2019 Life Logs, Day 174: Opportunities
Date: Sunday, June 23, 2019
Weather: Beautiful Day; High 83, Low 62 degrees
Location: At Home in the Cottage, East Falmouth, MA
Today was a warm, beautiful day. I’m afraid to say it, for fear it will go away, but it finally feels like summer is here. My back is better today, but I decided to stay home and do nothing. And I really enjoyed my quiet day. I ended the day by being the lucky recipient of a Goldstone summer cookout which was delicious and I spent the rest of the day catching up with friends.
I talked to Lynne Kirwin who is recovering from a shoulder replacement and she is doing great. I caught up on the blog written by sailing friends Heather and Jon Turgeon and found they have sailed back from the Bahamas and are now in North Carolina working on building the interior of their ‘land cruiser’ that they will probably be driving north to Vermont for the summer. I met with Midge Frieswyk and her daughter Allyse who is planning a trip to Bali and shared my experiences there. And I read more of the adventures of my New Hampshire friends, Mike and Linda Stuart, who are biking around the world. They are currently in Australia and have made two trips out to the Great Barrier Reef (by boat, not by bike!!). The photos from the first trip last Thursday were amazing. Their second trip was also amazing, but it added an environmental education aspect that the first trip did not offer. I loved the photo Linda posted of little Nemos with the heading, “Please help save my home.” There were a number of marine biologists onboard and I have a feeling Linda kept them all busy the entire time with her questions. What she already knew, but had reinforced by every biologist on this trip, is that each of us really can make a difference, even from here, in saving the reef—the world’s largest coral reef system and one of the world’s greatest natural wonders. What follows is copied from Linda’s latest blog post. I do hope you take time to read every word and take advantage of some of the opportunities.
FROM LINDA’S BLOG POST:
For the rest of the blog I am going to talk about things I can personally do to help save the reef. I know sometimes it feels like it is a lost cause, I am only one person, what difference can my actions make? Alex gave me the perfect line that I am going to try to remember, and I am going to repeat too many times below to help me make it my new mantra. Before I tell you the mantra, first, let me ask you, do you know about how many people are on this planet? That’s right, 7.7 billion people and it is growing. When Mike was born in 1960 there were only about 3 billion people. So back to the mantra. One person can make a difference if we all work together collectively. The saying Alex told us all was, “It is only one water bottle, said 7 Billion People.” Yay, my mathematical mind went crazy. Think about this. If less than half of the population used just one less water bottle on just one day, that would be 3.5 billion less water bottles on the earth – in just one day. That is with only half of us doing our part. So, the mantra goes, “It is only (enter good environmental practice here) said 7 Billion People.” You can even round it up to 8 billion if you want, since we are closer to that number. My new mindset is that I, and you as well, now have ‘fragments of opportunity’ to help the reef and the planet as a whole. Below are the rest of the suggestions made by the biologists on the boat.
Opportunity A: (I know I have written this before, but since it was mentioned so many times today I feel I have to repeat it.) Reduce single use plastic straws, plastic bags, plastic water bottles, plastic spoons to sample ice cream, plastic shampoo bottles. Whenever you have an opportunity, take it. “It is only one plastic shampoo bottle, said 7 Billion People.”
Opportunity B, Part A: Be a more conscious shopper. Is there a product that uses less packaging? Do you have to buy new? Can you find a used, but still good product? (That made me think of my mom as she likes to get great deals at the Salvation Army. By buying used she is making better choices for the planet even though she has probably never even thought about it in that way).
Opportunity B, Part B: Be a more conscious shopper. Is there a product made from recycled materials or waste that you can use? Does the company have a strong environmental rating? Carli told me about some of her clothing being made from waste. I was like WHAT? She said, look up Oceanzen. So, I did, and they make fabric that supports the removal of marine debris from our oceans. Bikinis made of nylon waste such as recycled plastic bottles and fishing nets that have been recovered from our oceans and recycled into swimwear! By regenerating waste, this company is not only making it new again, but they are also saving a whole heap of precious, finite resources and energy whilst also reducing carbon emissions. OMG. I did not even know such a thing existed. “It is only one recycled bikini, said 7 Billion People.” Hahahaha.
Opportunity B, Part C: Be a more conscious shopper at the supermarket. How much packaging does the food have? How many greenhouse gas emissions are produced to raise and harvest and distribute this food? Is there a locally raised option available? This one I honestly have been working on a bit lately, as you probably know. I have started to notice, especially here at Coles, that they sell lots of veggies in $2 and $3 and $5 bags. Before I just thought, “Well that is convenient, just the amount I wanted and only for $2 bucks.” Now I go get that same veg, like string beans, and put them in the paper mushroom bags. I am also thinking about our meat consumption. I am not ready to give up meat, but I could do Meatless Mondays. “It is only one meatless meal, said 7 Billion People.” I asked Maryanne to explain why less meat helps the planet. She suggested I think of everything, when it comes to environmental practices that is, in terms of energy and carbon dioxide. Meat takes more energy and resources to produce food than plants do. Often pastures are created by cutting down trees, and then whatever is fed to the cow is grown using energy, wheat or grass or whatever, then the cow eats that and farts and emits methane which is a greenhouse gas emission, then there is lots of energy used to process the cow into edible pieces, and of course ship it all over the world for us to buy it. I am starting to be more and more convinced, so I need you all to send me some good meatless recipes that Mike will want to eat so I can go for not only Meatless Mondays but also Fabulous Food Fridays with no meat.
Opportunity C: Get out of your car once in a while. Take a walk, a bike ride, a bus ride, share a ride with a friend, or carpool. Use your energy to get where you need to go rather than fossil fuels. Not only will you save money, but fewer cars on the road means less carbon and pollution will be in the air. This will protect the environment by keeping the air, water, and land clean. “It is only one trip, said 7 Billion People.”
Opportunity D: Make your voices heard. Write letters to your government officials and vote. Here in Australia, and lately at home in the USA, coal is making a comeback, largely due to our governments approving or changing environmental laws. Mining and burning coal is driving global warming by causing waters to warm and become more acidic. This causes huge stress for corals, causing ‘mass bleaching’, and if conditions do not improve – they die. Remember, bleaching is the way a coral expels unhealthy algae and is a natural process in some coral but it is not natural to have larger sections of the reef all become bleached. Climate change is the big elephant in the room when you talk about a healthy reef and this is the biggest thing you can do . . . educate everyone, including your politicians. This should not be a party thing. We all live on the same planet. It is a people living on the planet thing, regardless of which party you like. Catastrophic climate change – fueled by burning coal and other fossil fuels – is the biggest threat to our Great Barrier Reef. In 2015, Sweden threw down the gauntlet with an ambitious goal: to eliminate fossil fuels from electricity generation by 2040 within its borders, and has ramped up investment in solar, wind, energy storage, smart grids, and clean transport. If Sweden can do it, so can we! Make America better than Sweden!
Opportunity E: Come see the Great Barrier Reef. Fall in love with it. Your love will hopefully inspire you so try to save it, and your visit will infuse some money into conservation efforts to preserve sections of it. You will want to share your photos with people and make them love it too. You will want people to take every opportunity they have to keep this resource, and the diversity of species, alive for everyone to experience. You will want to reexamine your habits so you can better choices. You will have one of the best days of your life. Win. Win. Win.
If you would like to check out Linda’s blog posts, click on the following and scroll to the bottom of the page for the latest post: https://www.crazyguyonabike.com/doc/?o=tS&doc_id=13549&v=7Xh
