Summer is upon us folks in the Northern Hemisphere. Soon the temperatures will be on the rise. It's time to check in with your daily habits and see if you are consuming enough water to stay hydrated. Keep reading to discover the scientific-backed health benefits of consuming water and how you can benefit from increasing your intake.
According to NASA, the current warming of the earth is roughly 10 times faster than the ice-age-recovery warming. Impacts of climate change can be felt all around the globe, from the rising sea levels and extreme weather conditions to shrinking ice sheets and decreased snow cover.
In light of the recent United Nations climate report, it's important we all do our part to protect the environment. According to the report, we only have 12 years left to reverse climate change without creating catastrophic damage. If this disturbs you, I do have good news: You can make a difference. The battle has just begun, and we all need to take part in it this time around. Here are 5 ways you can reduce your carbon footprint and put a stop to climate change.
I recently returned from a writing residency in Slovenia, the small country that sits east of Italy and lays wedged between Austria to the north and Croatia in the south. Few people are aware of its existence, and prior to spending several weeks there, I considered myself to be fairly unaware of it, too. Unfortunately, Slovenia deserves a lot more credit than it gets, specifically for its greenness—think low pollution levels, preservation of natural resources, encouragement of biodiversity, and more.
About an hour drive down the Mediterranean coast from Genoa Italy, and 100 meters (330 feet) out to sea, you will find yourself floating above an array of growing produce: this is Nemo’s Garden. Six to 10 meters (20-33 feet) below the ocean’s surface there is an array of fruits, vegetables, and herbs growing in garden beds that look remarkably like jellyfish. Here we find something that could mean a new chapter in agriculture.
Young people are mobilizing to create healthier environmental futures. A packed conference held this February in San Francisco brought together hundreds of middle- and high-school students from nine Bay Area counties to discuss the climate change crisis. A large focus was on creating real transportation choices that minimize air pollution and promote strong families and communities. Young people discussed safe ways to bicycle, carpool, and take public transit.
“Terroir” is a French term that stems from the word “terre,” meaning “land” or “earth.” It is a concept commonly used when discussing wine and vineyard-growing regions. The “terroir” of a given wine – the complexities of its flavor – essentially depends on four unique factors: climate, soil, terrain, and tradition. Combined, these four aspects offer a unique and non-replicable terroir associated with the wine that is produced under those specific circumstances.
Thirty years ago and about eighteen miles from Aspen, Colorado, Jerome Osentowski built a “hoop house,” a tunnel made of polyethylene that heats up due to solar radiation. He had in mind a greenhouse and kept adding to it with recycled steel and other materials. Over the years, his original hoop house design expanded into five greenhouses that now produce food via climates ranging from Zones 6 through 12.
Very dismal news came through in October that the Great Barrier Reef had suffered mass bleaching and a major part of it had died. This led environmental writer Rowan Jacobsen to publish an obituary, “The Great Barrier Reef of Australia passed away in 2016 after a long illness. It was 25 million years old." But there’s still hope, and these positive news stories form 2016 certainly prove it right!