An Energy Sufficient Planet -- Happy Earth Day!

The earth's stewardship is the foundation that our progeny will judge us. Our stewardship will determine how the climate affects large swaths of the earth's population. The earth's climate, in recent years, has undergone changes that many experts could not have foreseen. 

However, certain experts have recognized the implied issues behind a climate change for number of decades. At the birth of the environmental movement, think tanks like the The Club of Rome analyzed energy consumption and trends. Their pronouncements were published in a book, The Limits to Growth. The dire consequences predicted circa 1976 were delayed. 

However, ecological challenges were exacerbated by the rampant disregard of ec stem changes iOne The arctic will have shipping lanes for all of the year--the winters in the Northern Hemisphere of the Americas subject the people of the USA to 'a polar vortex.' The extraordinary amount of extra ice and cold have brutalized parts of the USA. What is unclear is how much time the world has in regards to worse weather --scientists have declared we have until the end of the current decade to implement changes so our own extinction is averted.      

The scenarios painted by scientists and environmental activists are nothing to fool with; in fact, we need to be careful with our immediate environment. While the adage 'think global but act local' is appropriate, it needs to be practiced in earnest. There are certain practices that anyone can employ everyday to help the environment: 

1. Recycle

2. Walk or take transit instead of using your own car

3. Wash your clothes in cold water

4.  Try navy showers for bathing

This handful of suggestions, if practiced in earnest, can change the world. While the suggestions have appeared in other forums, they still ring true. They aren't practiced in a consistent manner. One of the best ways to measure energy consumption is to measure your carbon footprint. I had it measured when I was a homeowner-- it was far less than many of my peers. My carbon footprint was small because of one reason: I didn't own a car, nor did I drive. I let others do the driving for me: taxi, uber, the bus, or one's own friends. 

In a nutshell, we still have time-- we need to get our own priorities straightened.  

REFERENCES:

An excellent reference for understanding the possible, coming chaos--


David Pogue, How to Prepare for Climate Change. Simon and Schuster Publishing, 2021.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                


The following link from the US Environmental Protection Agency is appropriate:


https://www3.epa.gov/carbon-footprint-calculator/           


The Encyclopaedia Britannica provides a good reference to the calculation of a carbon footprint:


        Selin, Noelle Eckley. "Carbon footprint". Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 Jan. 2020, https://www.britannica.com/science/carbon-footprint. Accessed 24 April 2021.

                                                                                

NASA provides an important link to climate change, as well:


https://climate.nasa.gov/nasa_science/history/


The Limits To Growth:


http://donellameadows.org/archives/a-synopsis-limits-to-growth-the-30-year-update/





                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 

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