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Ecopinions:  What's your strategy for saving the world?  |
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Jen
Expedition Leader
1384 Posts
Jennifer
Calico Rock
AR
USA
1384 Posts |
 Posted - Apr 25 2007 : 07:45:37 AM
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In your opinion, which is more critical to the preservation/restoration of our natural environment: grand-scale projects & campaigns or living "right" & leading by example? Of course, there is effectiveness to both, but which one strikes you as more important 
Maybe that's the egg before the chicken (or the other way around) - do you think the planet needs to be "saved" at all, or will homeostasis save it (if not us) in the end
I'm having big thoughts today, can you tell? 
The View From My Boots: www.bovesboots.blogspot.com
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Sarah Blue
outbound
37 Posts
Squaw Valley
California
USA
37 Posts |
Posted - Apr 25 2007 : 12:06:36 PM
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I deeply admire other people who take steps to make a positive difference in the world we share. Far too many of us live privileged lives and give very little back to those who do not. My strategy is to be the best most responsible person I can be (an on-going challenge) and to support others in doing the same. My day job, that I didn't go to today because of some cow issues, is providing guidance counseling to homeless young adults who are trying to turn their lives around and get on their own two feet. To me, saving the world is anything we do to raise ourselves and each other up to an existence that is peaceful, cooperative, and sustainable. I do believe we live in a critical time and that if we don't take steps to turn things around, the planet will "do what it has to" and shake us off like a bunch of fleas!
"i believe in god, i just spell it nature." - frank lloyd wright
http://www.myspace.com/svgrrrl |
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catscharm74
outbound
35 Posts
35 Posts |
Posted - Apr 26 2007 : 08:31:36 AM
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| I am going back to my vegetarian ways- for my health first, planent second. I am living with less and on less which means consuming less and putting less back out into the world. I am learning how to grow a garden. I have only 3 containers this year, but they are my testing grounds. Driving less, turning off electricity more, especially since the sun stays out until almost 8 now. I think the time for change has passed and it is going to be a big eye opener when we get hit with some pretty tough decisions. |
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Elizaray
outspoken
680 Posts
Elizaray
680 Posts |
Posted - Apr 26 2007 : 8:56:41 PM
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I think it is a combination of big sweeping projects and individual responsibility that will save the planet. We need the big corporations to be more responsible and have more answerability to their emmisions! However each individual needs to have accountability to the damage they do to the planet everyday.
For example an average baby in the first year of life goes through about 2100 diapers. I have heard that each diaper takes about 500 years to decompose and uses about a cup of oil to be made. Most people use disposable diapers without a thought to the damage these do to the environment.
If big corporations worked on being more eco-friendly, and every individual recycled and did their part to plant trees our planet would recover amazingly fast! If only we could get ever single person to be eco-minded!
Elizaray |
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Jen
Expedition Leader
1384 Posts
Jennifer
Calico Rock
AR
USA
1384 Posts |
Posted - May 04 2007 : 12:22:58 PM
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I agree, Elizaray. I've become a real proponent of leading by example because the choices of 1 person (or family) can have a significant impact, and the benefits of sharing knowledge are far-reaching. My extended family & inlaws have always thought we were a bit eccentric with our organic food preference, but now, after years of teasing & skepticism, I'm starting to find things like organic milk in their refrigerators! That said, we're no gold standard by far, but we're trying to be better all the time, and I think it's important to let others know that (as long as it doesn't become preachy, because who wants to hear a sermon?).
Alas, we are still just a flea on the dog's back - a very small flea. Big efforts by people with big money are invaluable - just as long as they aren't restoring the streambank next to the road & dumping toxic sludge around the bend, know what I mean?
The View From My Boots: www.bovesboots.blogspot.com
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Elizaray
outspoken
680 Posts
Elizaray
680 Posts |
Posted - May 04 2007 : 2:50:34 PM
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Yes, it is so discouraging when people are talking out the sides of their mouths so to speak. Like someone buying a "green" vehicle and then feeding their kids only McDonald's foods or leaving all the lights on in their house or not recycling! Doing one "green" thing doesn't mean that you get a "get out of jail free" card for all the other dangerous and damaging behaviors! ;)
Elizaray |
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marybeth
outstepping
146 Posts
Marybeth
Washington
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - May 06 2007 : 06:57:17 AM
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Sometimes I do feel like that flea on the dog's back. So I guess I can show by example. If I do my part and teach my children and maybe even their friends and they retain something I have taught them and pass that along to their children and friends and on it goes. It is the best I can do at this time. We may be small cogs but we can do our part to keep the whole machine moving smoothly and properly. Everyone is jumping on this "green" bandwagon as if it is something new. Maybe the heads are coming out of the sand afterall or is it just a ploy by the high muck-a-mucks to make us think they are doing their part too????? MB
Being outside is being |
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Jen
Expedition Leader
1384 Posts
Jennifer
Calico Rock
AR
USA
1384 Posts |
Posted - May 06 2007 : 07:32:20 AM
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Yes, it's certain the muck-a-mucks have an agenda. If some good comes of it, then hooray. I'm suspicious, though, of Nabisco and the other behemoths suddenly selling "organic" versions of their packaged foods. Even if they are somehow using semi-natural methods on a large scale, we can be sure that the large scale will cause problems in itself. Monoculture - or how about gigantoculture - simply can't be sustainable in a truly natural way.
