#evironment

[whattheydonttellyouytc]

"What They Dont Want You To Know"Series

1. Corporate Influence on Legislation

Large corporations wield significant power in shaping laws and regulations through lobbying efforts. This influence often prioritizes profit over public interest, resulting in legislation that favors corporate agendas, such as tax breaks, deregulation, or loopholes that allow environmental harm. For example, the oil and gas industry has been known to lobby against stricter environmental protections, impacting climate policy and public health.

2. Food Industry Secrets

The food industry often obscures the truth about what goes into our food. Many products contain additives and preservatives that can affect health, yet these ingredients are not always clearly labeled. Additionally, practices such as factory farming raise concerns about animal welfare and antibiotic use, which can lead to antibiotic resistance. Understanding these secrets can empower consumers to make informed choices about their diets.

3. Environmental Degradation

While the impacts of climate change are widely discussed, the specific practices contributing to environmental degradation often receive less attention. Industries like mining and logging can devastate ecosystems, leading to biodiversity loss and habitat destruction. Moreover, the pollution from industrial activities can have dire consequences for local communities, particularly in marginalized areas, where regulations may be less stringent.

4. Data Privacy and Surveillance

As technology advances, the collection and use of personal data have become ubiquitous. Many people are unaware of how much information they share through social media, apps, and online transactions. This data can be sold or misused, leading to targeted advertising, identity theft, and breaches of privacy. Understanding these practices is crucial for protecting personal information in an increasingly digital world.

5. Mental Health Stigmas

Despite growing awareness of mental health issues, significant stigma remains, often fueled by societal norms and media portrayals. Many individuals suffer in silence due to fear of judgment or discrimination, which can prevent them from seeking help. Additionally, access to mental health services is often limited, particularly in low-income communities, highlighting the need for greater support and understanding.

6. Wealth Inequality

The gap between the rich and the poor continues to widen, fueled by systemic issues such as tax policies that favor the wealthy, inadequate wages for essential workers, and unequal access to education and healthcare. This growing inequality can lead to social unrest and economic instability. Understanding the underlying factors can motivate individuals to advocate for more equitable policies.

7. Pharmaceutical Industry Practices

The pharmaceutical industry is often criticized for its pricing strategies and marketing tactics, which can prioritize profit over patient care. Many essential medications are prohibitively expensive, leading to preventable health crises. Additionally, alternative treatments or generics may be overlooked in favor of branded drugs due to marketing influence, raising questions about healthcare accessibility.

8. Climate Change Denial

Despite overwhelming scientific evidence, climate change denial persists, often driven by financial interests in fossil fuels. This denial can hinder global efforts to combat climate change, as policy changes are delayed or blocked. Understanding the motivations behind this denial can help individuals advocate for more proactive climate policies and support sustainable practices.

9. Cultural Appropriation

Cultural appropriation refers to the adoption of elements of one culture by another, often without understanding or respecting their significance. This practice can exploit marginalized cultures while commodifying their traditions. For example, fashion brands may use indigenous designs without crediting the original creators, highlighting the need for awareness and sensitivity in cultural exchanges.

10. Energy Solutions

While renewable energy sources like solar and wind power have the potential to transform our energy landscape, they are often overshadowed by the fossil fuel industry. Many innovative technologies, such as energy storage and smart grids, could disrupt traditional energy markets. Raising awareness of these alternatives is essential for promoting sustainable energy policies and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.

[sseltzerr]

Aug 8, 2024

A (really) quick study of a picture of Prague! Not so great, but I'm happy with the practice. Prague is (currently) my fav city in Europe. Just so wonderful to explore.

[zoudhra]

Rusted Shore

[hvlalaleo-10]

When world is cute

[krissyanemone]

"What an inconvenient time for us!"

WHAT IS HE DOING!?

HAHAHAHAHAHA!! STOP IT!

no.

