Spring of 1970 – A shift in attitudes, values, and beliefs of 20 million Americans embodied through a movement of consciousness about our planet. 

Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, U.S., created Earth Day as a way to give environmental issues a voice and put them on the national agenda. In December 1970, Congress authorized the creation of a new federal agency to tackle environmental issues – the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Since then, efforts to tackle environmental degradation and climate change have been adopted worldwide from introducing policy and legislation, to funding clean technologies and renewable energy, to manufacturing biodegradable materials. Here, we look at the honouring of this day through the decades. 

News headline from the first Earth Day, 1970 // Source: ETEE

In the decades leading up to the first ever Earth Day, industrialization took over North America and other parts of the world. Manufacturing (1900s), mining (1930s), transportation (1950s) and retailing (1970s), along with rapid urbanization and consumer culture, all played a part in developing our world as we know it today. North America was consuming vast amounts of leaded gas through massive and inefficient automobiles. Industry belched out smoke and sludge with little fear of the consequences from either the law or bad press. Air pollution was commonly accepted as the smell of prosperity. Mainstream North America remained largely oblivious to environmental concerns and how a polluted environment seriously threatens human health.

1980 – In the U.S., this year saw significant environmental legislative achievements. Just 10 years after the first Earth Day, government protections over the environment drastically increased. By 1980, the following U.S. government acts were passed: Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, Safe Drinking Water Act, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act. 

On September 11th, Paul Tinari, a graduate student from Queen’s University, launched the first Canadian Earth Day. Flora MacDonald, then MP for Kingston, Ontario and the islands, officially opened Earth Day Week, encouraging MPs across the country to declare a cross-Canada annual Earth Day. 

Through the 70s and 80s, Earth Day in North America focused heavily on pollution. By Earth Day 1990, organizers and environmental agencies shifted their focus to climate change. 

1990 – Earth Day goes global, mobilizing 200 million people in 141 countries and lifting environmental issues onto the world stage. 

The activities of the 20th anniversary of Earth Day in 1990 presented a huge boost to recycling efforts and paved the way for the United Nations Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. The ‘Rio Declarations’ laid out 15 principles recognizing the impact of human activities on sustainability and committing to sustainability goals. In 1997, the United Nations Kyoto Protocol was signed setting commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions worldwide as well as establish the connection between human activities and climate change.

In Canada, this was the start of Earth Day Canada (Jour de la Terre Canada), combining efforts from both France and Canada, and the internationalization of Earth Day. Since 1995, Quebec has celebrated Earth Day through raising awareness on environmental issues. 

Earth Day Canada Logo // Source: EarthDay.ca

2000 – Earth Day goes digital. Through the power of connectivity, hundreds of millions of people in 184 countries celebrate the 30th anniversary of Earth Day, with a focus on clean energy. 

By leveraging the power of the Digital Revolution, Earth Day in the new millennium meant that environmental activities and initiatives spread faster to many parts of the world. Suddenly, awareness became the greatest tool in the fight against climate change. 

2010 – This was a challenging time for the environmental community as they faced climate deniers, well-funded oil enthusiasts with a not-so-environmentally-friendly agenda, a disinterested public, and neutral politicians. The Earth Day Network repositioned Earth Day as a day for environmental activism as the right time. On Earth Day 2010, over 250,000 people participated in a rally on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., and hundreds of millions of people observed Earth Day around the globe. Climate activism gained serious momentum. 

In 2015, the Paris Climate Agreement was drafted, going beyond the Kyoto Protocol, by setting a goal of achieving global net-zero emissions by 2050. In Canada, the French and Quebec teams joined forces to take the Earth Day movement to a new level for the French-speaking world. 

In 2018, Greta Thunberg acted as a voice for youth, by starting a protest in front of the Swedish parliament building, vowing to continue until the Swedish government met the carbon emissions target agreed by world leaders in Paris, in 2015. Students around the world quickly began following her lead, staging large protests and demanding change.

Greta Thunberg’s Climate Strike // Source: DW

In 2019, Earth Day Canada formed an alliance with EcoKids to enable environmental initiatives to be carried out across all provinces and territories. That year, I remember attending a climate rally in Ottawa and feeling empowered by the movement as a young adult living in the world today. 

2020 – Last year marked the 50th anniversary of Earth Day. The social and cultural movements that we saw in the 1970s rose back up again as we were hit with one of the largest crises of our time: COVID-19. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic transcended almost everything in 2020 (the good and the bad), including the environment, from cancelled summits on climate and biodiversity, to a temporary dip in air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, to greater awareness of the link between human health and climate change. As climate rallies and events were cancelled, Earth Day quickly pivoted from mobilizing millions on the ground to raising hundreds of millions of voices digitally. Fittingly, in Canada, the Earth Day theme was climate action with the main message being: “keeping our distance at home, but taking action for the planet together”. Now, we’re in the slow and gradual transition to a green recovery. 

Present day – The fight for our planet continues with increasing urgency. A\J has partnered with Earth Day Canada to shine a light on Earth Day celebrations through the years and explore the evolution of this day through this editorial series. This Earth Day will be spent at home, and Earth Day Canada has put together some practical, creative, and smart ideas for #EarthDayAtHome. The Earth Day Canada 2021 theme is Take Care of the Planet. The official campaign features “animals that have to clean up their polluted environments themselves”. The goal is to raise awareness about the urgency we are facing, and to encourage Canadians to #TakeCareOfThePlanet every day because it’s our responsibility to do so. 

Earth Day Canada’s #TakeCareOfThePlanet 2021 Campaign // Source: EarthDay.ca

Stay tuned for next week’s article for more about what Earth Day means for us this year, and how we can and should be celebrating the planet in the present day.

This article is part of a 3-part editorial series, in collaboration with Earth Day Canada, titled ‘The Past, Present, and Future of Earth Day’. Check out the full series here!

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The United Nations SDGs // Source: UN

The SDGs, adopted in 2015, outline seventeen interconnected goals that acknowledge that efforts to end poverty must go hand-in-hand with strategies that improve health, education, reduce inequality and tackle the challenges of climate change. Assessment of the first five years of SDGs implementation suggest that the world is off track to realize the set objectives by the 2030 target. Meanwhile, extreme weather events, wildfires and related environmental challenges, particularly, over the past few decades necessitate accelerated action if a planetary catastrophe is to be avoided. Given these ongoing and persistent challenges, the UN in September 2019 called on all sectors of society (global, national, local and individuals) to mobilize for a ‘Decade of Action’ on the SDGs. This call emphasizes the need for cross-sectoral coordination and collaboration in the implementation of the SDGs with a call for faster and more ambitious responses to stimulate environmental, social and economic transformation. Maintaining focus on the SDGs implies a holistic approach to development that focuses not only on the wellbeing of humans but also safeguards the planet upon which human lives depend. Actions to accelerate progress on the SDGs are even more urgent now because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic which threatens to derail SDGs implementation.

Non-state actors, specifically community-based organizations promoting conservation, are relevant stakeholders with activities that contribute to the objectives of the SDGs. Organizations promoting sustainable development present an opportunity to pursue a path of green recovery from the negative impacts on the economy and the planet.

Community-based organizations reflect a change in focus from these top-down approaches to the bottom-up, where local goals tend to focus on regaining autonomy and control over natural resources and improving social and economic wellbeing. Community-based programs are generally based on the premise that local people have greater interest in the sustainable use of natural resource than outside actors, and thus can be more cognizant of the intricacies of local ecological processes and practices. While it is important not to essentialize or homogenize ideas of ‘community’ and ‘conservation’ without regard for local contexts, finding innovative solutions to complex environmental and development issues often requires outside expertise and training in collaboration with local knowledge. In this way, community-based organizations can help to ensure a holistic and cautioned approach to development. This approach is unique in that it often considers differing worldviews that may reflect alternative definitions of conservation and development, local systems of land tenure, and the gendered divisions of labour in economic activities, to ensure that rural communities really do benefit from these initiatives. Community-based approaches highlight the importance of local context and agency, and that there is no one size fits all approach to achieving SDG objectives.

Bamboo provides a prime example of a resource that has been increasingly promoted as contributing to sustainable futures, as it is sought-after in diverse industries of the growing global “green economy” as an alternative to timber due to its fast-growing and structurally durable properties. Bamboo is considered a resource that—when grown and harvested following sustainable management practices—can achieve positive environmental, social, and economic outcomes. Ecosystem services provided by bamboo include carbon storage and sequestration, soil and water regulation, and biodiversity conservation.

Bamboo forest // Source: Unsplash

In many bamboo habitat countries, the resource plays an important role in cultural heritage and provides socio-economic benefits through supplementary income for the rural poor. Due to these components, bamboo is promoted to contribute to at least seven of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including: no poverty (SDG 1); affordable and clean energy (SDG 7); sustainable cities and communities (SDG 11); responsible consumption and production (SDG 12); climate action (SDG 13); life on land (SDG 15); and partnerships for the SDG goals (SDG 17).

Credit: Tamara L. Britton and Eunice A. Annan-Aggrey

Community-based bamboo development projects are taking place all over the world, ranging from bamboo charcoal projects as an economically viable alternative to wood charcoal in Madagascar; community-based bamboo nurseries in the Philippines; bamboo disaster relief building projects, construction and bamboo management training programs in Ecuador and Nicaragua; community-based bamboo processing factories in China; and community-based management of natural bamboo forests in Laos.

Due to small budgets, community-based projects like these often cannot compete with the wide scale promotion and ambitious claims made by larger-scale development initiatives. However, in practice, many community-based programs often have a greater long-term impact on community wellbeing and autonomy. Thus, there is a research gap to be addressed on the contribution of smaller-scale grassroots conservation movements and researchers from Global South countries regarding SDG objectives.  

Credit: Tamara L. Britton and Eunice A. Annan-Aggrey

In a post-pandemic world, if SDG targets are to be met amidst an increasingly uncertain economic future, it is crucial that conservation and development projects invest in building resilient communities through agroecological solutions and strengthening environmental stewardship to ensure that the rural poor are not completely dependent on external markets for their livelihoods.

The UN Decade of Action is a clarion call for an ‘all hands on deck’ approach to keep the wheels of development turning.

