Hippy and treehugger… that’s what I remember people being called when I first joined the Geography program at the University of Victoria. I guess that when you are studying about how the planet works or how the environment can affect how we live, you’re labeled as some sort of “alternative†person (i.e. freak like these mask we made in Bali?). I know the environmental movement has been going on for years – ex. Rachel Carlson, but its funny how things have moved so quickly in the past decade. Climate change, global warming, green growth, etc… All these key words have somehow made its way to the mainstream and the hippies and treehuggers are now being seen as a legitimate source for solutions… albeit at an arms distance. The photo below shows an environmentally sound house made of bamboo at the Green School in Bali. There’s also facilities to recycle human waste to produce methane for energy.
Now, the biggest thing is for companies to be socially responsible and environmentally aware. It seems that only when the economy and the pockets of the wealthy are in jeopardy do we see real action and change happening. But as usual, there is a catch. The solutions still seem to be based on keeping our global economy going. We now have corporations “greening†their industries and creating “green†jobs. But aren’t we missing the point of reducing our environmental impact when its society’s consumption and production that is the source of the problem? While I believe that “greening†our lifestyle is a way to go, the ultimate solution to our long-term environmental problems is to change the way we live and reduce our carbon footprint. From making our cities work more efficiently to address climate change, reducing our need to consume/produce, to taking small steps.
I’m guilty, like many people who work for international companies/organizations, for flying multiple times during the year – so far, approximately 6 international flights – 4 of them were more than 10 hours, including flying to Dili airport (photo above). And since flying is up there as a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, shouldn’t I be practicing what I preach? Knowing that I’m adding to the detriment of the environment is half the battle. So where do I go from here? I could pay the airlines like Cathay Pacific, to offset my footprint… Reducing other areas in my lifestyle (i.e. eating less meat, taking alternative transport, reducing my consumption, etc.) is a start, but I wanted a more direct way of giving back to the environment. I decided to calculate my travel carbon footprint using the calculator from ActionCarbone. According to the website, it would take almost 13 Earths to accommodate my traveling and approximately CND$800 to offset my carbon footprint.
THE OFFER
So now that I know how much it would take to offset my footprint, I’m planning on donating this amount to a worthy environmental idea – for example taking a household product and redesigning it to use renewable energy or a project to plant trees or make green spaces – or a worthy environmental organization. The donation can be for the full amount or a portion depending on the idea.
If you have an idea or know of someone doing something innovative for the environment, I’d like to hear about it. There’s no deadline to my offer – only that the idea takes into account the following three factors:
- It improves the environment.
- It uses renewable energy.
- It is an idea that anyone can use.
If you’re interested in this offer, just leave a comment.