Rainforests - impacts from chocolate and coffee

Cocoa Impacts to Rainforests

• Coffee and sugar are the world’s most traded ag product – cocoa is #3.
• Cocoa beans come from a small understory rainforest tree.
• The trees are shade tolerant, and thrive in humid areas. Although the trees are very shade tolerant, farmers have cleared large sections of rainforests to allow for better access and to grow larger quantities of cocoa.
• Around 18 million acres of tropical land is used for cocoa farming. Five million farmers (most of them small farms) earn their livelihood off cocoa production. Many of these farmers do not receive fair wages for their crop and the working conditions are often very poor.
• There are several companies that sell rain forest certified organic/fair trade chocolate.
  

Coffee impacts to Rainforests

• US is the largest coffee-consuming nation on the planet, the United States purchases more than a fourth of the WORLD’s coffee
• Enormous amounts of rainforests are cleared for the production of coffee beans. Although the plants grow successfully in shade, the common farming practice utilizes sun tolerant plant species.
• Each commercial shrub produces at least a third more fruit than its shade-grown counterpart. From an economic sense, the sun-lover plants are better than the shade grown plants. The coffee from your favorite coffee joint was PROBABLY made from a bean that was grown in full sun.
• Sun-grown coffee usually requires heavy doses of pesticides and chemical fertilizers, many of which wind up polluting nearby water supplies.
• The ONLY method to ensure that the coffee you are drinking was made from a shade grown species is to verify the label from the coffee shop. Starbucks and Caribou do sell shade grown/fair trade/organic coffee. It is more expensive than the house brew. If you want a cup right away (instead of buying a bag to take home), you generally must ask for it to be pressed because they don’t generally sell it on the line.

Thoughts to ponder

• Take a minute to reflect on Jeffrey’s thought provoking blog about the “going green” movement. It's sometimes more expensive to make the "green" choice.
• There is no question that coffee consumption supports a rainforest destruction. This issue is not under debate - it's fact. The only issue to debate is how much we are willing to change our consumer behavior now that we are informed of the facts. Each time we drink a cup of sun grown coffee, we are likely supporting rainforest destruction and we might also be supporting poor working conditions for the farmers that harvested the beans.
• How much you would be willing to pay to drink a cup of coffee that was grown in the shade? Would you pay $1.00 extra? If it’s 5 a.m. and you need a jump start, would you be willing to skip you’re a.m. coffee if you knew that it was grown in the sun?

I struggle with these decisions each day. I am exposed to hard evidence about how my consumer behavior impacts the environment. Yet, there are times that I want to eat a Snickers or that I drink whatever coffee is available (hey once I start averaging over 100 hours a week, I slirp coffee like a mad woman).

I often make the wrong choice. Knowledge is sometimes a burden. The market is driving the agriculture. We control what’s happening.

US Agency for International Development http://www.usaid.gov/
Sustainable Tree Crop Program http://www.treecrops.org/

It's just a Little Prick - like your son

“He grabbed a fist full of my hair and slammed my face into the floor,” Whitney said as she reached up and adjusted the i.v. drip. “As my shoulder dislocated, I knew that I could not get away. He raked my face over the heating vent. Pieces of my teeth scattered under the coffee table.”

Sarah groaned and shifted under the starched hospital sheets.

“It's not fun feeling helpless is it Sarah?" Whitney circled the bed. "Don't bother trying to speak, the sedative is stronger than your will power." Whitney shined her light in Sarah's pupils.

"You remember me don’t you Sarah? I was in my first year of undergrad and I was impressed by the PhD types; you sensed that about me." Whitney pressed the stethoscope to Sarah’s chest.

“You could have convinced me of anything. It’s laughable when I think back to you quoting Principle 3 of Social Judgment Theory. I was sitting in the hospital, like you are now. How is that for a twist of fate?" Whitney grinned and shook her head. “You explained that the theory indicates that people sometimes have a baseline for their thoughts and that they wouldn't believe me. You said that the community had a strong sense of loyalty to him and that the jury would stick up for him like a mother protecting her child at a parent teacher conference.” Whitney looked up from her clipboard. “I was scared and I believed you. I didn't want to lose my scholarship on account of causing trouble.”

Sarah’s eyes began to close and she reached for the emergency call button.

