its-significance.php and https://www.earthhour.org/take-part/organise-an-event/marketing-materials, video from https://www.facebook.com/earthhour/videos/762790861791472/

Earth Hour 2022: March 26th @ 8:30pm

10 days from now it will be the 16th annual Earth Hour. What started in 2007 as a local event in Sydney, Australia has now become a worldwide, global event that happens in your time zone, on the 4th Saturday of March from 8:30 pm to 9:30 pm. During that time, individuals and businesses are encouraged to turn off all non-essential lights for that hour to symbolize our collective commitment to the planet. By clicking those lights off, it shines a spotlight on the importance of every person and their ability to take action and make a difference. Likewise, it draws attention to our global energy consumption and how that affects climate change.

For a timeline of milestones from 2007 to today, ways to take part where you are, and why 2022 is so important, check out Earth Hour's website or WWF's Earth Hour site. Likewise, you can check out Green Team Gazette's Earth Hour archives.

Wondering what you can do to fill your evening--here are some good ideas, all from my 2018 Earth Hour post:

• Stock up on candles and light them up as you knock out all your other lights at 8:30 pm.
• Unplug and have some good ole fashioned non-tech time.
• Play a game of night time Hide & Seek.
• Have a candlelight dinner... perhaps al fresco.
• Roast some marshmallows over a bonfire with good friends.
• Take a moonlit stroll.
• Spend some time in reflection and meditation.
• Play board games with your family by flashlight.
• Go stargazing.
• Take a night hike.
• Tell ghost stories.
• Take time having great conversations and quality time with someone you love.
• ...the sky is the limit! Create your own fun! Let me know what you are planning to do!

Video from https://youtu.be/rL5GSYBIsPk

World's Largest Lesson: Global Goals For Sustainable Development

While researching the late Sir Ken Robinson, I ran across this video series about the World's Largest Lesson. Created a few years ago, this ties in the with United Nations Global Goals for Sustainable Development, with their target date of making "our planet fair, healthy, and sustainable by 2030." Both were written by Sir Ken Robinson. And... with the second one narrated by Emma Watson, and the first narrated by Malala Yousafzai, how can it be anything but amazing?!

On The World's Largest Lesson website, there are a wealth of free resources (including lesson plans) and ideas for taking action as students. 2030 is a mere ten years away. 

With every year, it becomes more daunting, but we can certainly do the important work, if we put our minds to it! These videos certainly serve as inspiration!

The World's Largest Lesson pt 2 - with thanks to Sir Ken Robinson and Emma Watson from World's Largest Lesson on Vimeo.Videos from https://vimeo.com/worldslargestlesson/english-malala and Part 2:  https://vimeo.com/178464378, Part 3: https://vimeo.com/266852848

More Contemplations During Covid-Season

I keep referring to this time, this social distancing, coronavirus, remote learning isolation time as the “zombie apocalypse.”

Partly for my own comic relief, and partly because it’s like the freaking Covid-19 is the battalion of zombies we are at war against, here in the apocalypse.

Two weeks ago I got something in my email box from an education company that said 70% of students were partaking in some degree of distance learning. This does include my own children and my own students, and at this point I feel it must be even more than that as social distancing rules tighten for more and more communities. My role as an elementary school Technology Specialist has me fielding the never ending tech help desk while also supporting teachers and parents in this time of tech triage. We have had 3 weeks of at-home school days and Zoom days and Seesaw days under our belt at the elementary school, semi-settling into this new style of delivering education from afar, attempting to get used to the new normal.

As adults, closest we can get to friends & family is FaceTime and Houseparty hangouts, holidays, and happy hours. I think back on my teen years and couldn’t even imagine this level of isolation that my own children are encountering. Friendships are happening by way of texting, and their main time together are in video chat rooms and on gaming platforms. Thank heaven for the tech time for connection, but man, I know I’m mourning the real face time that my kids are losing out on.

Life in the age of Covid-19.

As I'm pondering all of this, here are some of the things I have noticed, all of which have really surprised me:

• My inability to shut down and step away from the ever-blurry life, when my home office is my tv room, and my computer/iPad/phone never stop acting like the Bat Signal in Gotham City.

• My comfort in being home where it’s safe and germ-free, keeping us from exposure out in the world.

• My delight in the fact that at least this happened in the spring, not the depressing gloom of wintertime or the oppressive heat of summertime. At least the daily view and the backyard patio are a respite from the over-techified world.