The SDGs include an ambitious target to combat climate change. The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed vulnerabilities of the economic systems upon which development is hinged. Thus, the need for integrated development that encompasses socio-economic and environmental progress is relevant now more than ever. The UN Decade of Action is a clarion call for an ‘all hands on deck’ approach to keep the wheels of development turning. Community-based organizations are rising to the task. Indeed, integrated solutions and green alternatives chart a course that holds optimism for a greener, more inclusive future.

This article is part of our March 2021 Western Student Editorial Series – a series that showcases the works of students in the Collaborative Specialization in Environment and Sustainability program. Read more articles from this series here!

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Human activities have thrusted our planet into a climate emergency. This calls for an urgent need for adaptation—adjusting our natural and human systems to minimize climate hazards, exploit climate opportunities, and mitigate—the conscious actions to minimize the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs) and to remove existing GHGs through improving carbon sinks. Climate change is real, and the consequences are vivid. From the melting polar caps of Alaska all the way to Kiribati’s dissipating beaches, climate change stymies our livelihoods and heightens vulnerability to environmental hazards. So, why is there even the existence of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)? According to their official website, “the IPCC was created to provide policymakers on climate change, its implications and potential future risks, as well as to put forward adaptation and mitigation options,” (IPCC, 2020). Some of the solutions often floated around by this and other giant institutions include constructing greenhouses to support agricultural food systems in drylands, building reservoirs to collect excess runoff, and providing crop insurance to tackle crop failure. In their “infinite” wisdom, these bureaucrats placed a caveat that we should adopt these strategies in ways that support the national, regional, and local contexts. Interesting, huh? But with the lenses of reality on, how can Kiribati people, who have almost nothing, adapt to their rising sea levels and dissipating coastline, build reservoirs to tackle flooding, and provide farmland insurance for farmers whose farmlands turned into water bodies overnight?

Even though there is a lot of attention to tackle climate change, Nature-based Solutions (NBS)—using traditional and naturally producing resources to mitigate environmental hazards—have been side-lined for technocratic solutions, and sometimes retrogressive—climate wise—technological innovations. Moreover, much of these current approaches are usually bogged down in faulty rhetoric. For instance, everyone wants a better environment, at the same time, also wanting the comfort of owning a luxury and eco-unfriendly car.  Who takes the buses then? It cannot work that way; you must pick your poison! In retrospect, Greta Thunberg was precisely correct when she called economic growth ‘a fairytale.’ The questions that remain unanswered are: why are we so ever focused on the use of artificial methodologies in reverting the world to a more natural state? Would it not help to use a nature-based approach instead? For instance, in the illustration of Megan Leslie—President, and CEO of World Wildlife Fund Canada, the need for NBS could not be more apparent:

“If you think about the increasing floods we are seeing, for example, concrete culverts and breakwaters can only handle so much water. Silver maple can absorb 220 liters of water [an hour]! If we replace all this concrete with natural infrastructure, with green infrastructure, firstly, it can handle the floods. Secondly, it’s resilient… it bounces back.” –Megan Leslie

NBS have emerged as cost-effective mitigation and adaptation strategies that simultaneously provide socio-ecological and economic benefits while boosting resilience among people. According to the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), NBS involves the intentional use of nature for sustainably managing ecosystems and tackling socio-environmental challenges. The nature-based solutions are rooted in the oxymoronic ideals of going back to move forward, looking into naturally occurring solutions that can be humanly instigated and controlled to increase resiliency and fight climate change. These suggestions are topical as they are relevant and include reimagining green housing, utilizing natural resources for construction and plant growth to fight climate change. NBS to climate change emphasizes harnessing the myriad potentiality of nature to reduce GHGs while also adapting to climate-related stresses such as human health, food and water insecurity. NBS to climate change is considered a win-win approach. We get to protect, restore, and sustain our ecosystem while efficiently addressing an existential threat. Further, NBS can be adopted in both rural and urban settings—an attribute which makes NBS more practical and comprehensive.

Rural areas

Although climate change is omnipresent, there are differences in the intensity of these impacts because of two factors: (1) your location in the world and (2), the level of disposable resources with wealth at its core. Sadly, folks in the Global South or the developing worlds, are particularly more affected by climate change due to their heavy dependence on natural resources from which they derive their livelihoods, and their limited availability to adapt to the changing environmental conditions. As dire as these conditions may be, they are also being exacerbated by prevailing adaptation strategies. For example, to stimulate agriculture, the current use of high-nitrogen-fertilizers over time makes the land progressively barren while leaching nitrous oxide into the drainage system and polluting vital drinking water sources for millions of people. With NBS, however, simple practices like mulching (yes, good old mulching), could prove essential for revitalizing smallholder farmlands through soil moisture conservation and sustainably improving soil fertility. Typically, mulching involves collecting and applying decomposing organic matter (e.g. sawdust, wood, grass, food scraps) over arable lands’ topsoil. The best part is that mulching materials are free and readily available. This process could solve the triple problem of utilizing food waste, soil infertility, and improving biodiversity.

A smallholder farming household practicing mulching // Source: Bryan Waters

Another NBS that could be employed in these areas is the utilization of bamboo grass. Bamboo (Subfamily: Bambusoideae) is a fast-growing, drought-resistant grass. It can be the best crop that can grow in some environments. This ancient grass serves many purposes. In fact, there is evidence of its utility in building construction, making furniture, serving as windbreaks, and where native, could even be planted around your luxurious million-dollar home as a living privacy screen (you know, against those shady neighbors). In other words, bamboo is the gift that keeps on giving and there is something in it for everyone. As climate change continues to wreak havoc globally, substituting bamboo in place of plastic in privacy screens or in place of destroying mature Mahogany trees from the rainforest (which take 25 years to grow) are great strides toward reductions in carbon footprint. The bamboo plant thus serves as a stylish, classy, and sustainable alternative. As we begin to care for and incorporate bamboo use in our daily lives, we will also be indirectly preserving biodiversity since it serves as the main diet and habitat for some of the world’s cutest animals.

Locals putting bamboo to use // Source: Panos Pictures/Felix Features

Urban areas

Urban centers or cities are characteristic of high-density infrastructure—roads, bridges, airports, residential and commercial buildings, etc. Many cities like New York and Toronto, struggle with creating and developing spaces for nature. But with a switch to NBS, vegetation can be used to cover the walls or roofs of buildings in urban centers. Green roofs and walls have numerous benefits to the ecosystem and human health. Some of these benefits include insulation provision (thus reducing energy consumption), absorbing rainwater (potential to reduce floods), minimizing the urban heat island effects, and serving as carbon sinks. Green roofs and walls make urban settings aesthetically pleasing as well, which could reduce the stress associated with these busy, noisy, and chaotic systems. Roofs absorb rainwater and can cool the tops of buildings, thereby creating milder microclimatic conditions. The concept of green roofs has taken shape in some cities including Toronto, which in 2009 was the first city to promulgate a bylaw that regulates and governs the construction of green roofs.

 Green walling in urban structures // Source: WikiCommons

Green roofing in urban settings // Source: Urbanscape

Overall, NBS provide sustainable toolkits for adapting and mitigating climate change; they are available and accessible to people in all socio-economic classes. NBS is part of existing ways of life and requires minimal special initiatives to implement. They are cheaper to implement, good for the environment, utilize indigenous knowledge, and are often community based. This also leads to empowerment, which makes implementation and sustainability more feasible. Combating climate change is imperative in every dimension—politically, economically, and morally, because it embodies our collective attempt at saving the lives and livelihoods of billions of people.

This article is part of our March 2021 Western Student Editorial Series – a series that showcases the works of students in the Collaborative Specialization in Environment and Sustainability program. Read more articles from this series here!

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Due to this strict lockdown, it is projected that the world’s CO2 emissions will drop 8% in 2020 (although at the time of this article, they are already projected to increase again). With this global pandemic being top of mind, there is another looming threat: climate change. In recent years, we have consistently seen record-breaking environmental disasters that have been made worse by the climate crisis. According to the UN, over 7,300 extreme weather events have been recorded since 2000. Simultaneously, nine of the ten warmest years on record occurred between 2005 and 2019, with the world’s five warmest years occurring from 2015 to 2019.

…this is our chance to get on top of climate change. The question is, how do we do that, and will we be able to rise to the challenge?

Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, Australia and California have experienced their worst wildfire seasons on record. Increasingly severe droughts in South America and Africa resulted in widespread famine this summer. Flooding in Europe and North America has continued consistently breaking the previous years’ records as storms continue getting bigger, more dangerous and more common around the world. Evidently, the short-term emissions decrease from the COVID-19 pandemic will not be enough to impact the very real threat the climate crisis poses. COVID-19 has been hailed as humanity’s chance to “click the reset button” to “build back better”, with the idea that this is our chance to get on top of climate change. The question is, how do we do that, and will we be able to rise to the challenge?

Man at a climate protest. Sign reads, “Now is not the time for business as usual. Climate action NOW”. // Source: Unsplash

Now is the time for governments to push ambitious climate policy when restarting economies

Although energy-related CO2 was expected to drop in 2020, what matters is what we do next. During the initial phases of the pandemic, government relief packages around the world have focused on sustaining livelihoods and providing immediate relief. Stimulus packages will now be focused on global economic recovery. From the last economic crash in 2008, many stimulus packages focused on propping up fossil fuel-based companies, and in 2010 global emissions saw the largest increase ever recorded.

To learn from our mistakes, and continue this trend of declining emissions, governments should consider three main policy strategies according to the International Energy Agency (IEA):  

1. Governments should ensure policy predictability and reassure investors of their energy and climate commitments. This will be crucial for industries to establish business plans focused on sustainability.
2. Governments should reduce administrative barriers to renewable energy projects by streamlining permits and other administrative tasks.
3. Renewables should be a key part of stimulus packages. Investments should prioritize industries that have high job creation and are building infrastructure that supports efficient, resilient energy systems that will lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. There should be a focus on the labor-intensive building sector, prioritizing renovation programs to increase energy efficiency and installation of renewable heat sources. In addition to labor intensive jobs, the government should focus on stimulating companies in the smart, digital, and resilient energy infrastructure industries.

Overall, short term policy actions should relate to ambitious medium- and long-term visions for emissions reductions.

There are additional measures that governments can take according to Dr. Fatih Birol, executive director with IEA. Incentives can be put in place to encourage consumers to upgrade large purchases to more energy efficient ones, such as cars and washing machines. With an increase in people working from home, emphasis can be put on upgrading electricity and internet infrastructure, basing these networks on clean, renewable power. Investment can be made in industries that will be vital in the clean energy transition such as batteries, hydrogen, and carbon capture to name a few. This can help scale up these technologies, so they become competitive in the current energy market. Governments can also bring in more private investment by providing clarity in the market. Investments may come in the form of carbon pricing, removing fossil fuel subsidies, and offering loans on renewable energy projects. These measures are crucial because governments drive more than 70% of global energy investments according to the IEA.