[blfontain]

Local Reforestation Initiatives: Stories of Communities and Organizations Successfully Restoring Forests

Introduction:

In a world where deforestation and environmental degradation loom large, local reforestation initiatives emerge as beacons of hope. These grassroots efforts, driven by passionate communities and dedicated organizations, are not only restoring forests but also enhancing biodiversity, improving livelihoods, and combating climate change. Let's dive into some inspiring stories of success and explore how you can support these efforts.

 The Importance of Reforestation:

Reforestation is crucial for sustaining ecosystems and mitigating climate change. Forests act as carbon sinks, absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and helping to regulate the global climate. They provide habitat for countless species, support water cycles, and offer resources and livelihoods for millions of people. However, deforestation continues to threaten these vital ecosystems, making reforestation efforts more important than ever.

 Africa's Community Efforts:

Across Africa, numerous communities have taken the lead in reforesting degraded lands. These efforts are often spearheaded by local leaders who understand the importance of sustaining their environment. For instance, in Ethiopia, the Tigray region has seen remarkable success in reforestation, transforming barren landscapes into lush forests.

Ethiopia's Tigray Region:

In Ethiopia's Tigray region, local communities have been working tirelessly to restore degraded lands. Through a combination of traditional knowledge and modern techniques, they have managed to transform barren landscapes into thriving forests. This initiative has not only improved the local environment but also provided economic benefits to the community. The success of Tigray's reforestation efforts serves as a model for other regions facing similar challenges.

Ghana's Green Ghana Project:

In Ghana, the Green Ghana Project aims to plant millions of trees across the country. This initiative, launched by the government, involves local communities, schools, and organizations in tree planting activities. The project not only focuses on reforestation but also on educating the public about the importance of sustaining the environment. By engaging the community, the Green Ghana Project is fostering a culture of environmental stewardship.

 The Green Belt Movement in Kenya:

Founded by Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai, the Green Belt Movement has been a pioneer in reforestation efforts in Kenya. This movement focuses on tree planting, environmental conservation, and women's rights. Through their work, they have planted millions of trees, significantly contributing to the restoration of Kenya's forests.

Empowering Women Through Reforestation:

One of the unique aspects of the Green Belt Movement is its focus on empowering women. By involving women in tree planting and environmental conservation activities, the movement has helped to improve their social and economic status. Women are trained in sustainable farming practices, tree nursery management, and environmental education. This empowerment has had a ripple effect, leading to greater community involvement in reforestation efforts.

Restoring Kenya's Forests:

The Green Belt Movement has made significant strides in restoring Kenya's forests. By planting indigenous tree species, they have helped to revive ecosystems and enhance biodiversity. The movement also works to protect existing forests from illegal logging and encroachment. Their efforts have not only improved the environment but also provided economic opportunities for local communities.

WWF's Global Initiatives:

The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has been instrumental in supporting local reforestation projects worldwide. By collaborating with over 50 local institutions and 150 community stakeholders, WWF has helped restore forests even amidst challenges like the COVID-19 pandemic. Their efforts highlight the importance of global cooperation in sustaining our planet.

Reforestation in the Amazon:

The Amazon rainforest, often referred to as the "lungs of the Earth," has been severely impacted by deforestation. WWF has been working with local communities and organizations to restore degraded areas of the Amazon. Through tree planting and sustainable land management practices, they aim to revive this critical ecosystem. These efforts are crucial for maintaining the biodiversity and climate regulation functions of the Amazon.

Community-Based Forest Management:

WWF's approach to reforestation emphasizes community-based forest management. By involving local communities in the planning and implementation of reforestation projects, WWF ensures that these initiatives are sustainable and culturally appropriate. This approach also helps to build local capacity and foster a sense of ownership and responsibility for the environment.

WeForest and Taking Root:

Organizations like WeForest and Taking Root work closely with local communities to enhance ecosystem services and improve livelihoods through reforestation. These projects not only restore forests but also provide economic benefits to the communities involved, creating a sustainable model for environmental conservation.