• My over-saturation in mindless "over-scrolling" in Facebook, Apple News, and Words with Friends... which lead to my need to "step away from the phone!"

• That ever-present, low grade anxiety which has attributed to every aspect life. It’s unshakable, and I found evidence for it in reading a very good article which explained how this constant, lingering angst gets in the way of focus, explaining why I can’t get deeper into books than the comfort food equivalent of Harry Potter and picture books. 

• That a FaceTime call and visually checking in on people is so much more rewarding than an audio phone and texts--but that after a day of "zooming" sometimes that's the last thing I want to do.

• That upgraded wifi is worth it!

• That I’m tired of seeing myself in the 1” x 2” zoom gallery view window.

• That I can have a fabulous outfit waist-up, cute hair, make up, and even accessories... all the while being in yoga capris and Bobbie socks. This apparently is the new normal when it comes most people's "work from home" outfits, without giving it a second thought.

• That I’m grateful for my low level, pre-Peloton bike for letting me get my heart beating and my step count above 546, which seems to be my default daily work average unless I make a concerted effort to change it up.

When will this be over is a big time question, and more so everyday is this one: who and where will I be when this is all over? No answers yet as we are all dependent on heeding governor "stay at home" orders, and if the curve is actually flattening. So many new terms that we weren’t even using a month or two ago.

I’m listening to the rain right now. One of those slowing moments of gratitude. I'm especially thankful that it is raining here during the dark of bed time for the hope of a sunny patio day tomorrow. But I'm feeling the cleansing power. May it cleanse, soothe, bring perspective, and lull me to sleep... while also awakening me to a new day, a renewed sense of hope, a newly opened sense of wonder and optimism. Three cheers to the scientists and vaccine creators... and the day we are finally on the other side of all of this. May we remember all we sacrificed and lost, while also hugging our loved ones!

Be safe out there as you take every precaution you can!!

Images from https://catchymemes.com/post/612780987358773248 and https://nusd.org/remote-learning/

Tackling Tough Times With Lightness, Laughter, & A Bit of Fun Theory

My Spring Break started this past Friday. Yay!

But, even here at the cusp, it's not been a typical spring break.

• Spring Break Eve began with an announcement from our governor that schools would be closed for the next two weeks due to COVID-19. 

• Unprecedented and odd, but actually weirdly okay given our independent school already had the built-in calendar gift of 2 weeks off. In some ways, it aligned wonderfully well.

• BUT...there's also the possibility it won't, so for the previous week and a half, our Tech & admin teams were busy scurrying together a plan for the possibility of remote learning... all as time ticked along, closing our window of time before break.

• Plus, I was also running up agains the March 17th deadline to turn in our recertification to be a Maryland Green School. (More on that process in a later post.)

It's kind of been the perfect storm. Add in:

• For the last 2 weeks, on top of the full tech days, I've had late nights trying to get final details in order for the green school application... and long full weekend days of computing--even yesterday. Even after spring break started, I was still heftily in worker bee mode.

• My spring break plans are (and have been) dissolving. My family had already decided to cancel our train trip to New York City to visit friends, and another overnight the second weekend had to be canceled too. (Although Amtrak canceled us before we even had a chance to cancel them.) I'm also contemplating making a flight trip into a driving trip... just still not sure on those plans

• Then there's all the news stories that you just can't get away from: "the virus." It's changing daily, and teachers, by nature, like to have a little more control in life than all of this.

So, I entered Spring Break overtired, still in work mode the first day and a half, and hyped up.

It was here, as I was contemplating this is a strange and unusual time for the world, that I ran across the idea of fun theory--one I'd encountered before, and perhaps that timing was heaven-sent:

We need to take a breath, embrace the lightness and the laughter, and ultimately go with the flow as best as we can. That, in part, is what Spring Break is always about. And just because we may be under a bit of house arrest, we can take advantage of the days, these warm sunny spring days, and the nights that are now lighter because of daylight savings time. Maybe what we need is less news and more comedy. Maybe more books and outside and less social media. Maybe a bit of game playing, movie binging, and approaching it all appreciating the gift of time. What have you been waiting to do? Maybe now's the time to do it.  Maybe the place to start is by watching these, part of the Volkswagen about 10 years ago showing that fun can bring about positive changes:





Quote from https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/randy-pausch-quotes; Videos from https://youtu.be/SByymar3bds, https://youtu.be/qRgWttqFKu8, 

Our Climate Our Future

"Our Climate Our Future" is one of the projects from Alliance for Climate Education [ACE]. After a decade of climate education for our youth, while also creating young activists, ACE proudly has enlightened and educated over 3 million students.