Divestment in Fossil Fuel is Trending

Source: Shuttershock 

This push for sustainability as a priority in rebuilding the economy comes at a time when many large institutions are pulling their money out of fossil fuels. BlackRock, the world’s biggest financial investment firm, announced in January that it would be pulling investments from coal. The CEO of BlackRock, Larry Fink, said that “climate change has become a defining factor in companies’ long-term prospects.” BlackRock states that it will make sustainability one of its key investment factors and will offer investment portfolios that exclude fossil fuels. Fink also stated that “in the near future – and sooner than most anticipate – there will be a significant reallocation of capital” citing the transition of investments away from fossil fuels, towards sustainable alternatives. This came after a 2019 report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) found that BlackRock lost an estimated $90 billion over the past decade by ignoring the financial risk of investing in fossil fuels. BlackRock’s multi-billion-dollar investments in oil companies – such as ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, and BP – were among the reasons for the losses in the $6.5 trillion assets that they manage. Also, BlackRock was the biggest investor in the coal industry and one of the top three investors in big oil companies.

BlackRock joins a growing movement of divestment of fossil fuels. The approximated value of institutions who have committed to divest from fossil fuels is at $14.48 trillion worldwide, with 1248 institutions divesting. These institutions cover almost every aspect of society. There are huge banks, faith groups, countries, cities, non-for-profits, retirement funds, and the list is expected to grow continuously. This clearly shows a trend in society to stop funding fossil fuel projects, and COVID-19 has accelerated the clear need for divestment from fossil fuels.

How Governments are Faring in their Recovery Packages

Some governments are watching market trends and prioritizing sustainability in their recovery packages. On May 27th, the European Union unveiled their new economic recovery plan in response to COVID-19, which highlighted a €750 billion ($1.163 trillion CAD) economic stimulus package and featured a considerable investment in Green initiatives. EU representatives earmarked 30% of total expenditure for spending to effectively achieve climate-oriented goals outlined in both the Paris Agreement and UN Sustainable Development Goals. Green spending laid out in the stimulus package is comprised of five main elements including: building efficiency, clean technology investment, low-carbon vehicles, agriculture & land, and a category for miscellaneous investments to foster a ‘just transition’. Each of the five elements aim to create and maintain thousands of jobs while improving the carbon footprint of each nation and establishing a foundation for future green industries.

Compared to the intensive COVID-19 response plan of the EU, Canada has failed to establish a defined response plan or actively fund green industries. The Canadian government has reportedly spent $18.12 billion CAD in supporting the fossil fuel industry since the beginning of the pandemic in the form of supporting fossil fuel infrastructure, suspending requirements for environmental reporting, and tax relief for petroleum producers. This spending comes despite many banks and insurers pulling out of Canadian oil and tar sands projects, and BP oil forecasting that oil demand peaked last year. Additionally, the United Nations Environment Program has stated that current national government plans would lock the world into 120 times more emissions than what is needed to stay below 1.5 degrees Celsius global temperature increase, and that 85 percent of planned oil and gas development is in North America.

This fossil fuel spending is in contrast with $15 billion CAD in supporting sustainability projects. A total of $2.5 billion CAD has been provided to fund two separate energy related initiatives. $1.72 billion CAD was allocated to clean up retired oil and gas wells, maintaining some 5,200 jobs in Saskatchewan, British Columbia, and Alberta. Another $750 million CAD was allotted to launch the emissions reduction fund that aims to support workers and reduce emissions in Canada’s oil and gas sector. On November 19th, the Canadian Net-Zero Emissions Accountability Act was presented by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and outlines a system for which future Canadian governments must establish 5-year targets and reviews moving forward to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Despite the creation of this system requiring future governments to create emission targets and reviews, there are no binding rules or penalties for failure to meet targets.

Canada’s COVID-19 response creates a framework for a review system but fails to define a plan of action and set into motion specific goals and projects. The Net-Zero Emissions Act creates a framework for future governments but does not address current industry issues during the pandemic the way the EU COVID-19 response stimulus package does. Advocacy groups have criticized the Prime Minister’s new bill, claiming it is an empty plan that fails to spur immediate action or create penalties for missed targets. Comparatively, the EU’s stimulus package illustrated an organized and structured plan with specific goals moving beyond the pandemic. The recovery plan and stimulus package presented by the EU should serve as a model upon which Canada could immediately begin to construct a sustainable economic future.

This article is part of our March 2021 Western Student Editorial Series – a series that showcases the works of students in the Collaborative Specialization in Environment and Sustainability program. Read more articles from this series here!

The post “Now is the Time” appeared first on A\J.

…including ways we can right our environmental wrongs and help nature thrive…”

I do not believe that humans are inherently bad for nature. In history, humans lived harmoniously with nature for generations, living as an intertwined part of nature rather than separate from or in control of it. In fact, even today, in many places in the world, healthy ecosystems actually depend on human intervention and stewardship to thrive.

Does that mean the problem is that humans aren’t living in harmony with nature anymore, as we should be? Well, that may be a piece of it; however, in addition to being better environmental stewards by taking measures to protect the environment, I also believe that we should be taking reactive measures to fix the problems we have already caused. This is where ecological restoration comes into play. There are plenty of things individuals can do to help the environment, including ways we can right our environmental wrongs and help nature thrive in places it used to. Ecological restoration is just that – righting the wrongs, repairing the relationship.

WHAT? – Defining Ecological Restoration

The Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) is the leading organization in ecological restoration across the globe. SER defines ecological restoration as “the process of assisting the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged, or destroyed”^[1]. In other words, ecological restoration involves looking at spaces that used to be natural areas that have been ruined in some way as a result of human activities and disturbances, and then taking measures to turn those areas back into functional ecosystems.

The process of ecosystem restoration // SOURCE: Medium

An example of this process in a community could be transforming a damaged, unused parking lot space into a city park where native vegetation can be planted. A larger scale project might look like reverting a decommissioned, highly polluted mine site back into a thriving natural ecosystem. But, wait. Isn’t this supposed to be about how individuals can practice ecological restoration? Absolutely! Ecological restoration does include large scale projects, research, and experiments, since restoration ecology is an academic field of study. But the concept of restoring natural spaces can also be scaled down to the local, household level. So let’s get into what ecological restoration has to do with YOU.

WHY? – The Benefits

Before we discuss the how, we should discuss the why. Why should you care about ecological restoration? Because it benefits you!

Restoring natural areas can do wonders for human health and wellbeing by making our communities healthier and more desirable places to live. For example, transforming degraded areas into functional, natural spaces may improve air and water quality. Ecological restoration projects could also combat climate change, since plant life takes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and cools our environment.

Natural areas also directly benefit human mental health and wellbeing by providing recreational outdoor space, and making urban and suburban areas more aesthetically pleasing. Several studies, including one conducted by the NASA Earth Observatory, have shown the link between positive mental health and both the accessibility and proximity to green spaces. Green spaces are valued by many for enjoyment, boosting their mood, and inspiring deeper connections with nature. To break it down: Ecological restoration = more parks and gardens = more outdoor fun and good-looking cities = happier people.

Ecological restoration projects also usually provide increased and improved habitat spaces for wildlife. Now, I know this article is focused on why ecological restoration is relevant to people, and you are probably not a butterfly or toad looking for habitat, but hear me out. Some very important species are at risk of extinction since their habitat needs are becoming harder to meet in this era of urbanization and climate change. Many natural areas have been reduced or destroyed, and the animals who need to live in those spaces are struggling to survive in many cases. The karner blue butterfly is just one of many examples of a pollinator species that has gone locally extinct in Ontario.

The Karner Blue Butterfly // SOURCE: Nature Canada

Pollinators are especially valuable species for the health of the entire planet, so we really can’t afford to lose any more of them. It is estimated that up to 95% of flowering plants depend on pollination^[2]. In terms of plants that humans eat, that means roughly one out of every three bites of food that you take exists because of pollinators. So if pollinators can’t find habitats and continue to decline, our entire global food system could be at stake. Now that is a scary thought. Allow me to bring back the optimism. It is truly amazing that we have the capability to stop those environmental dooms from happening, and a key method to do so is ecological restoration!

HOW? – The Actions

The individual’s role in ecological restoration is simple: transform your areas with little to no diversity into biodiverse paradises, and take part in local community projects.

One great starting point for figuring out where you should do ecological restoration is identifying areas outdoors that have little to nothing growing there. The average North American lawn is a great example of this. What comes to mind when you think of a lawn? Probably an expanse of short, uniform grass. Let me explain why lawns are one of the areas with the most potential for ecological restoration at the household level.

Lawns are very common green spaces in urban and suburban areas, yet they have no ecological value. Many lawns actually do more harm than good for the environment because they require lots of water and can even release more greenhouse gases than they absorb. It is nonsensical that these precious areas of green space are being wasted on lawn grass!

The key to remember here is simply – restore your green spaces so they are welcoming to a diversity of species in order to create functional ecosystems and promote sustainability.

nstead of having a boring, homogenous lawn, you can transform that space into something more beautiful and ecologically-beneficial! Alternative lawns may look different depending on where you live and what kind of space you have available, but planting a diversity of native plants is a good start. Using a diversity of plants, meaning plants of different species, is important to create habitats. The more diverse your space is, the more types of pollinators and other species it will accommodate, and the more functional the ecosystem will be! If you take pride in the beauty of your yard, then now is the time to let your creativity shine! Check out Credit Valley Conservation’s tips and resources on how to “ecologically landscape” your lawn.

SOURCE: Hamilton Pollinator Paradise

If you don’t have the resources to completely change your lawn right away, don’t worry. You can also just let your grass grow longer instead of regularly cutting it, which can lower the lawn’s water requirements and still foster a space for pollinators. Even simply taking a break from raking leaves in the fall is a strategy to make your spaces more ecologically beneficial because leaf piles are actually super important spaces for small critters to live and hide, like butterfly larvae, salamanders, and shrews!

The key to remember here is simply – restore your green spaces so they are welcoming to a diversity of species in order to create functional ecosystems and promote sustainability.

