On February 4th 2014, the beaches of Praia da Asturia, Brasil were covered with dead fish!
Hundreds of dying fish washed on the shores and local residents are alarmed saying that the entire coast line has been invaded by algae prior to the fish death.
“The ocean water temperatures on the area are hotter than normal”, said a concerned local resident.
“Nights are extremely hot and more heat is expected”.
Residents also mentioned the lack of rain in the area and they are worried that this could be one of the effects of Climate Change.
We are not sure if pollution can be a cause for the death of thousands of fish but it could be a factor.
We often ask ourselves how we can help with climate change… Is it something inevitable, a natural occurrence of the earths living process, or are we trully at fault here? Is there anything we can do to help our planet regardless of who’s to blame for the problem?
The answer is YES.
Yes we CAN help and we can do this EVERYDAY.
We want you to take a good look at this list of things you can do to help Climate Change. Please be conscious of your everyday actions and become a part of the solution and not a part of the PROBLEM.
Here are TEN THINGS YOU CAN DO TO HELP CLIMATE CHANGE.
1. Say NO to CONSUMERISM and stop buying things you don’t really need!
If you are a shopohoolic then you are contributing to climate change BIG TIME. Why? Because the more you buy, the more natural materials and energy you are using/taking. Our resources are NOT unlimited! We will eventually RUN out if we don’t start taking care of what we gave left. Clothes, toys, food, if we buy too much of it, it will eventually become WASTE. If you don’t really need it, please DONT BUY IT!
2. Recycle and reuse, from plastic to clothes.
Ziploc bags for example. Do you wash them and reuse them? Or do you just throw them away after using them ONE TIME? The less you buy the more you help. I used to think that thrift shops and second hand shops were not hip, but now that I know how bad CONSUMERISM is I feel cool to go to a thrift shop and find a 600 dollar pair of shoes for 8 dollars, I feel proud of helping the earth and the ocean with my actions.
3. Buy LOCAL products
When you buy local products you are avoiding the costly FUEL or GAS that it takes a plane, truck or ship to bring the merchandise from where it was manufactured to your door step! The farther away it comes from the worst it becomes for our environment. Think about it. When you buy local you are helping globally. What about the water used far away to grow this items that come to you. We are taking the resources of others to our benefit.
4. Use less electricity, specially if you don’t have solar panels.
One of the main contributors to climate change is our excessive use of fossil fuels, oil and coal. The gases produced by these are trapped inside our atmosphere and are reflecting the sun light keeping the HEAT down on earth… melting poles, creating superstorms and causing the ocean levels to rise amongst other things. Why does the FLICK of that light switch matters? It matters because you can help save entire ecosystems and habitats on earth.
5. Do not buy any home or office cleaning products that are not biodegradable.
If its not environmentally friendly then is certainly HURTING the earth and the OCEAN. Is bleach biodegradable? NO! Is Round Up Bio degradable? Oh Hell no! These and many other products you might be using regularly are culprits for the murdering of LIFE ON EARTH. Don’t be a part of the problem! It will cost you more money to buy the ethically and morally correct products but it feels so good in your heart to know that now you are really helping, you are an active part of he SOLUTION.
6. Save WATER and keep it CLEAN
Water is NOT an INFINITE resource. The amount of water we have on earth right now, is the same amount we have had for eons… well not counting what we have wasted and POLLUTED! We have less clean water to drink now. Pollution has taken over rivers, lakes and streams. Pollution created by us. Forests and vegetation help keep the water in our atmosphere and we are destroying that as well by clearing areas to build cities, town and also for animal farming and food farming. Entire areas have been converted in to deserts, contributing to the change in our climate. Turning that faucet off when brushing your teeth and taking short showers are little things that help so much! Please help save WATER… source of LIFE on earth.
7.Eating less INDUSTRIALIZED farmed meats and products.
First lest define industrialized: to introduce industry into (an area) on a large scale. When we do this, not only we destroy habitat and forests but will use natural resources that are FINITE like WATER. Lets take industrialized cow, chicken and pig meat. Forests and natural habitats are CLEARED and destroyed to put massive animal farms to produce MEATS for you to eat.The amount of water used on this animals is astonishing, not to mention the inhumane way in which they are treated.
To produce ONE pound of meat, you need 12 pounds of soy or grains ( to feed the cow ) Multiply that by the amount of pounds in a cow and then the amount of cows slaughtered for our consumption. Its heartbreaking. Now think about all the spaces that HAD to be cleared to grow GRAINS to FEED cows, pigs and chickens!!! Do you get the drift? WE are not asking you to stop eating meats, we are asking you to buy organic, grass fed, free range meats. If you had to kill an animal every time you had to prepare a meal, would you still do it?
If your food comes in a box, inside a plastic bag, then I need you to re think if its REAL food or if its even good for you. Processed foods are not good period. Take the beloved breakfast cereal for example. Made out of corn (hopefully not GMO) who was grown on a mono crop farm. Harvested in one place, sent to the other to be processed. Additives and artificial products HAVE to be added to preserve the product. Bagged and boxed at one factory then sent all over the world. How many facets of destruction of our environment just for ONE ITEM, the cereal box!
8. Refuse, reduce, reuse and recycle all plastics!
Plastic has become the number one enemy of the OCEAN and the land. The less we use it the more we are helping.
9. Grow a garden and hep reduce your carbon footprint.
10. Use organic biodegradable hygiene products
We hope these tips will help you understand why is so important to be active and know what to do to help.
Aloha
~Oriana