I am currently reading a very interesting book on how our actions impact on the environment…You Are Here: Exposing the Vital Link Between What We Do and What That Does to Our Planet by Thomas Kostigen. The author travels to various sites of environmental catastrophe and details the impact on both the landscape and the people who live there. He then shows how our own actions have contributed to that disaster.
For instance, a small village in Alaska is gradually falling into the sea as the land erodes and the villagers are unable to fish as the ice-floes melt. Apart from the more obvious cause of global warming, he also links it to the dust, toxins and ash that drift with the air currents from mainland America. These land on the snow, darkening it and causing it to absorb heat rather than reflect it.
He also makes suggestions as to how we can help by changing our habits and lifestyles to reduce, reuse and recycle.The links he makes are fascinating and give a great insight into the global consequences of the actions of each one of us. Highly recommended!
Mexico: Climate Change Talks
The UN Climate Change talks in Mexico are in progress although it appears that very little progress will be made. The BBC suggest that the talks are all just hot air and that environmental concerns are low down on the agenda during the global recession. Japan has refused to honour the Kyoto protocol whilst China is spending more than the US on reducing carbon emissions. It appears that the only way forward is to prove that going green also saves you money!
BTW A great resource for current news on environmental issues is The Daily Climate.
