Quadrillions of pieces of plastic apparently aren’t enough. We keep making more. I’ve written about how every single item in every cart I saw in a trip to a supermarket was packaged, mostly in plastic. I wrote: For an informal survey, I went to a supermarket to observe the items in at least 100 shoppers’ carts. I didn’t make it all in one trip and lost count, but have passed[…] Keep reading →

Americans waste about 40 percent of our food. I’ve written how I eat healthy parts of plants like citrus peels, mango peel, and banana peel. When I tell people I do, the same people who decry food waste ask why I eat them. They’re healthy food! The challenge is to combine them to taste good, or to acquire the taste. I recommend eating all the edible, healthy parts of a[…] Keep reading →

Dave Gardner and I have appeared on each other’s podcasts and have become friends. He is one of the few people who understands our environmental problems and works on it. I learned about him from his documentary Growthbusters (my comment is the first on its YouTube release), which showed him running for office in Colorado on a platform to shrink the local population and economy. He didn’t win the election,[…] Keep reading →

Can we top Jethro Jones? Almost five years ago, on his appearance on the podcast, he committed to riding his bike to work every day for a season. What’s so remarkable about that? He teaches in Fairbanks, Alaska and riding in the winter meant minus 40 degrees (where F equals C). If you haven’t listened to his episode, check it out. Evelyn biking in the snow The other day, Evelyn,[…] Keep reading →

I recently watched Richard Attenborough’s Gandhi movie. I often pass the Gandhi statue around the corner from my home in Union Square. The other day I saw that someone honored Gandhi’s legacy with an empty beer can at his feet. I’m sure Gandhi would have loved the tribute. Or maybe our culture could use reminding of its lost values of stewardship and personal responsibility that might restore meaning and purpose[…] Keep reading →

I don’t use Instagram so even though I took only a few pictures, I’m posting them here. I’m not claiming they’re great pictures. I just snapped them in the morning. First, on a Friday at 6:45am, the sky was red. The camera seems to have adjusted it to less red, but you can mostly tell. It was redder a few minutes before. I noticed it while I was doing calisthenics.[…] Keep reading →

People describe my steps toward sustainability as “extreme.” Imagine everyone you knew gave babies Pepsi to drink, as much as they wanted all the time. You might think since it’s not healthy, you might not give your baby so much Pepsi. What’s the right amount of Pepsi to give babies? Ten percent less than everyone else? Twenty percent? If you give fifty percent less, are you starting to get extreme?[…] Keep reading →