Earth Week: Food & Family

Food is an area where simple individual changes can have a dramatic impact. Did you know that agriculture and forestry account for 25% of all global greenhouse gases?  Here are some things YOU can do DAILY! Simple awareness and action can make immediate improvements.

  • Reduce food waste – Roughly one-third of the world’s food is never eaten…. often wasted even before it reaches the table.  For the most part this is an issue of distribution/storage in developing countries but, in the west, consumer behavior is the biggest culprit: (1) we only buy perfect produce, (2) what we do buy spoils in our fridge, or (3) servings are too large at restaurants and what we don’t eat is wasted.  
  • Eat a Plant-Rich diet – Not everyone will become vegan or vegetarian, but science shows that reducing meat consumption by one meal a week can have a big impact. Eating less meat adds up to:
    • Improved health, saving approximately $1 trillion in annual healthcare costs and lost productivity.
    • Minimized methane release associated with livestock, not to mention reduced water usage and contamination
    • Increased efficiency, feeding humans directly as opposed to feeding animals that then feed humans
  • Compost your waste – improperly disposed of food waste decomposes in landfills and produces methane at a significant level. In fact, in the first two decades after its release, methane is 84 times more potent than carbon dioxide. So, waste less and compost all that you can. Can’t compost at home? Try:
    • Signing -up with Collective Resource or another area food waste collection company.
    • Recycling wisely – although recycling matters, it should be the last choice.  Rethink, Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Refurbish, Repair, Re-purpose, THEN Recycle.

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Today’s Climate Action Request:

  1. Like & share this message.
  2. Read: What to Plant in a Warming World – Climate Reality Blog
  3. Commit to a PB&J lunch, “Vegan before 6”, “Meatless Mondays” or go Vegan, Vegetarian, Flexitarian or Pescatarian (name dropper). And post your commitment to social media and why.  

 

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