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Obesity adds to global warming – but where’s the paper?

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The reason why I found blogging so tough to sustain, was that I could not overcome my urge to check into every last detail, and the time needed to fact-check my blogs was getting way out of hand. Here's one hitherto unpublished blog: last May, 2008, the Globe & Mail's Life section had an article about the research of Dr. Phil Edwards, Senior Lecturer, and Prof. Ian Roberts, at the prestigious London School of Hygeine & Tropical Medicine. Basically, the Globe (along with other media outlets, including the USA's MSNBC site, CNN and the UK's Daily Telegraph) carried the story, entitled "Obesity adds to global warming", about the research that describes how obese and overweight people "require more fuel to transport them and the food they eat", and then makes the link between this and the greenhouse gas emissions from the burning of fossil fuels, that is driving climate change. I interpreted this as leaving me with the following take home sustainability message - "eat less and lose weight, and not just for for your own health, but for the environment."

This reported research finding illustrates two really important things about the pain of peer-reviewed research: As scientists, we often take years to show that intuitive ideas and guesses do hold. There are no surprises about this particular result - it takes more energy to move heavy goods (you pay more for it at the post office). BUT - I am more likely to take this finding seriously because it comes from academics who have published their research through the highly-scrutinized peer-review process. This is known as "publish or perish" and it's what makes university-based research more reliable than non-refereed, unscrutinized research.

The second thing, is that as a scientist, it's not enough for me to read about this in the newspaper. I immediately went to access The Lancet, the prestigious journal in which the study was published. And this is where the fun began. First, I could not find any such article in the latest on-line issue, which I accessed through the York University Library. So, I searched the entire contents of the journal. I found a just-published article called "Transport Policy is Food Policy" by the two authors, which I thought MUST be the journal paper that all the media outlets were referring to. BUT, the download link to the pdf was wrong and it gave me another article (this does occasionally happen with on-line science journals). After a bit more persistence, I DID get the article, which turns out not to be a full journal article, but an item of correspondence. Hmm - I wonder what the review process is for 'correspondence'?

Next I found, by googling a bit more, that there are numerous peer-reviewed journal articles making the links between greenhouse gas emissions, food transportation policy and obesity. Wow - I had no idea that this was such an academic issue. Next, I read some articles that quote a bunch of US Academics who counter the point of the Edwards & Robert's paper.  Wow, this could have taken the entire weekend to research, so, in the end I gave up my Saturday morning blogging in frustration at the time sink I was turning it into, and grabbed another cup of coffee. Next time someone asks me exactly how the kind of thinking that I do about sustainability differs from non-professorial sustainability thinkers, I will direct them to this blog.

Dawn Bazely

Save The Walrus – by reading and subscribing to it

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We have just decided to do our little bit, and to renew our family subscription to The Walrus magazine, which has been in financial peril, as far as I can tell, since its inception. This is very unfortunate, because it has some of the most thoughtful, in-depth writing about sustainability issues to be found anywhere in Canada, and, indeed, in the world.  For example, the article on urban agriculture, The Future Has Begun in Jan-Feb 2009 is excellent. When I look at our attempt at an urban eco-garden - note the clothes line, upside-down tomato planters, beans, peppers, many herbs, composter (rat-free, this time, we hope), rain barrel, and lots of native plants, aimed at encouraging insects - I believe that it is significant that I don't see this replicated much, if at all, in my neighbourhood. In Toronto, we have a very long way to go compared with Havana, Cuba, and The Walrus can help us along the way. Please think about supporting it.

Dawn R. Bazely

PS Update in September 2010 - I just renewed my Walrus subscription AGAIN and gave it as gift to Annette Dubreuil

Can blogging be sustainable?

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It's about a year since I last blogged.  When we got the new IRIS website up and running, it was great fun to learn about blogging, but it actually took a lot of time to write and fact-check serious blogs (as opposed to simply churning out drivel).  It's been a challenge to get people associated with IRIS to commit to blogging and to sustain it.  This challenge has given me insight into why social networking sites such Facebook, and the sms-driven Twitter, are so appealing.  Having said that, while you CAN post to these sites really quickly, I also think that far too many people (including members of my family and a lot of students and older people that I know) spend far too much time on these sites; there is a very addictive quality about them.