"Our Climate Our Future" is a video series that totals 40 minutes of climate education. It's a combination of teen narrators, animation, and a lot of facts. Here's the trailer.



The 40 minutes are well worth it and you walk away learning a lot. It leaves you empowered. Imagine if our middle and upper school students world wide all watched this and decide to take this on? To watch the video in its entirety (either as an educator, and educated citizen, or as future activists), all you need to do is get on their email list. You can either watch it in total, or by chapter. Chapters include:

1. Welcome
2. Living Large
3. Fossil Fuels & CO2
4. CO2 & Climate Change
5. Real World Impacts
6. Is It Real
7. The Big Picture
8. The Solutions
9. The Movement
10. Take Action
11. It's Up To You

There's an interactive piece where you can use your mobile device to text your responses to questions that are tied into the video.

Also at the website, you'll also find Educator Resources such as a discussion guide and a student worksheet of comprehension and vocabulary activities.  Likewise, the Activities pages has a significant list of other classroom activities. There also is a portal where you can get ideas of ways to take action to be part of the solution.

Also on the website you can find "Climate Stories"--20+ stories of what young people around the US are experiencing and also ways that they are taking action. Their video stories are great ways to open your eyes to other people's experiences as well as the way climate change is affecting people around the country. Additionally, there is a form in which you can potentially share your story here too.

My favorite quotes of the movie: 

"When the people lead, the leaders will follow." 

"Today, over 90% of people under the age of 30 

agree that climate change is a real problem 

and that humans are responsible."

"No one is too young to lead."

Every day actions take us steps forward. Their question: what's your 'DOT?' What's a DOT? It means: "Do One Thing."

So my question: What's your DOT? Maybe it starts with watching this.

Video from https://youtu.be/TPORBBoGnjA, images from https://ourclimateourfuture.org

Plastic Is Not Fantastic--Emily De Sousa's TEDxTalk

"9.1 billion tons of plastic created to date." How heavy is one plastic bag? Hardly anything! Emily De Sousa details what that weight means in visual terms in her TEDxKanata talk from last year.

Other statistical figures she presents:

♳  Half of the 8 million tons of that winds up in our oceans and waterways. 

♳  As for straws... she mentioned that 57,000,000 straws are used daily in Canada. 

♳  She also mentions major numbers regarding how much oceanic plastic we eat annually through seafood.

Emily, as the founder and owner of the sustainable travel blog "Airplanes and Avocados." In addition to sustainable travel, marine conservation issues is one of her topics of choice and she is an avid SCUBA diver. She promotes activism through digital storytelling and education in order to reach many via the masses through social media. She's certainly a #BlueMind advocate...without ever mentioning those words!

Through her TEDx Talk, she voices her love of our planet, lots of those statistics mentioned above (and many more), and the fact that we all need to be doing something for sustainability. There are so many simple things we can all do.

Video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UqkgRGPqsk  
image from https://www.deviantart.com/emlikesfantasy/art/Plastic-is-not-fantastic-768431022 and https://twitter.com/i/moments/966647389464473607  

3 Decades of Time, On Either Side.

The year now is 2019. The month, October. Meaning we are almost at 2020.

30 years ago, when we do that rounding up, it was nearly 1990.
I was in college.
Yes, I'm showing my age.
30 years from now, it's going to be roughly 2050. By then, hopefully, I'll be really old (because it certainly beats the alternative!)

30 years of difference--3 decades--on either side. Two environmental resources I've run across really nailed that piece home. One was Time Magazine's September 12th issue, which was entirely dedicated to Climate Change: "2050: How Earth Survived." The other was The Years Project Video: "Thirsty World" video, prophesizing on where we'll be if we aren't careful. It's not pretty. Population growth is not going to stop or reverse. In fact, the expected population by 2050 is 9.8 billion (compared to our current 7.7 billion). Yikes!

Circling back to Time Magazine, the symmetrical math mirror of 30 years was even more striking because they went back to their issue 30 years prior where they named "Endangered Earth" as "Planet of the Year" (as opposed to "Man of the Year") due to the environmental crisis that was afoot then. 30 YEARS AGO. (Yes, I felt the need to yell a little bit.) 

