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Don’t Get Discouraged
As my last semester of college is quickly coming to an end, I have been more stressed with schoolwork than ever. As a result, I have kind of been slacking in the sustainability department. I’ve been eating more meat/dairy lately, letting food in my fridge go bad, driving to class instead of walking, etc. While I feel pretty guilty about this, I am not allowing myself to become discouraged in the process of living more sustainably. Sometimes, life gets pretty crazy and we are bound to make mistakes and lose track of our goals. However, it is important to remind yourself that you are still making changes and you are…
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The History of Earth Day
Welcome to my new category of posts, Throwback Thursdays! Here I will be looking back on notable moments in the history of environmentalism. With Earth Day approaching, I thought I would discuss how this wonderful day came to be. Earth Day, April 22nd, is the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement in 1970. At the time, Americans were burning through leaded gas like it was their job. Large corporations expelled smoke and sludge without any consideration of the environmental consequences. In fact, the word “environment” was hardly seen or talked about anywhere. The idea for Earth Day came to be when founder Gaylord Nelson, a senator from…
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The Love Canal Disaster
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Ditch the Plastic Water Bottles
Growing up, my family would purchase 24 packs of spring water. We would go through them pretty quick, a large portion of them ending up half-drank, stacked up on nightstands, or underneath my bed. It’s a shame to think of all plastic I have accumulated in my lifetime, but a couple years ago I made the switch from buying bottled water to investing in an insulated water bottle. There are an infinite number of reasons why you should make this change too, but, here are just a few of them: you are eliminating another single-use plastic from your life (if you pitched the plastic bags like I suggested in an…
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You Need To Try Tempeh
My sister, a vegetarian for over four years now, has been one of my biggest inspirations for wanting to give up eating meat. One recent evening while I was staying at her home, she offered to make one of her favorite dishes: smoked tempeh sandwiches. My response? “What the heck is tempeh?” It turns out tempeh is a fermented soy product. The difference between tempeh and tofu is that tempeh is made from whole soybeans, while tofu is not. The soybeans are compressed into a “cake,” offering a chewy and hearty texture. Plus, it is packed with plant-based protein! The sandwiches turned out delicious. The tempeh was marinated in barbecue…
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Eat Local!
Buying local food is a growing movement that has many environmental benefits. One of the most important benefits of buying local food is that it reduces your food miles. When you buy produce or meat from a grocery store, it is more than likely that these products have traveled over 1000 miles to get to you. That’s a lot of CO2 missions. Luckily, buying local greatly diminishes this footprint. Upon doing research for one of my classes, I stumbled upon a website called EatWild. Basically, it is a huge database for you to find locally grown produce and meats in your area. It gives you lists of farms including their…
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How Big is Your Ecological Footprint?
As more and more studies emerge about the degradation of the environment, everybody wants to point fingers. However, it is important to recognize that we are ALL responsible in some way or another. Sure, there are a lot of things that are beyond our control as individuals. However, our daily choices, such as choosing to eat meat everyday, have a large impact as well. It may be hard to imagine this impact because so many factors come into play. Fortunately, however, there is a tool out there that shows you how many planets we would need if everyone lived the same lifestyle as you. Personally, it really helped me to see…
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Ditch the Plastic Bags
I cannot stress this one enough guys: REUSABLE GROCERY BAGS. I recommend these not only because it is important that we cut back on our single-use plastics, but also because reusable grocery bags are incredibly convenient. In my college town, we only have a Walmart to buy our groceries from. That meant that every time I would go and get a bunch of groceries, I was leaving with 6-10 plastic bags full of stuff. I would have to make extra trips from my car to my apartment to get everything inside; and it was just an all-around inconvenience for myself as well as the environment. I finally decided to purchase…
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Netflix and Chili
Feeling down from the cold weather? Trying not to eat meat but craving a delicious, hearty meal? Then this VEGAN CHILI is right for you! For all you college students, the ingredients only cost me $12 at Walmart, and this recipe yielded a HUGE pot of chili! I found a recipe online for vegan chili a couple weeks ago, and finally decided to give it a try. I tweaked it a bit and added some ingredients to my liking, but if you’d like to check his recipe out, here you go. Here is what you’ll need: -1 large onion (diced) -Red, green, and yellow bell peppers (1 of each) -1…
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The Earth’s Got Beef With Us
For my first post, I am going to share one of the most important things you can do to help in the battle against climate change: eat less meat. Specifically, eat less beef. I know, that’s probably not what you want to hear, because cheeseburgers just really hit the spot, but did you know that livestock operations account for roughly 50% of methane emissions into the atmosphere? Of domestic livestock, the beef cow/calf sector is the largest contributor of methane emissions (source). Not only this, but meat production requires massive amounts of Earth’s resources. For more information, check out this video. Look, I understand that cutting back on meat is not easy for…