“Oh that’s sweet, are you reaching out for me Sarah?” Whitney patted Sarah’s hand. “Well Dean Sarah, I want you to know that I’m glad that I didn't pursue the case against your son. He deserved a life sentence but you intimidated me and bought me off. I used that money to fund medical school." She pulled the cap off the needle. "Now I have access to a more extravagant method of achieving justice."

"You're going to feel a little prick." She stroked Sarah's hair and whispered in her ear, “Oh and just between us girls, your husband is such a tiger. I love what you've done with the room.”

• Smith, S., Atkin, C., Martell, D., Allen, R., & Hembroff, L. (2006). A social judgment theory approach to conducting formative research in a social norms campaign. Communication Theory, 16, 142-152
• Note to reader: This story is fiction. A friend was telling me that she enjoys soap operas. I haven't seen a soap in about 20 years; I wanted to write a scene (just to find out if I could do it).

Does my butt look big in these jeans?

Finding your Motivation

Honey, we're not 21 anymore and yes, your butt looks big. So what? You have accomplished so much with your career, family and environmental work. You are super woman. That's what you wanted right?

• Sure it's what you wanted. But you also wanted to stay young and beautiful didn't you? Don't lose hope - if Miss Piggy (a pig for God's sake) can maintain her sexy savvy, then so can you. You have the power to change your exterior (if that is what bothers you most). We already know that you're accomplished on the inside.

There are no secret weightloss plans - just eat healthy and exercise. That's easy to remember. The hard part is keeping yourself inspired and motivated enough to do it. The key to getting your booty back in those jeans is finding your motivation and using it as a tool to help you succeed.

• Achievement Motivation: If you're an achievement kind of person, then you need to satisfy your desire to succeed. Set a goal - maybe you want to be able to run a 5k by Christmas or maybe you want to wear your jeans by January.

• Affiliation Motivation: Will friends and family shower you with compliments if you get back into your skinny jeans? Do you feel good when other people validate you? Hey, they are your support crew. Tell them to send you weekly emails to encourage you to stay on your exercise plan.

• Competence: Are you driven by being excellent at a task? Do you take your job very seriously? Do you like to be perfect? Use that type A personality to your advantage. Tell yourself, "I will close this deal. I will not fail." Treat your diet and exercise plan like a task - something that you must conquer.

• Power: Do you have the ability to change the people around you? If you stick to your exercise plan will that motivate your children to be more active? Will your spouse join you? Will you inspire your friends and family to succeed? Okay Mrs. Beaver, rally the troops and get back on your diet then!

• Incentive: Do you like to receive awards for your accomplishments? Will you win a contest at work if you lose the most weight? Do you want those Prada shoes or to take a little rendezvous to New York? Make a deal with yourself. If you stick to your healthy eating plan for 3 months, then you get the shoes or the trip. Or both!

• Fear: What are the consequences if you don't succeed? Do you work hard because you like to work or do you work hard because you're worried about what will happen if you don't? Go put on a bikini (that will put the fear of God in you). Or go read over a few websites pertaining about the consequences associated with unheathly eating and lack of exercise.

We like you just the way that you are - but if you don't like you, then it's time for change. So, put down the Snickers and put on your running shoes. We'll be out there running with you (and checking out your butt). Let us know what motivates you and we'll work to help you stay on track...

• To Learn more about Motivation: Shah, K. & Shah, P. (n.d) Motivation. Retrieved July 10, 2007, from http://www.laynetworks.com/Motivation.html

Arctic Warrior - Listening to and Speaking out for those that cannot speak for themselves

A mighty creature bellows into the arctic night. He paces back and forth on the edge of a small slab of ice floating in the ocean. There is no land in sight. His muscles are fatigued; he has no strength to swim. Death is inevitable.

Sometimes, it’s not important to be fluent in a foreign language (or a cross species language) in order to communicate effectively. Imagine that you are on an arctic cruise. You’re standing on the deck of a luxury ship. The stars are like Swarovski crystals in the midnight sky. The air is crisp. There are no sounds other than the gentle lapping of the sea water below. Off in the distance, your ears hear an animal crying out. You hear him and although you do not speak polar bear, your mind and heart decode the message. The Earth stands still for a moment as you listen to the final cries of one of North America’s most magnificent animals.