Begs the question--why are we still here? They mention a 30-year wake up call/reality check. It is from this vantage point that details why they dedicated this entire issue to climate change (only the fifth time in their 96-year history they've dedicated entire issues to one subject.) I like how they are clear that they are convinced in the unquestioning science backing climate change, and no climate skeptics are featured in the issue.

Featured in the issue is their "Voices" section, where they take some of the climate thought leaders who write their thoughts on the subject. There are too many good ones to list, so click here to click through and read them all. If you only have time for a few, my favorites are Jane Goodall's, Al Gore's, and Graça Machel's.

There's also a great multimedia 3D piece entitled "The Dying Rainforest" narrated by Jane Goodall on the perils the Amazon Rainforest is facing. Add in, articles on the following:

• The 124°F heat of Jacabobad, Pakistan may be foreshadowing to global rising temperatures.
• The Great Green Wall of Africa where growing nearly 5,000 miles of plants is helping mitigate the effects of global warming;
• The changing views of American voters who view climate change as a problem more than ever before;
• Rising waters lead to immigration issues as homelands become waterlogged and displaced;
• Reclaiming land in a "rewilding" sort of way may be one solution of the many necessary; 
• The threat of melting glaciers on global water levels;
• 15 female environmentalists who are leading the way.

Bottom line--there's a lot here!! All of which is excellent reading. Imagine the world if we all read and absorbed this issue!

3 decades of time on either side. It makes you wonder, where will we all be 30 years down the line in 2050. Hope and optimism are two of my governing traits, so I pray it is NOT where The Years Project projected! May we all follow the lead of so many mentioned here, and the young activists like Greta Thunberg who were leading the way this past September!

30 years photo from https://www.fool.com/slideshow/heres-what-these-25-everyday-items-cost-30-years-ago/; Years Project video from https://youtu.be/8j624u7gOVU; Time dual cover image from https://grist.org/article/time-magazine-devoted-an-entire-issue-to-climate-change-again/; Voices image screenshot from https://time.com/climate-change-solutions/, end video from https://time.com/5669022/climate-change-2050/

Climate Optimism

In the wacky world of today, we all need a li'l bit o'love... and a whole lot of optimism. Like love, I think it makes the world go 'round.

This video "140 Seconds of Optimism" from Climate Optimist follows suit with the sentiments I wrote about earlier in the month in my post "Handling the Emotions of a Rough August," plus it ties with the "Climate Change Solutions Quiz."


To learn more about how to be a Climate Optimist, check out there website. While there...

• The "Good News" stories--things that are happening world wide to help solve climate change and move the needle forward.
• Read the Climate Optimist Manifesto. (My favorite line: "Because hope beats fear. It’s the attitude that inspires progress.... And when we succeed this time, we’ll solve more than climate change. Renewable energy means jobs. Solar energy can help free people from poverty. Cutting pollution benefits our health.")
• Learn ways to take action.
• See Climate Optimist's Proof Point sources.
• Discover their other resources.

It can become easy to be fatalistic, hopeless, or fear-filled. but why? Optimism is a much more pro-active, energized, and positive way to go. What can you do to begin to make a difference?

Photo screenshot from https://www.climateoptimist.org/resources/; Video from https://vimeo.com/234337443

Handling the Emotions of a Rough August

August has been a hard environmental month. The start of September hasn't been any better with Hurricane Dorian rearing its ugly this past weekend, dumping copious amounts of water and destruction over the Bahamas, and now moving along the East Coast with its ultimate landing yet to be determined.

What makes it both maddening, saddening, and worse: all of the events of the last month have essentially come at human hands, emphasizing the perils we pose to the planet. A brief synopsis:

1. Iceland's Glacial Funeral
Funerals are always hard. No one likes seeing the passing of someone (or something) important. The same holds true when glaciers cease to exist, all because of a warming that should not be.



2.  The Wildfires of the Amazon
My son was highly perturbed by the lack of news about the fires in the Amazon rainforest. In fact, he brought it to my attention days before it came on the national news front (having seen it along social media). Sadly, the news cycles in a way to show our priorities, and sadly climate change and planetary problems often fall lower on the news hierarchy than a lot of other published pieces.