WeForest's Global Impact:

WeForest operates in several countries, including Brazil, India, and Zambia. Their projects focus on restoring forests, enhancing biodiversity, and supporting local communities. By working with local partners, WeForest ensures that their reforestation efforts are tailored to the specific needs and conditions of each region. This collaborative approach has led to significant successes in forest restoration and community development.

Taking Root's Innovative Model:

Taking Root, based in Nicaragua, has developed an innovative model for reforestation that combines environmental conservation with economic development. By working with smallholder farmers, Taking Root helps them to plant and manage trees on their land. These trees provide a source of income through the sale of carbon credits and sustainable timber. This model not only restores forests but also improves the livelihoods of participating farmers.

 How You Can Support Reforestation Efforts

Supporting reforestation initiatives can be as simple as purchasing products from companies that contribute to these efforts. Here are some affiliate links to products that support reforestation:

Best Eco-Friendly Products:

Best Sustainable Clothing:

Green Technology:

By choosing to support these products, you are contributing to the global effort to restore forests and sustain our environment.

🌍Celebrate World Environmental Day

World Environmental Day is a perfect opportunity to reflect on our impact on the planet and take action to sustain it. Participating in local reforestation projects or supporting organizations dedicated to this cause can make a significant difference. Let's work together to create a greener, more sustainable world.

Get Involved in Local Projects

One of the best ways to celebrate World Environmental Day is by getting involved in local reforestation projects. Many communities and organizations host tree planting events and environmental education activities. By participating in these events, you can make a tangible contribution to sustaining the environment and learn more about the importance of reforestation.

Support Reforestation Organizations

Another way to celebrate World Environmental Day is by supporting organizations that are dedicated to reforestation. Whether through donations, volunteering, or purchasing products that contribute to reforestation efforts, your support can make a significant impact. Consider supporting organizations like the Green Belt Movement, WWF, WeForest, and Taking Root.

The Future of Reforestation

The future of reforestation depends on the continued efforts of communities, organizations, and individuals around the world. By working together, we can restore degraded lands, enhance biodiversity, and combat climate change. Reforestation is not just about planting trees; it's about sustaining ecosystems and improving livelihoods. As we look to the future, it's essential to support and expand these efforts to create a healthier, more sustainable planet.

 Innovative Approaches to Reforestation

Innovative approaches to reforestation, such as agroforestry and assisted natural regeneration, are gaining traction. These methods integrate trees into agricultural landscapes and support the natural recovery of forests. By adopting these approaches, we can enhance the effectiveness of reforestation efforts and create more resilient ecosystems.

The Role of Technology

Technology also plays a crucial role in modern reforestation efforts. Drones, satellite imagery, and data analytics are being used to monitor forest health, plan reforestation projects, and track progress. These tools enable more efficient and effective reforestation, ensuring that resources are used wisely and that projects have the desired impact.

Conclusion:

Local reforestation initiatives are vital for sustaining our planet and combating climate change. The inspiring stories of communities and organizations successfully restoring forests demonstrate the power of collective action. By supporting these efforts, whether through participation, donations, or purchasing eco-friendly products, we can all contribute to a greener, more sustainable world. Let's celebrate World Environmental Day by taking action to sustain our environment and support reforestation initiatives.

Affiliate Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase through these links, we may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. This helps support our efforts to promote sustainable practices and environmental conservation. Thank you for your support!

[1greenameba]

Manmade horrors beyond our comprension

[tama-the-toe]

Walk It Like They Talk It.

Put down that joystick and start walking. Not too long ago group of students from Japan’s University of Tsukuba showcased virtual shoes as part of the Emerging Technologies exhibit. These “Powered Shoes” are real shoes that let the wearer walk in a virtual world. They look like a mix of Birkenstocks and old roller skates, with motorized rollers in the sole that move with the wearer’s steps to…

[ere-the-sun-rises]

To illustrate OP's point even further:

Most hospital tools are metal, therefore sterilizable. As of yet, there is no reasonable replacement for plastic components that can be either viably recycled or sterilized to be reused. Everything from the casings on an ultrasound wand to the tubing of a IV have no replacement materials.