My issue with finding time for blogging, is that, not only do I have lots of "Administrative Duties" (around here, the Director is as likely to be taking out the trash as to be schmoozing with VIPs), but I also lead active field-based research projects, supervise graduate students, write papers and book, carry out peer-review for journals and governments, and serve on many external bodies - plus I have children (teenagers need as much time and attention as toddlers) and a husband who is on the road a lot.  So, my blogging about sustainability had to be sidelined.  But, no more - I have decided that I will be doing less intensive and more twitter-like blogging, that is much more frequent.  Why?  Because a large part of my job is about being a Connector in a Gladwellian, Tipping Point, sense. The more that I participate in sustainability-related conversations, the more I have come to realize that many concerned people remain hugely unaware of many important issues that relate directly to their concern about sustainability. Additionally, because IRIS is about sustainability in an academic setting, IRIS members - including myself - are also Mavens or information specialists (again, see The Tipping Point).  For example, my research on why many forests in southern Ontario are falling down and are NOT sustained forest ecosystems, is producing new information and knowledge (see photos of Rondeau Provincial Park, and the low density of trees, due to deer browsing on the twigs of saplings, resulting in long-term mortality of high woody species i.e. trees).

So - as a professor, who cannot resist giving homework - today's assigned reading is Malcolm Gladwell's Tipping Point - but if you don't have time, the Wikipedia page on this one is just fine.

Dawn Bazely

 

Climate Change and EcoJustice Conference Concludes

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Group Photo of Presenters

Group Photo of Presenters

On April 16-17, 2009, York University hosted a groundbreaking conference on how disenfranchised people will adapt to climate change. Community activists and activist scientists from Brazil, India, South Africa, and Arctic Canada shared stories of local vulnerabilities to climate change, and discussed strategies for addressing inequities in climate change causation, mitigation, funding, and education.

The conference was sponsored by Environment Canada, International Polar Year, York International, Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University, and IRIS which also served as the conference secretariat.

Audio clips, transcripts, and powerpoint slides of the presentations as well as bios of the presenters have been made available on the IRIS website. Check it out here!

Sustainable Fish

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Next time you're buying fish at the supermarket, it would be a good idea to look for "MSC" on the label.

MSC stands for the Marine Stewardship Council, which has a certification program to identify sustainable fishing. So anything with the MSC label on it is recognized as eco-friendly fish.

Considering the amount of fish farming done which has been shown to not only be unsustainable, but unhealthy (see the Big Green Purse blogs for more info), you can help the environment by making informed decisions based on where your food is coming from.

To read more about this initiative visit http://www.msc.org/about-us

The Cup Is Greener on the Other Side

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I've been doing some research on eco-friendly alternative packaging/cutlery/cups etc. to replace the paper and styrofoam we use here at York. My attention was directed to Bhumi Products.
On their website, they state, "Bhumi products is a Canadian company dedicated to promoting environmentally friendly products."
Now this sounds like we're on the right track right? a LOCAL company that provides nice biodegrable and compostable products. this is all good and well until you find out what their products are made of.
"Bhumi Products are made from 100% sugar cane fibers, which is a natural by product of the sugar refining industry."
After hearing this, Tony Morris pointed out to me that sugar cane is not something that can be grown in Canada, and furthermore, sugar cane production has a high energy cost to produce.
It is important to keep in mind where the material comes from. Canadian company or not - sugar cane is not a local source. Additionally we need to pay attention to where the products are manufactured. I found the answer to that under their NEWSFLASH: "The Bhumi Products team will be on their way to visit our manufacturing facilities in Shanghai, China. Watch for our documentary film coming to the website soon."

So this "Canadian" company (which I guess means they have their head office here) manufactures a product that, although IS biodegradable and compostable, (and a step above what we're using right now) uses outsourced materials and facilities, leading us to wonder, is this really a sustainable practice?

Just because something says "Green" on it, or is biodegradable, doesn't mean it was created in an eco-friendly manner. Just as in life, it is important to look not only at what you see in front of you, but where it came from - how it came to be.

Quiz: How green is your food?

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Source: BBC Nov 2004.