3. But wait, there's more!
These are the other climate events that have occurred this past summer. Ones that didn't get quite as much news coverage. I ran across them in the August 28th WGBH article "Flooding, Melting And On Fire: 6 Stories That Show The Dramatic Impact Of Climate Change Now" by Emily Judem. In it, along with mentioning the Amazon fires, Judem details 5 other news-worthy climate events this past August. Everyone of them ultimately came about at the hands of humans, over time. Listed here are the main stories Judem shared (but you should read her whole article linked above):

• Miami Is Flooding – The Washington Post, Aug. 8, 2019
• Rhode Island (And The Rest Of The Northeast) Is Heating Up – The Washington Post, Aug. 13, 2019
• Siberia Is On Fire – Vox, Aug. 14, 2019
• Greenland Is Melting – CNN, Aug. 15, 2019
• Alaska Is In Drought (And Also On Fire) – Reuters, Aug. 19, 2019

Judem also mentioned some other "minor," even less-publicized incidences such as home-destroying rains and floods in Freetown, Sierra Leone and destructive wildfires in Indonesia, the Canary Island, Greece, Turkey, and France.

All of this follows NOAA's announcement that July 2019 was the hottest month on record. Hottest. Month. Ever. It's still early in September, so time will tell where August 2019 falls in the record books. And just like the August events listed above, July also had its own climate anomalies.

*Sigh*  It's heavy. And disheartening. And a whole lot of bad news.

* * *

As I was pondering all of this, I was sharing my concerns with a very dear and equally die-hard environmental friend. While we were commiserating via email this past weekend about the weight of it all, I shared with her a text from my middle-school son. Last week he texted me at work asking me if it was true that we only have around 17 months to fix our planet before it's past fixable. That's a lot of weight for someone so young. I answered him as best as I could, but it left me wondering what to do with all of this weight, other than bury my head in the sand or curl up in the fetal position due to the fatigue of such fatalistic news.

Ironically, in the exchange with my friend, we both landed upon the same conclusion--simultaneously, while separate. When we continued our conversation, we discovered that we were (again) of like minds. She stated it so much more succinctly than I did:

"I saw a scientist on NPR last week who was giving all kinds of climate change information, but he was so optimistic. He didn't talk about 'we missed our chance' or 'if we don't do it by this amount of time...' or anything like that. So I got to thinking: why not be optimistic? Anything we do will help to make it less worse. What's the alternative? Why not be optimistic? Not ostrich optimistic. We have to travel through this life until we die. I don't want to spend my time being fearful, regretful, and defeated. We have to keep caring and pushing and doing. And voting."

Yes. I came to that same place of optimism as I was staring at my trees from the happy place of my pool this Labor Day, and again later as I was biking through a local park. We can't get consumed by the doom and gloom--as easy as it feels to land there. We have to embrace the hopeful variety of optimism, because truly, what other choice is there. We have to fight for it by doing everything we can. We need to get outdoors and encourage our loved ones (both our young ones and our older ones) to get outside, to appreciate the beauty and magnitude of our planet. By loving it, we will protect it. By becoming stewards and by building young stewards, we can make a positive benefit. We can create the next generation that may actually be able to show us all how change happens. Perhaps it's in feeling the potential loss that we can all actually reach out, grab it, and protect it like never before!

We owe it to ourselves, our future generations, and our planet itself!


Emily Judem's article which was heavily referenced here: https://www.wgbh.org/news/international-news/2019/08/28/flooding-melting-and-on-fire-6-stories-that-show-the-dramatic-impact-of-climate-change-now;  Video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FrTzejIAsh8
Images from https://climatechange.lta.org/february-2019-ranked-fifth-hottest/ and https://www.cnn.com/americas/live-news/amazon-wildfire-august-2019/index.html and https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/reading-between-the-headlines/201307/the-power-hope and https://maycalendar.net/august-2019-calendar/

Caring For Mother Nature--One Beach At A Time

As a teacher, I have all of these summer projects on my to-do list--many of them having to do with
home improvements. Anything from decluttering to downright overhaul. Most days, reading a good book, writing a blog post, hanging in the backyard pool, or binge watching the latest show get in the way. (Perhaps I need to work on my willpower and motivation!)

Certainly, here is an inspiration we all can take to heart. It will perhaps make you question "what are YOU doing?" Seventy-year-old Pat Smith, equal parts environmentalist and grandmother, took on a personal and planetary mission: to clean one beach a week for all of 2018. It's amazing what a difference one person can do!