Hospitals do create a lot of waste, and by design. Disposable masks, gloves, gowns and casings are creating major waste, but it's not waste without purpose. Very specifically, these items must be disposable to control infection possibility and protect both doctor/nurse and patient from the illness, disease and fuid they have to deal with.

Wasteful manufacturing is more of an issue than anything. For example, despite how infamous six-pack rings are, they are less wasteful than Coke's full-package wraps on their six packs. Why use the extra plastic?

Another example? Why are glass containers (a la tupperware) not as easy to find? They use less plastic (only the lid), are microwave (and sometimes oven) safe, are not porous (that discolouration on your plastic containers? Food residue sunk into the plastic), do not disfigure/warp and can be plastic-wrapped in the event something happens to the lid.

And no, the glass versions are not innately more expensive. In my local dollar store, glass containers were right alongside plastic ones for the same price or only slightly more. Oven-safe ones are more expensive, yes, but plastic is never oven-safe, so there you go.

Straws have become a big issue, but it's not their existence that's the problem - it's their overuse. Why could McDonalds not have made a cup with a coffee-esque lid on it? Why did restaurants ever give you straws automatically when you're very much capable of drinking from a glass cup?

There's a lot we rely on in the modern world that needs plastic. Cable shealths, electronics casings, glues, medical equipment, tape - it all needs to exist. The existence of non-recyclable plastics are an issue, but not one we can fix by abandoning them, only finding alternatives or better materials from which to produce degradable or recyclable plastics.

Electricity consumption is a matter of perspective. Do electronics like phones, tvs, consoles, laptops and tablets draw lots of energy? Yes. Do you know what draws considerably more? ChatGPT. And it uses an insane amount of water for coolant. What use does that fucking thing have? Why are there LED billboards? Why are stores allowed to leave signage on overnight? Or have parking lot lights that don't have solar panels?

The thing is, right, that consumer electronics have to factor in how costly running them will be on the consumer end. Why do you think Hummer failed? Because it cost too much in gas to run the damn thing. Consumer electronics need to be reasonably efficient to be viable, but manufacturers and corporations just write those expenses off on their taxes. They can disappear losses with subsides that even upper middle class people cannot afford.

Another point of perspective: in the early 2000s ahead of an energy crisis, the Canadian government went on an energy consumption reduction campaign. In schools, in ads, over the radio - the government pushed more responsible, economic energy use. Simple shit, like turning off lights, lowering temperatures in your home by a degree or two, using power bars for electronics/chargers and the EnerGuide rating system applied to large appliance purchases. EnerGuide in particular did a lot, since it forced manufacturers to reveal how efficient their machines were and how much running the machine would cost - this cost was based on an average use expected by the government and balanced against the machine's size.

This was staggeringly successful.

In the wake of the Ukraine invasion, the EU was under direct energy threat from Russia as Russian pipelines supplied up to a quarter of the EU's energy. In a crazy united collective action by the member states, the EU rapidly organized new energy imports from the Near East, Africa, Norway and America, set up targets for new sustainable power generation and underwent a concerted energy reduction campaign. While the renewables campaign has not yet met its targets, the other two campaigns were incredibly successful across the entire EU. The reduction campaign in particular was not only for citizens, but industry too.

And that's not even to mention the emissions drop through COVID - when medical equipment's use skyrocketted and consumption barely flagged, but world-wide emissions decreased by double-digits. Wanna guess why? Industry had to slow or stop. People were driving less cars to commute, sure, but everyday driving was still happening and shipping rates increased with the uptick in online ordering.

Consumption is part of the issue, no doubt. But consumption can only be mitigated by what's available to purchase. Concerted reduction efforts have to be imposed from the top down - government regulation of industry and it's production methods. Private industry is only interested in short term profits by any means and will sacrifice lives, sustainable economies and the environment to do it.

also "ough life-saving essential medical equipment uses so much plastic" in this country you can purchase an artificial ballsack for your pickup truck

[invisiblerambler]

People who don't get why everyone else in Carmy's life is invested in Claire has never been in social circles where there's a toxic level of involvement and codependency. I was in an abusive relationship that was cheered on by nearly everyone in my life simply because they knew both of us and they liked the idea of us being together. I have seen this happen over and over in my circles it's unfortunately extremely common and everyone puts blinders on if they're sold on something it's like mob mentality on a small scale

[yearning-gay]

the need to bounce on it is real but the eepy sleepy is real-er

[anamelessfool]

Deeply conflicted about the Dune premiere right now. (If you don't want to get into it, please ignore ok?)