How can we interpret the message from a non-human species yet we cannot always effectively listen and communicate with members of our own kind? The answer is simple. When you were standing on the ship, there were no sounds, no people, and no noise in your own head. You simply were enjoying moment of the night. Your peacefulness was interrupted by the bear and you gave him your attentiveness and thoughtfulness. Your ears heard him and you allowed your mind and heart to listen. And so we must allow our minds and hearts to be open and not just hear, but we must listen to scientists and policy makers that are devoting their life’s work towards protecting the endangered polar bear.

Sometimes, our bias interferes with our ability to listen to the message. Maybe you support the efforts to drill in Alaska. Maybe you support the coal industry. Maybe you’re tired of conservation and wildlife activists sending you solicitation materials in the mail. Don’t allow your bias to interfere with your ability to listen and decode the message. Regardless of your political beliefs, the polar ice caps are melting at an expeditious rate. Polar bears are drowning. Those are facts. It is likely that this endangered species could become extinct within our own lifetime. The loss would impact an entire food web from seals down to phytoplankton. Imagine the impact if polar bears become extinct. Imagine them only existing in history books.

We might not speak polar bear but we can interpret the message. Time is running out for the arctic warrior. Speak out for those that cannot speak for themselves.

• To learn more about listening: Lu, J. (2005). The listening style inventory (LSI) as an instrument for improving listening skills. Sino-US English Teaching, 2 (5), 45-50.

• To learn more about polar bears and global warming:
  Natural Resources Defense Council - http://www.nrdc.org/
  National Wildlife Federation – http://www.nwf.org/
  World Wildlife Fund – http://www.wwf.org/
  

Wind Energy - Friend or Foe?

Godzilla winds raged through our city a few weeks ago. Because over 300,000 homes were without power, wind was a hot topic around town. Wind has the awesome power to damage and destroy. Yet, it also has tremendous potential as a green energy resource.

Let’s face it folks, although Ohio is a coal state, there isn’t enough of it to last forever. The resources are rapidly declining. Coal, oil and natural gas are limited resources. There is no question that some of our natural resources will be tapped out within our lifetime. Even if these resources would last forever, the planet couldn’t handle 100 more years of C02, NOx and particulates.

Ohio is focused on developing and encouraging green energy. Wind is on the forefront. The Buckeye State has suitable wind resources for wind turbines to be successful in generating power. Like it or not, you will be seeing wind turbines in Ohio.

Wind is going to come up in your conservations. Your kids will probably be working on wind projects at school. To make sure that you’re up to speed on wind, I will serve as your nerdy science resource.

Let’s take a gander…

What is wind?
The sun heats up the Earth. It keeps us warm and helps the plants grow. Some parts of Earth get a lot of sunlight. Other parts of the Earth don’t get as much sun. Because of the differences in sun exposure, some parts of the planet are warmer than others.

Warm air is lighter than the cooler air. Since the warmer air is lighter, it floats above the colder air. When the warm air moves up, the cold air scoots underneath it. Sort of like, “on your feet, lose your seat.” The air is constantly playing musical chairs. The air moving all around is what makes the wind!

How does a Wind Turbine Work?

The wind causes the rotor blades to turn (sort of like the pinwheels that we played with when we were pups—if you blow on it, the pinwheel spins round and round). So the wind causes the rotor blades to turn and that turns a shaft inside of the wind turbine. The shaft is connected to a generator. The generator sends the electricity onto the electrical wires that are inside of the turbine. The electricity ends up in a switchyard and then sent onto the transmission lines. Cool stuff.

Not everyone is feeling super pumped about wind power. There are some rockin’ aspects about wind but there are some trade-offs too.

Some potential Impacts Associated with Wind Power

• Water —Wind turbines do not require water for operation. Therefore, there are no impacts to surface or ground waters for operation of the turbine.
• Air — Wind turbines do not emit any air pollution.
• Trees —Trees/vegetation could be cleared for construction of a wind farm. Many wind farms would be constructed in areas which aren’t heavily forested.
• Wildlife — Bird and bat fatalities have occurred on wind farms. The animals fly into the turbine.
• Aesthetics — Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

What do you think about wind? Are you charged up? Are you worried about it? Would you protest against a wind farm in your community? Are you secretly hoping that a utlity company will buy your land for a wind farm so that you can use the money to move to Hawaii?

Post your thoughts and questions. We are all different but we all live on the only planet that has been proven to sustain human life. Therefore, we're all in this energy crisis together.