This video gives both Pat Smith's story, showcasing her efforts, as well as helping to inspire

 

Her plan for 2019: spreading the word about the perils of plastic. Do we really need that plastic grocery bag or drinking straw? She's inspired some of her local eateries to move beyond the plastic straw.

Hats off to Pat Smith. What can you do today to follow in her footsteps at creating a cleaner community where you live?




Image from https://quotefancy.com/quote/841971/John-F-Kennedy-One-person-can-make-a-difference-and-everyone-should-try; video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfxck2TXA3I

World Environment Day: June 5, 2019 #BeatAirPollution

As a "knower-of-random-dates" and a sometimes-perceived "knower of useless pieces of knowledge"... June 5 is not only during my kids' first week of summer, but it's also World Environment Day. It's often an annual blog post here! 

World Environment Day was introduced back in 1972. On December 15th of that yearit was designated by the General Assembly that June 5th would be known as an annual day where "world-wide activities reaffirming their [the United Nations'] concern for the preservation and enhancement of the environment, with a view to deepening environmental awareness and to pursuing the determination expressed at the Conference." Likewise, they adopted the creation of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). World Environment Day's first celebration was held in 1974, each year with a different environmental focus. 

This year's theme: #BeatAirPollution. The reason: 9 out of 10 people breathe polluted air. From the Climate & Clean Air Coalition: "approximately 7 million people worldwide die prematurely each year from air pollution, with about 4 million of these deaths occurring in Asia-Pacific."

You may not have realized it, but a campaign has been underway since May 24th of this year, running through today's World Environment Day, urging people to join the "Mask Challenge." From their website, here are some things you can do:

To give you more of a hint about World Environment Day, check out their 2017 #CleanSeas focus and how one day can indeed make a difference! May we be able to do the same this year with #BeatAirPollution!


World Environment Day logo from http://www.aaee.org.au/event/world-environment-day-2019/
#BeatAirPollution from http://webtv.un.org/d/watch/world-environment-day-2019-mask-challenge/6042745643001/?term=?term&lan=english#CleanSeas video from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTeXOF_9j_k&list=PLZ4sOGXTWw8GNZglk8F_fubpnmH2jvhTc&index=2, screenshots from https://www.worldenvironmentday.global/get-involved/world-environment-day-mask-challenge

Water Walk Experiment

Water and walking... two things we take for granted. When combined, it amounts to what 14 million women and 3 million children do every day (for 30 minutes or more) to access clean water.

This social experiment really helps to put it all into perspective:

 

Here are some past posts that tie to the importance of clean water! It doesn't need to be World Water Day to make this a priority or a focus--it just so happens to be that's a lot of when I wrote about it!

• Because Water Changes Everything
• World Water Day: March 22, 2012
• A Very Full Earth Day-Bay Week
• Water, Water, Charity: Water
• #WaterIs....A Limited Supply!
• #WaterIs: World Water Day: March 22, 2015
• #WaterIs...Everywhere, But Not Everywhere
• #WaterIs...In Global Crisis
• #WaterIs....Today! Celebrate World Water Day 2015
• World Water Day: March 22, 2016
• World Water Day 2018: March 22nd
• Donate a Birthday
• Thirsty for More

Video from https://www.facebook.com/ajplusenglish/videos/1043829469091893/

Earth Hour Tonight: March 30th 8:30--9:30 pm Your Time Zone

Tonight is the night to turn off our lights. Only for an hour. Earth Hour 2019.

March 30th, 8:30--9:30 in your own time zone.

Are you planning a bonfire, a picnic (either by candlelight in your living room or in your back yard), or a night hike? A board game or a candlit dinner party? An artsy event or time in meditation?  Unplugging and observing nature, or just going to bed early?

Whatever you do, turn off those non-essential lights (porch & patio lights too) to be a part of this global movement. Doing so shows your commitment to our planet, your fight against climate change, and your desire to take action. To learn more, click here.

I'll be taking part, will you?


Images from https://www.earthreminder.com/earth-hour-2019/ and
Video from https://youtu.be/wKwhuQ9bmIE

Earth Hour 2019

Earth Hour is around the bend-- just over 2 weeks away! It's one of my favorite "environmental holidays." Why?

1. I love the grass roots growth element of it.

2. I'm energized by its expansion over time, from Sydney, Australia alone in 2007 to an exponential fire burst of every country being involved in just a few short years--most recently, over 180 of the 195 world countries and territories.

