Petra’s (15) entries
Most of us love world days. They remind us that we can do good things for our Earth: February 2: World Wetlands Day; May 10: Birds and Trees Day; April 7 World Health Day… Usually.
July 29, 2019 was the Earth Overshoot Day, when human consumption exceeded the level that the Earth can reproduce in one year. Unfortunately, just like our successes, we owe this to ourselves.
Like me, most people love to buy unnecessary clothes in order to keep up with the new fashion, or we can’t bear not to get the latest type of mobile phones. It probably doesn’t even occur to us that companies use huge amounts of water for their production and then they deliver sewage to the rivers. In order to make it easier to imagine, I’ll give you an example: An average of 15,500 liters of water is required to produce one kilo of beef. But then the question arises: you expect me to give up my favorite steak?
Of course, we do not have to become vegetarians right away, it is enough to reduce meat consumption, thereby also supporting our health. If we have the opportunity, grow vegetables in our garden, or at least try to buy domestic products!
By turning the radiator a couple of degrees cooler, we will not get pneumonia, even according to the most worrying grandmother, as she, unlike us, was still sleeping in a cold room. In addition to reducing carbon dioxide production, we can also benefit the family’s wallet. If we feel cold easily, we can pull on a sweater or nest under the blanket with a cup of hot tea in our hands to watch a good movie…
We also need to tell adults not to wait for future generations to solve our problems. First and foremost, they are in a position to correct their mistakes, paving the way for a perhaps new, but more lasting path for their offspring.
As pointed out in ancient times: „Man is not only responsible for what he does, but also for what he does not do.”[1] Let us make conscious decisions and indicate in our calendars the world day when we will finally succeed in restoring order.