 For those who don’t have a lawn and don’t have any areas where you can create habitats and gardens, there are still things you can do – just get involved. There are so many local ecological restoration community projects, practically across the whole globe. Finding a project near you that you can help with is just a few clicks away! Just research ecological restoration projects near you. You can also go to the project database on SER’s website to find some larger scale projects in your area if you’re interested in learning more! Many ecological restoration projects welcome volunteers with open arms. You could spend a day in nature by joining a team pulling invasive species in a natural area, or donate to a local initiative trying to turn an old landfill site into a park in your city, or even take a field trip to a conservation area! For example, the Ontario branch of SER hosts several field trips each year in order to introduce the public to restoration efforts near them. Even during the pandemic, they are hosting virtual field trips and webinars.

I study at the University of Waterloo and I like to go for walks on my study breaks. Recently, I took a walk in Filsinger Park, in Kitchener, and I found out that the Filsinger Park stream had been a restoration project. The city replaced the concrete stream channels with native vegetation to create a naturalized, functional stream ecosystem, and it is now a beautiful place to take a walk and appreciate nature! My point is, simply going for a walk and discovering ecological restoration in your city could be the first step in making your mark on the environment a positive one. Ecological restoration is relevant to you. We can all contribute to restoring natural spaces in our own backyards and communities. And by making these contributions, we can restore our relationship with nature, one step at a time.

^[1] Society for Ecological Restoration, “International Principles and Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration: Second Edition” (accessed January 7, 2021) <https://cdn.ymaws.com/www.ser.org/resource/resmgr/docs/ser_international_standards_.pdf>^[2] Ollerton J, Winfree R, and Tarrant S, “How many flowering plants are pollinated by animals?” (accessed January 7, 2021) <https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18644.x>

^[2] Ollerton J, Winfree R, and Tarrant S, “How many flowering plants are pollinated by animals?” (accessed January 7, 2021) <https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1600-0706.2010.18644.x>

The post REGROWTH‌ appeared first on A\J.

Like many things, the truth usually lies somewhere down the middle. Yes, we have made progress this year, but we still have a long way to go. We must take the time to celebrate our wins but remain aware of the hills and mountains left to climb. 

As many of you know, the team at A\J have been writing a weekly column called WTF (the Week this Friday) where we take the time to reflect and report on the environmental stories from the week passed. As one of the most pivotal years of this century comes to a close, we think it is only fitting to highlight the environmental wins and losses of the year…WTF 2020!

1. Air pollution levels lowered from the coronavirus

Source: Pixabay

One silver lining from lockdowns this year was the eco benefit it seemed to have on the natural world. Less people moving around translated to less greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Guardian, back in March, at the height of China’s lockdown “NO2 levels were down by 38% from 2019 and levels of PM 2.5 were down by 34%”.

Unfortunately, as lockdowns eased up, people began moving around again and the highest polluting industries wasted no time in recovering. According to scientists from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, once lockdowns eased up again in spring/summer, NO2 levels in China quickly recovered.

According to scientists from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography, emissions would have to drop by approximately 20-30% for 6 to 12 months to actually make a difference. However, global emissions this year likely only dropped by about 7% compared to 2019. 

One of the few good things that came out of the coronavirus pandemic was the realization that we could live in a much less mobile world. During lockdown, we witnessed massive reductions of global CO2 and other GHG emissions which contribute to climate change (even if this was just temporarily). Experts and citizens alike encouraged decisions makers that this is the time to rebuild in a more sustainable way. Unfortunately, unless governments get serious about rebuilding into a more green recovery, it looks like we are just going to go back to our old ways.

2. New Delhi drops down to second place in the most polluted city in the world

Source: Pixabay 

This year, Lahore, Pakistan was named the most polluted city in the world with a particulate matter (PM) rating of 423with an AQI (air quality index) of 301. In previous years, New Delhi was ranked the most polluted city. This year, they dropped down to second place with a PM rating of 229.

For reference, the US Environmental Protection Agency has previously stated air that is “satisfactory” falls under an AQI of 50. 

Years of smog, dust from construction, and crop burning have all likely contributed to such high PM and AQI levels. Air quality in Lahore worsens from October to February when farmers are most likely to burn their crops, which contributes to the overall smog problem. To protect themselves from the pollution, Lahore’s residents are advised to wear a mask, run air purifiers and close windows in their homes, and avoid outdoor exercise. 

3. The Amazon forest fires

Source: Pixabay 

Back in August, 2020 was on course to be the worst year in over a decade for deforestation in the Amazon. Illegal tree loss was accelerating. In May, after facing immense global pressure, Brazil’s President, Jair Bolsonaro, had sent in the army to fight illegal logging – this plan was dubbed ‘Operation Green Brazil 2’. Although this was likely all just for show (deforestation has accelerated ever since Bolsonaro took office in 2019, growing by 209%). 

One area of the forest that had fared worse than the others in tree loss was Rondônia, an area that has seen growing deforestation since the mid-80’s. Rondônia is almost the same size as the UK has been burned and cut down to make way for crops and logging businesses. In the summer, NBC Forensics focused on Rondônia as the military was sent in – meant to track the ‘successes’ and accomplishments of Bolsonaro’s mission.

Bolsonaro falsely claimed the mission a success. However, the figures supplied by the government’s own space research agency demonstrated deforestation rates in May of 2020 and higher than in May 2019. In fact, the government’s own data showed that deforestation is increasing every single month since the previous year for 13 months in a row. 

What is happening in Rondônia is a reflection of what is happening throughout the Amazon. Eventually, the Amazon will reach a tipping point, where the tree loss will result in a rainforest that cannot produce enough rain to sustain itself. 

4. Trump withdrew from the Paris Agreement 

Source: Pixabay

This year, the United States officially withdrew from the Paris climate agreement. 

It was first announced back in 2017 that Donald Trump would back out of the Paris agreement. However, the Paris agreement requires nations to wait a minimum of three years before giving notice to leave (partly to prevent future presidents from withdrawing from the deal in the name of short term interests). This is why the US did not formally leave until the end of 2020. 

The Paris agreement was established in 2015 in order to collectively battle the threat of climate change and keep the global temperature rise below 2C above pre-industrial measures. 

The United States is ranked the second top polluting country, accounting for over 15% of global emissions. Pulling out of the agreement poorly reflects the values of American in regards to climate change.

However, this news isn’t all bad. Joe Biden, new president elect recently announced that his administration will rejoin the Paris agreement once he takes office. Phew! 

5. Canada’s proposal to ban single use plastics and a new Net zero plan 

Source: Pixabay 

My favorite story of the year! 

This year, Ottawa announced single-use plastic straws and plastic shopping bans are among the six items that the federal government plans to ban in 2021. The six items include: stir sticks, six-pack rings, plastic cutlery and plastic food take-out containers. This decision is part of a broader initiative to divert plastics from landfills and classify them as a “toxic substance”. 

This ban is one of elements of a broader plan on their list to reach zero plastic waste by 2030. The government will consult on it’s plans this December because they are sure to experience pushback from industry groups and the Albertan government which have already voiced concerns – especially about the toxic classification on plastics. Alberta is worried that this federal plan will undermine the provinces’ petrochemical sector and its goal of becoming a plastics-recycling hub. Instead, Alberta states that Ottawa should focus on creating a circular economy whereby plastics from manufacturing go through recycling. 

Environment and Climate Change Minister, Jonathan Wilkinson, pressed on that the ban is necessary because of the significant harm plastics are causing to Canada’s wildlife and coastlines. A daunting statistic was mentioned: In Canada, only 9% of the plastic that is thrown out is recycled. The government also plans to set recycled-content requirements on products and packaging and will further consult with all provinces and territories to set up these targets. Additionally, earlier this year the federal government released a draft state-of-the-science assessment on plastic pollution – effectively arming Ottawa with the scientific basis to regulate plastics. Basically, the assessment discussed the dangers of macro and microplastics causing harm to the environment and on wildlife. 

Members of Greenpeace have criticized the ban, saying that this is simply not enough of a response for the severity of the global plastics problem. I would have to disagree; I think this is a great first step.

Moreover, other governments have tried to implement a ban on single use plastics in some form or another in the past (read about Laredo’s plastic bag ban), and have lost because big oil won’t go down without a fight and is eager send their reps into the courtroom or lean on old legislation to prevent a plastic ban from going through. With these past failures in mind, I would rather take small victories over a huge loss. 

6. Coral reefs: The Great Barrier Reef moved to critical conservation outlook  

Source: Pixabay

According to the International Union for Conservation for Nature (IUCN), the health of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the world’s most extensive and once spectacular coral reef ecosystem, is in a critical state and deteriorating as climate change warms up the waters in which it lies. The Reef has lost more than half its coral in the past three decades. Coral-bleaching in 2016, 2017 and now 2020 has further damaged its health and affected its animal, bird and marine population.  

Coral bleaching occurs when hotter water temperatures destroy the algae which corals feed on, causing them to turn completely stark white. Because of mass bleaching events, the IUCN moved the reef’s status to critical and deteriorating on its watchlist. Some activities which threaten it, like fishing and coastal development, can be tackled by the management authorities. 

“Other pressures cannot be addressed at the site level, such as climate change, which is recognized as the greatest threat,” the IUCN explained. Although efforts to safeguard the reef are rising, the process has been slow under a long-term sustainability plan through 2050. HSBC and the Queensland government said back in October that they would buy “Reef Credits”, a tradable unit that quantifies and values the work undertaken to improve water quality flowing onto the reef. 

According to Optimist Daily, “Buying one credit is the equivalent of removing one kilogram of nitrogen from the water, or preventing 538 kilograms of sediment from entering the ocean.”

Cool!

7. The rise of jobs in the sustainability sector (Netflix, Microsoft… did big hirings this year) 

Source: Pixabay

As a sustainability grad, one of the most promising changes (stories) of the year was witnessing the rise of jobs in the sustainability sector. Companies that would have never before considered hiring a team “to make them more green” now have huge departments all focussed on reducing company emissions and leaving behind a better legacy. To name just a few examples, this year Netflix, Microsoft and Tesla have all been making major hiring moves in sustainability. 

According to ECO Canada, “In the next 3 – 5 years, 84% of sustainability consulting firms expect to hire, creating about 400 new positions. A further 3,800 new jobs will be added to this number as 46% of other sustainability employers increase their staff…The top employers of sustainability professionals are governments (employing 27% of sustainability professionals), research institutions and not-for-profits (24%), large companies in manufacturing, oil & gas, mining, forestry and utilities (10%) and businesses in retail, finance and insurance (10%).”

