Matthew Savage's Blog

Watch this video called “Greensumption”. This is something that needs to be discussed. We think we have it all figured out, don’t we???

Consumers expect all types of food, with no concession to season or geography. This used to be mainly a habit of the richer countries, but now the developing world is taking our example.

Why is this like this? Well part of the reason is that there was a little-known international treaty signed in Chicago in 1944 called the Convention on International Civil Aviation to help the (then) fledgling airline industry. This was basically a tax exemption on fuel for international transport of goods, unlike what we pay for cars and trucks. Also, the exemption extended to ocean freighters.

This is only part of the reason, the other part is that the labor in the developing world is so cheap.

There is much debate about the carbon footprint of a good versus the distance it traveled. They are not always the same. Sometimes, people argue, that the locally produced good has a higher carbon footprint than an imported good. I would think this is a rarity, and if this is the case, I think that we can find ways to minimize the locally produced footprint much easier than the one from across the world.

I would prefer to just reinstate the tax on all of this transported food from all over the world. We need the cost of food to reflect the distances covered and energy used to get the food to us. Firstly, we should have labels about where everything comes from, which I am starting to see more and more although you really have to have good eyes! Secondly, we should have a carbon footprint label on the item. Maybe they could be the same label.

Meanwhile, as a food shopper, I would suggest to buy as locally as you can and to buy in bulk as much as you can to minimize packaging. Now that I know better, I will change my much-ingrained habits. Or do my best…that’s about all any of us can do.

“Water is the most critical resource issue of our lifetime and of our children’s lifetime. The health of our waters is the principal measure of how we live on the land.”
-Luna Leopold, hydrologist and professor, UC Berkeley

Global warming is getting all the attention right now and for good reason. Water is an equally important issue, but much less on the radar for the masses, especially in terms of conservation. Think about it the next time you turn on the tap.

This is an amazing video of William McDonough (www.mcdonough.com) from the Bioneers conference in 2000. Another visionary that is willing to challenge the capitalism paradigm is Annie Leonard of the Story of Stuff. These two individuals are really the most interesting speakers on the subject of sustainability that I have heard recently.

“Water is the most critical resource issue of our lifetime and of our children’s lifetime. The health of our waters is the principal measure of how we live on the land.”

-Luna Leopold, hydrologist and professor, UC Berkeley

Global warming is getting all the attention right now and for good reason. Water is an equally important issue, but much less on the radar for the masses, especially in terms of conservation. Think about it the next time you turn on the tap.