Last weekend, I attended a seminar on the opposite coast. I had reservations about attending. Would I get anything out of the experience? Would the people I met there get anything out of it? Would the seminar be worth the cost of registration and air travel? Would it be worth the greenhouse gases that I…
Tag: climate change
Forget everything I ever said about Package Free.
When I first heard about Package Free, a store that sells household basics and staples without (you guessed it) packaging, I was intrigued. Sure, I already had a large cache of supplies to help me wend my way toward a zero-waste lifestyle—reusable bags, glass jars, travel mug, bar soap, white vinegar, safety razor and gazillion…
This is why I’ll never achieve a zero waste life
Ceci n’est pas une tasse. This is not a cup. I requested a cup at the coffee shop, one of the ceramic cups on the shelf sitting underneath the tea display, but I was given this thing, which is not a cup. And it’s not anyone’s fault (except that it is a lot of someones’…
Shopping Waste-Free in New York
The first step to creating less waste is to change the way you think. And to do that, you need to change the way you shop. And that usually means changing the way you eat, too. So many changes, I know. I say nothing revolutionary when I say that Americans eat a diet full of…
These are the young people suing the US government
Last night didn’t go exactly as planned. After work, I headed to the New York City Society for Ethical Culture on the Upper West Side. My intention was to attend the Food and Water Watch New York chapter’s monthly meeting, where we would discuss how to stop the Williams pipeline that is supposed to carry…
Islands That Will Be Swallowed by Rising Seas Before the End of the Century
Across the Globe: 1. Maldives (could be uninhabitable by 2030) 2. Palau (much of the island is on higher ground but this area is currently largely uninhabitable due to its rocky and inhospitable terrain) 3. Solomon Islands* 4. Micronesia* 5. Fiji** 6. Tuvalu 7. Seychelles (could be uninhabitable by 2030) 8. Kiribati (expected to be…
The Power of Produce Bags
The best move I ever made was to transfer to a different university. The second best move I ever made was to stop eating dairy. And the third best move I ever made was to start using reusable produce bags. Seven or eight years ago, I bought a set of reusable produce bags from the…
The Book I May Never Finish
In 2014, Naomi Klein published a book called This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate. In 2019, I checked it out at the New York Public Library. A month later, I was filled with a fathomless weariness and was ready to lay down on the floor and never get up. When I started reading This…
The Awakening
Sooner or later, all good sleeps must come to an end. And so, although the hour is late, I’m waking up. You know those mornings when you open your eyes and the sun is already in the sky? It’s on these mornings that I’m filled with a kind of dread. “I’ve already wasted half the day,”…
Climate Conscious 