Good news for sustainability! 

8. The Earthshot Prize 

Source: Flood Control Asia 

Move over Nobel Peace Prize, the Nobel Prize for environmentalism is coming through!

Back in October, Sir David Attenborough joined forces with Prince William to launch “The Earthshot Prize”. According to BBC, this is the biggest environmental prize to date. They are searching for 50 solutions to the world’s biggest environmental problems, allocating five one million-pound prizes (valuing at $1,704,300 CAD each) to be awarded over the next decade. 

Prince William believes this prize could be the positivity that the environmentalism movement is missing, “The Earthshot prize is really about harnessing that optimism and that urgency to find some of the world’s solutions to some of the greatest environmental problems,” he told the BBC.

According to the Earthshot website, the prize was inspired by President John F. Kennedy’s Moonshot, “which united millions of people around an organising goal to put man on the moon and catalysed the development of new technology in the 1960s.” Attenborough believes it’s this same spirit that can guide the next generation of thinkers and dreamers to solve some of earth’s problems.

The announcement came just after Sir David Attenborough released his latest documentary, “A Life on Our Planet”. 

I am looking forward to seeing where this goes.

9. Tree’s ability to socialize and “speak” to each other. 

Source: Unsplash

This December, the New York Times shared that forests are social and communicate with one another through dense fungi networks in the soil below the canopy.

More specifically, “trees and fungi form partnerships known as mycorrhizas: Threadlike fungi envelop and fuse with tree roots, helping them extract water and nutrients like phosphorus and nitrogen in exchange for some of the carbon-rich sugars the trees make through photosynthesis.”

Suzanne Simard, a professor of forest ecology at the University of British Columbia, has been studying these relationships in the wild, coastal forests of North America. Through her research, Sinard discovered that these fungal threads link EVERY tree together in the forest- even ones of different species!

These linkages allow vital molecules including carbon, water, and other nutrients to pass through the network circuits. Wait, it gets better. Simard also stated that chemical signals are also passed through this network, allowing trees to signal to others nearby when there is danger.

“If a tree is on the brink of death, it sometimes bequeaths a substantial share of its carbon to its neighbors.”

Is anyone cutting onions in here?

10. Doug Ford’s conservation authority changes

Source: NationalPost

In December, the Ontario government passed its new budget bill. One major change to this bill was the new constraints on the conservation authorities in the province to regulate development and “introduced new channels through which developers can obtain permits.”

According to the Globe and Mail, there are 36 conservation authorities in Ontario (with most of them in the southern end) all tasked with protecting the various watersheds that make up the province. This might include operating dams, defending against flooding or erosion, regulating development on wetlands, protecting water sources, and managing natural parks. Ultimately, conservation authorities are nature’s defender against poor land use policies. 

Unfortunately, their ability to defend will be threatened with the upcoming changes as a result of the new bill. And this isn’t the first time the government has tried to sidestep these authorities. Past budget cuts and using ministerial zoning orders (MZO) has allowed the government to circumvent the rules and bypass conservation authorities. 

Schedule 6 of the new bill will only add to this momentum. Changes include:

• The conservation authorities must now issue a permit once an MZO has been issued
• Developers can more easily appeal a conservation authorities decision

The decisions ultimately allow developers to take the path of least resistance if they want to build on a naturally significant area, while making it harder for conservation authorities to fight back and stand up for what they are meant to do.

11. Buzzworthy – Honeybee venom shown to kill cancer cells

Source: Unsplash

Now here is some news to buzz about, scientists in Australia have found that Honeybee venom has been linked to killing some aggressive breast cancer cells. This exciting news shows signs of hope for treatment of breast cancer – which is the leading cancer in women across the globe, representing 25% of all cancers in women.

Melittin – the compound within the venom were used to destroy two cancer types: triple-negative and HER2-enriched. Bee venom has been discussed to have anti-cancer properties before but there is still a long way to go from watching cancer cells be destroyed in petri dishes to being applied in medicinal practice.

It does provide us with hope and has proven to be yet another prime example of how nature is really the best doctor we have. Dr. Ciara Duffy a 25-year-old PhD researcher led the study and found the venom killed the cancer cells within an hour! We hope to see more development with this great news, and hopefully it increases acceptance towards incorporating more holistic approaches to cancer and medicinal treatments. Now that is buzzworthy.

12. Stay away poachers: rare white giraffe is now being tracked 

Source: Unsplash

Being the only white giraffe left is causing a stir up around the world to protect the remarkable creature, the extremely rare giraffe now has a tracker attached to it in order to trace its whereabouts hourly – this allows rangers in Kenya to monitor the giraffe and keep it out of danger from poachers. The device was planted on one of the horns on the animal on November 8th.. 

The white colour of the giraffe is from the absence of pigmentation in its skin – also called leucism, which is a rare genetic condition that can affect a variety of animals. Due to its rarity – the  animal is in a critical position to stay alive as the rest of its family has been killed off by poachers and making this one especially lucrative in the poaching and wildlife trafficking underground market.

The conservation status of the species as a whole is vulnerable, with over 68,000 giraffes in the world. Two white giraffes of the same family were killed in march and there was discussion that there was one found in Tanzania in 2015. With the tracking device, this hopes to protect the vulnerable giraffe and keep it out of harm’s way.

13. Shell Canada going carbon neutral

Source: Unsplash

Shell will become the first gas retailer in Canada to offer a program that offsets emissions from customer fuel purchases with an optional buy-in at the pump. The Drive Carbon Neutral program will be available to 1,400 stations Canada wide. The program allows customers to offset their carbon emissions from fossil fuels for two cents a litre. Shell states that many of their carbon conscious customers were demanding them to do more. They also stated that many individuals cannot afford to buy an electric car but still want to offset their carbon footprint – this will allow this to happen. This is a model that was taken from a program in Europe, which saw positive feedback and adoption levels with nearly 20 percent of people in the Netherlands using it.

Shell also announced their plan to reforest British Columbia in a partnership with Central Chilcotin Rehabilitation. They aim to plant 840,000 native trees in effort to resort much of what was lost in the 2017 wildfires. They plan to do this over a two-year planting period, with the cost being unreleased. Meanwhile Environmental Defence is arguing that this is “pure greenwashing”, as it directs the cost onto the consumer rather than the giant who is profiting from the world using fossil fuels.

14. A galaxy of microfibers in California – literally

Source: Unsplash 

Invisible but plentiful is a good way to describe the unfortunate situation of the plastic microfiber problem. A whooping 13.3 quadrillion (yes, quadrillion) plastic fibers are found in California alone – that is more than 130,000 times more fibers as there are stars in the Milky Way galaxy. In 2019, an estimated 4,000 metric tons were released into California’s natural environment. With these fibers ending up in our water systems, a study found that 73% of fish caught at mid-ocean depth in the Atlantic had microplastics in their stomachs. 

The fibers are under 5mm in length and most often come from washing materials in our laundry. Mostly from synthetic fibers that make up our clothing, they go from our washing machines all the way to our water streams. Just one load alone can pass out more than 700,000 fibers alone. The amount of microfibers shed also depends on the material, wash temperature, detergent, etc. 

15. Hottest Temperatures EVER recorded 

Source: Unsplash

We hit a record again! There is no surprise of temperatures reaching soaring highs with the rising records of fossil fuels emissions, every year seems to hit a new heat record. But Death Valley held the flaming torch of the highest temperature ever recorded on Earth, sitting at 54.4C (130F).

Death Valley is a desert valley in the Mojave Desert that lies 86 meters below sea level. It is one of the hottest places on Earth but these soaring temperatures this high have never been accurately recorded before. There were extreme heat advisories, urging people to not walk in the desert past 10AM. 

It serves as the hottest air temperature ever recorded, this begs the question of what is to come in the future. It is so hot, that the sweat evaporates so fast off your skin that you actually don’t feel wet. Talk about a hot – n – not sweaty?

16. Zero carbon flights by 2035? 

Source: Unsplash

By 2020, we may have already expected flying cars – while our expectations may have been sold short, we do have something as exciting in the talks. Transportation giant Airbus has revealed their plans for the first commercial emission-free flight by 2035. Airbus has three ZEROe concepts in store, all to use hydrogen to power the planes.

In order to truly make this a feasible carbon-free option, it relies on finding large quantities of renewable or low-emitting sources of hydrogen. As this process currently relies mostly on methane and fossil fuels – it is not exactly a low-carbon option but more innovative solutions to hopefully come in future announcements.

One of the concept designs could carry up to 200 passengers for more than 2,000 miles. This is a milestone waiting to happen in the aviation industry and would mark a remarkable moment in history – with hopes that all travel and transportation can one day be emission free.

17. Google now has a carbon footprint of zero.

Source: Shutterstock

The tech giant has set the bar again. Although already being carbon neutral since 2007, Google now has offset their entire carbon footprint to ever exist. While many in the technology industry are right behind Google – such as Microsoft and Apple. Microsoft has released a statement to become “carbon negative” by 2030, and Apple is announcing to be carbon neutral for their business and the supply chain for their products by 2030. 

Google is also moving into using carbon-free energy by 2030 by using renewable energy such as solar and wind to power their operations. They also plan to increase their use of battery storage. Artificial intelligence will also come into play by allowing AI to forecast the demand of electricity. This shift would create over 12,000 jobs in the span of five years. Not only will it be good for the environment to turn away from oil and gas but it will also contribute to the economy, as they vowed to no longer create AI for oil and gas exploration. Nice one Google!

18. Thailand will shut national parks regularly to protect nature 

Source: Unsplash 

Footsteps are not the only things left on the beach. Many tourists flock to Thailand to enjoy their sandy beaches, crystal clear water, and a beautiful culture. Being a travel and tourism hotspot for many years, this has left a lasting impact on the natural environment. 

However, thanks to COVID-19, the closure of parks has allowed nature to recover by seeing the return of whales and turtles. This is a lesson that speaks volumes as the Natural Resources & Environment authorities now want to close the national parks yearly for two to four months to ensure the ecosystem and wildlife health remains stable and is not overexerted. 