1. The energy used to import a kg of fresh spinach from California to the UK is equivalent to running a 100 watt light bulb for:

A: 1 year
B: 1 month
C: 2 weeks
D: 1 week

2. It takes 3.5 times as much of what to produce a litre of non-organic milk compared to a litre of organic milk?

A: Energy
B: Water
C: Fertilizer
D: Land

3. A typical British family of four emits 4.2 tonnes of C02 from their house each year and 4.4 tonnes from their car. How much is emitted from the production, packaging and distribution of the food they eat?

A: 1 tonne
B: 2 tonnes
C: 4 tonnes
D: 8 tonnes

Answers:

1. B
2. A – Organic milk comes from cows which are fed on pasture which is not treated with fertilizers and pesticides. Much of the extra energy used in the production of non-organic milk is energy used in the production of the fertilizer.
3. D

The Healthy Butcher

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The Healthy Butcher are two Toronto based organic and local meat shops, one on Eglinton West and the other on Queen St. West. While, specializing in local certified organic meat they are expanding to produce as well. In light of recent issues with processed meat and the always present concern over the ecological impacts of meat consumption and industrial agriculture, the Healthy Butcher offers an alternative to becoming a vegetarian. They are fundamentally committed to healthy, organic, and most importantly local meat. They buy directly from farmers and have extensive information on what certified organic means to them. For this company, organic meat means;

  • Livestock must be fed 100% organic food;
  • No use of chemical pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, and fertilizers in the growing of the animals’ feed;
  • No use of genetically modified organisms;
  • No use of growth hormones;
  • No use of drugs (such as antibiotics);
  • No use of animal by-products for feed;
  • Treating animals humanely (i.e. they have outside access at all times);
  • Inspections by an independent certification body occur on a regular basis;
  • All certified products records are kept for 5 years;
  • Strict Canadian and International standards are met.

In all they are making a commitment to healthy meat consumption, environmental and social sustainabililty by supporting local farmers. Organic meat is more humane as the animals are treated better and raised naturally without chemical hormones. The Healthy Butcher also makes the best effort to ensure that their prices are comparable to non-organic meats. Even if the prices are a little more, is it not worth it for a little piece of mind.

Fridge Free for a Year

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This article is a first person account of a Torontonian that made the leap to attempt a very unique project. As the article points out, Canadians are among the highest energy users in the world. There are so many modern conveniences that we take for granted regardless of their ecological cost or how they disconnect us from natures' cycles. This article decided that the fridge is one such convenience. Upon unplugging her fridge, the author decided to learn about how communities used to deal with food. She tells a story of how her father's community built a barn insulated with sawdust and used huge chunks of ice cut from a river in the winter that they stored in the barn keeping it cool throughout the summer months. This barn was used to maintain a community grocery store year round with no power other than human power and horses. She uses examples of how little of our food actually needs refrigeration. Most vegetables keep quite well at room temperature for at least a week. Gardens allow you to take food or herbs when you need to. Of course, those of us that have lived our entire lives with this modern convenience forget that food never knew the inside of a fridge till 50 years ago (Refrigeration was invented in the late 19th Century, but it was not until the 1950's that it was common). In the winter it is rather easy to keep things cool, but in the summer you have to be more creative. This person used a basement cellar, which is common in any older house. Other techniques involved just bowls of water. While, I do not expect people will be unplugging their fridge anytime soon this was an interesting article and reminds us of how we take for granted so many conveniences in our day to day life.

Olympian environmental challenges for Beijing

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Cleaning up Beijing for the Olympics Games, one of the world's worst polluted cities, was always going to be a herculean effort. In the last week before the games, authorities have seen the particulate matter content of the city's air yo-yo back and forth, from an optimistic clear sky on the weekend, to a return of heavy haze by the time of the opening ceremonies.

The IOC has been monitoring the situation and has been impressed with the lengths that the Beijing authorities have gone to ensure a safe games. UNEP has also been working with the Beijing Olympic Committee as noted in this IPS article. On the whole, despite the pollution caused by the heavy construction ahead of the games, the Olympics will be a net positive for China's environment, focusing attention on a grave problem.

The Asia Society has put together a slide show to highlight the problem of China's worsening air situation, and how China may try to correct this through a call for "scientific" development that finally recognizes the environmental impact of the country's rapid economic development.

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