Confessions of an Eco-Sinner
Synopsis: You bought your jeans at a local boutique, sure - but where do they really come from? Curious journalist Fred Pearce tracks the origins of his purchases (his coffee, his computer, his socks…) and learns about the impacts of buying stuff, first-hand, from the people who are most affected by it.
About the author: Considered one of Britain's best science writers, Fred Pearce is a former news editor at New Scientist who's currently serving as its environment and development consultant. He won the British Environment and Media Award for Environment Journalist of the Year in 2001, and was nominated for it three more times. He's written for Audubon, Popular Science, Time, the Boston Globe, and Natural History, and has written five other books, including The Last Generation, When the Rivers Run Dry, and Deep Jungle.
About the author: Considered one of Britain's best science writers, Fred Pearce is a former news editor at New Scientist who's currently serving as its environment and development consultant. He won the British Environment and Media Award for Environment Journalist of the Year in 2001, and was nominated for it three more times. He's written for Audubon, Popular Science, Time, the Boston Globe, and Natural History, and has written five other books, including The Last Generation, When the Rivers Run Dry, and Deep Jungle.
Reading Selection Week 4:(August 24-28) Part 6, Ch. 23 through Part 7, Ch. 29 (End); 64 pages.
The Elephant in the Green Room
Nobody wants to tell parents-to-be that having a kid is possibly the worst thing they could do for the environment. Think of all the waste that baby will create over its lifetime, or its energy use, or even something as specific as its printer paper use.
But it's great to hear that population rates will decline around 2050 due to the fact that people are starting to have fewer children, as Pearce highlights in Chapter 29. One of the positive side effects it might have: causing us all to be less xenophobic. For example, maybe in the U.S. we'll be more willing to accept refugees from war-torn countries to make up for the decline. Whatever happens, we've got a helluva long way to go before we get to the ideal 500 million people prescribed by the somewhat-creepy Georgia Guidestones. So don't forget your condom.
What do you think?
But it's great to hear that population rates will decline around 2050 due to the fact that people are starting to have fewer children, as Pearce highlights in Chapter 29. One of the positive side effects it might have: causing us all to be less xenophobic. For example, maybe in the U.S. we'll be more willing to accept refugees from war-torn countries to make up for the decline. Whatever happens, we've got a helluva long way to go before we get to the ideal 500 million people prescribed by the somewhat-creepy Georgia Guidestones. So don't forget your condom.
What do you think?
Submitted by tmeronek on Wed, 08/26/2009 - 11:00pm.
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