Thailand has more than a 100 national parks and attracts between 10 – 20 million visitors, with this year expecting to drop below 7 million visitors. While tourism is one of the main economic pillars for Thailand’s economy, amounting to one-fifth to their gross domestic product, it could not keep up with the unsustainable degradation the heavy tourism brought. In order to sustain future tourism and a healthy ecosystem, Thailand conservation authorities saw first hand through the pandemic how with time, nature can begin to restore itself.

19. We can see penguin colonies from space

Source: Unsplash

Want the good news or the bad news first? We’ll start with the good. Emperor penguins are very difficult to study due to their extremely remote nature, making them often inaccessible with Arctic temperature conditions dropping below -50 degrees celsius. But good news, a new study using satellite mapping tech reveals that there are 20% more emperor penguin colonies in Antarctica than was previously thought. The scientists from British Arctic Survey (BAS) explain that they used images from European Commission’s Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite mission to locate birds. They were able to find 11 new emperor penguin colonies, three of which were previously identified, but not confirmed. These findings take the global census to 61 colonies around the continent. 

BAS scientists have been searching for new colonies for the past 10 years using land-based research methods. Dr. Peter Fretwell, a BAS geographer, says that satellite images have enabled scientists to discover colonies that would have been extremely difficult to find otherwise.  

Now here comes the bad news as promised, the colonies are so few and far between that this discovery takes the overall population count up by 5-10% to just over half a million penguins in total. Emperor penguins are known to be vulnerable to loss of sea ice (their breeding habitat). Given current climate change projections, this habitat is likely to further decline. Most of the new colonies are on the edge of the breeding ground meaning that they are likely to be lost as the climate warms. 

20. Water is now trading on wall street

Source: Unsplash

Water, a necessity to all life on our planet, is now being traded on Wall street. We should have seen this one coming, another natural resource commodified and brought onto Wall street. CME Group – the company in charge of managing the contracts states that water will be traded on Wall Street due to the fear of rising scarcity in the future. As with other traded commodities like oil and gold, the price will fluctuate due to supply and demand.

According to the Nasdaq Velez California Water Index, the price of water has doubled in the last year, and the market price of it is at 1.1 billion dollars. On December 7th the trading price started at $486.53 per acre-foot equating to 1,233 cubic meters.

Water contracts are a first of their kind, incubated by the heat and wildfires in California, this change hopes to protect the resource for California’s consumers to indicate the scarcity and the value it holds. Over 2 billion people live amongst water scarcity around the world…This foreshadows the grim future of millions of people getting displaced by this factor. Not only will water limit industries, but it will trickle down to limited supply for human consumption too.

—

Well 2020 being crazy and turbulent are just a few words we can agree on describing this year in a nutshell (basically this year was one big WTF, right?) With the ever so dynamic natural world and constantly shifting state of politics, it can often make it hard to keep up with what is going on in the ‘green’ world. That is why our team has had the pleasure of picking our top six weekly environmental stories in our weekly column, The WTF (The Weekly This Friday). 

We hope to have even more environmental wins for 2021 for us to document every Friday – yes we are extending the series into the next year (woo!) We are hoping to hear less about the pandemic and leave it in the rearview mirror of 2020, and make more strides and reach even more environmental triumphs. We hope you had the pleasure coming along this ride with us of reading these stories as much as we had writing them.

The post WTF 2020 appeared first on A\J.

Municipal transit systems have been heavily criticized in the past for failing to connect people in growing suburban developments, lacking efficiency in dense urban areas, or simply not having enough ridership to make a difference. Rachel Brown, a recent graduate working in the sustainable transportation sector, had some of these feelings growing up; “As soon as I had access to a car, transit wasn’t my main mode of transportation,” she said, “it took way longer, it was inconvenient for me to walk to a bus stop from my house. For me to get on a bus and go to my friend’s house took almost an hour, where I could get in a car and drive to my friend’s house in fifteen minutes.”

This is coupled with the fact that learning to use the bus can be intimidating for many people. There are still many mental and physical barriers that prevent people choosing transit- think of a young student who may not understand how to use the bus, or a newcomer to Canada not yet confident in their English. Without a simple, stress free transit system, many people may be deterred from giving transit a chance.

“Transportation can be crucial for linking communities to vital resources.” -Rachel Brown

Brown highlighted the positive effects a functional, appealing transit system can have on communities, “Transportation can be crucial for linking communities to vital resources, so as an example you could live in Scarborough or a community hub that you’re connected to culturally, spiritually, religiously- maybe you’re just going to school downtown- but having that ability to get to those resources is really important.” Brown added it’s about breaking down common behaviours and norms in society; “My first option should be taking the bus, or the train, or bicycle…It shouldn’t be automatically just driving in a car.”

So how do we move from a single car culture to a transit culture? For public transit to be more competitive with other modes of transportation, things need to change. Municipalities across Canada have acknowledged some of these problems and found solutions to improve transit within their communities.

Kingston’s Transit Orientation Project

Back in 2012, many high school students in the city of Kingston, Ontario opted out of riding public transit. While the buses were free, many students admitting the idea of going on the bus gave them fear and anxiety because they did not know how to use it.

Dan Hendry, with the Limestone District School Board, saw an opportunity to increase transit ridership in Kingston, while simultaneously providing students with the confidence and tools to use transit and gain the freedom of mobility. He developed the Transit Orientation Project, an education program designed to encourage teenagers to ride the city buses and provide them with independent mobility. At the time, 30% of greenhouse gas emissions from Kingston came from transportation³, and if more individuals took the bus, it would have a significant impact on city emissions.

“It’s this idea of normalizing the usage and understanding of how to use it,” Hendry explained. Hendry took students on the bus and taught them about anything from bus etiquette, to the social, economic, and environmental benefits that come with riding the bus. The students were taken to get their bus pass the same day.  Hendry said students asked “about anything from stopping the bus, as funny as that sounds, but how do you get on the bus? Off the bus? When do you pull the trigger? Do you get off the front or the back? Can you put your bike on the rack? What about getting a transfer?”

The program was all about highlighting the freedom students would have using transit. With a bus pass, students were able to get to work, volunteer, and participate in after school activities. The bus passes were also used for field trips, experiential learning opportunities, and other activities which opened community resources to students.

The first program in 2012 began with grade nines. By 2015, students from grade nine to twelve had a transit pass. Hundreds of bus lessons later, and the program helped transit ridership in Kingston increase by 87%.

In Charlottetown, PEI, they had experienced a similar problem. The city noticed that newcomers and seniors were the primary demographic using transit. Inspired by the work in Kingston, they embarked on a similar teen transit ridership program.

As the Manager of Environment and Sustainability in Charlottetown, Ramona Doyle was involved in the project. Doyle mentioned educating the public on sustainability solutions like bus ridership serves two purposes; “One is trying to create a population that buys into the concept of sustainability and sees it as a community value because that will then come back to elected officials in terms of priority in the community….And two, just to create a population that really cares and understands the space we have is limited and precious and worthwhile preserving.”

Doyle and Hendry both noticed the positive impact the programs had on families in their community. They mentioned that in the months following the program, they saw students encouraging their parents and family members to use transit, teaching them what they had learned from the program.

“It’s all about ‘normalizing transit at a young age, for families as well, and making it more accessible…focussing not just on a bus but on freedom, [students] have just one more tool in their kit.” -Dan Hendry 

While the pass may not be profitable while students are in high school, the teen transit program fosters future paying customers, and encourages these individuals to use the bus into adulthood and reduce the possibility of becoming automobile dependent in the future. “It’s all about ‘normalizing transit at a young age, for families as well, and making it more accessible, focussing not just on a bus but on freedom, [students] have just one more tool in their kit,” Hendry said, adding, “Transit has been stigmatized for a long time. And it’s not just underfunded but seen to be important… so I think if people see how to use it and understand it at a young age, they will have it as a tool for life”.

Word of the program success has spread beyond Charlottetown and Kingston. Cities across Canada including St. John’s Burlington, North Bay, Peterborough, and Belleville are currently hoping to, or in the process of, running similar programs.  

Belleville ‘On-Demand’ Transit System

Every night, a handful of city buses in Belleville, Ontario would lap the same routes over and over, often driving around an empty bus. At night, demand was low, and the number of passengers dropped significantly. Hoping to maximize the ridership fares per revenue hour, the city moved to a fixed nighttime route which used less than a third of their normal fleet. It didn’t take long for residents to complain these buses were slow, and many individuals ended up having to travel far distances to reach a bus stop.

This was not sustainable.

In 2018, the city partnered with Pantonium Inc, a Toronto based company which uses algorithms and cloud-based technology to optimize transit fleets.  They created a pilot project with Belleville which offered on-demand transit to the community during nighttime routes. Using the EverRun software platform created by Pantonium, passengers could use an app on their phone, call in, or even email to signal a city bus to pick them up at any bus stop of their choosing, then drop them off at any other stop in town. As more passengers used the system, drivers would receive updated routes in real-time which could cater to multiple passengers at once, maximizing efficiency.

Luke Mellor, the Marketing Director at Pantonium Inc, explained why the project was needed in Belleville; “The service has to cover the whole city and there is not a lot of demand, so they can’t afford to put a lot of vehicles out there. So, what you have is a very sparse network that takes forever to get around. We saw this nighttime, low-density bus service as a niche where on-demand bus service would work very well.”

“If you can get those people that don’t have cars and provide them a service that’s good for their mobility needs, then they won’t get cars. That’s at least the hope, you can prevent the mode-ship from going in reverse.” – Luke Mellor

Belleville was able to increase efficiency using far fewer buses to cover the same distances while providing the same level of service during low demand periods while avoiding wasted emissions and eliminating the need for bus transfers. The service was very adaptable, “It’s a little more flexible I think than a fixed route in managing demand,” Mellor said, “if you can get those people that don’t have cars and provide them a service that’s good for their mobility needs, then they won’t get cars. That’s at least the hope, you can prevent the mode-shift from going in reverse.” The program was so successful, Mellor mentioned when the program first started, they saw nighttime ridership increase by over 300%.

This program was unique as it opened the door for this technology to be replicated in suburban developments or sparse, low-density communities which may not have a solid transportation system in place. Mellor admitted that in terms of using cloud technology to optimize transit fleets, we are still behind the curve and there is a long way to go. Regardless, he is hopeful in how the EverRun software will grow, “Imagine if every city in Canada had 2-10 buses, 24 hours a day that could pick you up and drop you off at any bus stop in the city. That would be a service that would actually get people out of their cars. Especially for equity and justice, not everyone can afford a car, but everyone needs to get around a city.”