3. It's like a virtual "wave" across the globe, in your time zone on Saturday, March 30th, from 8:30-9:30 pm, where your lights go out and you keep passing the (extinguished) torch! In doing so, you are messaging the world that climate change and our planet Earth are important!

4. You can make a small yet powerful statement in your time zone, giving an hour to "unplug," which then ties to the tech-side of GTG.

5. It's a positive event. A non-partisan, taking-action kind of way of raising awareness. You can do it it a big or small way, and be part of a global movement. This feels good, making your voice heard.

6. I've been taking part in Earth Hour since the 3rd one, in 2009 (including speaking to the Maryland House of Delegates Health & Government Operations Committee in 2011. By this point, it's now a time-honored tradition!!

Earth Hour has a slew of resources--here are some handy links to help you out.

• Earth Hour: What Is Earth Hour
• World Wildlife Fund: Earth Hour
• Earth Hour: Info & Take Part
• Earth Hour: Educators Information Booklet
• Earth Hour: Youth Groups Information Booklets
• Earth Hour: Toolkits
• Earth Hour Digital Posters
• Earth Hour: Map
• Earth Hour: Connect2Earth Stories
• Earth Hour: Cities 
• Earth Hour: Businesses
• Earth Hour: Event Organizers
• Earth Hour: Hotels

Looking at the latest reports over the last few months, general consensus puts us at a dozen years away from being at the tipping point. (Need to verify that stat? Check out these resources on climate change to verify why it is indeed important):

The Guardian (10-8-18): "We have 12 Years to Limit Climate Change Catastrophe, Warn UN"

The Guardian (10-8-18): "Overwhelmed by climate change? Here's what you can do"

The New York Times (2-14-19): Skipping School to Save the Earth (March 15th is the next school skip day)

The Guardian (3-4-19): "Adults Failed to Take Climate Action: Meet the Young Activists Stepping 

Up"

Ocean Leadership (11-13-14): "Effects of Climate Change ‘Irreversible,’ U.N. Panel Warns in 

Report"

Earth Hour banner and poster from https://www.earthhour.org/, video from https://youtu.be/wQ6S-pkbgB0

Environmental Films & Documentaries

In the mood for some movies--especially during these chilly days?

Here's a portal for some great eco films and documentaries! Click your computer, set your DVRs, or just make time to hunt down some of these cinematic finds!!

18 Films about Food to Inspire, Outrage, and Mobilize

Top Documentary Films on the Environment

11 Must-Watch Environmental Documentaries From The Last 10 Years

Earth Day Watch List: 17 Films About Sustainability and Climate Change

8 Outdoor Adventure and Environmental Documentaries You Don't Want To Miss In 2018

The Years of Living Dangerously Project

Videos on the National Geographic Years of Living Dangerously Channel

The Best Health Documentaries On Netflix Right Now



Image created at Canva.com.

Recycling Conundrums: The Dark Part

Over Christmas when I was home (as in, "my childhood home") visiting my family, we got into a quandary conversation about "where does 'this' go?" The 'this' in question was one of many things--a bottle, the pizza box, foil...you name it. The "where" in question was either "trash" or "recycling." We've all been recycling for years, but it seems as if the rules are always fluid, always shifting as to what "can" and "cannot" be recycled.

Is it a municipality thing?
Is it a real thing?
Is it a "we feel vindicated because we're recycling" thing, but really a "we're being snowed" thing?
Are we making our recycling unrecyclable because we're not putting enough effort into the act (and perhaps "art") of recycling?

At one point years ago, our local recycling was pitching the motto: "when in doubt, recycle it out." (Well, give or take--I added the rhyme.) They wanted to encourage over-recycling, saying they'd sort it out. Having just gone online and checked out their website, they've since come to change their view.

Recycling just doesn't seem easy nor intuitive anymore!

As part of my quest to re-figure out this recycling thing, I checked out a few articles.

538.com's 1/10/2019 article "The Era Of Easy Recycling May Be Coming To An End" reiterated the point that recycling has changed. Single-stream recycling (where we put them all into one bin and let the recycling center sift & sort it out) has made recycling efforts grow from 29% to 80% in the 9 years between 2005 and 2014. However, single-stream is not as cost-effective as it once was. Add in the fact that the mixed mess we are throwing out in that recycling bin can cross contaminate other recyclables, making our recycled items UNrecyclable! We're essentially shooting ourselves in the foot (about 25% of the time), BUT feeling good while we do it, because we wrongly think we are doing something for our planet!