I love Dune. I read it first when I was 14. It was deep, immersive, spiritual. Medieval-like power plays combined with psychedelic horror/philosophical concepts? Sign me right up. Frank Herbert in a way wrote Dune as a response to Joseph Campbell's iconic Hero With A Thousand Faces, and George Lucas did the same with his Star Wars series. I believe the two worlds would not exist if not for Campbell's book and thesis on the collective Unconscious in storytelling.

But Herbert had his own take on the concept. Dune espouses that there is inherent danger to a Messiah narrative. That ruin is inevitable if a society puts all their faith in a single person, in a prophecy that may or may not have been implanted in them by the ones waiting to throw on the yoke. Information is the real power, the real resource.

Further, so much of Dune and the lore of the planet is inspired loosely by middle eastern thought and philosophical terminology. It is a scifi Lawrence of Arabia tale. So I'm watching all these beautiful people on the red carpet, admiring all my favorite fashion houses really pulling all the stops on looks, and I'm thinking about the messages of Dune (or at least the messages I took from it. You may disagree and that's ok). A film about a universe in which information control is the key to victory, a universe that fabricates stories to destroy planets, a universe that freely uses Islamic terminology to describe philosophical concepts....is being premiered and glamorized while narratives are allowing people to sleep on true violence. On genocide. In one of the regions that made Dune's grand philosophies possible.

I just feel a lil sick about it.

[girlonthelasttrain]

I plan to write something in Italian for None English Fest 2023 (lbr it's going to be a Trek fic), and god I want to write it so badly in the style of Fruttero & Lucentini [immediately gets pelted with rotten tomatoes]

[pokemonxhyperfixation]

The Red Star Temple

"The first impression you get upon entering our mountainous and arctic mob zone! The Red Star Temple is named for the beautiful visual y'all get due to the species held within.

The Unown, a species of aberant parasites which take over the bodies of their victims for purposes of reprodution and protection from predators.

While they are dangerous, the glow of their red eyes in the dark they must be kept in to promote activity makes them a beautiful sight.

Special thanks to our specialist Letty Whiterock for taking on the role of watching and maintaining this exhibit. While there have never been documented instances of Unown targeting Youkai for hosts, our largely Human-like Youkai staff are especially at risk. Luck for us, Letty is of a more... ghostly disposition, allowing her safe entry. All non-ghost or construct staff are to wear hazmat suits when entering this exhibit for their own safety (as I am doing while taking these photos, hense the green particles that got captured in some shots).

While most zoos avoid housing Unown at all, those that do all are required to have at least one Unown Hive to keep the creature's stable. This poor bloke is ours. He was like this upon the aquisition of our Unown, as transporting them inside their corpsely home is far easier than moving them all individually.

And that is the Red Star Temple! Happy visiting!"

-Dr. D Clownberg

The first non-forest sector exhibit I'm posting! I'm breaking the Zooge up into different sub areas, and this is quite literally the first exhibit you see upon entering the Mountain Sector known as Youkai Peaks. Unown are actually rough to include, as they can only really spawn by hitting a Gold (or Unown hive as they are called in this setting), which means mob spawning must be on, which uh, proves a bit of an issue.

I decided to post this today just because I'm feeling the Letty Brain Worms wiggling in my head. Fun fact about the Zooge setting: I imagine that Yuki-onnas like Letty are one of the Unown's typical predators. So Letty is more than qualified for this.

[autism-corner]

my inherent autistic need to look at the ground while walking is really conflicting with my irrational fear of slugss......