Read more Pantonium and the EverRun software at this Link. 

More Than Transit

This is not just about transit, this is about fostering connected, healthy, sustainable communities.

Sustainability has become increasingly integrated into our decision making. Each community is different, and sustainable solutions that work for some may not work for all. But moving toward a more sustainable transit culture and away from a single-car culture has shown to better communities’ time and time again. This is not just about transit, this is about fostering connected, healthy, sustainable communities.

As Dan Hendry put it, “It’s not just about the bus, it’s about moving from point A to point B, this is jobs, volunteering, first dates, meeting friends…Transit can positively affect your life even if you don’t use it. Whether that be the grocery store clerk getting to work on time, whether that be reduced flows in traffic and congestion, whether that be the environmental benefit if people care about that, and with 7.8 billion people I think we should.”

Want more stories like this? This article is featured in our next issue, Getting There: The Ecosystem of Human Movement. Check out the next issue for more!

The post Path Finders appeared first on A\J.

SOURCE: Pixabay

When we think of the species that will be most affected by climate change, our mind often goes to the polar bear. Through aggressive marketing tactics by companies attempting to pose as “do-gooders”, the polar bear has been painted as the poster child of climate change. 

Well apparently, not all polar bears are feeling the heat. This week, a new study from the University of Washington showed that a small population of polar bears, called Kane Basin bears, are actually doing better with thinner sea ice. According to Science Daily, the thinning sea ice between Canada’s Ellesmere Island and Greenland allows for more sunlight to reach the ocean surface, making the system below much more productive. More sunlight means more algae, which means more fish and seals for the bears to hunt.

Because of their unique geographical location, “they’ll be one of the last subpopulations that will be negatively affected by climate change,” said Kristin Laidre, a lead scientist in the study. 

Unfortunately, this benefit will be only temporary. With climate change not expecting to slow down anytime soon, these bears will eventually meet the same fate as other polar bears across the world. 

“We are talking about temporary benefits in a limited area and to a very small number of bears,” Laidre said. 

Tik Tok On the Clock

SOURCE: Project Mother Earth

At the time of writing this, we have seven years, 98 days, 20 hours, 58 minutes and 48 seconds before we have reached an irreversible climate change tipping point. At least, that’s what the metronome clock says. 

The metronome clock, located in Union Square in Manhattan, has been an art project of sorts in the city for two decades.  This week, the clock took on a new mission and now displays how much time we have, down to the second, before we have depleted the earth’s carbon budget and surpassed the 1.5 to 2°C threshold outlined in the Paris Climate Agreement. That is, should we continue our current path.

The clock, which will be on display until September 27, is not the first climate countdown of its kind. In 2019, Humane Impact Lab created The Climate Clock. Based on our current emissions, the Climate Clock predicts we have 12 years, 2 months, 18 hours, 51 minutes, and 32 seconds left before we reach the irreversible threshold. 

However, these time frames are not absolute. Humans have the ability to add more time to the clock, which would require making more of an effort to collectively meet the climate targets we set for ourselves. And whether it is seven years away or 12, time is running out.

Australia’s worst whale stranding in history 

Source: SkyNews

Australia is currently experiencing what officials claim to be the largest whale stranding event on record. Since Monday, hundreds of long-finned pilot whales have been found beached on the west coast of Tasmania, about 380 have since then died. Rescuers managed to save around 90 (at the time of this article) of about 430 beached whales. Tasmanian government officials say that the rescue effort will continue as long as the whales remain alive. It is not completely understood why the whales became stranded and many are asking how such a tragedy could unfold. 

This stranding, one of the largest recorded globally, eclipses a previous national record of 320 whales of the same species set in Western Australia in 1996. Long-finned pilot whales are known for stranding in mass groups. However, these so-called ‘whales’ are actually misnamed. According to Dr. Emma Betty, of the Cetacean Ecology Research Group at Massey University in New Zealand, their life history and evolution makes them more connected to a bottlenose dolphin than a humpback whale. Dr. Betty explains that these whales spend much of their time in the deep ocean. She goes on to say that they travel in pods, form close bonds, and communicate via echolocation, much like a dolphin. It is these traits that can be their doom if they find themselves to close to shore. 

But why would so many get stuck in that one spot? This area of Tasmania is known to be a hot-spot for pilot whale standings.  A main factor is the typography of the area with shallow water and sloping sand banks which creates a natural whale trap. Dr. Betty states that, “They have trouble with the echolocation. Because of the shallow slope they don’t get a clear picture. They’re failing to detect the proximity of the shore until it’s too late, whereas coastal species don’t have that problem.” She suggests that there is likely to be no human cause and it is likely that this was just a natural tragedy. Continued studying on these mammals will allow scientists to better understand them and their migration patterns. Read more about the rescue efforts here.

California fires clearly linked to climate change – new study  

Source: BBC News

According to scientists, climate change is driving the scale and impact of the fires that have raged across California since August. Their analysis found a pervasive role for global heating in boosting the conditions for fire. The authors of the study explain that California has greater exposure to fire risks than before humans started altering the climate. The worst wildfires in 18 years – there has to be an explanation. The cause of the fires has become political ping-pong with President Trump dismissing the issue as a land management problem, while California governor Gavin Newsom blames climate change. 

Recently, a review of scientific research into the reasons for these fires suggests rising temperatures are playing a key role. Looks like Governor Newsom was right. The new review covers more than 100 studies published since 2013 and shows that extreme fires occur when “natural variability in the climate is superimposed on increasingly warm and dry background conditions resulting from global warming”. Basically, this means that increasingly warm weather creates dry conditions that fires thrive on. Dr Matthew Jones from the University of East Anglia in Norwich, UK, boldly states that the extent of the wildfires coupled with the increase in frequency and severity is driven by climate change. Read more about their findings here. Full details of the study can be found here. 

Earlier this year, 330 elephants have been mysteriously showing up dead in Botswana with no known cause of death. The culprit has been determined for the mystery elephant deaths is suspected as toxic cyanobacteria found in watering holes but still many questions remain as many wildlife authorities state that the cyanobacteria blooms occur at the edge of the water but the elephants most often drink from the middle.

As tusks had not been removed from the carcasses it indicated that poaching was not a likely cause of death for the elephants. The mysterious deaths stopped as the water holes dried towards the end of June. Aerial surveys were conducted to spot the location and may were found near the water holes.

Cyanobacteria is a blue-green algae that often appears in still, nutrient rich waters. Poisoning affects both people and animals through ingesting and bathing in the contaminated waters and can often be lethal in high doses.

There are still many questions and hypothesis being explored to why it only impacted elephants and why in the specific area.

By 2020, we may have already expected flying cars – while our expectations may have be sold short, we do have something as exciting in the talks. Airbus has revealed their plans for the first commercial emission-free flight by 2035.

Airbus chief executive Guiliaume Faury announced the three ZEROe concepts to are to use hydrogen in order to reduce the large impact of emissions the aviation industry produces. 

The concepts rely on finding ways to produce a large enough quantities of hydrogens from renewable or low-carbon sources. Currently mass production relies mostly on methane and fossil fuels – which is not considered a low-carbon option.

Airbus stated that one of the designs could carry up to 200 passengers for more than 2,000 miles. This would be a remarkable moment in history for the innovation of air travel, but whether this would be a feasible option for airline corporations to move towards in the future is still up in the air. Airbus stated that airports would need to invest a large sum to change infrastructure accordingly. 

The challenge of sustainable aviation transportation is not just for the aircraft manufacturers, it also stems down the line to airports, governments, and industrial partners.

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Source: Shout Slogans

Being a climate leader is simple: measure your carbon footprint, take actions to lower it, buy high-quality offsets when you can’t and talk with others and let them see you living your values.     Jake Miller                       Acting Director at Project Neutral

In 2018, Canada’s national greenhouse gas emissions (in all sectors) was 729 Mt CO₂ equivalent. With a population of 37.06 million (in 2018) that meant that 19.67 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent were produced per person. Since then, those numbers have only increased. According to Project Neutral, one tonne of carbon dioxide can fill a balloon the size of a bus. Therefore, all the national emissions could be represented by the size of 20 buses per person which results in 741.2 million buses for all of Canada. Now that’s a lot of CO₂ equivalents!

                                                                          Infographic created by Shanella Ramkissoon 

While this number is representative of all emissions from the economic sectors (waste, agriculture, electricity, transportation, oil and gas to the, heavy industry and buildings), it is important to highlight the environmental impact of our overarching societal needs and their demands from nature. How can you help? The easiest option is to start at home.

To determine your carbon footprint, several carbon calculators exist but this article focuses solely on Project Neutral where you can measure your carbon footprint. It is important to consider one’s household carbon footprint. This calculator uses thorough questions to provide you with an ideal representation of your carbon footprint.

Sample of what your carbon footprint can look like on Project Neutral

Source: Project Neutral via Jake Miller

 Jake Miller, Acting Director at Project Neutral stated that “We call household carbon footprints the “missing metric” in our broader climate change discussion. With 45% of Canada’s emissions being attributable to household choices it is really essential that we all start measuring and start discussing how much carbon we are producing. At Project Neutral, we believe that in the future carbon measurements will become mandatory and a lot more prominent in our lives. We expect to see carbon footprints included on all food items, all products, vehicles, houses, hotel rooms…it will become a major factor in consumer choices. For now, we are counting on people to step up as leaders in their daily lives and start measuring and addressing their carbon impact using tools like ours.”

Based on Project Neutral’s advice, everyone must consider their mode of daily transportation, the energy efficiency of their home, the food they consume, the waste they produce and the number of flights they take. Project Neutral’s suggestions are discussed in greater detail below.

