7 steps to saving the planet.
- Do not have children
- Just stop eating meat
- That includes fish
- Check its sustainable soya
- Check its sustainable palm oil
- Move my investments/pension to renewable energy technologies
- Donate to Greenpeace
It has been a while since I went to the cinema.
I donned my mask and metallic gold pants and headed to screen 3 at FACT.
David Attenborough is 94. He is a nonagenarian, thats one old beige bag of vegetables.
If you are lucky enough to watch his documentary on one of the only two days it screens, then make sure you stay passed the end credits. Him and Michael Palin have a spine twisting sit down chat in the garden. I wish he wouldn’t sit cross legged like that though no good for the hips Dave.
Its poignant not only because he’s old but because he has directly witnessed a change in our planet. His witness statement, as he calls it, is meant to be cross examined like a witness statement would be in court and he can take the questioning. It is a visual journey of the population increase over his lifetime and the carbon increase in the atmosphere, measured in parts per million. He also measures the wilderness left remaining. Needless so say this reduces as the former two increase.
2020
WORLD POPULATION 7.8 Billion
CARBON IN ATMOSPHERE 412 PARTS PER MILLION
REMAINING WILDERNESS 35%
I made a conscious decision to not watch or read mainstream media about 4 years ago because I was sick of being kindly informed of all the doom and subjective gloom without any rights to recourse.
But David doesn’t do that.
He shows us the error of our ways then guides us all into what we can do to reverse this.
Here are my 7 actions I will take that I will implement henceforth:
- Do not have children
- Just stop eating meat
- That includes fish
- Check its sustainable soya
- Check its sustainable palm oil
- Move my investments/pension to renewable energy technologies
- Donate to Greenpeace
Do not have children. It took over 2 million years of human history for the world’s population to reach 1 billion and only 200 years more to reach 7 billion. Japan’s population has stopped increasing, in part to better employment opportunities for women, and them choosing to not wed and have children, but to pursue their careers. Girls, get skilled, get a career, save the planet. Im still going to enjoy the baby making practice though.
Just stop eating meat. I learnt about the impact of beef consumption through Cowspiracy, and then further put off by watching videos of mass meat production. It’s taken me around 5 years to reduce my meat intake to around two meals a week and that is mostly fish. We all have to start somewhere and for me it was a hashtag meatfreemondays that kickstarted my conscious consumerism. Luckily I was the main person cooking in my household so everyone went meat free on Monday. Then I had an acid trip with some cows and outright decided no more beef. I have resisted going full Vegetarian, I think in part because I didnt want to make anyone else uncomfortable. I tried the secret vegetarian approach, only eating meat when your mates mum, who you havent seen in 7 years throws a bacon sandwich on your plate, and you dont have the heart to tell her. But thank you David, although you are partial to a free range chicken once in a while I have made a decision, im saying it out loud, I am not going to eat meat!
That includes fish. One of my favouites is BBQ salmon ooooh me mouth salivates. We have obviously over fished, ‘cos we always be ruining a good thing. However this is one area that can quickly be reversed if we pledge to protect our oceans by restricting fishing like they do in Palau and watch stocks return. This would mean controls on where and when to fish ultimately meaning an increase in the cost of fish for us. But if we all do this then we can buy expensive sustainable fish on special occasions and I can look longingly at that succulent scorched slab of pure joy.
Check its sustainable soya. Being a vegetarian, I get fobbed off with soya alternatives all the time but I now learnt from David that the swaths of homogenised soya plants are destroying natural habitat. Give me a break! Damned if I do damned if I dont! So a lidl and easy fix is to shop at Lidl as their soys is fully sustainable soya products. Check out their soy initiative.
Check its sustainable palm oil. Ok this one I have been intentionally ignorant to because I know Koka noodles contain the bad oil. The palm oil industry has been a disaster for the world’s forests, wildlife and climate. Palm oil is mostly grown in Indonesia and Malaysia, two tropical countries with large areas of rainforest home to tigers, orangutans and other species that are found nowhere else on earth. Palm oil companies have been destroying these rainforests because they want more land to grow oil palm trees. According to Greenpeace its not enough to seek out certified sustainable palm oil because Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) certified oil is a con and untraceable. So with many supermarkets in the UK not actually being able to trace oil to its origin, how can we make a difference and be sure we are buying 100% deforestation-free palm oil. I guess it for me its a case of not buying any product form now on with any kind of palm oil in it. However Lidl seem to be helping me out again here by actually tracking their sustainable palm oil, including whether palm oil is sourced through mass balance or segregated supply chain models.
Move my investments/pension to renewable energy technologies. I already opt out of pension schemes because I knew my money was almost certainly being invested in crap I didnt endorse. I am now in the process of moving my money from Bitcoin to renewable energy stocks. Whilst researching I found this ” Just because something is likely to have a big impact on the world doesn’t necessarily make it a good investment.” well I say FUCK INVESTMENTS then, what is the point of investing your money to enjoy in later life when you may not see later life because your planet doesnt exist. OK Maxine stop being dramatic and keep searching for renewable energy investment trusts.
Donate to Greenpeace. Easy. Done.
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