Sustainability & Health
When people think about sustainability, they often focus on overconsumption of finite resources, reducing the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that cause global warming, or the vast mountains of waste that will not biodegrade. Scientists often talk about ‘ecosystem impacts’—the ways in which pollution or global warming threaten the interdependency that characterizes the more complex web of life upon which we all depend. Unfortunately, those definitions tend to overlook the fact that unsustainable practices and environmental pollution are major causes of illness (and even death).
New York’s Little Revolution
The following was published by Yes! Magazine, a non-profit magazine that focuses not only on all that’s wrong but on positive approaches, a transition to a better world. New York’s Little Revolution How the state’s fight for clean water is reshaping … more
Diesel Pollution in the Lehigh Valley
Many believe that school buses are the safest method of transportation for children to get to school, but is it the healthiest? Diesel pollution is becoming a more significant problem across the United States today and specifically, the Lehigh Valley … more
Sewage Sludge
One reliable & comprehensive source of information about sludge and the dangers associated with its use is the Sludge-Free Alliance, based in nearby Berks County. Here’s an introductory paragraph from their website: For just one moment, think of everything that gets flushed or rinsed … more
Health Costs of Traffic Congestion
Harvard Center for Risk Analysis examines the public health costs of congestion A Health Risk Assessment conducted by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis challenges the tendency for analysts and policymakers to focus only on excess fuel consumption and wasted … more
Earth Charter
The Earth Charter is a declaration of fundamental ethical principles for building a just, sustainable and peaceful global society in the 21st century. It seeks to inspire in all people a new sense of global interdependence and shared responsibility for … more
Testing Mother Nature’s Limits at Our Expense
by Martin Boksenbaum — Is it just me or does it seem to you too that those in control—of industry, food production, energy systems, land development, planet and animal genetic patents, and us too—are testing Mother Nature’s limits? What can … 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
A Day in the Life
by Chrysan Cronin — It’s 6:30 in the morning. I am scrambling an egg white in a non-stick pan from an egg that, one minute earlier, had been nesting in a plastic egg carton, surrounded by 11 other eggs stamped … 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