5 Ways to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

1. Drive less– walk, bike or take public transit to reduce the amount of emissions you produce. The amount of carbon dioxide you produce is dependent on the fuel efficiency and fuel type of your vehicle and your travel distance.
2. Plan a staycation instead– despite being able to offset carbon from flights, reduce your carbon footprint by planning local vacations that don’t require any flights at all. This will help support the local economy and produce less greenhouse gas emissions.
3. Increase home energy efficiency- making small changes to your home to improve energy efficiency can help. These changes can include:

• using energy-efficient lightbulbs (e.g. compact fluorescent lamps) and appliances
• ensure your home is properly insulated including hot-water tank and pipes
• ensure doors and windows are properly sealed
• lower the heat
• using clothing lines instead of dryers in the summer

4. Make small changes to your diet – Reducing the amount of meat and dairy in your diet and consuming more plant-based meals can reduce the amount of potent greenhouse gases (e.g. methane) produced.
5. Reduce your waste–

• Compost your food when you can as organic material that is instead sent to the landfill produces the greenhouse gas methane under the anaerobic conditions which is 26 times more potent than carbon dioxide. If your food is instead composted, this aerobic process will prevent the formation of methane which has one tonne of CO₂ equivalent for each tonne of organic waste that is sent to the landfill.
• Learn about the 10R’s for discontinuing the use of plastic

Miller also suggests a few points that everyone should note regarding carbon footprints:

1. “Location Matters – While a litre of gasoline burned anywhere on the planet produces the same amount of CO2, the natural gas or electricity you use can vary significantly based on where you live. This is particularly true for how clean your electrical grid is. Project Neutral was developed in Ontario and we use specific emission factors to give the most accurate results for this province.
2. They are Estimates – If you would like to track down the shipment of bananas you just picked up you can likely find your carbon footprint down to the kilogram. However, any carbon footprint calculator that exists needs to operate on some basic assumptions particularly when they ask more approachable questions like “How much do you drive?” vs. “How many litres of gasoline did you burn?” This imprecision exists in everything from your household, to industrial carbon inventories to national emissions–don’t let it distract you from how powerful a tool your footprint can be!
3. They are Diagnostic – The biggest power of a carbon footprint is that it reveals where carbon sources exist and can be used to judge your reduction efforts. It’s like stepping onto the scale as you begin a low carbon lifestyle–it will show you how far you’ve come and be a powerful motivator moving forward.
4. They are Scary until they aren’t – Most people are nervous to find out their carbon footprint. It’s scary to take that step towards taking personal accountability for your emissions. After doing so the vast majority of people are relieved to know and have a specific amount of carbon to focus on reducing. We tend to fear most what we don’t know so using a carbon footprint calculator is a shortcut to feeling less scared and more in control in the face of the climate crisis.”

Carbon Footprint Photo Source: PNG Egg  

It can therefore be seen that knowing your carbon footprint is a great first step to reducing your contribution to the greenhouse gases that affects everyone globally. Secondly, learning how to reduce your impact on your carbon footprint and making these changes can have a significant impact- consistency is key. Thirdly, educating your family and friends on the issue can result in a positive collective impact on reducing carbon and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

Other ideas to make changes at home and to your daily life can be found at Project Neutral. Similarly, many incentives exist.

The small steps we take in reducing our carbon footprint can collectively be one giant step for mankind.

The post Small Steps to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint Can be One Giant Leap for Mankind appeared first on A\J.

Traffic jam in Dhaka, Bangladesh // Source: The New York Times

We tend to take air conditioning (AC) for granted. Even in our cars, we can drive around on the hottest days in total comfort. We are lucky to live in an affluent country where a car with AC is the norm. In less wealthy countries, it is much less common to have AC in vehicles and as such, individuals in poorer countries are more likely to instead drive with the windows down.

You might be wondering why I am stating something that seems so obvious. Well this week, researchers from the University of Surrey found that individuals in less affluent countries are disproportionately exposed to air pollution simply because they rely on driving with their windows down for ventilation.

Researchers examined levels of air pollution exposure for commuters in ten global cities at different times of day; “Dhaka (Bangladesh), Chennai (India), Guangzhou (China), Medellín (Colombia), São Paulo (Brazil), Cairo (Egypt), Sulaymaniyah (Iraq), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia), Blantyre (Malawi), and Dar-es-Salaam (Tanzania).”

Results showed that the highest levels of pollution exposure occurred while the vehicle windows were open during peak driving hours, subjecting “car passengers to hotspots of air pollution for up to a third of the total travel length.” On the other hand, commuters who decided to instead turn on air recirculation and keep the windows up were exposed to 80% less harmful particles than those who drove with their windows open.

While it is slightly ironic that the very cars we are driving around are responsible for causing a significant amount of pollution in the first place, we cannot ignore the differences in exposure due to a disparity in wealth and affluence- this is a matter of air pollution inequality.

Swapping Debt for Nature

Seychelles’ Ocean

Source: The Telegraph

Being in debt is never a good thing but Seychelles (off the East coast of Africa) got to alleviate theirs in a positive manner- for marine conservation. Debt-for-nature swaps have occurred in the past for preservation of tropical forests in South America and the Caribbean but this is the first time globally that it is being done for a marine environment. This endeavour involved years of extensive ocean mapping being the second largest project in the world after Norway’s Marine Spatial Plan. In 2020 they have been able to protect their ocean area the size of Germany from unregulated economic exploitation. Despite this archipelago of biological diversity having less than 1000,000 residents and one of the smallest GDPs, at present they have tripled the United Nation’s target for protecting ocean wildlife and made their local economy resilient.

These islands depend on fishing and marine tourism for revenue. However, overfishing, climate change, plastic pollution and mass coral bleaching threatened the local blue economy as two-thirds of their economy depends on the oceans. These events did not help with their $406m debt but in 2015 $22m of their debt was paid off by The Nature Conservancy group and traded for ocean protection where 13 new marine protected areas (MPA) were created. Since then, within these areas aquatic species such as the Indian Ocean’s only dugongs, Southern Ocean humpback whales, endangered turtles, sharks, manta rays and tuna are being protected. These MPAs also encouraged increased protection of coastal mangroves, coral reefs and atolls, canyons, lagoons and seagrass. While these ecosystems are flourishing due to the conservation efforts the local economy is also becoming robust.

 Rats Uh Find A Way

Photo by Mert Guller on Unsplash

Since the beginning of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic a few different animals have been suggested to be the cause. At first it was rats, then bats have been blamed. This begs the question – why are we coming in contact with rats and bats in the first place? These animals are considered pests and known to carry disease, so why do we keep letting them do it? Well, we don’t let them do it intentionally, but our actions have been causing surges in their populations. 

An assessment published in the journal Nature, and reported on by The Guardian has found that human induced destruction of ecosystems increases the number of rats and other animals which may harbor viruses. This assessment found that as wild places are destroyed due to the world’s ever-expanding population and consumption, changes are observed in animal populations that increase the risk of outbreaks. It has thus been suggested that in areas where nature is being ravaged (such as areas being deforested), that healthcare and disease surveillance be ramped up. David Redding of the ZSL Institute of Zoology in London, who worked on the assessment states, “As people go in and, for example, turn a forest into farmland, what they’re doing inadvertently is making it more likely for them to be in contact with an animal that carries disease,”.

Humans really are at the root of every problem, aren’t we? 

New penguin colonies discovered from outer space 

Source: Science Alert

A new study using satellite mapping tech reveals that there are 20% more emperor penguin colonies in Antarctica than was previously thought. The scientists from British Arctic Survey (BAS) explain that they used images from European Comisson’s Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite mission to locate birds. They were able to find 11 new emperor penguin colonies, 3 which were previously identified not confirmed. This findings takes global census to 61 colonies around the continent. 

Emperor penguins need sea ice to breed and are located in areas that tend to be very difficult to study because they are extremely remote and typically inaccessible with temperatures as low as -50 °C. BAS scientists have been searching for new colonies for the past 10 years using land-based research methods. Dr. Peter Fretwell, a BAS geographer, says that satellite images have enabled scientists to discover colonies that would have been extremely difficult to find otherwise.  

Although this sounds like good news (it is good news, but here comes the not so good news), the colonies are so few and far between that this discovery takes the overall population count up by 5-10% to just over half a million penguins in total. Emperor penguins are known to be vulnerable to loss of sea ice (their breeding habitat). Given current climate change projections, this habitat is likely to further decline. Most of the new colonies are on the edge of the breeding ground meaning that they are likely to be lost as the climate warms. These sites will be watched carefully as climate change continues to affect this region. The results of the study provide an important benchmark for monitoring the impacts of environmental change on the population of emperor penguins. 

Artic Lows:  we’re not just talking about the temperature

Source: NASA Earth Observatory 

Speaking of sea ice – according to the NASA Earth Observatory record-low Arctic sea ice in July 2020 could be further depleted. The 2020 melting season still has at least one more month to gnaw away to Arctic sea ice, and it has already consumed a lot. In July the ice cover spanning the Arctic Ocean reached a record low for this time of year. The maps above images show the sea ice extent in the Arctic ocean over the decades. Extent is defined as the total area in which the ice concentration is at least 15 %. The yellow outlines show the 30-year median extent for the month of July. 

Basically, what is being shown here is a decline of 2.19 million square kilometers of ice below the 1981-2010 average for the month of July. In the context of long-term records, sea ice has been declining in every geographic area in every month and season. There are no guarantees about how the remainder of the 2020 melting season will play out from now until the end of September. If you remember (or if you don’t, I’m here to tell you) the sea ice in 2019 reached a record-low for July, but ended up tied for the second-lowest annual minimum in mid-September; unexpected but not impossible. 

To read more about how atmospheric low-pressure systems over the Arctic Ocean could affect the ice click here and scroll down. 

New plant’s in New Guinea 

Source: University of Zurich 

An international collaboration led the University of Zurich has shown that New Guinea is the most floristically diverse island in the world. The study presents a list of nearly 14,000 different plant species verified by plant experts. At almost 20 times the size of Switzerland, New Guinea is the world’s largest tropical island. The island features a mosaic of ecosystems from lowland jungles, elevated grassland and high peaks, making plant diversity extremely unique.

 Efforts to identify and name thousands of plant species in New Guinea has been ongoing since the 17^th century! It wasn’t until recently that scientists who worked independently of each other came together to create a plant-checklist for the island. Under the lead of Rodrigo Cámara-Leret, a postdoctoral researcher in the lab of Prof. Jordi Bascompte in the UZH Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, 99 scientists from 56 institutions and 19 countries have now built the first expert-verified checklist for the 13,634 vascular plant species of New Guinea and its surrounding islands. Through thorough cataloging, standardizing and reviewing, a resulting checklist of plants was born. 

One noteworthy finding is that 68% of the plants are endemic meaning that they are only found in the region. “Such high endemic species richness is unmatched in tropical Asia,” says Cámara-Leret. This means that Indonesia and Papua New Guinea (two states in which the island is found) have a responsibility to protect this irreplaceable biodiversity. The results are invaluable for research and conservation, while also underlining the importance of expert knowledge in the digital era for the future of discoveries.

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