Sustainable Growing
To be sustainable, agriculture needs to take a holistic, ecological approach that builds healthy soil, eliminates the use of artificial fertilizers, pesticides, growth hormones, and antibiotics. Not only do organic farming practices reduce pollution, the resulting food supports the health of those who eat it.
Industrial farming practices, on the other hand, create a variety of environmental health problems in and near the communities where it is grown—and the resulting food can actually undermine the health of those who eat it. [See Healthy Food for Healthy Communities.]
Do campus food services contribute to sustainability and health?
Campus dining services, like other institutional food-service operations, prepare large volumes of food every day, most of it the product of the industrialized agriculture system, not grown sustainably. It is often served in ways that produce large volumes of waste, … more
Religious Groups Support Fair Trade
Most religions and charitable relief organizations support Fair Trade—here’s a list of organizations where we found published statements on Fair Trade: American Jewish World Services Catholic Relief Services Church of the Brethren Episcopal Relief and Development Fair Trade Judaica Islamic … more
Organic Is the Answer for Healthy Food, Healthy People, and a Healthy Planet
by Maya Rodale — The idea that our health is connected to the food we eat isn’t really a shocking concept. It just makes sense: you are what you eat. What matters to our health just as much—if not more—is how our … more
Sustainability & Public Health
Let’s look at sustainability in terms of how our practices affect human health, both immediately and over the long term. Whether we call them health problems or environmental problems, though, the prescription for corrective actions is almost identical. The health lens is … more
Fifty Ways to Help Save the Planet
What you can do The problem is so vast and the urgency so great that advice which suggests you turn off the tap while brushing your teeth or switch off lights and standbys when they are not needed or go … more
Building a Regional Food System
On Wednesday, January 24, 2007, a conference entitled Building a Regional Food System: Supporting Farmers, Families, Communities, and the Environment will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Church of the Lehigh Valley, 424 Center Street, Bethlehem, from 6:00 p.m. to … more
Who are the new eco-terrorists?
Meet the new eco-terrorists: Us By Anne Felker — Words matter. That’s why I noticed the words “eco-terrorist” and “eco-terror” the other day in the reporting of the arson of a number of houses in a development being built in … more
What is ‘Peak Oil’?
Most experts now agree that ‘Hubbert’s Peak’ — the point at which world oil production starts to decline—has either already passed or will occur within the next year or so. Some of the world’s largest fields, in Saudi Arabia, Mexico, … more
Lehigh Valley Student Sustainability Conference
Friday, Nov 13, 2009 Northampton Community College, Southside Bethlehem Campus 511 E Third Street Bethlehem, PA A special conference by and for students in the Lehigh Valley, but open to all. Based on the success of the Spring 2009 LVAIC Sustainability Conference, … more