What did you have for breakfast today? What clothes did you put on? Did you use tooth paste today? Drink out of a cup? Use a bowl? Did you use a writing utensil? Where did all of these things come from? How far did they travel? By what means did they reach your very fingertips? Often times we do not think where and how are prized material objects and nourishment necessities come from. They may come from china or another country or from your very own country but either way most the objects we use daily come from somewhere far away. How does this impact the environment?
Lets look at our carbon footprint. The United states has the largest per capita. A carbon footprint is not only what transportation we use to get ourselves around but also what it takes to get everything we need to us. Simple items we use everyday have a large carbon footprint. Many of us strive to be more environmentally friendly, eating organic, buying natural products, and searching for fairly sourced items. We tend to forget about the importance of the journey these items take to get to us and the effect it has on our earth. Lets take a journey with a very popular fruit most of us know and love. The Banana, which travels many leagues to nourish us. It starts with growth which occurs most often in South America far from my home. The growing process takes fertilizer and machines to plant and harvest. After harvest it is transported into boxes which each also have their own production journey from far away places. After this it is shipped various places by truck, boat, plane. Once shipped it reaches the lovely store front which requires electricity. After we drive or get transported to the store we then take it to our home to be turned into fuel for our brains. Our homes also run on electricity and if that banana is utilized in a delicious smoothie it then is using electricity as well. After we digest the banana it is put into the sewer system which also takes electricity to maintain. After all this just one banana can have a large impact on the environment. 17 kg of CO2 emissions per case of banana (Craig and Blanco). It may seem little in comparison to many things but every item we choose makes this number larger.
Cheese from Europe mmmmm. Italian wine ahhhhh. Irish butter mmmmmm. All of these items are delicious and easily accessible but at what cost to the environment. The ability to get items from all over the world is wonderful but it is an obsession that is causing the emissions of CO2 to continue increasing. The luxuries we experience are also hurting the earth. It is time to realize every decision we make can change t
he world we live in literally. Imagine if everyone bought local or at least regional that could eliminate oceanic trips and decrease the distance of product to consumer. Not only would our produce be more fresh but it would have a lesser impact on the earth. Here is a video to visually show the way what we choose effects the environment.
It is time to be responsible for the earth and our role we play. We are conscious beings able to fix and solve many problems. However our obsession with imports and exports and our inability to produce food nearby in most places is a hidden and large contributor to climate change. By giving up our own food production we are forced to make choices that are hindering the earths natural processes. Everyday we can choose to buy local and seasonal products. We may not always have access locally to what we desire but most often it can provide us with proper and adequate nutrition. Buying used furniture and clothing can help eliminate some of the footprint of carbon that is caused by those industries as well. Next time you are feeling good about buying organic cheese from Europe think twice about the impact that cheese has on our earth upon its journey to you. There are options for local organic reliably sourced foods and various other products but it takes time and effort to go and get those items. May we all keep in mind our earth the next time we buy a banana. It may be nourishing us but it is poisoning the earth on its way to you.
Sources
Craig, Anthony J and Blanco, Edgar E. Carbon Footprint of Chiquita's North American and European Bananas. MIT Center for Transportation and Logistics; Spring 2013. Web. 20 March 2016. http://www.chiquita.com/Chiquita/documents/CSR/0517_2013_Exec_Sum_MIT_CarbonFootprint_2011_MIT_FINAL.pdf
Lets take a journey with a very popular fruit most of us know and love. The Banana, which travels many leagues to nourish us. It starts with growth which occurs most often in South America far from my home. The growing process takes fertilizer and machines to plant and harvest. After harvest it is transported into boxes which each also have their own production journey from far away places. After this it is shipped various places by truck, boat, plane. Once shipped it reaches the lovely store front which requires electricity. After we drive or get transported to the store we then take it to our home to be turned into fuel for our brains. Our homes also run on electricity and if that banana is utilized in a delicious smoothie it then is using electricity as well. After we digest the banana it is put into the sewer system which also takes electricity to maintain. After all this just one banana can have a large impact on the environment. 17 kg of CO2 emissions per case of banana (Craig and Blanco). It may seem little in comparison to many things but every item we choose makes this number larger.
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