Put plainer: we ultimately have higher rates of recycling happening when it's single-stream, but higher contamination rates too. Which means higher rates of recycling landing in the landfill.

This line struck me;

"There are also electronics and batteries, plastic grocery bags and Christmas lights — all of which can be recycled, but only through specialty drop-off programs, not the curbside bin. There are perfectly recyclable cans and paper coated in food, grease or cleaning fluids that render them unrecyclable. There are plastic bottles full of glass syringe needles that break open at the sorting facilities like a piñata from hell."

Additionally, glass bottles break, water bottles flatten, tin cans get smushed and misread by the machines. Shards of glass wind up enmeshed in cardboard boxes. Even some of the glues, inks and or packing tape wind up fouling up the machines. All of these cause problems, making single-stream more expensive and lowering recycling rates. It's not surprise that communities are starting to move away from one-stop-shopping recycling.

"Even the seven most common types of plastic used in consumer manufacturing–stamped on the bottom with a number inside a triangle–are replete with inconsistent resin composition, color, transparency, weight, shape, and size that complicate and often rule out recycling. For example, a #1 soda bottle has different melt properties than a #1 lettuce container, making the lettuce container a contaminant for the soda bottle. Colored soda bottles cannot mix with clear soda bottles. Yogurt containers cannot mix with milk jugs, even though both are white. Filmy cling wrap can be recycled in theory, but is too often contaminated by food. The limitations are too many to count."

If that didn't make your heads spin right there... just wait. There's more. National Geographic's article China's Ban on Trash Imports Shifts Waste Crisis to Southeast Asia details how China's trash import ban has been a game changer for all of us. For a year now, China (previously the largest importer of plastic waste) stopped buying the majority of what's out there. Their pursuit was for the 99.5% pure plastic trash. That upset a $200 Billion plastic scrap/plastic crap global industry... uprooting a 25 year roll!

But the trash has to go somewhere--and most Americans buy into the "NIMBY" philosophy--"Not In My Backyard! So where has all this recyclable waste gone? Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam,, & Malaysia. And, being "newbies" versus 25 year veterans, the learning curve led straight to overwhelm due to quantity alone!

From the article:

“I hate seeing my country as the dumpsite for the developed world,” said Yeo Bee Yin, whose full title is Minister for Energy, Technology, Science, Climate Change, and Environment. She declared that 'no developing nation should be the dumping site for the developed world.' "

Malaysia may now be considered the world's largest importer of plastic trash--and potentially the largest trash heap. Who wants that for their country?! But, perhaps it's the wake up call we all need in terms of thinking about our use of resources in order to help minimize the idea, especially with a potential of 10 billion people on our planet by 2050. The rate of waste is only growing. More people could get us to an increase of 70% over the next 30 years, meaning the garbage problem is only going to get worse!

Economy always rules the game. Especially when it is often exponentially cheaper to ship from the American West Coast to China by boat versus land-transport across our own country. The uncertainty in the recycling markets doesn't help. Additionally, there's now become a market for illegal importation of plastic trash. If there's a potential economy for anything, I suppose there's the potential for an illegal market of "that thing" as well. Sad but true.

So what ARE you supposed to do? Curl up in the fetal position? Bury your head in the sand? Drink ourselves silly? Those strategies, while temporarily comforting, aren't going to help.

Given this feels like the doom & gloom, mind-numbing portion of the program, I hate to stop here. But as you can tell, there IS a lot here. Given that, I'm going to share the silver linings in a secondary post. The good news is there ARE still ways we can take action and rein in the recycling.

For other eye opening articles for your own deeper dive, be sure to check out: 

• Huffington Post's "The Dirty Truth Is Your Recycling May Actually Go To Landfills" 
• WasteDive's "Market Effects Vary By State, But Widespread Agreement Is Recycling Needs to Change"

Images from
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/america-china-recycling-crisis-landfills_us_5b5170b1e4b0de86f48b7740 and https://recycleoftenrecycleright.com/resources/for-home/ and https://harmony1.com/recycling-sustainability-quotes/ and https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2018/10/14/plastic-waste-govt-forms-committee-to-look-into-recycling-industry/