I had something else to say, and it vanished from my brain! Oh well, maybe later...
The View From My Boots: www.bovesboots.blogspot.com
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marybeth
outstepping
146 Posts
Marybeth
Washington
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - May 06 2007 : 5:17:29 PM
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I buy oeganic as much as I can and generally local. And local and not "organic" is better than not. Yesterday I needed some carrots and there they were. Natures Way "certified organic". I didn't look until I got hime. The package said--Packaged in Ohio--certified in California and--get this--Product of Mexico!. So what did I buy? that's what I get for buying veggies already packaged, I guess. MB
Being outside is being |
Edited by - marybeth on May 06 2007 5:18:29 PM |
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Elizaray
outspoken
680 Posts
Elizaray
680 Posts |
Posted - May 09 2007 : 1:30:05 PM
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Marybeth- Wow that is scarey! Think about how much fossil fuel was used just to get those carrots all over the place like that!
I can't wait till my garden starts to yield some food. Then I don't have to worry about where it came from- I will know! Things like your carrots really make you appreciate home gardening doesn't it?
Elizaray |
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Joelle
outbound
11 Posts
Joelle
Aptos
CA
USA
11 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2007 : 5:17:48 PM
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I think you all have great contributions to this topic! I love it. In regards to the last area of conversation: organic/ local, etc... I highly recommend Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollen. It is a fantastic read and a real eye-opener about organic and food. I am only half way done, but already have been influenced by this book when starting my garden. There is a great farm called Polyfarm in Virginia, I believe- if anyone lives near this farm, they should check it out!!
My own personal ideas about how to save the earth- and I think I have a few, is to definitely live as sustainable as possible- always live by example- always be conscious of your actions and their impact. Support sustainable products, ideas and green politics with your money. I do not believe any 'big-business' is environmentally sustainable- anything that is in large production and globally distributed is not sustainable. I believe we MUST teach our children, the youth in their formative years to cherish the planet they live on! If they do not respect it, they will not preserve it. The Vain- cell phone- media minded culture we have created is not sustainable! We need to cultivate an awareness, a respect, and a lifestyle that gives that gratification people are looking for, that does not destroy our planet. Since this is a capitalistic country, I believe a revolution of economic theory must be instilled- the successful companies will be the ones which have environmentally sustainable mission statements and practices- not just the simple 'recycle, keep water clean' policies, but have actually completely revamped their production to produce little to no waste (solid, liquid or gas).
I unfortunately have a dismal outlook for our species if we do not make some major changes soon. I'll step off my soapbox (for now)...
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marybeth
outstepping
146 Posts
Marybeth
Washington
USA
146 Posts |
Posted - Jun 04 2007 : 9:38:09 PM
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Hi Joelle, funny you should mention pPolyface Farms in Va. I was just reading an article about the owner Joel Salatin. Amazing. The article is in the magazine 'The Progressive Farmer'. His standard sermon is that farming, pushed to become industrial, has lost its way. That's why farmers have lost touch with their biggest ally: Mother Nature. He believes in the family farm. You can visit him at www.polyfacefarms.com I'm going there now. MB
http://www.day4plus.blogspot.com
Being outside is being |
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Joelle
outbound
11 Posts
Joelle
Aptos
CA
USA
11 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2007 : 10:33:00 AM
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Yes, that's right, Joe Salatin! He seems like a very interesting man, who truly practices what he preaches and his farm sounds incredibly successful and WELL thought out. I'll check out his web page. It is ironic that an article in "The Progressive Farmer" would be about a farmer who 'believes in the family farm'... the way it used to be. Retro is Progressive!!  |
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Jen
Expedition Leader
1384 Posts
Jennifer
Calico Rock
AR
USA
1384 Posts |
Posted - Jun 05 2007 : 12:38:36 PM
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Hadn't heard of the Progressive Farmer, so I checked out the website & signed on for a free trial of the magazine - looks great!!! I love that they incorporate a section of "Outdoors & Wildlife."
The View From My Boots: www.bovesboots.blogspot.com
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Ellen
outstepping
124 Posts
124 Posts |
Posted - Jun 08 2007 : 2:54:22 PM
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I liked Pollen's book too... and Jane Goodall's Harvest for Hope.
In Animal Vegetable Miracle by Kingsolver:
"Each food item in a typical U.S. meal has traveled an average of 1,500 miles."
"If every U.S. citizen ate just one meal a week (any meal) composed of locally and organically raised meats and produce, we would reduce our country's oil consumption by over 1.1 million barrels of oil every week. That's not gallons, but barrels. Small changes in buying habits can make a big differences." p.5 |
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blueberries in alaska
outstepping
109 Posts
Jo
hillsides of the Chugach
AK
USA
109 Posts |
Posted - Jun 15 2007 : 01:37:21 AM
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| not shopping, buying things made locally, eating food grown locally, not buying food that comes in a box. being thoughtful, being kind, not wanting what other people have. living in a meaningful way. jo |
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Ellen
outstepping
124 Posts
124 Posts |
Posted - Jun 16 2007 : 12:31:07 PM
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Jo
you have a good answer!
here is a 53minute streaming video of Animal Vegetable Miracle author Barbara Kingsolver and her husband Steven on eating local.
rtsp://media.globalpublicmedia.com/RM/2007/05/Barbara_Kingsolver_20070516.rm |
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Ecopinions: What's your strategy for saving the world? |
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What's your strategy for saving the world?
